I pl | , r . , Jj ? . .L-.k r. ,1 t _ . , . . * _ * . . v - . - . • - % % aji1iV-irT B M
H * , - . .
Hi " Svv * *
BtfUL J
II In tltidfef0 . \s
III \ # rferK
-K
If * , • - -J bSSwtow
Iff /Ss he pe ° pie ° f st-
/
HI z 1,1113 park tbat
Bl / > wW/iwm > New Year's eve
HI wwJmw 'lookinS to the east
Hi' ' iv v 'Wysaw unaer the tow"
IB ; ' fwa # ering white crests
KB / s lli ! & ' \ ' * o the Sierra Bian _
B WwmPj// a higa smoke
> / /
Bl - y/ t M s pillar rieln ° witn
Kt l MS the sky and ifc
Bf ] ' / / y their hearts , for it
Big assured them now , as It did
1 after every great storm , that
1 Sim Belden was still alive , still able
HI to grub under the foot of the ever-
U threatening avalanches for the fortune
| H he had left the world to win.
H Sim Belden was a tall , handsome
BH giant of 30 , who had come from no one
Bn knew where. The few wh knew him
i thought he was unsocial , and -Oiose
H with whom he traded at Garland be-
ffif lieved that he had hit upon a rich find
Mi under the snow line , and that he would
Be make "it hot for the man who tried to
m be his neighbor.
j H Sim Belden had boon mining alone
BE in tue Sierra Blanca , but during the
Bf ' v st twelve months he had a compan-
Bd ion , a young Ute kid named Pedro ,
M | whom he had found dying and aban-
Hj doned over on the headwaters of the
Bl - ei Norte.
H | When Sim Belden , without any pro-
B cess of law , became Pedro's guardian ,
H that youth's knowledge of English was
H confined to the one word , "damn. " His
BH acquaintance with Spanish was a lit
HBf tie more extensive. He knew that
H [ buenos dias meant "good day ; " sabe ,
B "understand ; " si , senor , "yes , sir , " and
n dinero , "money/ * But there is a lan-
Bl guage of signs which all understand.
H * Sim had just eome up from Garland
Kl burdened with a great pack of eata-
Hj bles , and a proportionate amount of
Hj drinkables , for the traditions of his
H youth led him to believe that both were
H essential to a popular observance of
H ] the season.
H | This evening in the cabin , after sup-
EHJ per , Sim Belden was unusually talka-
IHj tive , and , forgetting or ignoring that
v K Pedro's comprehension of English was
KHj limited , he rattled on like cne think-
K B mg aloU ( an-d wishing for no comment
I B on kat no Baid
Bl " * r' 's Deen no end of a flne aav Pe _
Km dro just like the New Year eves we
wBM used to have back in the Alleghanies
H | when I wus a boy like you. But to-
R night we'll pay for it , and I'm much
BB afra'd tcmorrow will be a regular old ,
j howlu ? New Year's day. "
Hj Seeing that the white man hesitated
m Pedro looked wonderingly up and said ,
H "Si , aanor. "
H Sim Belden lit his pipe and throwing
Hj himaei ? on a cinnamon bearskin before
H the flie , looked at Pedro for a few
Hj mintitcs and then went on , "Of course ,
H Pedro , you wasn't ever in love ? "
| Pedro said , "Si , senor , " and scratched
m n3 head like one perplexed.
H | "iJo , Pedro , you don't savey , and I
M h0p you never will. If you should
H | over be took that way , commit suicide
B unlcus you're dead sure. But , then.
Bj ao ona J ; : v = r is-- --c o -Hroman ,
I
or of a man either , for the matter of
that.
"Now , Pedro , I ain't in the habit of
giving myself away. I'm one of the
kind that keeps his trouble to him
self , but there's something 'bout New
Year's that makes one confidential
like. "
"Si , senor. " said Pedro , as he ex
tended his lithe form toward the warm
ing fire.
Sim Belden turned over on his
breast , and resting his bearded chin
on his upturned palms , looked at the
dancing flames and continued :
"There was never a man loved his
brother as I loved my brother Jack.
