4
The Little Dark Lector.
From TTarjier'a Bazaar.
The doctors all said that LadislaTf
must gD to" Europe to recover hia
health, and Iadislaw said I must go
with him; but it wa3 necessary that
he should travel with a physician, who
would watch the variations of his
jpulse, and a friend introduced him to
the "little dark Doctor," as" Ladislaw
described him to me, who, having been
overworked himself, needed a. vaca
tion. On my part , I had my chaperon,
to be sure a widow, not too old and
not too frivolous, who knew how to
be blind at discretion, and who was
at the same time, so dreadfully near,
sighted that she could hardly distin
(?uish a flirtation from & quarrel, and
who, moreover, never made her ap
pearance on deck after the first day
during the whole voyage. I found the
Doctor a great convenience, you may
be sure. Ladislaw said one would
suppose I was his patient; but Ladis
law always exaggerates a little about
such things. Our passage was long
and rough, and Heaven only known
what I should have done but for the
little dark Doctor! If I wanted an ex
tra wrap and one always does cn
shipboard or a book, or my chair
moved, he was at hand. He read
to me on calm days, he sang to me
little Spanish and Italian ballads
on moonlight nights; he ' beguil
ed me with anecdotes of his
profession when we sat upon
deck i.4 a heavy swell, with our chairs
lashed to the house, and the spray
driving over us that is, unless Mr.
Finch, the English gentleman who had
made our acquaintance through Lad
islaw, stole a march upon him, and
erected a canopy over my head with
his umbrella and mackintosh, 01 gave
me his arm for a promenade on the
tip3y deck. The doctor, however,
lavished his attentions upon me with
an air which made one sensible that
he would do aa much for any woman
kind who happened in his way; that
there was nothing personal or par
ticular in his devotion. Perhaps I
divined his feeling from the perfect
case with which he made himself at
home with me, as if I were merely a
companionable cousin or other indif
? ferent feminine j-elative. Shall I ever
' forget that pitch-black night "a very
1 Walpurgis night," the doctor had said,
earlier when the engine stopped sud
denly, like a tired-out heart, on the
Irish const, and all the gwitlemen
came tearing up from the card-room,
and the ladies, in all decrees of toilettes,
from their state-rooms, forgetful of
seasickness or appearances; and I,
with sudden visions of shipwreck m
that plunginc sea, with the bustle of
launching lifeboats. u;id the terror of
bein swung into one, and possibly
dropping between the two? rising be
fore me like a spectral scene', fainted
outright lipon the"deck, and waked to
find myselr in the Doctor's firms in the
saloon?
. ,1'ou thought this was the end f the
world?" he said, sruluig as only the
dark Doctor could smile.
"I fancy trhat I am dead and damn
ed!" I answered laughing hysterically.
He dropped use upon the sota and
turned away. "They stopped to take
soundings," he said. "It is nothing.
You had better 0 to bed."
"Do you charge much for your ad
vice?" I asked. Well good-night. I
hope we may not meet iu the life
boat." One day in London, as we were
walking throush the dim old cloisters
at the Abbey, and trying to spell out
the names of the dusty dead on the
, worn pavement, having left Ladislaw
and Mrs. Adams still-mooning in the
Poets Cornei", the Dpctor said:
"You were a little frightened that
Tivzht on the Irish coast. To tell the
truth, a small pipe in the engine broke;
but there was no real danger, -I sus
pect." "And you were not frightened at all,
knowing this?"
"J? We would all go together, you
know. Your company would be as
pleasant iu heaven a oil ship
board." "Equivocal but thank you. As for
me, I like to choose my company, not
have it thrust upon me."
"Yes!" he said, indifferently.
"Whose company would you select?"
"I would select an artist, or a mu
sician, or perhaps a poet."
"I see. In heaven they need no doc
tors."" "Nor on earth either, generally
speaking." And then I impertinently
repeated to him the little German le
gend of the Doctor whom Death paid
a visit one day, and who, becging to
defer the debt of Nature, offered to di
vide all his future patients with the
King of Terrors; and so entrros3ed
were we with this pastime that we
. "barely escaped being locked into the
Abbey.
"You do not think well of the pro
fession," he said.
1 'Oh, don't I? But, honestly, doyou
think yourself that the one who vol
untarily elects to live in the constant
eight oi disease and suffering can have
a sensitive or aesthetic nature? Andl
love the aesthetic? I
.He. did not answer, but looked at
the yellow horn of the new moon, mak
in sk rift in the fog, which the sunset
light faintly tinged, while I looked at
him. There wa3 certainly nothing
J. esthetic, about the Doctor,, if you ex
Scept his triste mustache and his gener
al shapeliness. I remember once, in
Holland, as we steamed in a little
packet to Zaandam, aud counted the
. windmills and the cottage roofs that
I appeared to grow up behind the dikes,
-1 tnat he, happening to speak of him
1 self, remarked that he had been'mis
; taken sometimes for a Spaniard.
