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About The American. (Omaha, Nebraska) 1891-1899 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 26, 1892)
THEE AMERICAN. IN THE SOUTHLAND. Afar t Ut dr old IWhlaad, Wfcora waont and wttart mtV Imm art bloomtnt In btitf, nbin birds ting soft and twt JtfiT s tkt Jrar eld Snu'.lilsad, ht wtiu, my RuUinftlar, What lb Habit art whit with hlooanma. And naught bar tit doth mar. Afrl tbt dear nil Rniithlind, po by tli mtmmr ifa. SOIIg h Is sinking ftly, Flostt OTr tha itn to me. MISS 8PAKKLKS. She hud the brljrhloni cyot and iho sunniest tmile to bo found within the four tea hs might have her mo menta of depression, as wa all have, and the might at timet flume out Into rage whoa thing went wrong and htr blood wat up, but thin only re deemed hr from iho monotony of cheerful nas and gave hor the variety that belongs to a rich nature. Uf the darker, the more sullen passions, aha bad not a trace, nnd the worst that could be laid of hor wan that the was "soon up", and "somotimos down." But Id general she was Miss Sparkles," and the name expressed all that the world loved or cared to know. She had occasion enough for tho axerelse of her brightness, for she u an orphan, with no greater pro tection than might be found In a ouple of flne-henrtod brothers, one of whom was on a Texas ranch and the other In one of her majesty's hlps as lieutenant in the Australian nous. Either of those men would have protected her with his heart' blood; but with all these mllot be tween her ana them, they were not -very efllclent Grouthoart and poor little Miss Sparkles had practically no one but hersolf as her' guardian and oarolnker. For yours she had fulllllod certain duties In the house of an old friend. She had beon as the adoptod daughter of tho widow who loved hor, truBted to hor, and found her own happiness in the association which gave herself a .loving compan ion and Miss Sparklet an affectionate home. But troublo had come between the two and an enemy had sowed tares, as oncmlos have Iho trick of doing. Anne, tho old servant, who had lived with hor mlslroBS these twenty ydars gone, had never quite liked the close association of Miss Sparkles with the mistress.' She grudged the cares that were glvon on the one side and the protection that was granted on the other. She thought that Miss Sparkles would be a vaHt deal bettor oraployod gotting her liv ing In somo qunsl-monlul way that would toaoh her horpluoo, rather than living here as the daughter of the house where never a daughter wat wanted. What did Missus want with a young person hanging around whon he, her old Anne, was there to look after her comforts and see to hor fads nrwl fnnnlna' And If sho did Want any one, why should sho'Tiot have hor' own niece Grnolo, sb.tor Janes oldest, as fine a girl us ever stepped? Sho wus bigger and tailor than Miss Sparkles, and quite as good a compan ion; nnd she was tho oldest of sevon, and it woull bo "the worlds" for slater June to find her such a good situation us this of Missus' would be. .So sho sot herself to work to try and oust MIhi Sparkles from the place and wrig gle hor niece Grade into it Heaven knows whut she said, but she said something that proved quite efficient for its purpose; and for tho first time In thoir joint lives together the kind old friend and quasl-mothor began to doubt; to suspect, and find fault with her adopted daughter. The home which had once been like a soft, warm nest lined with down, became now a cold, hard, prickly perch, where footing was not too secure. Miss Sparkles, who In times gone by had never been known to displease, could now scarcely please the lady. Mrs. Grahama who In times gono by had never spoken a harsh word to hor bright eyed companion, now scarce ever spoke a kind one. Poor Miss Spurl-les cpenod those bright eyes of hers to the widest but she could not understand what was passing about her, and Mrs. Grahame did not' ex plain nor did hor old maid Mr Anne. Whon Miss Sparkles, poor dear, all in angry tours and