Two years younger'n me , and hand
some as a picture no wonder Alice
Thorpe shook me for him. But it
wasn't fair. That's why I kicked.
When our raft went to pieces on the
Susquehanna years and years ago , it
was Jack that , not caring for himself ,
dove under the logs and fished me out.
But often and often , as I've sat by this
fire as I'm doing now , I wished he'd
have let me drown. It's no use to
save a life and curse it.
"Jack was always wild , and when
father died and left all the property to
me except $5 for him , I put my arm
about him and said : 'Never mind ,
Jack. I'll divvy fair. So long as I've
got a dollar 50 cents of it is yours. '
Then he kissed me like when we were
boys , and there were tears on my
cheek that did not come from my
eyes. "
The giant's voice became hoarse , and
while he was clearing his throat Pe
dro gave utterance to his first English
word. "Damn ! "
"Yes , Pedro , that's just how I often
feel. You see I can't blame him for
falling in love with her , for * heaven
never made a prettier woman ; but it
was the deceit on both sides. You un
derstand ? "
"Si , senor. "
"Curious enough , it was just three
years ago this very New Year's eve
when I discovered them in the hall of
her house talking in loving whispers
and with his arm about her. My God !
I felt like striking the two dead , but I
bic my lip till the blood came ; then I
gilloped back home , where my aunt
was fee housekeeper , for mother was
. < = . - * - tin uniim \
"WHITEMAN ! WHITE MAN ! "
dead. I said nothing to her , but I
wrote two notes one to Jack , leaving
him all the property , and the other to
Alice Thorpe , telling her I'd discov
ered she was false and asking her to
marry my brother. Then I started for
the west , and the life before me was
gloomy as the canon depths on a
cloudy midnight.
"At first I felt like changing my
name ; but , as I'd never brought dis
grace on it , I let it stand. What mat
ters a name to a man , who's left the
world behind forever ?
"There's the story , Pedro. That's
why I'm here , and you're the first and
the last human being that'll ever hear
of It from my lips. Savey ? "
"SI , senor/ ' said Pedro , without the
i
slightest comprehension of the secret
that had been confided to him.
Sim Belden was about to speak
again , but he changed from his pur
pose by a rush , a roar , and a crash
that filled the air and shook the earth
as if the mountain was tumbling into
St. Luis park.
"A snowslide ! Thank God there's
no one on the trail between here and
Garland tonight ! " Sim Belden sat up
and looked at the Indian boy , whose
lean face and black eyes were filled
with an expression of intent anxiety.
*
"What is it , Pedro ? What do you
hear , man ? Speak out ! "
For reply Pedro bounded to his feet ,
and pointing in the direction of the
trail he shouted :
"White man ! White man ! "
In an instant Sim had the door open.
The whirling snow clouds limited his
' s sS y * * - - ! vy -
"A HAPPY NEW YEAR , DEAR SIM ! "
vision to the path of light before the
open door , but above the roaring of the
storm he heard the cry :
"Help ! For God's sake , help ! "
"Stay here and keep the door open ! "
That is what Sim Belden shouted as
he buttoned up his fur coat and leaped
down the snow-piled trail.
Pedro had no conception of the or
dinary measure of time , but it seemed
to him that at least a day had passed
since the white man had disappeared.
At length his heart was gladdened as
he saw him breasting through the snow
and bearing another white man in his
arms.
Sim Belden staggered into the cabin ,
and laid his burden on the fur cpvered
floor , and the instant he saw the face
of the unconscious man he dropped on
his knees , took the head in his arms
and cried out as he kissed the face so
like his own.
"Jack ! Jack ! O God , it's Jack ! Do
you hear me ? Lookup ! Here's Sim !
Here's Sim , asking you on his knees
to forgive him ! "
Sim and Pedro stripped off the wet
clothes , rubbed the white form till the
glow of life came back , and placed him
in a bunk and wrapped him in furs.
By the time a steam punch was
ieady Jack Belden rubbed his eyes and
looked about him. Then from the
bunk two white arms were extended ,
end he sobbed :
"After years of seeking I've found
you , Sim ! "
There is nothing more sacred than
the tears of honest , strong men.
