Fascinating
Man Ac/air , , ,
CHAPTER I.
"Its the only thing to do. " said Alan
thrusting his heads Into his pockets
and looking straight hefore him. "Here
there is nothing for me , and , as you
say , there is nothing to keep me here
It was her wish besides ; and yet yet
I hate leaving it. "
"I can well understand it , lad.
was the same. It is just in us Scotch
men , this love of the land. And I had
Joain , too , to keep me here ; and so I've
just stuck on and made a precarious
living , and I've but staved off the evil
days , for now my boys will have to
go. We can't make a living in the
old country , and there's no Joan , is
there ? " asked the old man , kindly.
"No. No woman has ever been any-
thiing to me except my mother , " said
the lad.
"Well , well , time enough ; there's
sure'to be , " said Maspherson. "A fine
lad like you ! " As a matter of fact , the
old man said , "Weel , weel , " but that
did not take away from the kindliness
of his speech. You've always got a
friend in me. I wish I could help you
substantially ; but that isn't easy. Still ,
if you need it , I can make a push as
well as my neighbors. "
"Thank you kindly , " said Alan Mac
kenzie , "but there will be no need of
it. The sale of my poor little sticks
will pay my passage money and there's
a good place waiting for me when I get
out , so that there will be no need for
me to go borrowing. I wish I felt a
little more enthusiasm about making
money. It's said to be in Scots' blood ,
but it isn't in me. I would fain stop
here and watch the clouds settling
round the hilltops all the rest of my
life than go to South America , and
make my fortune. Yet because my
mother wished it , and because she was
so overjoyed when the offer came to
me , I feel it is just my duty to do it ,
neither more nor less. "
It did not take long for Alan Mac
kenzie to sell his few possessions , aind
to turn his back upon the little Scotch
town. He was going as far as Glas
gow , to take a steamer to South Am
erica. His story was simply this : A
lad to whom his father had once given
a free passage to South America had
done so well at Rio that he was now
one of the foremost merchants there.
Pie had remembered his benefactor.and
when he heard of the captain's death ,
had writtoa and offered a good place
in his counting house to Alan Macken
zie. Mrs. Mackenzie was dying of a
painful disease , and she saw in this
offer a future for her son who she so
tenderly loved , and she was keen that
he should accept it. So that when she
died there seemed nothing for the lad
to do but to go.
He was a good looking lad , standing
about six feet in his stockings. He
liad passed his twenty-first birthday ,
Init he was younger than lads gener
ally are at 21 , having no experience in
the world , and none of men and wom
en. He had worked at school always ,
having been fond of his books , and he
had played outdoor games , so that he
had very little knowledge of either the
usual amusements or the perplexities
of life.
When he had finally said good-by to
his native place his spirits began to
rise withwi him. The world and ad
venture were before him. He had said
good-by to the old life , but the aew
was there. He had never been -so far
as Glasgow before , and the big town ,
with its lighted streets and the ships
in the river , attracted him. After all ,
there was something pleasing in big
things. Large enterprises and wealth
attracted and had charms after all. So
that it was with a lighter heart that
Alan Mackenzie embarked finally.
He loved the voyage. Heredity couats
for something and his father had loved
the sea. He felt it was his own ele 1
ment. When he reached Rio it was
with high hopes and resolves to make
his mark. He had a kind reception
from Richard Dempster.and here again
Alan felt the charm of riches and
power. Dempster's house was one of
the best in Rio , his clerks were well
paid , and his wife and daughters occu
pied a place second to none in society.
Dempster wanted Alan to become ac
customed to the work , and then to
found another branch of the house in
a mining town some hundred miles
away.
Dempster had two daughters , fine ,
fresh , handsome girls , but no sons.
The obvious thling would have been
for Alan Mackenzie to have fallen in
love with one of the girls , to have set
tled down comfortably and prosper
ously in Rio ; but there was one thing
against it. There was a little vein of
romance in Alain's nature , and he dis
liked the obvious. Besides , he had the
independent man's dislike to being be
holden to his wife for his advance
ment. So that although he was on
terms of perfect friendship-with Ina
and Eleanor Dempster , yet he neither
sought aor wished for any stronger
feeling.