vivid flush of eager scorn, . besought Mrs Gra hame to toll her how or why or where she had offonded, that lady put on her iciest look and answered primly: "You have not offonded me, Maria. Have 1 made any complaint?" " ' No," said Miss Sparkles vehement lyj "and I only wish you had! It would be more satisfactory to know what had displeased you than, to be treated with this odd coolness so un like your formor self." "Am I to be taken to task for my manner?" asked Mrs, Grahame, in re ply. "Do you hold that to bo a very dutiful or rospoetful thing to do from yon to me, Maria?" And poor Miss Sparkles, baffled at each turn and every endoavor, felt there was nothing for It but silence, patience and doing hr best to recover tha affection sho hud lost lost she oouldnot toll how. Some deaths are mercifully twlft end others are painfully slow and lin gering, The moral follows the physi cal law, and in the death of friendship are repeated tho tame conditions as thos which surround the gradually weakening vitality of tho body or those which out tho tlo between breath and spirit with a stroke a sudden as a lightning flash. Ever Influenced by Mrs. Anne, the old lady's lovo for her favorite gradually died, tilt at last the psychological moment 'cama tho time were fully ripe, and Grade mltfht be elfflotually Introduced. Dat- tined to bo the tuncetior, there now onlr wanUt-i tho .ccHlori Mix Sparklet mutt ha dispossessed, but she must bo Put in tho wrong, arid In a manner mode to out bar own throat It wot only a llttlo thing. Tha larjf- H aranla gtnr,lly da hang an Utile thiol and Iragwllat which flit tha world spring from Initial ctrcura stsnos ao btggnr than a mustard t4 Among tht domiitlc duttPt which Mi Sparklet had performed with SUeh signal 1UIHHMMI Waa that of Mi cam of lhi linen. Mrs, Grahama had a fin lock of llnrn, and at proud of It a a good housekeeper should bo Pur log tha danR-hler Ilka r-pocn of M!t Sparklet' mnttsmt'Hl no reasonable fault could have been or ever had boen found with Iho mnnner In which tha had fulfilled hor chnrga. Hut now, when Anna'a tilnca Graclarama In as the tiHrior. ud(hnly, crlo! crac! at tho French sny, I ha Kcyt of tha linen closet were demanded, and tho care of tha linen was hamlod ovor to the nuweomor, I How have I deserved this?" tnld Miss Spiirktcs, naming, at wat not tin natural. "1 liavo done my duty. Why ! do you dispossess mo P" j "That It my affair," tnld Mrt. Grahame. "Surely I can do at I Ilka with my own?" Woll, tho bright-eyed little irlrl boro thlt hor first snub direct In favor of a rival with as much patience nt tho could command which, truth to say, was not an over whelming amount She did make it rather uncomfortable, for her rival, and thow 'her tempo with perhaps lets discretion than honesty lost prudence than slncorily. At all events she gave the occasion that wot wanted, and put herself to much la tho wrong that Mrt. Grahame found the fitting for the shaft the wantod to throw, and gave Mist Sparklet her conge. , ' 1 ; So now, turned out from tha toft warm nost on to the bare and prickly perch, the poor little girl was oast into a space, and if she foil to the ground altogether, neither Mrs, Gra hame instigated by Anne, nor Anne influenced by greed and jealousy and tho worst form of nepotism carol It was the fashion in the house to speak of Miss Sparkles as ungrateful, wild tempered, neglectful, impossible It was the fashion to pretend that all and sundry had borne many things bo cause of her furious passions because of hor neglect of duty; and that thoy were all woll quit of hor, an Incubus as tho hud become And Graoto took her place gallantly and played into her aunt's hands, us it was lntondod she should. In tho neighborhood whore this little story wus unnoted lived a wealthy man not only, but a greut dual older than Miss Sparkles. He hud always admired this bright vi vacious, olevor llttlo girl, with hor ready wit and, untiring helpfulness, hor good humor, general ability, keen perception and perspicacity, lie had admired and loved