Pedro looked on in wonder , and ,
though ho could not understand what
vas said , he realized that one had come
vho was nearer to his guardian's heart
than himself , but he felt no pangs of
je-alousy.
After a time Jack Belden felt strong
enoughto * sit up. He looked at his
watch , and teeing that it was after
midnight , he reached out his hand to
Lis brother and said :
"A happy New Year , dear Sim ! " And
still holding his brother's hand , Jack
told the story of his three years' search
and how only that afternoon he had
L-
- :
iiJiiliitflfflfiiiiitfii iiM i
5MB03S3BIHI.JMLJ. WB8Maa III I I II 173 31 J !
[ learned at Garland of Sim'3 hiding
place.
But there was more to toll. Wh n
I
Sim discovered him with Alice Thorpe ,
4just thrco years before this , he was
' telling the girl that he had become
engaged to her cousin Ethel , and was
begging her to plead his case with the
father and mother of his betrothed.
"Siace the day you left , Sim , I've
been a changed man , and a drop of
liquor hasn't passed my lips. But it is
not of myself , but of Alice I would'
speak. She was ever true to you , and
though she thinks you dead.sho is still ,
true to your memory , and tonight by
the fire in the old home , where she ,
gave you her love , she is weeping for.
a dead one who thought her false. "
The storm continued the next day ,
but in all that wild land no cabin held
two happier hearts than those of the
brothers reunited under the eaves cf
the avalanche far up the Sierra Blan
ca.
Shortly after this Sim Belden sold
out his claim and accompanied his
brother to the east. They took Pe
dro with them and sent him to the In
dian school at Carlisle , where he be
came a teacher.
Every new year he visits his guar
dian and his wife , and the children of
both brothers love him. His knowl
edge of English is perfect , and he ful
ly comprehends the story told him by
Sim Belden in the mountain shack thai
New Year's eve.
THE VESTAL AT THE GATE.
When today with vestal grace
She stood before your dwelling place ,
Did you take her by the hand ,
Bid her welcome to the land ,
With the cordial love and greeting
That we owe a friend at meeting ?
Fair and sweet to look upon
Was this lily maid at dawn ,
With her dark locks flowins down ,
And her saffron hood and gown
Set about with starry border.
Symbol of her priestly order.
And we owe to her , I hold.
Whether she be kind or cold ,
Whether she being rue or myrrh
When we lilt our gates to her ,
Well and duly to receive her ,
Lest our sad complaining grieve her.
What she brings us , heaven sent ,
Take your gift and be content ,
Though it be not what you sought ,
And your prayers seem set at naught ,
He knows best , who ruled the giving ,
What we need for holy living.
Do not vex her with dismay
At the pangs of yesterday ,
Nor disturb her heart in vain
With the hint of coming pain ;
For a fell , impending sorrow
May be God's best gift tomorrow.
Ola Moore.
ETHEL'S NEW YEAR'S CALLER.
All day long Ethel wished and wish
ed that she was a grown-up lady like
Sister Grace , so that she could have
a New Year's caller.
But the long , bright day went by
and not a single call did she have.
After supper she went slowly up into
the parlor and looked discontentedly
out of the window.
Right under the gaslight she saw a
glossy black cat. He took up first
one paw and then the other out of the
flaky snow and looked this way and
that before starting on his journey
once more. Then he ran along the
sidewalk in front of Ethel's home and
jumped quickly up the steps.
"It's my caller ! " exclaimed Ethel ,
breathlessly. "It truly is ! "
She opened the door and in walked
pussy , over the fur rug , into the par
lor and sat down in front of the fire.
In a second Ethel was beside him ,
hugging and petting him.
Pussy seemed to like it and curled
himself up contentedly in Ethel's lap.
He purred very loud for a few minutes
and then went to sleep.