"Yes, you are dark enough to be
the shadow of somebody else" I said.
! "And your ideal is a blonde hero,"
lie returned. '
"How well you know my ideals!" I
answered. "Like Bobby "Shafto, 'fat
and fair, combing down hi3 yellow
hair oi loicy stature, i m certain
Bobby was tall." The Doctor was
incontestably short and thin.
"But the best t hings are in the small
est parchls." said Mrs. Adams coming
to the rescue.
What a quaint old place we found
Zaandam, where Peter the Great has
- left an odor of romance that seemed
to enng to the little green cottages
with their red-tiled roofs, which
bled the wooden villages of our infan
cyl And how the Doctor scowled whpn
I wasted my substance on some vivid
green pottery of an odd pattern!
"What s the use of buying such
nfc.the esthetic taste lacking. You
caifthU waste; but you don't under
stand the art of economy, 'l ms green
dish, that looks as if it were deformed,
and that cost me exactly five cents,
will look so foreign and iantastic in
the garish ligh-, of America that my
friends will think I havebrought them
a bonanza. Besides, I like to spend
without counting the cost; I hate to
count my money. I hat poverty, or
a genteel sufficiency."
"In other words you love luxury."
Have 1 ever conhded my love to
you? I love plenty, I confess. I
should die of economy; it is worse than
the gout for cramping one."
"You must marry a millionaue,"
said Mrs. Adams.
"Fiist catch your hare," suggested
Ladislaw.
"There's the Herr Docter,"I heard
Mr3. Adams say iu an aside to
Ladislaw.
"But he's riot a millionaire, nor to
caught with chaff."
I wondered if the Doctor's ears were
as keen as mine; but his face betrayed
nothing.
I think it was in Heidelberg that
we met again our friend of the steam
ship, Mr. Finch. We had climbed to
the Schloss, and found him seated in
a loop-hole, so to speak, behind its
curtain of ivy, sketching the scene.
"Mr. Finch!" I cried.
"Yes," said the Doctor; "a bird in
the hand."
"He looks more like one in the bush
just now," as he hopped down from
his perch to greet us with effusion.
"Welcome to my studio," he said-;
"I am just sketching the valley of
the Neckar in passing."
"What a lovely old ruin this is!"
said Ladislaw.
"I like to think of the lords and la
dies who made love on that old bal
cony in the sweet June weather," Mr.
Finch replied, "or when the moon
light overlay the valley, who are only
a handful of dust to day."
"I suppose their ghosts walk there?"
asked Ladislaw.
"Certainly. What's an old ruin
without a ehost?"
"Oh! I wish I could see one!" I
cried.
The Doctor "pshawed." "You base
materialist! you do not deserve the
vision."
"If you will come up here with me
some starlight night," vouchsated Mr.
Finch, "we may be able to unearth
one."
"And Mrs. Adams will come too,"
said Ladislaw.
It was Mr. Finch who "pshawed"
thi3 time, but beneath his breath.
"Certaintly," put in the Doctor.
"Mrs. Adams is as eager to see a ghost
as yourself. You should extend to her
all the advantages of foreign travel."
But, for all that, Mrs. Adams did
not see one. I met Mr. Finch on the
Btaircase the following evening, and
we slipped out of the hotel and up to
the Schloss, while the others supposed
I was writing letters in the retirement
of my own room. Was it very wrong?
I dare say Mr. Finch thought so. We
wandered up and about the old place
with its haunting shadows, startling
bats and owls and all sorts of meht-
moths from the tapestry of ivy, while
he repeated ghostly verses and
whispered a good many ghostly
nothings. And I had my reward. For
while we rested in a recess that looked
out unon the dark sky and river, the
moon shot out a beam between the
clouds, and revealed the shadows ol
two figures on the balcony
"There, I told you you should see a
ghost. You are not faint? It is really
only two lovers," said Mr. 1 inch.
Was I faint? Judge whether the sen
sation that possessed me was fear or
nam. I had recognized one of the shad
ows as that of the "Herr Doctor." As
they stirred and walked slowly out of
si2:ht, I saw that the lady was veiled,
and leaned confidingly upon the doc
tor's arm. But what business was
that of mine? "What was the doctor
to me, or I to the doctor? Plainly,
nothing
"I think we had better go down," I
said presently, to Mr. h inch.
"Those shadows that passed," he
said, "area noble lady who eloped one
dark nisht with her phvsician. Thev
have been dust these hundred years,
but as punishment are doomed to re
trace their steps every night. Don t
you want to stay till we see the old
V kj u ctii u atuv i xi a no oco but; uiu
noble, her father, with all his retainers
nd mnn at nrm sralfe in rhostlxr
pursuit?'.
" "S'mother night," I answered, frivo
lously, "it Mrs. Adams unas lam
not in my room "
"What would she do?"
"Send the Herr Doctor after me."
"And the Herr Doetor is not a favor
ite," complacently, a3 we went slowly
down the steep.
I lay awake till late that night, won
dering who the veiled lady might be.
