A REsURKECTION THOUGHT mhD bulbs tlint wore bid In tbe darkness Through tbe winter time and the snow Have felt tbe tbrlll of tbe Minllght Tliolr hour to bloom they know Purple iih1 cold and scarlet And white an tbe robes of n king To tbe glory of love at Krister Their beautiful wealth they bring Tbe grass that was brown and withered And eold on the sodden plalu Has been kissed by tbe tender sunshine Caressed by the crystal rain And Its bright green lanees quiver Lo twice ten millions strong And the birds with her ucst among them Flics up with a sudden feoug And we who have seen our darlings Reft from our side away Who have wept in silent anguish Oer the cold and pulseless clay -Take heart in the Easter gladness A parable all may read For the Lord who cares for the flowers Cares well for our greater need He knows of tbe loss and anguish Tho grope of the stricken soul t He will bring again our dear ones By his touch of life made whole We shall need and know and love them In tho spring beyond the sea That after earths dreary winter Ts coming to you and me Mrs M E Sangster THE EASTER LILY htiMftr5raJ f mob pHpf SjjnASTMl was but a 7vz fortnight off and two little girls Lulu and Fanny were watch ing with great Inter est mammas calla which at last was budded Every morn ing they came early to the windows where a few house plants were strug gling for existence and although every time they hoped to find a flower and ev ery time were so sadly disappointed still the next morning found them at their post hoping in their childish faith that some little blossom might be found for them All winter long they had watched the - -tiny leaflets unfolding and these few pUjuts had been tarried back and forth from one window to another to catch ev ery gleam of sunshine that strayed into tbe little room they called home Every night these little loving hands had care fully covered the delicate leaves for pro tection from the chilling winds that would creep througb the cracks and crevices for old Boreas is a cold hearted fellow who shows little mercy for the poor and wor ries his way into their chimney corners as if he were a welcome visitor But I dont think he had caught sight of this little bit of summer or he would have curled up the leaves with his cold fingers and blown with his icy breath until the tiny stalks became limp and life less and the soil itself stiffened around the poor little roots The little girls knew all this and had covered their treasures 80 carefully at night and cared for them so tenderly by day that at last they were to be rewarded for all their labor the lily had budded Long years ago in fact so many that it seemed to Lulu and Fanny a beautiful dream there was a dear little home where plants Woomed in the windows and a warm fire gleamed in the grate and in the springtime birds sang in the trees and the lawn was covered with the greenest grass where the bright spring flowers op ened their eyes And then somehow for the little girls could not tell how all these beautiful things had faded away only they and mamma were left and mamma had to sew all the time and sometimes she cried too Now these plants were all the garden they had and only to think of it the lily had budded they were so hap py they must look oftener than before to -see if the flower were almost there So the days crept by and it seemed as rif the lily would never unfold To be rsure the winter was long and cold and some days so dark and cloudy that the sun forgot to look into their windows and some nights were so cold that the lily itself came near being chilled so the bud was -not very strong i JETpweyer the days were getting warni e for Easier was almost there At Sunday school the teacher had told the children that on that day Christ had risen from the dead and how beautiful the Easter morn would become to them if Christ indeed had risen in their hearts and she went on to tell how some Chris tians during the forty days before ter would deny themselves some known pleasure and strive to consecrate them selves anew to Christ My dear girls she added are not we all willing to deny ourselves something for the sake of Christ to give up some amusement or habit or treasure that perhaps may be crowding us out of the kingdom Is there not some object dear to us we are willing to give up for him lie gave his all for us life kingdom and heaven itself his precious blood was shed that we through him might live and what have we done for him Is there not something we can lay upon the altar as a sacrifice so we may be prepared to re ceive his love into our hearts All the way home from Sunday school Lulu and Fanny were talking about what they could do fur Christ and perhaps because they did not quite understand what was meant or else had so little to give they were a long time wondering what they could give to Christ at last Fanny said I know what it is the lily we can give the lily to Christ you know tlic teacher said it must be something we thought a great deal of something dear to us and I believe we care more for the lily than anything else But how will we send the lily to him asked Lulu I dont know said Fanny but I guess Gpd will show us how And now that the lily was to be given to God they be stowed more care than ever upon it each day the bud grew larger and you could begin to see a rim of white above the green The days sped on and