FLO'.VtHS.
k I a we wlU "
CbrlaUaa U. MHta
fJSaa Biiaer world Bief eoant It sola la fck7
Ae it uiUiou raea.
As tnuuiax-iippwl eu.WUon tll the tuury
Of hi tiirkse-eiweted ! ;
But be t-eUi os tbe r''t to huujAH prtiae,
W ho froia IO ounq oerod aod.
A kT-ly &rer, a ftur Qw bioaaom ru
To glaUden aad Oud.
Jot
eoula that fceve BO prayari
to wad to
H, 711
Theee fcdea ehUdren apeak.
Tbe itull pruealc o( llie wurl4 tha ieaen,
Hrouili o the
Fur wiierever a fluwer 1 Ood baa eet ft Uulder
Thai nueLM to toe alum.
And aouis aaceaduni cr the poiaoa adder
Thai ltd beeaty lies.
And wbo iu walk anion th dttiillug fiowwl
And uot btoaa huii Imj eeuoa
bo kxudly to tb priMn-uruee of ooxa
Ttw ever waicume frusnda ?
Vf frut" tlie grave tfcej spring, a fair coim ac
tual, Beteeen oar nearta and He-' .
A 6ei reuiuj-i.rita. o( il... -jur action.
And l hneHiie freely given.
God
near i ibe wkii-ra M trie now era aor-
roiindilitf
The dr and cuff: tj ad dead ;
The heart aupokon lappUoatkm Bounding
from wrealt at foot and ued.
Aod not tne muou: 'J tlie organ pealing
Tne awe.iuis' iamge auug
Hath iue.ly rn.ra aeeel than flowere-eeeot
tealmg
The bridal path along
Trie festive board neath eTOry dainty groaning
Mar plea the human eue.
But luiojy ia richer for th toning
Of fioory innocence.
Cuniaiuun they t-r ad or joyout houra,
ror outn ..r eU.ered age, .
air ua; ure baih no choicer gifta than floaera.
Her ho a no fairer page.
t roe P reaa.
THE SHADOW.
What means this!
Are these men crazy? It is the
davs of the Overland Trail, before :
the wildest financier dared predict a 1
highway of iron raila across that '
great track of country almost a con-!
tinent of Itself which we used to .
call the Far West !
A caravan has been picking its slow
way along over the green prairies and i
sterile plains for days and weeks, j
every man's face was turned toward !
the El Dorado more than a mile of j
white-topped wagons, more than I
three hundred men, women, and chil-1
dren. There have been jealousies '
and heart-burnings even In the pres-!
ence of the hostile Indians moving j
swiftly about by day and crawling
and lurking like deadly serpentH by !
night Two wagons haul out of tne ;
long line at mid-afternoon and start
away at a right angle. Two wagons ;
two wives, eight children, three
men. It i9 fool-hardy, danzerous.
They drive iwav in the shadow of
death, the children crying and the
women pleading.
"Corny back! Comeback! There
are Indians all about us ! Every one
of you will be butchered before moru-
ing !" 1
The three men will not even look ,
back. They feel that they have been
wronged and insulted, and their pride
is at stake. Men will listen to no ar
gument at such time stubbornly re
fuse to reason with thoe they love.
These men realize their danger, and
to-morrow, when they have growD
calmer and when something like an
apology is borne to them from the
main party, thev will return to the ,
line, satisfied with naving shown
their "independence."
Did you ever see the vulture of the
plains the repulsive, cowardly bird,
which follows a wounded man or a
limping animal as the ravenous shark
follows a death-ship? lie sails hiah
In air so long as he sees that all is
well below. At the first sign of dis
tress he drops through the air to be
closer to his prey. Let a dying man
bat raise his hand and the cowardly
bird will hasten away, but only to re
turn and again resume his circles in
the air until he sees that death has
come His long, ragged wings have
fanned the faces of hundreds of dying
men, bis strong beak and sharp talons
have helped to make hundreds of
skeletons along the trail of oiden
days.
Evil omen! The two wagons had
scarcely separated themselves from
the line when the vultures appeared
and hovered above them as they
moved away. From their eyry they
had looked down on savages rejoicing
at the separation at a spot of ground
miles away over which a gaunt wolf
was already howling and snuling
earth and air for scent of murder.
Study the picture welL It is night.
The little band has gone into a "dry
camp" no water to be had for man or .
beast Three miles further on there ;
is plenty, but they could not travel
in the darkness. . It has been a long, j
hot day, and man and beast are suf
fering, but no one complains. Even
the children choke over their bread
and do not ask for drink. The tired
horses have neither grass nor water, ;
but tney are not restless ana iiu pati-
ent, as might lie looked for. On the
contrary, they hang their heads,
and now and then Hex tbe rocks out
croping from the sterile soil and thus
secure a little of the falling dew, just
enough to moisten their parched
tongues. The e is asomething which
weighs all down, tbe dumb brute as
well as human beings. It is unde
fined, but nevertheless a menace. It
Is unseen and unheard, but neverthe
less a creeping horror which chills
tbem to silence.
By and by, all but the sentinel close
tbeir eves in sleep. A single sentinel
to watch a camp In whlci there are
so many precious lives menaced by
such fierce enemies, over which great
vultures bad circled even as dark
ness came down! No, all did not
sleep. There was two wive wbo lay
UetealBir to tbe songs of the crickets,
to tbe rustling of toe nigbt breeze,
to tbe dlssaal voices of tbe coyotes
elreUnf aeoa the csaap There was
t tasreift to then In every sound, a
wsrntatftir trtl iaevery gust of wind.
i toif ware eaiiarea who did not
a, tbeerfe they were as quiet as
thafeai. They, ted beard of the
t)eaaw and sealpiag-kDlfe, of the
ta rl rrei.AO t. heart of an In.