The girls looked with favor on the
handsome young Scotsman , who work
ed so hard , of whom their father had
such a high opinion , and who was ,
moreover , always perfectly willing to
be at their ! , eck and call.
Alc'oon found friends : a Rio.
Dempster's position was almost unique
and when it became known that he
looked with favor on the young Scots-
man , every one joined In makiiag fun
of him.
Most of the employes in the firm
were married , and they constituted a
little circle to themselves. Alan had
the run of their houses , and soon be
gan to feel at home ; however , amongst
them there was one man to whom he
never took. Atn. Englishman , Hutch
inson by name , a surly , red-haire
brute , with a magnificent head for fig
ures. He was the one man whom Mac
kenzie did not like , although he hat
never quarreled with him ; but h
fancied that it seemed as if Hutchin
son had a particular grudge asati3
him.
him.This
This surmise on Alaa's part was wel
founded , for , as a matter of fact , when
Dempster found him so intelligent , h
had thought it might be well to raise
him to Hutchinson's place.
There was some mystery abou
Hutchinson. He lived in a hous2 some
little way out of town , and no one
knew exactly whether he was married
or inot. Some affirmed that he had a
daughter , who has almost reached
woman's estate ; others said that he
never made any mention of any one
But , as a matter of fact , Hutchinson
never mentioned his private affairs at
all , so it was not wonderful that the
rest of the firm knew nothfag about
them.
But one day there came some
rather important tidings to the firm
Richard Dempster consulted Alan , and
he offered to talk over the matter with
Hutchinson. It was after business
hours , and the young man offered to
find the Englishman. He had not the
least idea of spying upon him , because
he had so many friends that he had
no need to seek any , and he was actu
ated solely by the wish to b ? useful to
his employer in what might become
advantageous.
South American affairs have not the
stability of ours. A day's delay , even
a few hours , might mean the loss of
maay thousands. So Alan obtained
Hutchinson's address from Dempster ,
and , in all good faith , went to find his
colleague. It took him some little time
to find the house. It was quite out of
! lie , and was more of a country" house
than a town house.
When he found it ha was amazed at
the beauty of his surroundings. It
seemed to him that Hutchinsoa lived
even in greater style than did Demps
ter , and that probably he did not wish
this to be known. There was no rea
son why Hutchinson should not live as
a rich man. He drew a large salary
from Dempster , and there were many
ways ia which lie could enlarge his
means.
Alan rode , on through avenues of
trees , fresh bowers of fruit and flow
ers , gorgeous in their tropical wealth
of color , and suddenly as he rode it
seemed to him that he heard the sound
of a woman sobbing. He reined in his
horse so as to make sure ; he still
heard the sound. The spirit of adven
ture burned hot withki him ; the cry
ing was so piteous , and Alan could not
bear to hear it. It was like that of
some girl in pain.
He fastened his horse to a tree , for
getting i all about the financial crisis
and his errand. All the chivalry in his
aature was stirred. He pulled aside
the boughs of the trees and came to
an open glade. A girl dressed in white
had thrown herself on the ground ;
her slight body was shaking with sobs.
Alan watched her for a moment and
then he spoke. "You seem in trouble , "
he said in English , for , though the
girl's head was dusky , yet she did not
look altogether Spainish. "Can I help
you ? "
The girl , startled by the voice ,
sprang up , and showed to Alan's , gaze
a face , disfigured by weeping , it is true ,
but of a perfect type of beauty. There
was Spanish blood in her , as was testi
fied by the liquid , dark eyes , and the
perfect oval of her face , and the slim ,
yet well-shaped limbs. Her mouth ,
too , quivering with emotion , was ripe
and red , and the little white teeth were
even and sharp.