there were only four days till Easter but in the meantime ainalignant disease had settled over part of the city and little children were rapidly fallingat its approach each mother trem bled as sh held her loved ones for who knew how near thcT angel of death might be he hovered around the homes of wealth and comfort and of poverty and want until at last the shadow fell across the street and into the room where the Easter lily was Fanny lay there unconscious of thfi sad ness and gloom that had settled upon their f little home sometimes in the delirium of fever she would talk about the lily Gods lily as they called it now Each day the shadows deepened so dark so sad and to morrow was Easter rtJAlInight mamma and Lulu watched 5tW little sufferer hoping for some word pr21ookof recognition morning - aw east eic atst the BoBH1 HUN SolPra I IB 1 H PBB I iBH I 111 1 1 111 1 1 BlSpiilSii ly dawning Easter Sunday when so many ages ago Christ had risen from the dead and brought with him light and life to the waiting soul Away off in the distance you might catch the chime of the old cathedral bells as they rang in the joyous morn perhaps some of the music reached Fannys ears for half opening her eyes she stretched her hand toward Lulu and whispered I will take the lily to him Just them the sunshine burst into The room Lulu turn ed to the window and there unfolded in all its beauty was the lovely lily Long hours afterward when the Sab bath bells were pealing their glad notes and choral voices sang The Lord is risen indeed the little child lay there so still so beautiful with the smile of heaven upon her lips and holding in the waxen fingers her precious gift the Easter lily BEST OF THE YEAR The Easter Holidny Feason and Mm Iff k The Intelligible forms of ancient poets Its Ueliffhtfnl Associations ASTER is more de lightful in its asso ciations than any other holiday season of the year It fol lows a period of con ventional mourning It is a revival from traditional depres sion and gloom It opens the morning of hope and expecta tion It reveals the unfolding buds of the year and of hu man faith and prom ise In these respects it differs in significance from the autumnal thanksgiving and later Christmas holi days Autumnal holidays mark the end of the harvest when all its fruits have been gathered and when gratitude is ex pressed for every gift of Providence to mankind The 3ear is cjosed Reflection is the sole occupation of the mind Truths may be gathered from experi ence as fruit is gathered from the soil But in the autumn every human senti ment is inspired by a knowledge that the best products of the year have been gath ered that its enjoyments are closed that its fugitive hours opportunities events and lessons that all which it contained for good or evil have become an element of the unreturning past Easter is the period of resurrection It is an emblem of the revival which nature experiences with each return of the sun in its orbit and of the rains and dews at their appointed time It brings vernal sunshine airs and odors It is celebrated by offerings of flowers by gayety in at tire by festive display by all the gaudy outward semblance in which the day spring of the heart and of the season is clothed The Christianized Easter which the world celebrates is a higher inspiration of pagan philosophy renewed refined and ethorealized by the influences which pro ceeded from the tragic events on Calvary and from their sublime conclusion From the earliest era when man began to study the world around him and deify its mani festations the spring was sanctified as the period of the year when the rigor of nature s creative forces first was display ed Every form of ancient mythology recognized the vernal equinox as the point of rejuvenation for the world of vege table and animal life Every wind of spring that blew and every wave that murmured were regarded as the source of new vital energies in production and growth From these beautiful pagan beliefs to the beautiful newr Christian belief the change was not violent nor phenomenal It was a graceful evolution from heathen to Christian thought It was transition of that which was false but was almost as beautiful as truth to the beauty and holiness of truth Coleridge described the abandoned fictions of classical beliefs The fair humanities of old religion The power the beauty and the majesty That had their haunts in dale or plney moun tain Or forest by slow brook or pebbly spring Or chasm or watery depth all these are vanished They live no longer in the faith of reason In places of these fantastic heathen im ages the new religion brought realities of grace and truth The old fictions of the earth and air dissolved and disappeared They were succeeded by the gospel of peace and good will to all mankind of universal practical charity of faith mani fested in good works of all the gospel les sons which Easter day and its associa tions convey Pagan philosophers and poets reached only the fancies and dreams of men Christian philosophy reaches the profouudest depths of the intellect and the heart This is the lesson and instruction of the day It relates both to the past and the future It is a reminiscence and a prom ise It combines the garnered wisdom of ages with the hope of all the years to come Day or Great Jov The Easter of Rome transcends in pomp and splendor that of all