her, und in some sort envied bis neighbor, Mrs. Grahame, for the possession of such a pleasant llttlo tinging bird for whom he, too, would have boon fain to find a suitable onge. Hut it never oc curred to him to disturb existing ar rangemontsand ho kept himself too tightly In hand to allow himself to re gret, doslro, to plan. When, how ever, the pretty girl wus dispossessed and so unfairly and so unceremoni ously treated, he roconsldorod his own position nnd hors, nnd thought It ovor within him ho If, wondering if it would bo possible if it would ba wlso if It would bo rlghtP But, nothing venture, nothing win, and at least he might sound Miss Sparkles horsolf, and hour what sho thought about tha mutter. Would she? . Could she? He was 30 years older than she, but he was bale and hearty, and at 60 he matched hor 25 with not too bad a graco. At all events, he loved her and was willing to give bis name and his fortune, if so be that she could love him and content horsolf at hit wifa . And when he asked hor, the little girl, bruised and tore and desolate at the was, unprotected, friendless, home less, turned to him with that gratltudo which, when mixed with respect and porsonul liking makes no ill substitute for love, and said, "Yes, sho loved him well enough to be his good and faithful wife, and she would spend all her strength and energy in making him happy, so that he should never rogrot the trust he had placed in hor. " And thus, as is often in life hor troublo became her wellsprlng of Joy, and hor fall wat the platform on which the found hor prosperity. The marriage turned well in all rospectt grandly welL Miss Sparklet, with all her brightness and her vivacity, brought the sunshine of youth and gayety into hor husband's erstwhile gloomy house. Loving, no one else, she loved h Ira with her whole heart and never know the moment she re gretted her marriage. Nothing could be more harmonious than her Ufa nothing more prosperous nothing more perfect It was a round of pleosantnost and an uninterrupted flood of sunshine; while poor Mrs. Grahame, between Anne and hor niece, was at grltt between tha upper and tha nether millstone - iron between tha hammer and tho anviland could no more call her very tout her own. And - hor beautiful atore of linen dwindled strangely and rapidly, and what was hift went into decay and waa left to ruin unrepaired. Thlt wat her punishment for listening to malevo lence and being weak enough to be lieve evil reports unsubstantiated by facta or proof. London Queen. Tha onajnn. Hoi "They wore married through a matrimonial bureau, and he telected her by hor photograph." Shoi "And now thoy'ra off on their bridal tour?" He: "No; be't gone to kill tha photographer. " To ttprnt lit fllf. Among th most extraordinary plucks of symbolism known to bava been uud by tha early Asiatics waa a donk'jy'a bead used as a reprotanta tlva of tho deity. DITKNMINID CLItNT, A Wa ra , Mr r ' Xly ftrtt rata. aald a wall-knowa ltartam lawyer to a Naw York Adw tlu! nrantllva M a' Uhlq'.lS onv An Irish family I ma nama oi Murphy, living up n the rwkt of ona of tha font-disappearing remnants of hhantyiown. were fraud ui.'iitiy ovlotad from their tumbledown cabin by a ra callr landlord. Tha practical head ; of tho houtuhotd wt tho wlfo, and tut of the St Louis Giotto-Democrat tha determined to fight tha matter out. ttumts sponsor for Iho following story "For thwo weeks the Murphy ohlU told by Lou lopurd, a sugar plantar dren, furniture and all lived tn tha of that vlomltyi bark-yard of their former home with 1 - My plantation had, since tha war, nothing botwoen Ihem and heaven but Won for tha most part uncultivated, a lllnisy tnt mado o' old thooU, whllo only tho tract lying mtnreat town hnv Mra. Murphy tramped around town' lug been rented out to small planters, looklnir for a lawyer who would taka while the ncroi bordering tho river thoir case for nothing. One dav she charged Into my office nnd told mo her ttory with tho stereo typed exactness that oomes from fre quent rt petition. The caso teemed