She looked up for a moment at the
handsome lad , who was watchfcig her
with such evident concern , and then
she blushed and answered , with an at
tempt at self-possession that was very
creditable , seeing the abandonment of
grief in which Alan had fouad her : "It
is nothing , sir. I would not do as my
father wished , and he was angry and
struck me. "
"Struck you ? The brute ! " cried
Alan. "The detestable brute ! How
dare he strike a woman ? "
The girl's eyes were cast down ; she
seemed ashamed. Perhaps she had not
yet realized her womanhood complete
ly ; she seemed very young. "He has
a violent temper , sir. and perhaps I do
aot manage him well. I have no moth
er ; she died years ago. "
"Fortunately for her , " said Alan
grimly , "if your father is the sort of
man who would strike a woman ! "
"You see , " said the girl , "it seems
that this is important. My father had
promised my hand to a man he is a
Mexican Spaniard , and they think
nothing of arranging marriages for
you ; but I could not marry him. I
said so. cad my father is not used to
being thwarted. He was angry at §
something in business , too , so the
moment , perhaps , was hardly chosen
well. "
"Your father is not Hutchinson , of
the firm of Dempster ? " said Alan.
Somehow it did not seem to him likely
that Hutchinson could be the father
of such a beautiful girl , s ad yet it was
not unlikely , seeing that he had found
her there.
"Yes , " she said. "Do you know
him ? "
"I work in his office , " said Mackenzie
shortly.
"Ah ! " The girl looked up shyly.
"Are you Mr. Mackenzie ? "
"Yes , " said Alan. "Has he spoken
of me at all ? "
"He does not like you , " answered
the girl. "He would not like me to be
talking to you. He would be more
displeased if he thought that you knew
!
he had struck me. "
"He should not have done it , then , "
said Alan shortly. "The coward ! I
can well believe it of him ! "
"You do not know him ? " she said ,
very anxiously. "But do not quarrel
with him ! It is not good to thwart
him ! "
"Possibly not , " said Alan , "but these
considerations do not affect me , you
see. "
Her lips quivered , but she did not
weep again. "They might affect me ,
though , " she said , timidly.t
"How ? "
"If he kiaew that I had told you. He
does not like me to speak to say one.
I have to bear it all alone , " said the
Sirl.
Alan looked indignant. "I shall not
betray you , Miss Hutchinson , " he said ,
"but I wish "
"You must wish nothing. " said the
girl , and she colored. "You must for
get that you saw me weep. 1 am
proud , and it troubles me. "
"I wish I had no cause. " he sa-
swered ; "but I have business with
your father. I hope I may see you
again. "
She hesitated. "You will not tell
father you have seen me ? " she said
'He is strange ho does not like it to
be known that he has a daughter , ex-
ept to his Spanish and Mexican
friends. "
" 1 will say nothing , " said Alan ; "but
I mean to see you again. "
He lifted his hat , found his horse ,
and rede up to the house.
( To be continued. )
Ate Shamrock for Watercress.
On the eve of St. Patrick's day a Bir
mingham woman , thinking the supply
of shamrock might give out , took the
precaution to buy a large quantity.
She carefully placed the plant in a
small dish , with plenty of water in ,
and let it remain on the table in the
sitting room. Somehow it was late
before the husband returned home that
night , in fact it was midnight when
the latchkey v/as heard at work. Per
haps it was business worry , but his
footsteps sounded somewhat irregular ,
a trifle unsteady , as it were , but the
wife heard him go into the sitting
room , where he remained some time.v
Eventually he silently crawled up to
bed. Next morning , what was the
wife's surprise to see nothing but the
roots of the shamrock left in the dish.
Hurrying up to her still sleeping r
spouse , she aroused him , and asked r
him what he had done with it. "Shams
r
rock , what shamrock ? " he heavily in-
quired. "Why , that I left in the glass
dish downstairs. " "That ! Was that j
shamrock ? Why , I ate it ; I thought it .
was mustard and cress ! " After that
fairy tales were useless. Weekly Tele
graph.
o
L
An Imposing Spectacle.
A knight of the Garter dressed in the
regalia is an imposing sight. He wears
a
a blue velvet mantle , with a star embroidered -
r
broidered on the left breast. His trunk-
hose , stockings and shoes are white.his
hood and surcoat crimson. The garter ,
of dark blue velvet edged with gold ,
and bearing the motto , "Homi soit qui
mal y pense , " also in gold , is buckled
about the left leg , below the knee. The
heavy goldoa collar consists of twenty- *
six pieces , each in the form of a gar
ter , bearing the motto , and from it
hangs the "George , " a badge which
represents St. George on horseback , :
encountering the dragon. The "lesser
George" is a smaller badge attached tea
a blue ribbon.worn over the left shoul-
der. The star of the order consists "
of eight points within which is the u
cross of St. George encircled by the
)
Barter.