The doctor looked very innocent next
morning, and so did I 1 hope.
"Why do you look at me in that
tone ot voice: lie askea, when my
eyes had been involuntarily fixed up
on him lor some time, trying to un
ravel the mystery.
into vacancy," I
answered, briefly. -
'fcpeaking ot vacancy, have you
seen Mr. inch to-day.'
"Mr. Finch is a highly aesthetic na
ture," I began.
"And you love the aesthetic bird
of a feather!"
"By the way," I
ventured,
"why
didn't you come up i
with us last evening?"
and play
cards
"Did vou wait
for me?"
he asked,
re2arding me gravely.
"I can t say that I did. But 1 hate
to play with dummy.
"Is this tlie iNew .England Catechism,
Herr Doctor?"
"The, New England conscience and
Catechism went out of fashion, I be
lieve, some time ago."
"Yes: I fancied vou.no loncer had
any use for them," I said. ,
"No; when I am with the Romans,
I dp as the Romans do;" and then we
both laushed, and Ladislaw said we
were like two quarrelsome children.
"I expect you will be boxing each
other's ears next thing."
' "No," said the Doctor; "I always
give a kiss for a blow."
But for all that, I couldn't help be
ing a little distant to him afterward,
whenever I remembered the veiled
lady at Heidelberg Castle. He used
to call me "Lady April," I was so in
constant in my moods. I don't know
how it happened, but after this, where
ever we went, Mr. Finch was sure to
be there before us. r to follow later.
The Doctor called him my shadow;
and Ladislaw aid he thought my
shadow was the only thing about me
which the doctor disliked. But, for
my part, I was growing rather tired of
Mr. Finch and his everlasting prating
about mediaeval art, and color, and
what not; and I couldn't go to a picture-gallery
unless he attached hiua-
self, and explained the pictui es loud
enough for all creation to overhear,
while I was anxious they should sup
pose that I had been familiar with the
masterpieces all my days, and was on
ly looking at them out of a sincere ap
preciation of the beautiful. I'm afraid
I liked better the Doctor's method of
going through a picture-gallery in ten
minutes, and the scientific air with
which he regarded Rembrandt's
"School of Anatomy" in Amsterdam
for two minutes, and remarked, pat
ronizingly, that "the arm and hand
were well laid open," as if Kembrandt
was a pupil in the aissecting-room.
But Mrs. Adams said, "I ought to be
thankful for such an instructor in art,
and that probably Mr. Finch was a
nobleman travellina incocnito.
"He lives in a castle
la
in
the air. I
fancy," I said.
But she would eo on encouraging his
attentions, and he would co on fol
lowing us hither and thither. Well.we
were in Germany at Christmas-time.
and we had a Christmas-tree all to
ourselves. The Doctor and I went
out to select it, and it seemed as if
the Black Forest had walked into the
market-place3. It took a good while
to find the right one, and we went out
day after day, till Ladislaw said it
looked as if we were waiting for one to
grow. However, we had it planted in
our own parlor, and such lovely things
we coaxed into blossom upon it. It
was the most wonderful tree in the
whole world, when it was farily in
bloom; hung with cut papers that re
sembled fine gold chains, dripping with
a delicate dew of silver, droppms
golden pine cones, grown m fairy-land,
and silver acorns and walnuts, bud
ding with real roses and lilies, migno
nette and Parma violets, blossoming
into gorgeous cornucopias of gorgeous
sweetmeats, and lighted by a hundred
tapers. The Doctor took a keen
pleasure in it, as if we were two chil
dren. I enioyed it all ofcourse,as if it
were a dream a poem; but the vision
of the veiled laay would rise up
anon, and seemed to ask if I had for
gotten her, although at times she had
seemed like the baseless iaoric ot a
dream. The Doctor and I were extin
guishing the tapers, after Mrs. Adams
ana xjaaisiawnaagone toineir rooms,
1 T 1 "1 . A ll
when he stopped humming the liOrelei,
and said, turning to me, "here is a lit
tle flower that Christmas trees some
times bear, which you have overlook
ed. The reason I was so long in se
lecting the tree was because I wanted
one that was sure to bear this kind of
blossom," and he held in his palm a
tiny ring box in which a circlet of
pearls gleamed. I put out my hand;
just then the veiled lady seemed to
sweep between us, her longveil almost
obscuring the Doctor's face. "Shall I
A V WU lilt Ul a J. VlAl
for better or worse? he was asking.
I withdrew my hand. "I did not
understand," I stammered; "Ido not
wearrinas." And he blew out the
last candle as I left the room.
The Doctor was preparing to leave
at this time, having only agreed to
spend six months with Ladislaw, who
was now restored; but Jadislaw,
knowing nothing of his discomfiture,
would have him stay over the New-
Year; and, as the custom is in Germa
ny, we lighted our Christmas tree
again on liew iear s, and talked over
other dead years, and kepfceach other
awake till all tho chimes of the old
city pealed midnight with a hundred
tongues; then we opened the
balcony doors, and listened to the
weird music and the voices in the
street calling a "Happy New-Year"
from far and near; and presently some
one stopped beneath us, and sang an
Abendlied sweet as the murmurin:
a little brook among the grasses, ten
der as a lullaby.