tdf he a worthy one, and at I wasn't over-! burdened with work 1 agreed to takaj. It free of charco and reinstate tha- Murphyt In their dilapidated homov stead. She wanted to got out a free sum mons against tha landlord and waiv Uma hunting my roady-nmde pre several other small but neoestnry exv serve Una day I had hud an un pento but I told her it would ba mora! usually successful day of i'.and wosre pollle to pay these, as tho total would) turning home with my bag of small I not amount to '. i' " 'Folve dollar' she cried; "dlvU a, olnt have the Murphyt teen tlnoe me husband losht hit iob wan month ago, L and tha losht blissed thing thlra pawn brokors '11 take they've got already.' "When I offered to loan her tho money the went into tuch a rago that hind it to the landward, and the river I apologised abjectly. J' conconlod by it on the other. It was "Be the power' the exolalmed, j growing lute, too, and whon presently after pacing the floor for about tent I hoard a piercing scream behind me mlnutos, '1 forgot wan thing! Walt ! it sent tha blood to my heart in mlsthor, an' I'll be back in an hour.',' quicker beats, for tho sound was an She kept hor word, and just at I evil one under the circumstances, was closing up shop for the day she I "Hut a moment's thought told me reappeared with hor hands full of sil- it was tho voice of an animal I heard, ver, which she poured upon my desk. ; and as It was some distance oil, I "Mr Murphy, 'I queried, -where , jogged seronoly on, dismissing it from did you set this? I thought your lost my mind, as it never occurred to mo valuable had boen pawned?' , that the scream had roferenco to mo, 'Yis,' she replied, with a gloam ofybut in another minute or two I hoard triumph in her gray eye 4vory thing ; it again, and this time considerably exolpt the goat I took old Nanny, ' nearer me. It sounded again and wnose milk mo chlldor hat lived upon, ' Viiln, each tlmo drawing olosor, until over to the Konnoy and thoy lint mo ."'it struck mo all nt once that tho (our dollars an' nlnety-slvln ctnts on , animal might bo attracted by my hor. Thore't the money, young man, , door. I looked behind mo, and saw and now, be the luv of Hlvln, go in ;thut the buck was still bleeding a and bate McCarty!' . "j little, and that the drops of blood fell "I take pleasure In ttatlng that Mo- Unto tho dust of tho road as I traveled. Carty waa 'buton.'" T 'jWhen I perceived this I was certain . . j 1 1 i ', V the wild cat was trailing mo, QOROEOU8 PARADES. rurnlshal Br EIphaaM of Anolaat Days In India.' - It was In the proceislon and page, ants that elophants made the finest apponranoe, says St Nicholas, fitted with magnificent trapping and marching slowly along, as. If con clous of thoir fine looks, One of tha most remarkable shows was that at most romarKaoie snows was mat y th8 Nodding X61 Vizier- All in 1795. Here 1, '200 elephants were in line, all richly costumed. Uf these 100 had howdahs, or castlos, covered with Bllver, while in tho center sat the nabob upon a ' very large elephant whose howdnh was covered with gold, set with jewels. The dally parade of tho elephants of the Court of Johanghlr wat a won dorful display. Tho elephants were bedecked wltii precious stonea, chains of gold and tilvor. gilt bannort and flags. The first elephant called the Lord Klophunt, hud the plates of hit head and breast sot with rubles and emeralds, and as he passed the king ha turned, droppod upon his knees, and trumpeted loudly not in loyal fra ma of mind, exactly, but because tho driver pricked him witn a-sharp prod i uit) at the right time. Silly people, however, bolloved that the elephant was showing respect for the king. To-day, the elephant is still used ia India in pageants, as a laborer, espec ially in the lumber districts, where it It taught to carry long timber and, at bat been said, forms a corps in tho British armyi but in active warfare it Is not useful only in few cases, ana . can never De empioyeu so irequeuu as in ancient tlmos. Told the Truth About It. Ket," said the