:
Money Value of Shakespeare's Fame.
The London Financial News esti
mates that the fame which attaches to
Stratford-on-Avon because of the fact
that Shakespeare was born there is
worth $5,000,000 to that town. The
charges for admission to the poet's
house , to Anne Hathaway's rottage , to
the church , to the memorial and to the
grammar school act $150.000 yearly a
sum which is equivalent to in income
of three per cent on the $5,000.000 cap
ital. This calculation does not take
into account the income to the rail
ways from the pilgrims to the War
wickshire Mecca , and there is no estimate -
if
mate of the profits of the Stratford
tradesmen , who do a coed business in
o
photographs , pamphlets , and trinkets
h :
bard.
st
&
Where Ulnnieioal Ou-nershlp J'ays. tt
Hamilton is giving Ohio cities an ob tli
ject lesson in municipal ownership. to
The annual report of Supt. John Lorenz - tli
enz , just issued , show that the gas Ul
works earned a net profit , above all al
expenses and interest , last year , $ G-
975.99. The electric light plant cleared
3.219.14 , and the water works , which
is under a separate superintendent , as
pe
much more. In addition the properties
lo
are valued at $ ( JOO,000. loni
TALMAGE'S SEKMON.
'THE MARRIAGE FEAST , " LAST
SUNDAY'S SUBJECT.
The Christian Religion , When Properly
Practiced , the ItofiiRO of the Forlorn
The World Invited to u Feast of
Holy Joy.
( Copyright , 1900 , by Louis Klopsch. )
A remarkable illustration of the ubi
quity of English speaking people is
furnished by the requests that have
reached Dr. Talmage in northern Eu
rope for a sermon in and out of the
way places where he did not expect to
find a single person who could under
stand him. There , as here , he pre
sents religion as a festivity and invites
all the world to come as guests and
join in its holy merriment ; text , John
ii , 10 , "Thou hast kept the good wine
until now. "
This chapter invites us to a mar
riage celebration. It is a Wedding in
common life , two plain people having
pledged each other , hand and heart ,
and their friends having come in for
congratulation. The joy is not the
less because there is no pretension.
In each other they find all the future
they want. The daisy in the cup on
the table may mean as much as a
score of artistic garlands fresh from
the hothouse. When a daughter goes
off from home with nothing but a
plain father's blessing and a plain
mother's love , she is missed as much
as though she were a princess. It
seems hard after the parents have
sheltered her for eighteen years , that
in a few short months her affections
should have been carried off by anoth
er , but mother remembers how it was
in her own case when she was young ,
and so she braces up until the wed
ding has passed and the banqueters
are gone , and she has a cry all alone.
Well , we are today at the wedding
in Cana of Galilee. Jesus and his
mother have been invited. It is evi
dent that there are more people there
than were expected. Either some people
ple have come who were not invited
or more invitations have been sent out
than it was supposed would be ac
cepted. Of course there is not a suf
ficient supply of wine. You know that
there is nothing more embarrassing tea
a housekeeper than a scant supply.
Jesus sees the embarrassment , and he
comes up immediately to relieve it. He
sees standing six water pots. He or
ders the servants to fill them with
water , then he waves his hand over
the * water , and immediately it is wine
real wine. Taste of it and see for
yourselves. No logwood in it , no
strychnine in it , but first rate v/ine. I
will not now be diverted to the
question so often discussed in my own
country whether it is right to drink
wine. I am describing the scene as it
was. When God makes wine he
makes the very best wine , and 130
gallons of it standing around in these
water pots wine so good that the
ruler of the feast tastes it and says :
"Why , this is really better than any
thing we have had. Thou hast kept
the good wine until now. " Beautifu
miracle ! A prize was offered to the
person who should write the best es
say about the miracle in Cana. Long
manuscripts were presented in the
competition , but a poet won the prize
by just this one line descriptive of the
;
miracle : "The conscious water saw
its God and blushed. "
Hides His Otvn Griefs.