"A happy New-1 ear. Mr. Finch," I
cried. "Come up and say good-morn
ing."
Then, as I leaned over the Christ
mas tree to blow out a candle that
had burned down to the evergreen, and
was making a rich, pungent odor m
the room, the laceshawl I had thrown
over my head caught in the flame of
another candle, and in an instant I
seemed to be standins in the centre of
aflame. I never knew exactly what
happened. I seem to remember seeing
the Doctor's face throuch that red
mist, and perhaps Mr. Finch's, I con-
not be sure, and then darkness. When
1 came to myself I was in bed, and the
1-1.1 t-v i i 1 J
ttle Doctor was feeling my pulse; and
I USt lifted myself On my C bow to
look in the big mirror opposite, and
then buried my head in the pillow. I
can never repeat all the nice things
the Doctor said lust then: how 1 was
dearer to him than even in my beauty;
how no flame was so strong as his
love, or could burn it to ashes.
"And the veiled lady?" 1 asked, ir
relevantly.
"The veiled lady?" he repeated.
"Yes. Who was she? In the even
ing at Heidelberg Castle. You must
remember. Don't try to deceive
me."
"Yes" and the smile was leaping
from every dimple "yes; the veiled
lady of Heidelberg Castle was Mrs.
Adams, your chaperon."
"Yes," said Mrs. Adams afterward,
"confess that you thought very little
of the woman who would walk"to the
Schloss with the Doctor alone at that
hour. I had missed you, and we went
m pursuit.
"And has Mr. Finch been to ask for
me?" I inquired later, "Did he send
me those Jaqueminot roses?"
"Mr. Finch is not at liberty to in
quire for you just now," answered
Mrs. Adams, "and roses are not ex
actly in his line. He has thrown off
his disguise."
"And has he turned out to be a
cuckoo, or a nightingale?"
"He has turned out to be only a
mil-bird, my dear. He has been a la-
mous forger, that is all."
Unintentionally Fopny,
Again, many of the stories which
seem humorous to us were full of
eeri ous meaning to the actors in them.
There is humor to us in the following
story, quoted by Prof, de Morgan.
although none to the utterers of the
following dialogue, not from a want
of a sence of humor, but from the
seriousness of the subject: "How
mony of the elect do ye think there
will be on the earth at present?"
said one Scotchman to another.
"Maybe, a dizzen" (dozen) responded
the other. "Hoot, man! no near sae
mony as that!" indigantly rejoined
his friend. The same remarks apply
to the story of the old lady who was
very despondent as to the condition
of the world. She was sharply re
buked by a neighbor: "Janet, woman,
ye surely think that naebody will
be saved except yourself and the
minister!" "Weel," responded Janet,
"I sometime hae my doubts about
th: minister." All the year Round.
Imaginary Diseases.
Some persons are continually Im
agining that they have this or that
disease, or that they are likely to fall
victims to one or another of the ilia
which flesh is heir to. This is partic
ularly the case with children of a ner
vous, sensitive or morbid nature.
The injury done by such imaginary
troubles to a growing boy or girl is'
by no means insignificant. They de
range the proper functions of tho
body and have a worse, and perhaps
more lastirg effect, upon the mind,
turning it from the healthy channels
in which it ought to move, and cen
tering it morbidly upon 6elf. The
person in this condition imagines
that there is some trouble with his
heart or some other organ of the
body, and straightway he begins to
watch and exaggerate every slight
pain or tmusuarfeeling that may oc-
.1 1 T
cur in xne region niiere ue supposes
ine trouoie 10 uo iwuieu. civery
muscular twitch in that locality is
regarded as the sure indication of
disease. Unless such a condition of
affair is broken up, the whole physic
al and mental growth will be im
paired. By taking a certain amount
or care at the proper time, the
trouble may be largely, if not wholly,'
avoided. In the first place, children
ought to hear and know almost;
nothing of disease. Later in life the.
knowledge may be valuable to them.!
but when young their pioper func-1
J. 1 ?J J -m . a
lions in me is to grow up neaitliy in
mind and body, and to this end the"
child must be cared for and watched
over. A blind knowledge of the dis
eases incident to mankind is to him
onlv a bugbear, not an assistance,
as it may become when he is old
enough to appreciate cause and ef
fect. It is not necessary that young
children should know that they have
such organs as heart, lungs and kid
neys. They may be taught hygiene
to any extent desired, but anatomy
should wait until later in life. If the
trouble has already begun, the best
thing to do is to lead the thoughts
of the young person away from him
self by getting him interested in some
out-doar project. It is surprising
how those imaginary ills disappear
when the mind has something healthy
and interesting upon which to fix its
attention. It may be necessary in
some cases to call in a physician to
set the sufferer's mind at rest, but
in general it is not best to seem to
recognize any reason for worriment.