man, "yos; lt wat the sama old story. Ho wat a fine-looking young follow, ambitious to rise in his profession, the soul of honor, and entirely without guile, and the scorned to be gontlo, winning and refined; in short, all that a woman ihould be. How could it have been othorwlse than that he should be at tracted toward hor? He fought against this passion, but it. was usoloss. Una flay when they were alone he told hit love, and the" I "And tho," broke in one of the party j who had listened to the speaker with baled Dreath, 'unusne reruseu mm, nnd he turned about with a groan and loft her forever. Ills Ufa wot crushed; be" '"Not a bit of it" tftld the narrator; "sha accepted him and thoy wore married two or threo months after wards, and have ovor since lived a happy, contented, humdrum tort of lifo, ' ' Oil and Ma ion, ' This recalled one of hhoridan't talet of an Irishman who met a Briton of the true John Bull pattern,, standing with fa Mod arms in a contemplative mood, apparently meditating on the greatness of his little is I if, n 4 "Allow ma to differ with of ax. claimed tha Celt "But 1 have tald nothing sir, " ra- plied John Bull I "And a man may think a U at woll at publish If pertlsted tha pugna cious Hibarnlan, . "I'arhapt you are looking for a fight?" queried tha Brltoo. "Allow ma to compliment ft on tha atilckness of your porciptlon," tald ill. t t ..L. 4 1. . m t rw. Antmn 1,1.1 tuuti. unA jthan they pitefcad io. Washington I Pott FIOIITIXU A WILDCAT. A BATTLK WON BY A SKILLFUL STRATKOEM. Il.tal art a WraponlM Man Wttaa 1a-r Wat Kolhlat ttlltt Wtilrh la IH-rail lllm.alf A Marra Karapa. Tha Lak Chariot. La, correspond. wore left to nature, so that whan I bought It I had considerable work In clearing it again, 1 founl it overrun with wild boasts rabbit doer, swamp foxes, and others of tho lest olTouslve sorts, and enough wild cats, panthers, and raUlosnukos to make tho tusk of clearing it a lively one. My hands carr ted their guns to tho field as regularly as they did their - Mioos, and i myself, put in a very good gume tied to my saddle, while behind me on my horse was as fine a buck as you ever saw. My rood was a lonely one, which had been newly out and ran beside the river for a mile or more. On elthor tide of It wat a dense un dergrowth, with a lino of timber be- and looked to my gun to toe vlf It wat loaded and at hand. I antic- ipated no trouble with tho creature, i at I expocted it would presently loan tho ,UD(ior(rrowth lintl i would have time to lire upon it ere it reached me,, Hut it did not appear, and X hoarfl no other scream, so I had just ihegun to think that the animal had determined discretion to be the better t valor and. given up the chose, J hon. wltll0Ut anV warnlmr. the oat 1 that had crept upon me from behind, her volvoUshod loot making no sound In the dust of. the road, sprang upon my back. Tho attack was so very unexpected that 1 was folied from my wm by lt lind rollo(1 to tho grollnd ,wr,n tno creature sim clinging to me, ,whllo my gun was knocked from rny hand and lay somo twonty foot from me. The horse; scared out of its wits, broke into a run and yiim out of sight In a mlnuto, carrying tho door with him. I was loft alone to wrentlo with the cat und a rather unenviable situa tion it was, for without a weapon and worn out with a long day's hunting, I was hardly a match for the animal a young ono, and excited by hunger and the smell of fresh blood. My falling on it also seemed to be ''.onntrund as a declaration of war. and 'tilnrr mi rn b.u.V u-hleh n (nar. I ully lacerated by tho creaturo't pow- eriui claws, it new at my tnroai doiopo I could regain my footing. I throw up my arm to guard my throat which wat exposed by my hunting shirt and Llio cat fastened Its teeth in the flesh w lle0W tno 0n,ow I struck it with all the force I m other i,ftnd with could muster under the circumstances, but the only effect of tho blow was to cause the beast to sink its tooth deep er Into my flesh, until I fearod it would break the bone. Yelling for help, I lay still for