other countries The Pope is borne into the great gallery of St Peters and gives his solemn bene diction to Rome and the world Poland feasts at this period on saffron cakes roast pig and little lambs served with pistachio plums The number of dishes cooked is enormous Eggs form a part of all the pastimes The religious services are devout and impressive In Mexico it is the great festival of the year In the City of Mexico the popula tion fill the streets and tho parks which resemble the most beautiful gardens Peo ple passing each other in the streets throw flowers with their salutations Bands dis course sweet music and there is general abandonment to the delights of the festi val of their Sunday of joy In America the occasion is observed generally but quietly Presents are ex changed eggs and flowers are given a prominent place and the church services WiiA v- vi are unusually impressive If the Ameri cans had any special use for the festival in a worldly way they might designate it as the feast of hats The feminine por tion of the community wear new hats according to the ancient tradition that to be lucky all the year something new must be worn on Easter Sunday SMf if1 Outcome of Centuries The resume of Easter customs finds the central idea in the fact that they are the outcome of eighteen centuries of religious zeal and the concentration of genius and enthusiasm in art science poetry and learning of every sort Easter is a crys tallization of the hope expressed in its solemn observances deliverance from death founded on the story of the great Teacher of Nazareth and carrying joy and life into the dead and desolate theo ries that in the dark ages held the world in dominance The festival of the soul is the highest and greatest of all the cere monies of Eastertide NATURES ESTFfR Rose A SGfS -T - v zSsOr swamps are curned ro arsenals Ofiqreen and soltdspetj sV Who rok thfif MFflNiNr ttic teSk - - Gt i o jp so i 19 f S mT teIord ySkxprn lessNljf iftlHlMMWMfcJWhN If WiH K 7 bL - fere are purple pulpits inthe bogs And hooded brakes acxLore lAllLlUiM M r 31 a Hi a Did nt theJord command 05 rtk 5p NWlivr Plu wuoas wun irje vioieu N5 11 rv iiiiiiia 1 iXllL v And arbutus tender sweet - fSl Did not te od Trie spKcmard ruz rllKfffexiLrp TlFNVWnNG MEET 1 If- IMIUUIUI O OWUllCOd C I I II JIV11C J 1 If- The triple leaf of clover - f4fe SAYING TfFNry TALLWisft And fialleluahs star the hMfim Mji Anrl hhiptz rmwrl hn coo v flSV IP llf SENSES DULL AT LAST WILL REfQF Ir symbol Victory dlir feTiSsvi OUR BOYS AND GIRLS THIS IS THEIR DEPARTMENT OF THE PAPER Quaint Sayings and Cute Doings of the Iattle Folks Everywhere Gathered and Printed Here for All Other Lit tle Onea to Read Tlie Waif Just a lonely little maiden from the citys dust and heat A homeless lonely little waif withblue eyes sad and sweet No fathers hand with thoughtful care the little life had blessed No mothers touch of love had eer the tangled hair caressed Her ears had heard sins blasphemies her cheeks had felt its blows And in the wide wide city she had lived just how God knows But now out to the countrykind hearts had planned the way She rode to breathe the summer breath a fortnight and a day Oh joy of all that journey and sweeter joy to come When Farmer Stebbins took her to his pleasant upland home The wide - old fashioned wagon was a chariot with wings And the big house on the hillside looked grander than a kings All the beaming bliss of sunshine all the woodlands song and stir All the bloom of rural beauty was para dise to her And the hum of bees that wandered in the daisy fields all day Was music of another world that stole her heart away She knew the spreading maple that the robins loved the best She found the clump of grasses where the ground bird hid its nest And when the wind at evening whispered thro the orchard boughs She went with Farmer Stebbins to help drive home the cows And when at quiet bedtime with touch of tender care Kind Mother Stebbins gentle hand brush ed back the tangled hair One little heart with happiness was full and running oer One little soul was filled with love till it could hold no more Too soon the visit pnded the parting time drew nigh She kissed kind Mother Stebbins bid the birds and bees good bj guesses tho most names of the things provided for the game of testing the taste Tell mother that this Is very good fun for a grown up peoples game too A Bottle of Fninous Tea Next time you read about the Bos ton tea party in which our forefathers threw the English tea into Boston har bor it will make the story more real to you to know that some of this tea is still preserved in Massachusetts The State Historical Society has a big bot tle of it and several of the old families of Dorchester have small packages of it and they are very proud of them too You see the tea was sent to Go Hutchinson and there was so much of it thrown overboard that it floated down the river and the next morning some of it was recovered by people along the shore who found It floating perfectly dry in the boxes and they preserved packager of it as mementos The old house in Boston in which the Sons of Liberty disguised themselvest as Indians for the purpose of going to the tea party was owned by John Hancock and It still stands just as It was ivhen they came whooping out of it in 1773 About a AVise Cat There is in the Treasury Department at