The mind can be easily turned into a
proper channel by providing the nec
essary employment for it.
There is suffering enough to be en
dured in this world withont borrow
ing it. A mind joyous and free from
anxiety, and occupied continually in
healthy directions, has a vast power
in keepingthe body free from disease.
Such a mental condition, joined to
temperate and careful habits of living,
nas brought thousands to a green
old age. American Agriculturist.
Long Lire And Sleep.
Not long ago Mr. Gladstone attri
buted his sound health to the"great
gift of sleep." He declared that he
always got seven hours and some
times eicrht. lie never took his wor
ries to bed, but dismissed them
promptly at the hour of retiring.
Napoleon could get along very well
on three or four hour' sleep in the
twenty-four. But he did not reach
an old age. His captivity might
have had something to do with short
ening his life. There have been a few
great workers who' have been poor
sleepers. But very few ol these reach
ed extreme old age. Horace ureeley
could drop off to sleep in a church
or in a railway car with wonderful
facility. He had the gift of sleep.but
not the gift of dismissing his worries.
If ever a man was worried out ot his
life because of political events, it was
probably Horace Greeley.
Danief Webster said on hearing
of his defeat for a Presidential nom
ination, that he should - sleep as
soundly as ever. But it was well
know that the defeat of his Presi
dential sspirations embittered his
closing years. He might have had
the gift of sleep but he did not have
the gift of dismissing fruitless worries.
John Bright was a poor sleeper and
admitted that he took his cares and
anxieties to bed.
There is some satisfactory evidence
that the duration of human life is
greater than it was a century ago
Dr. Todd. President of the Georgia
Aledical Society, affirms that mort
uary statistics confirm this theory.
Thus, the average of life in France is
now to rty-nve years ago. ihe pres
ent average found m hlty cities and
towns m Lngland he places at fifty.
He claims that the United btates
leads all other countries, with an
average duration of fifty-five years
These estimates are extremes. It is
probable, however, that the average
duration of human lire in this coun
try is gradually increasing. Tern
perate living prevails to a greater
extent than ever before. V ith tern
perance and moderation, there is
less excitement, consequently mora
rest and more sleep. It is certain
that the gift of sleep goes with lon
gevity San Francisco Bulletin.
, . m m . -
Cigarette and Heart.
Inhaling cigarette smoke is gener
allv admitted to be one of the chiel
causes of ill-health in voung men.
"1 do not believe that smoking
dozen cigaretts in the ordinary way
ever did a grown-up person any tan
gible harm," said Harris, the tobac-
conist.
"Inhaling the smoke, though, is
very different thing. Let even the
most inveterate smoker try this, and
he will be convinced. Let him smoke
an ordinary cigarette while walking
and at some distance from a meal
inhaling the smoke well into the
bronchial tubes. Then if. hefnr hp
has finished his cicrarette. he does not
t find his head grow dizzy, or his heart
oegm to tnumn. or his nnsrers tinHp.
1 shall be quite read v to congratulate
him on the possession of an excellent
organizm. Whether this effect is due
tq an impression on the termination
oi tne vagus, or whether the activ
principle of the tobacco is absorbe
nna carnea straight to the heart in
the blood current, I shall not under
take to decide. I only take the
feot."
Go In? to "Se a Han.M
One night in the winter of 1806,
says a Washington special to the
Detroit Tribune, Artemus Ward lec
tured in Lincoln hall, and when the
great humorist was about half
through his discourse he paralyzed
the audience with the announcement
that they would have to take a re
cess of fifteen minutes so as to enable
him to go across the street to "see a
man." H. R. Tracy, then editor of
the Washington Republican, was in
the audience, and seeing an oppor
tunity to improve upon the joke pen
ciled the following lines and sent to
the platform:
"Dear Artemus: If you will place
yourself under my, guidance I'll take
you to 'see a man without crossing
the street." .
Artemus accepted the invitation,
and while the great audience impa
tiently, but with much amusement,
awaited the reappearance of the hum
orist, the latter was making the ac
quaintance of Aman and luxuriating
at a well-laden refreshment board.
Of course everybody "caught on to"
the phrase, and men became fond of
getting up between the acts and "go
ing out to see Aman." The restau
rateur's business'from this time for
ward boomed. Men who would or
dinarily sit quietly through an en
tertainment and behave themselves
allowed themselves to be influenced
by contagion.
Culture Lost the Day. .
A young wildcat was brought into
Albany the one day by Mr. Glover oi
Worth county, and sold for a dollar
o Messrs. Mayer and Crine. It
quickly attracted a crowd, eager to
watch the motions of this wild "var
mint."" It was wrought up to a
pitch of frenzy by being pulled around
by its chain and poked at with sticks,
which it would viciously bite at. all
the while uttering a low, growling
noise, similar to tnat oi a dog with
a bone, while its little bob tail was
vigorously worked and its eyes
flashed forth a baleful emerald light.