Jesus does not shadow the joys ol
others with his own griefs. He might
uave sat down in that wedding and
said : "I have so much trouble , so
much poverty , so much persecution
and the cross is coming. I shall not
rejoice , and the gloom of my face and
Df my sorrows shall be cast over all
this group. " So said not Jesus. He
said to himself : "Here are two per
sons starting out in married life. Let "
it be a joyful occasion. I will hide my
awn griefs. I will kindle their joy. "
Fhere are many not so wise as that. I
now a household where there are
many little children , where for two
fears the musical instrument has
been kept shut because there has been
rouble in the house. Alas for the
folly ! Parents saying : "We will
lave no Christmas tree this coming }
loliday because there has been troti-
ile in the house. Hush that laughing
ip stairs ! How can there be any joy -
vhen there has been so much trou-
le ? " And so they make everything :
onsistently doleful and send their
ions and daughters to ruin with the
jloom they throw around them. [
Oh , my dear friends , do you not
enow those children will have trouble rr
inough of their own after awhile ? Be
jlad they cannot appreciate all yours , aj
veep back the cup of bitterness from
rour daughter's lips. When your
lead is down in the grass of the tomb , si
joverty may come to her , betrayal to '
ler , bereavement to her. Keep back n.
he sorrows as long as you can. Do
on not know that that son may after
iwhile have his heart broken ? Stand
letwen him and all harm. You may
iot fight his battles long. Fight them
diile you may. Throw not the chill
C
your own despondency over his
oul. Rather , be like Jesus , who came
the wedding hiding his own grief w
nd kindling the joys of others. So I
lave seen the sun on a dark day , hi ;
truggling amidst clouds , black , rag
ed and portentous , but after awhile
he sun. with golden pry , heaved back
lie blackness. And the sun laughed
the lake , and the lake laughed to n
he sun , and from horizon to horizon , n
nder the saffron sky , the water was m
11 turned into wine.
The Kight to raiinli. m
I think the children of God haveac
lore right to laugh than any other m
eople , and to clap their hands as
udly. There is not a single joy de- di
ied them that is given to any other
people. Christianity does not clip the
wings of the soul. Religion does not
frost the flowers. What is Christian
ity ? I take It to be simply a proc
lamation from the throne of God of
emancipation for all the enslaved ,
and if a man accepts the terms of that
proclamation and becomes free has he
not a right to be merry ? Suppose a
father has an elegant mansion and
large grounds. To whom will he give
the first privilege of these grounds ?
Will he say : "My children , you must
not walk through these paths , or sit
down under these trees or pluck this
fruit. These are for outsiders. They
may walk in them. " No father would
say anything like that. He would say ,
"The first privileges in all the grounds
and all of my house shall be for my
own children. ' And yet men try to
make us believe that God's children
are on the limits and the chief re
freshments and enjoyments of life are
for outsiders and not for his own
children. It is stark atheism. There
is no innocent beverage too rich for
God's child to drink , there is no robe
too costly for him to wear , there Is no-
hilarity too great for him to indulge
in and no house too splendid for him
to live in. He has a right to the joys
of earth ; he shall have a right to the
joys of heaven. Though tribulation
and trial and hardship may come to
him , let him rejoice. "Rejoice in the
Lord , ye righteous , and again I say
rejoice. "
I remark again that Christ comes to
us in the hour of our extremity. He
knew the wine was giving out before
there was any embarrassment or mor
tification. Why ) did he not perform
the miracle sooner ? Why wait until
it was all gone , and no help could
come from any source , and then come
in and perform the miracle ? This is
Christ's way , and when he did come
in , at the hour of extremity , he made
first rate wine , so that they cried out ,
"Thou hast kept the good wine until
now. " Jesus in the hour of extrem
ity ! He seems to prefer that hour.
In a Christian home in Poland great
poverty had come , and on the week
day the man was obliged to move out
of the house with his whole family.