Washington a cat that understands English perfectly His name is Tom and when addressed he will quickly respond even waking out of a sound sleep to go toward the speaker Somgl times to confuse him the clerks win sing out some word or words in which the syllable Tom Is emphasized and to that he pays no attention But let any one call Tom its dinner time and forthwith he walks across the room reaches up with his paws to a tin pail claws it down and comes bringing it in his mouth Tom is passionately fond of music At the cry of Hand or gan he climbs to ahigh window seat but at the words Here a dog he slinks under a desk Odd Visiting Cards No doubt youve all heard the story of the Indian rajah who sent a big elephant as a visiting card to his friend a neighboring rajah Cards almost as remarkable as this one have been man ufactured in Germany They are of solid iron although they do not look so much different from ordinary call ing cards Several of the great manu i facturers have had iron rolled in very thin sheets and then cut into card sizesJ NOW ALL TOGETHER IF A ML 1m zm 1 W xs3k W WWk fcm 2r Ov5W fe wllw Vtv Game of Taste Testincr You think you know the taste of things dont you Well let me tell you that if it were not for your nose you could not tell a good many things apart so far as your taste goes A great deal of what you call the taste of a thing is its smell You cant quite be lieve this Prove it for yourselves The trial makes it a capital game as described by the Jenness Miller Month ly Get mother to give you some raw oatmeal some licorice -chocolate ap ples as many different things asshe can think of that do not taste a bit alike Then blindfold first one and then another of your party and let each one who is blindfolded hold his or her nose very tightly so that it isnt possible to smell things and then let some one give him or her first one thtsg and then another to taste It is goi i fun to give a little prize perhaps one of your hocky sticks Jack or one of your dolls Polly to the boy or girl who I St vK m M -Farm and Home And climbed into the wagon with its wide old fashioned seat Once more a homeless little waif with blue eyes sad and sweet But when they reached the station and heard the whistles blast Around the farmers sunbrowned neck two little arms clung fast Dont send me back Dont send me the sobbing creature said And Farmer Stebbins swallowed hard then bent his bushy head And soft unloosed the clinging arms and put the grieved child down He stooped and kissed the tear stained face and smoothed the hair of brown And then the long train sped away around a distant hill But a happy brown haired maiden stays with Farmer Stebbins still Sheldon C Stoddard in Youths Com panion A Scheme for Boys TVbo Fkate In Russia skating is even more popu lar as a winter sport that it is in this country Beautiful skating parks and ponds are maintained in all of the larger towns and cities where they are used almost constantly As a resuic they soon become rough cut by the sharp edges of the skates To remedy this difficulty a clever Russian has invented an ice roller hol low inside and so arranged that a roar ing fire can be kept burning within thus heating the iron surface As this roller passes over the ice the roughness is smoothed down and the surface is soon frozen clear and even again Some of our boys who have skating ponds might try this scheme upon which it was easy to print the name and business address of the per son who was to use them Some of the cards are only one one thousandth of an inch thick Those used by Baron Krupp the great gunmaker are of an inch thick Did any of you ever hear of odder visiting cards Blindmans Bnff I played blindmans buff with Nell In the way grown people play Long ago I will not tell Just how long ago to day I pursued her as she ran I the poor blindfolded man What a famous chase she led Here and there as swift as thought Did I catch her No instead The blindfolded one was caught For the mans an easy muff--In this game of blindmans bunT As a spinning jenny flies Round and round about we ran I with my blinded eyes Serious girl and giddy man Both have long since had enough Of the game of blindmans buff -New York Journal He Puspected the Cat A tradesman owner of a dog and cat had been in the habit of letting his dog go to market and buy his own meat The dog would bring the meat home and deposit it somewhere in the store and when hungry would go and get it says the Christian Leader The cat acquired a habit of stealing its meat and the dog would lie down near it watch for the thief and when the cat came would drive her away But at last he became tired of this busi ness carried the meat down cellar and covered it up with sand One day the owner of the dog thought he would get the meat bring it upstairs and see what the dog would do After taking a nap the dog went down in the cel lar in search of his meat and com menced digging as usual but there was no meat to be found He laid himself down a minute as if in thought and then rushed upstairs and spying the cat went for her and chased her all around the store as closely as a police officer in pursuit of a thief The Trnly Clever Woman John Is your wife clever Jack- Clever enough to make me think that she knows less than I know Judge A reallv smart rrpninpr i n no -re-hr knows when it is wise to be called- - to another field v