Some of the members of the Loafers'
club thought they would have some
fun with it; so they carried it to a
rag house on Washington street, and
procuring an old Thomas cat pre
pared for a first-class cat fight. When
all was ready the felines were brought
together. The wildcat made one an
gry leap toward the tame one, where
upon the latter turned tail and, witii
the utmost horror depicted in its up
raised fur, lit out for parts unknown
as if a cyclone had been after it. Su
perior culture did not tell when placed
in conflict with piney-woods grit.
Atlanta Constitution.
- The Longest Law Case.
Up to the present time there are 18,-
000 folios of testimony in the case of
Rosalie Butler against the Stewart
will. Printed, it will make 10 volumes
of 700 pages each. There never has
been a will contest in this country iu
which the evidence was so volumin
ous, and yet the proponents intro
duced only six witnesses, who all
testified briefly to one fact. Although
Judge Hilton's counsel profess a de
sire to have the cases disposed of
speedily, that is, within three or four
years, yet the indications are that it
will pass into legal history as anoth
er interminable case, with a goodly
share of the property in the hands of
the lawyers. More delicate legal
questions have already arisen than in
any will case ever before the courts
of this country. Whether the true
story of the causes that led lonely,
innocent Mrs. Stewart to make her
peculiar testament will ever be di
vulged is another question which
time alone can answer. New York
Correspondence.
Longevity,
Dr. Todd, president of the Georgia
State Medical Society, stated in a
recent paper on "Longevity" that
the death rate in various countries
of the globe bears a ratio very near
ly inverse to the number of qualified
physicians resident in them. Thu3
Russia, whose death rate is the high
est in Europe, has among its teenjing
populations only 15,414 regular
physicians, and one surgeon to 100-
000 inhabitants. The United States,
having a doctor of medicine to every
GOO inhabitants, shows the lowest
death rate in the world. The aver
age life expectancy in this country is
fifty-five years; iu England it is fifty
two; in Kussia and Chili it is but
twenty-eight years; in Ellobed, in
the Soudan, twenty-three years.
Within fifty years the average in
France has advanced from twenty
eight is 45 years. Since the time of
Elizabeth the life term has increased
from twenty to fifty-two years. Dr.
Todd ascribes this progressive change
to advance medical knowledge, bet
ter drainage and diet, greater clean
liness, and to vaccination and the
use of anaesthetics, quinine and' the
like. He thinks that quinine alone
has added two years td the average
life of civilized man.
But the Earring Was Found.
At a recent "fashionable eveni;"
an evening party in high circle a
lady lost a diamond earring of great
value, which could nowhere be found.
Thereupon a gentleman, who had
ju3t returned from the East, pro
fessed his ability to discover the
missing gem by means of an Indian
drug. Accordingly .he asked all the
company to be seated, and, after
leaving the room, he reappeared with
a colored glass bowl containing a
liquid. He then announced that he
should ask all those present to dip
their fingers into the vessel, and de
clared that should any one have
secreted the jewel for a joke the jes
ter's hand would be tinged a rich
blood red. After the ordeal was gone
through every one's digits came out
perfectly white, but the earring was
found at the bot tom of the bowl.
London Telegraph.
Tli Dever I of Sahara.
The Sahara as a whole is not below
sea level; it is not the dry bed of a re
cent ocean, and it is not as flat as the
proverbial pancake nil over. , Part of it,
indeed, is very mountainous, imd all of
it is more or less varied in lerel. The
Upper Sahara consists of a rocky plat
eau, rising at times into considerable
peaks; the lower, to which it descends
by a steep slope, is "a vast depression
of clay and Baud," but still for the most
part standing high above sea level. No
portion of the Upper Sahara is less than
1,300 feet high a jjood deal higher than
Dartmore or Derbyshire. Most of the
lower reaches from 200 to 800 feet
anite as elevated as Essex or Leicester.
The two spots below sea level consist of
the beds of ancient takes, now much
shrunk by evaporation, owing to the
present rainless condition of the coun
try ; tne sou arouml these is deep in
gypsum, and the water itself is consid
erably saltier than tho sea.
That, however, is always the case with
fresh water lakes iu their last dotage, aa
Ameslcan geologist have, amply proved
in the great salt lake of Utah. Moving
sand undoubtedly covers a large space
in both divisions of the desert, but AO-
cording to Sir Lambert Playfair, our
best modern authority on the subject, it
occupies not more than cue third part
of the entire Algerian bahtra. Use-
where rock, clay and muddy lake are
tle prevailing features, interspersed
wtth not infrequent data groves and vil
lages, tho product of artesian wells or
excavated spaces or river oases. Even
Sahara, in short, to give it due, is not
by any means so black as it is painted.
What tlie Knee Indicate.