sevoral minute but when no answering shout greolod my eart 1 concluded that if anything was to bo done J was the ono that would have to do it. With a sudden jork 1 tried to throw tho cat off my body, but thlt proved a signal failure, and, though tho creature lot go my arm, lt was to make a snap at my face. I averted thlt by again1 inter posing my arm. which it sci.od in just abut the same place. I wat at a loss to know, what to do, but that something had to bo done was becoming more evident every moment fn I wat not only in agony with that boast's noftdlo-like tooth mumbling at my arm, but 1 was also growing faint from tho loss of blood. Canting about for torno lucky idea, for I realized that my only hope lay in strategy, my eyet foil on tho dusty road, and like an In spiration oamo tho thought that under providence saved my life. In my alt engaged hand I caught up as much of the dust as it would hold and flung it Into tho eyo nearest mo. Tho cat gavo a squall but before it could tprlng up I was voady with another handful of tho dust which I throw into the other gloaming eye, Blinded and lorrlliod by tha lost of Its sight, tha cat leaped several font Into the air, howling with pain and clawing at itaolf in a vain altornpt to , rid lu eyes of tho scalding powdor. Taking ad vantage of the respite I run for my gun, and, aiming carefully, fired upon the rolling, plunging, screaming anU (r.al and d killed ft Frbmdof playwright--"'!! ma, now, what do ytin wtinUUir your gr Ut work ? flay wrl lit -"iiutttiiK y plsy awti'ttd f,ar tbty ra written. "If Ion 'iratt-acrtpL SLOW HV FIVE rEIT. Tha Oia rrarmar Wain IUa tta all Hli;at f't lilt Nana, "Threa or four yaart ago." tald tha anglnoor lo the iMrolt Fraa 1 '( ra. portor, "I was running a passongar train up Norlh. Kvnry other night at 8 o'clock we were duo at a oorlwln country orosnlng. night I Jut shaved a borne and buggy at tha c rowing and tha mim in tha buggy Veomed lo bo mora than half drunk. On the aoiund night 1 birely mU.od him again, and on the third occasion I do bellevo w j knocked a spoke out of hit hind wheel Next day, on the down run, ho came up to the engine as wo lay at tho town about threo miles from tho crossing, waiting for tho ox pros to pat, and tnyt ho: 'Look-a-hore, olu man, you can't do ltl Ye huln't smart 'uuff with yer old tnortcr to run ovor mo!' "Are you tho man who crossot at Dunn's at 8 o'clock every othor night?' I asked. " 'l bo. I'm tho very chap. It't jest my hour fur gotlln' homo from here with a big drink o' whisky bo hind my vost' " 'Well, you want to look out for yoursolf or you'll certainly got killed." " 'Don't you worry about me! Jlst crack on steam and let 'er go and never mind whore I am. If my old hots can't beat your bller on wheelt I'm wlllln' to be Mated.' , "It was no use to talk to him. He was bull-headed and conceited and the very next run ho was there again. I spoke to the conduotor about lt and I believe tome of the officials tent the man word that ha must stop or they'd have him arrested. He didn't stop, though. He was there on my tun at regular at clock work and he always had a lling and a laugh at me. This had boon going on for more than a month, when one night as I was try ing to pick up lost time, I caught him right in tho center of the truck." "And that was tho end of him," observed tha reporter. "It was a quoor thing," said the en. glnoor, "Tho horse and buggy were Hung dear over the fence, killing the horso Instantly, while the old man went forty foet high and came down on the roof of the fourth car back. Wo came to a stop und found him and got him down, He had just about a minute to live, He recognized me, and signed that he wanted to speak. When I boot ovor him he whispered: . "Did It Anally, didn't ye, but do you know whyP The old hoss had collo and was Ave foot slow!" morel In (tatn. ' " Bank director I am surprised, sir, to learn that you drop into our bank every 'day and whisper tips to our cashier. Don't you know the infor mation must be a great temptation to him to use the bank