"It's my New Year's caller ! " ex
plained Ethel. "He came his own
self , mamma , and I'm going to keep
him forever ! "
Pussy has never made any objection
to that plan and so Ethel still has her
caller , and she says her New Year's
"IT'S MY CALLER ! " EXCLAIMED
ETHEL.
call was the very best one , for it has
lasted nearly a whole year.
MARJORY DEANE.
In the Holidays.
'Tis chilly when returns come in ,
And you have done your part.
To find that the majority
Gave you the marble heart.
"Tis chilly when you woo a girl
To have a rival win ,
And get invited finally
To see her marry him.
But , ah , the coldest thing of all
In this chill month , no doubt.
Is to be told at 5 a. m.
"The flres are all out ! "
- - - fc- * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 111
ill 1 1 1 1 t Tin in ni tr 1-j | j- |
- . *
nii.nir 'T , * * '
-jj
TEE TIDAL EEICTION.
ACTING AS A PERPETUAL
DRAKE ON THE ROTATION.
Chan fro la Scientific View * No Contrii-
tllctlon of the l.iirrH of Growth nncl
Uvcay Which Knpi-flRcnt the limmit-
uhlo Order of Nuturo.
T 5ERHAP3 the most
| r w interesting accom-
I 1 \ ii * $ P ' a n ni e n t s of
/ rv\Frtr ! mathematical ao"
' \ ? > r
ril' TrQ1W " tronomy * r ° m a
f Siv mundane s t a 11 d-
/ t
& * f $ $ point , at any rate
tdwPw are tuoso tnat
( WJy v refer t0 tlie carth's
% { $ * > * own satellite sliy3
• i'/ ' % - Dr. H. S. AVilliams
in Harper's Maga
zine. That seemingly staid body was
long ago discovered to have a pro
pensity to gain a little on the earth ,
appealing at eclipses an infinitesimal
moment ahead of time. Astronomers
were sorely puzzled by this act of in
subordination ; but at last Laplace
and Lagrange explained it as due to
an oscillatory change in the carth's or
bit , thus fully exo ' nerating the moon ,
and seeming to demonstrate the ab
solute stability and permanence of our
planetary system , which the moon's
misbehavior had appeared to threaten.
This highly satisfactory conclusion
was an orthodox belief of celestial me
chanics until 1S53 , Avhen Prof. Adams
of Neptunian favie , with whom com
plex analyses were a pastime , reviewed
Laplace's calculations and discovered
an error which , when corrected , left
about half the moon's acceleration un
accounted for. This was a momentous
discrepancy which at first no one could
explain. But presently Prof. Ilem-
holtz , the great German psychist , sug
gested that a key might be found in
tidal friction , which , acting as a per
petual brake on the earth's rotation ,
and affecting not merely the waters
but the entire substance of our planet ,
must in the long sweep of time have
changed its rate of rotation. Thus the
seeming acceleration of the moon
might be accounted for as actual re
tardation of the earth's rotation a
lengthening of the day , instead of a
shortening of the month. Again the
earth was shown to be at fault , but
this time the moon could not be ex
onerated , while the estimated stability
of our system , instead of being reestablished
tablished , was quite upset. For the
tidal retardation is not quite an oscil
latory change which will presently
correct itself , like the orbital wabble ,
'but a perpetual change , acting always
.in one direction. Unless fully coun
teracted by some opposing reaction
therefore ( as it seems not to be ) , the
( effect must be cumulative , the ultimate
consequences disastrous. The exact
" character of these consequences was
first estimated by Prof. G. H. Darwin
in 1879. He showed that tidal friction
; in retarding the earth must also push
the moon out from the parent planet
an a spiral orbit. Plainly then the moon
.must formerly have been nearer the
earth than at present. At some very
remote period it must have actually
touched the earth ; must , in other
-words , have been thrown off from the
.then plastic mass of the earth , as a
polyp buds out from its parent polyp.