The knees of a i ian are an unimpeach
able index of his character: that i. if
they have not been injured so that their
natural action is impaired. A strong
character is accompanied with a strong
walk. A weak character is shown in the
weak knees and the shillvshallvinr.
scrapping walk. If one should desire
tne performance oi a deed whieii re
quires nerve and preseverance, he would
never trust it to a man who drags his
legs about as if they were made of lead.
or who walks as if his legs were half
asleep. If you want to measure a man's
character, and have not the time to
scrutinize and analyze his features and
through them the soul, study his nether
extremities and how he uses them. You
will get from his legs in action, and
sometimes from his legs in repose, the
general outline of his being. And you
may be quite sure that the idea you 6o
glean is, in nino cases out of teu, the
correct one. Detroit J?ree Tress.
' The Russian army will soon b provided
vmii breecn loading nil eg.
It is possible tor fish to be smelt when
served with limburer cheese.
Thomas Nelson Page, the Virginia author,
is now m&kinz a tour through Ireland.
Mr. Gladstone has had Lis portrait
paintea luirty-uve times.
i Don t tou want to save monor. rlntViM
yc
time, labor, fuel, and health? All these
can be saved if you will try Dobbins' Elec
tric coap. we say "try," Knowing u you
try rt once, you will always ue it. Have
your grocer order.
' Tlie Preacher' ITIUtake.
It is soberly related that a youthful
married couple whose uouse has re
cently been trlorified bv the addition of
a fao -simile of the beautiful little
mother decided to have tho christening
service at home. A venerable minister
was called to officiate. He took the
babe in his arms very affectionately and
nddressed a few words of advice to the
young parents, nee tnat you train up
.this child in the way that he should go;
that vou surround him with the best ln-
iflueuces, and that you give him' a good
example. If you do so who knows but
he may become a John Wesley or a
Georgo Whitfield? What is his name?"
'"Nellie, sir," replied tho mother. Bos-
,ton iraveller.
When Baby was sick, we gave her Castoria,
When she wa3 a Child, s!io cried for Castoria,
When she became Miss, che clung to Castoria,
Wka she had Children, she gave them Castoria,
Cnrioue Computation.
An electrical writer has calculated that
the firing of a small pistol sets free
about COO foot pounds of energy, while
a watch consumes about one fifty-four
millouth of a horse power, the emersy of
.the bullet being sufficient to keep the
'time for two years. An Edison telo
pbone transmitter requires about a
thousandth of the energy in a watch; it
would therefore be worked for 2,000
years on the energy exerted in the pis
tol. A lishtning flash of 3,500,000 volts
and 14,000,000 amperes, lasting one
twenty-thousandth of a second, would
run a 100 horse power engine for teu
hours.
. J. S. PARKER, Fredonia, N. Y., aaye:
"Shall not call on you for the $100 re
ward, for I believe Hall's Catarrh Cure will
cure any case of catarrh. Was very bad."
Write him for particulars. Sold by Drug
gists. 75c.
The white house chef says that Fresideut
Harrison is not an epicure.
Mr. Cleveland's fortune is now placed
$200,000.
at
USE
FOR
PAIN,
At Pktjqotits ai Dialkri.
THE CHARLES A. V0CELER CO.. Baltimore. Ill
m mm
vum.
JOSEPH H. HUNTER,
n i: va. 1 1 v
"Our Clrla.'
Kitty ia witty.
Nettie in pretty,
Lutie is cute n nd small;
Irene ia a queen,
Annette is a pet,
Nell is the belle ! the bail;
Diantha ia wealthy,
llertha I healthy.
And health is the beat of all. !
tPrftct health keeps her rosy and r-'
dfaut beautiful and blooming, sensible
and aweet. It ia secured by wholesom
habits and the use ot Dr. Pierce's Favorite
Prescription. Bertha takes it, and sht
alao "takes the cake." The only tuaran-
teed cure for tboae distressing ailments pe
culiar to women. Satisfaction or your,
money returned.
For Constipation or Bick Headache, use
Dr. Pierce's Pellets: Purely Vegetable. One
a dose. . - !
The skeleton ot the largest elephant evei !
killed fen India is to be exhumed and sent-
to the museum at Madras. i
We recommend "Tanlir Punch" Cigar. t
The French are now manufacturing thet
Lebei gun, with which the whole army ie!
to be equipped. i
For two two-cent stamps we will send!
you one
ot the handsomest almanac in1
the country.
"Homestead," Omaha, Neb.!
Among Michigan's teachers Is a tail
blooded Indian, who is said to be doing
excellent work.
Naphtha is now
much used as fuel in
middle Russia.
Dr. Chaiile statea that the average lite of
woman is longer than that ot man.
Forty-three suicides were committed ia
Vienna in May.
Joy to the World)
PERRY DAVIS' PAIN KILLER
for the entire eradication of all" Pain,
EXTERNAL or INTERNAL
No family should bo without it. Ono
twenty-five cent bottle will do nior. to
conrince you of tho eflicacy than all
the testimonials we might present, and
we have an abundance) of this kind of
evidence.