funds to specu late with? Wealthy banker Yos. "And yet you are a heavy stock- holder In our bank, "JUBt SO." .:v-T c?;( "Then, in the name of c6mmon sense, what's your motiveP" 1 'Well the fact Is, I don't kno w whether your cashier is honest or not; but if ho isn't honest, and if he does use the bank funds to speculate with, I want him to keep on the right Bide of tho market See?'1 Buffalo Ex press. The Himixh of Common, The speaker of the house of com mons draws a salary of 5,000 a year wniie in otiico, ana wnon ne re tires ho is raised to the peerage, and receives a pension of 4,000. The deputy speaker receives a salary of 2,500. FEMININITIEb. Without noble desires no man can lead a noble life. Mr. Kemp Sanderford, sr. , aged 83 years, and Mrs. Susannah Nobles, agod 70, lovsrs holt a century ago, were mar ried near Flora, Miss. Motlior, reading: "A machine has been Invented that will fling a man 1,500 feet into the air." Protty daughter: "Horrors! Don't lot pa hear of it." CliHiincey Dopuw said in the course of his addreon to the Fellowship Club in Chi cago, that after a man has passed 40 year? of age be makes no new friend ' Employer: "I'd fngage you fer the place at once, only I must have a married man." Applicant: '"Keep the place opon for aa hour, sir, and I'll easily tlx that."' Ooligbtly: "I am sorry you and Ethel have fallen out." George: "It Is a mat ter of no consequence, sir." "It is to ma. She hasn't bad a young man In years who burned to little gas," In the tenth century, to eat off ths tame plate and drink out of the lama cup was considered a mark of gallantry, and of tha best possible understanding between a lady and a gout loin an. Mother: "Ooodness me! Is that Irene at the piano?" Little son: "Ye ma." 'Well, go ask ber 'what she is doing. If lie is practixhig she can keep on until the hour Is up; but If she is playing tell ber to stop." "I want you to paint us a big motto in gilt letters," b said to the sign artist. "Yet'm. What U tha text)' "It Is mora blessed toglvt than to receive." -un, 1 1 we; tha ladles are getting ready for an- ; other church fair. Young wife: "My love, I have a de Ilghtful surprint In stora for you, Yon can not guims what It Is!" Young hus band, full of pleasant anticipations; "Wlmt It It, darling!" "I've Invited mother to p"d a week with os." "Y, she Is so modest that sha will hardly let me squeeze her bund, although I liava li eiKgd to hr over year." "Indeed! Who ft that man with whom sha it wslt?lfig" "That's a stranger to whom sha was tiitrortueed thlt evening. " lilg Wtri "OI:k, I wish you would go arid l Mr, Shsefellow a giant of wator." Mr. NI'fllow: "Y, my y, and here's a dime for you," ll k: "Thank yoo; I'll go prt.y soon. Mamma tald I shouldn't lava the purl'tr until tha cams bayk." Auntl't, vWtfiigln tn country) "What a bxavunly morelng It l, HHm I feel at though I ahonl1 Ilka to muka aomaoria u vrmimtyhHVVf to-day I" Nina, catching tha same fl)ils('. "Y, auntie, and to do ( L It's go ail frateh ths plgt back." j A SYMBOL Or LIBERTY. Wteara tfc I.IWartjr C n Orlflaataa aac Wkf It Was aaaataa, I have ofun bmtti asked why tha "Liberty Cap" it used tn American il lustration when It originated and why it was adoptod. tayt a writer in the St Lou l Hepubtlc At first I wat Inclined tit give tho subject no partic ular atittti..iv and really never did ulvo Hateiious thought until good forlttna put a railed State cant of 17;i;l In my hand In thlt rare piece tho head of Ltoorty ia turned to tha left Sha has a pule ncroM hor loft shoulder, surmounted by a conical poke, which Is Intended for a Liberty Cap. Huro indeed was an oddity, a subject for immediate Investigation. Turning lo my "Dictionary of Phrase and Fable ' (an odd place to look, sure, for a Liberty Cap is neither a phrase nor a fable), I found the following under the head of -Cup of Liberty." "Ths Goddess of Liberty in the A van lino Mount was represented as hold ing in hor hand a cup, the symbol of freedom. In Franca tho Jocoblnt wore a red cap; iu England a blue cap with a