That night he knelt with his family
and prayed to God. While they were
kneeling in prayer there was a tap on
the window pane. They opened the
window , and there was a raven that
the family had fed and trained , and it
had in its bill a ring all sei with pre
cious stones , which was found out to
be a ring belonging to the royal fam
ily. It was taken up to the king's
residence , and for the honesty of the
man in bringing it back he had a
house given to him and a garden and
a farm. Who was it that sent the
raven tapping on the window ? The
same God that sent the raven to feed
Elijah by the brook Cherith. Christ
in the hour of extremity !
A Grander Wedding.
The wedding scene is gone now. The
wedding ring has been lost , the tankards -
ards have been broken , the house is
down , but Jesus invites us to a grander -
er wedding. You know the Bible says
that the church is the Lamb's wife ,
and the Lord will after awhile come .
to fetch her home. There will be
gleaming of torches in the sky , and
the trumpets of God will ravish the
air with their music , and Jesus will
stretch out his hand , and the church ,
robed in white , will put aside her veil
and look up into the face of her Lord ,
the King and the Bridegroom will say
to the bride : "Thou hast been faith
ful through all these years ! The man
sion is ready ! Come home ! Thou i
art fair , my love. " And then he will
put upon her brow the crown of do
minion , and the table will be spread , .
and it will reach across the skies , and :
the mighty ones of heaven will come
in , garlanded with beauty and striking
their cymbals , and the Bridegroom
and bride will stand at the head of
the table , and the banqueters , looking )
up , will wonder and admire and say :
"That is Jesus , the Bridegroom ! But )
the scar on his brow is covered with
the coronet , and the stab in his side
is covered with a robe ! " And "That is
is the bride ! The weariness of her
3arthly woe lost in the flush of this PIa >
svedding triumph ! " a
There will be wine enough at that tlw
ivedding ; not coming up from the poi tln
soned vats of earth , but the vineyards n
f God will press their ripest clusters ai
ind the cups and the tankards will tl
jlush to the brim with the heavenly fsbi
r-intage , and then all the banqueters bi
vill drink standing. Esther , having
ome up from the bacchanalian rev-
ilry of Ahasuerus , where a thousand
ords feasted , will be there. And the sa
ueen of Sheba , from the banquet of h (
Solomon , will be there. And the al
nether of Jesus , from the wedding in :
3ana , will be there. And they all will st
igree that the earthly feasting was sthi
ioor compared with that. Then , lift-
ng their chalices in that light , they
hall cry to the Lord of the feast ,
'Thou hast kept the good wine until
. [
Gi
SC
The Reason She Was OfretlsiS. !
I n n
"I shall never speak to him again , " ' -
he declared. "Why not ? " her chum
sked. "When we were at that con- si (
ert the other night I told him if he
lidn't take me out of thn crowd I
i-ould faint , and he would have to
arry me away. " "Yes ! " "Weil , you'd
ave thought his life depended on by
letting me out of there in a hurry ! " tal
tear >
JTllIotor Cycles for Scouting. ar
Several motor cycles are being used bii :
South Africa for
patrol and
scout-
US' work. Each is capable of
going 30
liles an hour , and as the Transvaal
eldt is specially suitable
for
rapid . '
lotor traveling , good work is bein" en
ccomplished with the aid of these
lachines.
. be
The Japanese are erecting a splen-
id monument to the horses killed in
ie Japan-China war. a s
th
V
_ ,
COAL PRODUCTION.
Greatest'Proflace ,
United State * * the
of This Fuel.
The scarcity of coal In Europe and
extent that
trade to some
nnrt
edited emphasizes the fact that thfe
coal producer
the greatest
country is now
ducer in the world. The production
for 1899 is estimated by the Engineer
ing and Mining Journal to have been
o
statistician
244,581,875 tons. The
that
estimates
the Geological Survey
short tons , which
it was 258.539,650
is an amount far in excess of the pro
duction of any previous year , and
probably greater than the production
of Great Britain. In 1S89 the produc
tion of bituminous coal In this country
tons. Tea
short
try was 95,685,683
years later It had risen to 198.219,255
short tons. In 1889 the anthracite
production was 40,714.721 long tons.
Ten years later it was 53,857,496lonff
tons , an Increase of about 32 per cent.