ITS ACTION IS LIKE MAGIC.
lor Coughs, Colds and Sore Throat,
a teaspoonful of Patn-Kliler taken at th
beginning of an attack will prove an al
most never-falling cure, and savo much-
SUFFERING AND MONEY.
PAIN-KILLER
is an article that has combined la It all
that ?oes to mako a first-class family
medi 'ine.
Dd ARE OF IMITATIONS.
Ah Druggists sell rain-Killer a
25c, 50c, and $1.00 a bottle,
CARTER'S
loltivrlyc?tirrd )
uieee utile nil.
They alno Millar DU
trmia from Dynp.p.ta.10
Aigostioa ami TooH&rt;
Eatlng. A. perfect reus
I VtK
I Dili C
idy for DisKiri)i,Nanae
in the Mouth. Ccatpti
Tongne.Pain In the Side.
TOKfH) LIVER. Thej
rrgukte tits Bowels
Purely VcprUMe.
Price 2& Cents:
CASTES MEDICnTE CO., YOiS,
Small Pill. Small Dose. Small Price.
s
ass
Thol-arjreat and Beat Equipped Kchool la the
Wet. Thorough Practical Uepartmaaa,
Send for Colloare Journal.
DUTCHER'S
FLY KILLER
IRRIGATED
(ton. aoll: abu
I A imC In Peeos YatVrr.
LA II DO1" Pouthaanera Nw
abundance of cure waters a del I '..
jh.xico. nuic ilia.
Cm I cllnaattaail th. Tears almoit coutinuoua auf
bine; altitude WOO feat; haaltfcle. l-Iitj ta
the u. is noconaumptioii, do malaria, iw acre
wlK yield a comMt.noj. Wrlia for particular-.
Dinl
ine thia paper, to re. Irrlaat
veetaaea C., . M.ir.. Caleac,
iin o "
111.
PENSION
JOXINAV.WroilHIS.
lAte rrinolpal Eimtot
U.. lVaalon inmau, ah r
at Law, Waahlniton,
lAaAOnt. I ' 1 A I Ml.
original. Increaiw. re ratlntr, wlJowi', children a an4
dependent relative.'. Experience f 3 j-ra. in lt
war, 15 jri. In eaaion Bureau and attorney alitce.
7t Oft A COCA 0 A- MONTH caa be male
$1 0i 10 5 t0U workln for u. - Acenta
preferred wlio can furnlnh a liom. and gle their wsole
tint, to the biiinf. Hpar. momenta uiy l. profltaltlr
employed l.-o. A few viu-.tioii;. in town, and cili.a
li. V. JOHNSON A CO.. I0W Min Ht,, Itichmona. a.
N. B. .tate a?. nj buam eapenence. Nev
er mini about tendin? tUiup fur reply, li. J. & Wo.
Jownstown Horror!
Our New Hook, The .Tolinatowii llirror or
Valley of Death, ti e ino-i thrilling boot ever
iMued. WANTKD In ever lown!il.
Term SO per re:i. OutfiM M cent. Katloual I'uik
Co., 21K CUrs S.rce;. CiiUaj. 111.
DETECTIVES
Wanted In every county, biirewd men to net under
Instruction iu our beciel bervlue Kxpirlnc uH
necetiary. (-end 2- t.nr. Grannati Detective
liureau Co.. 44 Arcade, Cincinnati, O.
DRAKE UNIVERSITY,'!:;
Dei Molne.,
l.t k.h...t
i tne
of the Weav4 CoUegs, Si Teacher. 70 Stui.oU.
S Uraduatea. Adranlatei ftnxrrlur i
leasee WW. Kend lor t'atalaHe.
e, t. tAUl'iatim, Ctoameellor.
2nd that Plbo'a Cure
for Connuitiptinn Dot
only 1KL tSl S, tut
alHo CCKta Hoarae
neaa. S5i
S9 a day. amp!e worth mt. i5 Ke.C
net not undor h.irieV leei. Write T w.
ster Safety Rein Holier Co..Hollv. m c v
f A "f" f p Slmann. wet n 1 fii o!-t
Si fruitt. Mttrj'M,btt-r M.ht
plaa;b6atout.1tsr.'.Mo.Xuii4r. VCJ..IsuiU?i.M i
Lincoln N. U.
70-20
Attokwv. vra-hlneten.
1 '.. WILL CiKT VOU
I'EXSlOX without dslay.
I 1
' I!
Orbiors
Is better than any soap ; handier, finer, more effec
tive, more of it, more for the money, and in the
form of a powder for your convenience. Takes, as
it were, the fabric in one hand, the dirt in the other,
and lays them apart comparatively speaking, wash
ing with little work.
As it saves the worst of the work, so it saves the
worst of the wear. It iin't the uss cf doilies that
makes them old before their time ; it i s mbbini and,
straining, getting the dirt out by main Etrength.
For scrubbing, house-cleaning, washing dishes,
windows and glassware, Pearline has no equal.
Beware of limitations, prize packages and ped
dicrs JAMES PVLE, New Yoik.