At that time the earth was spinning
about in a day of from two to four
hours. Now the day has bean length
ened to twenty-four hours and the
moon has been thrust out a distance
of a quarter million miles ; but the end
is not yet. The same progress of
events must continue till , at some le-
mote period in the future , the day has
come to equal the month , lunar tidal
action has ceased , and one face of the
earth looks out always at the moon ,
with that same fixed stare which even
now the moon has been brought to
assume toward her parent orb. Shru'd
we choose to take even greater liber
ties with the future it may be made
to appear Vthough some astronomers
dissent from this prediction ) that , as
solar tidal action still continues , the
day must finally exceed the month and
lengthen out little by little toward co-
inciderjee with the year , and that the
rnocn meantime must pause in its out
ward flight and come swinging back on
a swinging spiral , until finally , after
the lapse of untold aeons , it plows and
ricochets along the surface of the
earth and plunges to catastrophic de
struction. But even though imagina
tion pause far short of this direful cul
mination , it still is clear that modern
calculations , based on inexorable ti
dal friction , suffice to revolutionize
the views formerly current as to the
stability of the planetary system. The
eighteenth century mathematician
looked upon this system as a vast ce
lestial machine which had been in
existence about 6,000 years , and which
was destined to run on forever. The
analyst of today computes both the
past and the future of this system in
millions instead of thousands of years ,
yet feels well assured that the solar
system offers no contradiction to those
laws of growth and decay which seem
everywhere to represent the immut
able order of nature.
Securing a Substitute.
Mattie I'm so sorry , dear , to learn
that death has robbed you of your
favorite poodle. How can you ever
console yourself for his loss ? Helen
( sobbing ) I d-don't know ; b-but I
s-suppose I'll h-have to g-get m-mar-
ried.
His Sorrow.
Guyer "Where is Downtrod ? " Chee-
wit "I left him alone with his ser
row. " Guyer "Why , I though his wife
was dead. " New York Evening Jour
nal.
* i ' * " * nt' H B
- . . ' - . .jwy > i .i 4ij rfgwyiNjHlg' |
raif,3S _ . - - " 1 il l iMiifriMJMiiiiiii m - WnmifT k
BBPWi 1 - j M
The late Andrev/ . Spanglcr. of the \ \ M
Philadelphia board of education , -was h' M
an authority on fishing , and amo | i , H
his published works on this subfjinj H
are "A Paradlso for Gunncra and Anj > f B
lars" and "Nearby Fresh and Salt , W H
Water Fishing , " ' which latter states | H
"whon to go , where to go and how to * H
go , " to find come good fishing within | H
a radius of one hundred miles of a B
Philadelphia. Ho was the founder ana } ] AJJ
publisher of the Farm Journal , and ? J fj
several other agricultural papers , ami * V |
for a tlmo was editor of the PhiladclAJJ
phla Evening Herald , the Star. U16r HJ
Globe , the Evening Journal and the . ' v H |
Age. When the civil war began ho J
helped to organize the Philadelphia _
home guards and was active in rals- _
ing funds to care for the wounded H
during the war. ' M
Old Gentleman ( dictating indignant ' H
letter ) : "Sir : My stenographer being H
a lady , cannot take down what I think 1
of you. I , being a gentleman , cannot H
think it ; but you. being neither , can M
easily guess my thoughts. " Brooklyn M
Life. H
William Shaw , jr. , of Pittsburg has H
built and equipped a bath house at H
that place where the poor may enjoy H
the luxury of a bath upon the payment H
of 5 cents. It was opened on ThanksH
giving day. M
Mr. Candle Hello , Lamp , seems to H
me you're getting quite stout. " Mr. H
Lamp "II'm , may bo. but I dare say H
I'm lighter than you. Harper's Bazar. M
Mrs. Martha Littlefield Phillips contributes - " H
tributes to the January Century a V H
chapter of "Reflections of Washington - H
ton and I lis Friends. " as preservvd in < |
the family of General Nathaniel ] B |
Greene. Mrs. Phillips was th > adopJB j
ted child , and for many years the constant - | U