white border is a symbol of liberty, and Brittania is sometimes represented as holding such a cap on the point of her spear." Here were some pointer but no real information ai to the organization of the symbol Delving deeper Into "volumes of forgotten lore," I found that the cap was a symbol of liberty and freedom in the time of the Roman Emperors. When the Romans manu mitted a slave his head was adorned with a small red cloth cap. As soon as this wat done he was known as a libertnu or freed man, and' his name was registered among others of tho city's "tribe." In the year 263, when Saturninus invaded the capital , he hoisted a cap on the polntof his spear, to indicate that all slaves who rallied around this standard should bo free. Whon Marlus incited the slaves to take up arms against Syllo, ho em ployed the same' symbol, and when Cicsar was murdered the conspirators marched forth in a bo ly with a cap elevated on a apear, in token of lib erty, i DRUIDICAL RELICS. Th Wroth" Mo u-y of Warwickshire Its HUiorr and. Orlqrln. History books confidently assert that the Druids have long ceased to exist in England. " Doubt is thrown on this assertion by a quaint custom held in the , Btormy dawn of a recent' morning around the remnants of a British tumulus which exists at Knightlow in Warwickshire, whore the Duko of Bucoleuch, as lord of tho. hundred, exacted paymont of certain tributes which date from the misty times of our Druidtcal ancestor The duke did not himself appear in tho character of a Druid to collect tha dues, but was represented by his agent . Payment is made by twenty eight parishes of the old Hundred of Kniirhtlow, the tax" being called "Wroth silver." What lt was instituted for nobody knows, says the London Telegraph, and nobody knows exactly why it was maintained. It only produces about nine shillings, but if any parish neg lects to pay the clulce has the right to exact from it a while bull with rod noso and ears. The representatives of the different parishes mum assem ble at the tumulus march thrice around a hollow stone, saying, "The wroth money," and deposit the trib ute in tha cavity, from which the duke's representative gathers lt up. A philologer after the school of Dean Swift's "Greek and Latin Derived from English," might explain the meaning of the name by saying the parishes were "wroth" at having to pay it; but this etymology is at once nulifled by the fact that the inhabit ants of the Hundred who care to get out of bed bo early, are entertained in a neighboring hostelry by His Grace at a substantial breakfast, coming to . twenty times more than they pay in "wroth money." It is a curious cus tom, linking the distant past with nineteenth century civilization. Owned the Earth. A good story is told of a distin guished American who made a tour of Europe last summer. In Belgium he walked into a shop and oalled for a cigar. Several were thrown on the counter. "How much are they worth?" he asked. "Three for a quarter of a dollar," answered the shopkeeper, glibly. "Why, you must take me for an American?" "Of course I do." 1 'How came you to guest my nation ality to easily?" "Because whon an Englishman comes in here he asks for a cigar, payg for it without asking any question and walks out" "Well?" "Well, whon one of you Americana coma in hero, you walk up to the counter, and call for a cigar just as if you owned tho whoe blessed earth." : Amoplcan threw down the mon. The American threw down the mon ey, picked UP the cigars, and walked out without a word. Sat Evening Pott' -' Twice Fortr. . A teacher wat drilling the children in music; "What does it mean when you ton tho letter f over a bar or stave?" th asked. "Forte, " answered ona of tha pupils. "And what doet tha character ff mean?" There was a thort period of deep tboughtfulnoss on tha part of tha chil dren, and then ono of them thoutod triumphantly: "Eighty." Tld-Blta. Uniting- Har Cubbage 1 wonder why thoy art paving thlt street? Itubbago Thoy probably iotand to put a tawar down as toon at tan pa? log lt dona. F.poeh,