The value of the production of 1899
is estimated at $260,000,000 , about ? 51-
000,000 more than that of the pro
duction of the preceding year. One of
the encouraging features of this in
crease of production and the increase
of trade that it indicaterf-both at home
and abroad , is thr.t with the exception ,
of Pennsylvania anthracite , the coal
deposits of the country are practical
ly inexhaustible ; that the known de
posits have scarcely been "scratched
on the surface. " Pennsylvania is still "
the leading state not only as the pro
ducer of anthracite , of which she has
almost a monopoly , but also of bitum
inous coal. Illinois is next , West Vir
ginia is third and Ohio fourth. In-
dianapoIisPress.
"Kread Upon the Waters. "
The reward of a generous deed sel
dom comes more opportunely than it
did in an instance reported by the
Cleveland Leader. It appears that a
prominent Clevelander named Cole ,
who has recently died , was forced to
leave Cornell university , at the close
of his sophomore year , for lack of
funds. He went to New York , and be
gan a canvass of mercantile houses and
offices , in search of a position. Among
many others , he visited the office of a
produce merchant , who seemed greatly
taken with his personality. The re
sult of the interview was that the mer
chant said to Mr. Cole : "Young man ,
go back and finish your college course ,
and I will foot the bill. " Mr. Cole accepted - .
cepted the offer , completed his course
with credit to himself and his strange
ly found friend , and at once entered
upon a business career. It was not
long before he prospered in a business
venture , and found himself able to re
pay the sum advanced for his educa
tion. He went to New York , sought
out the office of his friend , and stepping
.
ping up to his desk , laid down seven
hundred j dollars. "Mr. Cole , " said the
old merchant , "if it were not for this
money my credit would have been
dishonored today. Maturing obliga >
tions would have gone to protest. You
have saved me. " Youth's Companion.
The Crafty Ants itild : i Jtoad.
Something new and interesting
ibout ants was learned by a Mount
Airy florist. For a week or so he had
ijeen bothered by ants that got into
boxes of seeds which rested on a shelf.
To get rid of the ants he put into exe
cution an old plan , which was to place
meaty bone close by , which the ants
ioon covered , deserting the box of
seeds. As soon as the bone became
.hickly inhabited by the little creepers
he florist tossed it into a tub of water ,
rhe ants having been washed off , the
jone was again put in use as a trap.
Fhe florist bethought himself that he
vould save trouble by placing the
one in a center of a sheet of fly paper.
elieving that the ants would get
taught on the sticky fly paper while
rying to reach the food. But the flor-
st was surprised to find that the ants ,
ipon discovering the nature of the
aper trap , formed a working force
ind : built a path on the paper clear to
he bone. The material for the walk
vas sand , secured from a little pile
iear by. For hours the ants worked ,
tnd when the path was completed"
hey made their way over its dry sur-
ace in couples , as in a march to the
ione. Philadelphia Record.
I'ackln ? Was Valuable.
"Here's my bonnet , just come home "
aid the publisher's wife. He watched
er open the box , and remove layer
tier layer of tissue paper. "Gee
hizz ! " he exclaimed "now
, I under-
tand why it cost so much. " He had
ad some experience with the paper
rust himself. Philadelphia Press.
A .Millionaire Teacher.
By a decree of the supreme
court 0 ?
*
exico the claim of Mrs. Mary D
race , principal of the Tompkins
hool. Syracuse , N. Y. , to the Vacas
nd Bismarck mines in Duranso
orth $7,000,000 , is affirmed. The de-
ision puts Mrs. Grace in full
posses-
on of the mines , said to be the rich-
st in Mexico.
Golden Kasrle .Shot.
Another golden eagle has been shot
a gamekeeper on the Hill of Rot-
, Glen Cove , and sent to Kirriemuir
be stuffed. It is stated that there
e only two
or three more of thes
rds left in
Scotland now.
The IJlRKst Sturgeon.
The largest sturgeon on record - . , ,
mght in the North sea. it wei-hed
pounds , but the delight of the fish
men was tempered by the fact that it
d $ .50 worth of damage to the nets
ifore it was killed.
It isn't the
man who was born