stant companion , of her grandmother B l
Cornelia , next tn the youngest daugh- } B
tor of General Greene. From tin lips H
of her grandmother , who died during . H
the civil war , the author heard many ' H
narratives of the revolutionary times. " H
Cornelia Greene visited the Washing- H
tons at Mount Vernon , when she was H
a little irirl. and later she spent two j H
winters with the president and his ' H
wife at Philadelphia. H
IStincoiii' ? Inventor * . |
The days of buncoing H
inventors are about at H
an end. Under the new H
© law which gees into H
effect January 1st , 110 H
solicitor or lawyer will j H
be allowed ( o call hvi H
place of business a M
"Patent Office , " as such a claim or M
advertisement is calculated to mislead - M
lead and deceive inexperienced inventors - M
tors into the belief that such an office - H
fice were in some way connected with H
the United States Pa ' tent Office. With H
the new year , the so-calMl "Iowa Pat- H
cnt Office , " "Nebraska Patent Office , " < H
"Northwestern Patent Office , " and. in H
fact , all private patent offices will disappear - 1
appear and each solicitor , attorney or I
firm of attorneys will be dependent M
upon his or their qualifications and fl
standing in order to get business. fl
This is as it should be. Parties de1 jH
siring free information as to the law M
and practice of patents mnv obtain the H
same in addressing Sups & Co. . regis- M
tered patent lawyers. Bee Building , * * ? J | B
Omaha , Neb. g * ff H
The feature that will attract all lovers - " H
ers of modern dramatic fiction to the H
January Atlantic is the first installment - M
ment of Gilbert Parker's new story. M
"The Battle of the Strong. " which S
promises to be one of his best and M
strongest works. It transports the H
reader to the historic shores of the H
isle of Jersey in the year 1731 , on the H
eve of the French attack upon the H
island. The movement of th otory M
begins with an energy and quickness * B
that engages immediate attention and H
arouses strong interest in what is to H
follow. M
Ioira Patent Office I < ; > ort. H
In view of the fact that the rules H
of practice 7 and 8 are violated in H
the United States Patent effice tj * . . H
sending misleading communication > * B
direct to applicants for patents who. | |
have not paid the filing fees , a public fl
explanation seems acec'sarv. In fl
said communications occurs the following - H
lowing : "Your attornev has been advised - M
vised of the non-pavment of this fee. M
but has made no response. Until the M
fee is paid the apniicit'on is inccm- H
plete and no action whatever can bo % | |
taken. " | H
In personal conversat'on with Acting - ' H
ting Commissioner Gre Iey la-t S'p- ' B
tember I made complaint of such of- wW
ficial action and he replied he was not Bl
aware that they were doing so. Evi- H
dentl/ some subordinate is doing this H
and the chief in command allows it j H
to go on even after my complaint. |
Valuable information about securing. |
valuing and selling patents sent frefr > H
THOMAS G. ORWIG , " * V J M
Solicitor cf Patents. H
Das Moines , la. , December 22 , ' 97. M
A woman begins to show her age as M
scon as she gets the idea < haf she M
doesn't sleep near so well ia a strange B
bed. f M
* H
FITS PcrnanentljCurcd. T'on ornorToa ip-aartet |
hrt tlAi u o of Dr. Kliu * .rc.tt. * er\e ilester. H
.
b.-nd ior F11KE S'iMU trial aid . H
- Imttlo
tre tMn.
UK. R. H. Kli.sk. I.U.ail Arch St. . PLilatirlphia. Pa. j H
The first year a woman is married B
she thinks most of her husband , the B
second of her baby and the third of her B
* - M
trea < Irnin a mim wlio u positive In Ills , cohtIc-I H
hare . . , that , J > , IJ. . TAFTS A > TIIMAMNli win A H
.
u.rj.f - „ r .Vrthma that h- will ? nd u trial i - M
bottle absolutely free to tfuweafilictej. J H
Don't judge a man bv the character I 1 1
given him by his next door neighbor. 1 ' H
SST S * v2 > Ps' , J1 W 1
| HAIR REMEWER M
I © Gives ncv/ life and ( § § [ § * ' ' * | H
Jk vigor to the roots of the $ H
! ghair. . Itrs like water to & H
jggk a drooping plant. / * H
fflMi No gray hair. M l H
it * * • * * - . Hi -
* % B