"fa J : ' Cqr ttele yes
an-. v-ir
they repeated the prayer taught
them at their mot her1 a kne.
Where 1 tee tenUnei? Ther trere.
two wagon "either of them shows
(n the picture. He stool or sat be
tween them, as niutb for the com
pany of the inmate as for their pro
tection. At miduight the guard is
changed. The full moon is cow sink
ing in the West. In front of the
watcher is a la'ge cactus the ug y,
useless plant which thrives be-t
where the hand of man can neither
cultivate nor ornament. It stands
ever as a sitrn board of desolation. It
is a mile-stone to mark the u.:erings
and despair of men who have len
lost on the sterile and inhospitable
plains of the West.
All has been ,uiet up to midnight.
The relief takes up the same position
as his predecessor did. lie notes the
same surroundings. The only change
is in the posiiiou of the moon, which
has been sinking away until the big
cactus now throws a dak shadow to
the east. That ,-hadow is the black
est spot in all the foreground, but it
. excites no special attention Why
(should it? What should there he
about a shadow cast by the June
moon to create alarm!
It is 1 o'clock.
Though standing on his feet the
sentinel had nodded altnuet slept.
He rouses himself with a shake, turns
to every point of the compass to peer
and listen, but all is quiet.
The shadow! It has grown many
feet lonirer in the hour& It is like a
trreat, black tongue thrust out to
wards him from the base of the plant,
but his eyes do not dwell upon It.
The wagons also cast shadows to the
east; so do the hordes yet standing on
their feet. Shadows are but shadows.
The perfect silence of the night lulls
the watcher into a feeling of security,
and he says tc himself that the night
will pass without even an alarm to
wake the lightest sleeper.
"Ha! What's that!"
A movement, a rustl ng, a faint
noise as of something stirring. A
prowling wolf or coyote that's it!
The beast is dodging about in hopes
to pick up something from the even
ing meal of tbeemiirrants that's all!
How silly to be startled by the sound!
The dhadow! It ha3 grown until
it now almost touches the sentinel's
feet. Will he take warning now?
Will he heed the black object which
has been creeping forward as the
black shadow crept noise le s as the
footfall of a spectre, fierce as the
growl of a wounded tiger? No! He
takes a steD or two to relieve his
limbs, glances over at the horses,
wonders if his two hours are not up,
and !
From the blackness of the shadow
a dark flguie rose up and sunk bis
tomahawk into the sentinel's skull,
and nest moment a horde of dusky
demons were in the camp shooting,
shouting, tomahawking, using knife
or war-club. Ten minutes later
there were no mure victims to kilL
Thank God, none were carried away
to torture and captivity!
A lew minutes more in which to
hack and mutilate, to plunder, to re
joice, and then the camp of the dead
was left for the dead to uard. The
wolf came creeping down to the
horrid feast, his eyes blazing with
greediness and bis yellow lanes sharp
ening as he drew closer and closer.
Half a mile away, on the limb of a
dead tree, the vultures Grew their
beads fro n under their wings and ut
tered a hoarse croak! croak! They
could not fly in the darkness, could
not be present with the wolf to gorge
themselves, nut morning would do!
There would be pleaty left! New
York Woild.
Treacherous Snow.
One of the perils which the cham
ois banter must face is that which
lurks in the snow. Mr. Buxton, in
his Short stalks, tells the story of
Herr S 's adventure, which graph
ically illustrates this danger. He
was following with one companion,
in the depth of winter, the trail of
a wounded chamois. The track led
them across a steep contour filled
with deep, loose snow, into which
they plunged up to their middles.
When half way across this nias
parted just above tbem, and moved
downwaras with ever-accelerating
8peed, sometimes covering them deep
wm a surging mass, and then again
tossing tbem into the air.
At last S felt himself suddenly
and violently arrested by some pr
truding substance, which afterwards
proved to be a broken Hump of a
tree. After a time he recovered con-
gciousness, and succeeded in shaking
hirneif free.
The first thought was for his
friend, of whom nothing was to be
seen But as he ga.ed over the waste
of snow, he saw at a distance a twig,
which had been pressed downwards,
recover Itself and spring up.
Thinking it might be tbe sign of
some life he made his wav to tbe
spot, and close by it found a boot
protruding from the surface Scrap
ing the snow away as best be could
with bis naked hands, be at length
uncovered tbe body so far as tbe face.
Tbe man was a. pareutly aead, and
bis face was almost black; but pres
ently be came to, and was little tbe
worse, while 8 himself, In turn,
fainted from the Injuries be bad re
ceived, and was laid up for six weeks
before be recovered.
The Photograph.
A "Photo-corrector" bas been in
vented, and Is in practical use, bv
which tbe dimensions of any part oi
a photograph can be altered "and tbe
whole made harmonioua" A person
five feet and a naif in height can be
made to look five feet or six feet
high, as desired, and hands, feet, or
any other part, can be similarly cor
rected. Waxes is the luekiesi a aaule abot
or a fMfssnbosr1 '
IOMC AM HABDTO PLEASE.
a rvm Mwt TeMlaer Wki IHda't Cmr
i - . Mneh About Katie. "
"A pious lady down south had a
busband wbo wa rich, but an athe
ist," sars the New York Tribune.
'A conference of ministers was being i
held in the town near this Colonel
It's fine plantation, and Mr K,
w hen she started in the morning to .
attend the conference, told her bu- j
band that she would like to bring i
back a lot of the holy men to din
ner with her in the evening. She
thought secretly that they mitfht
convert the Colonel. He agreed to
welcome tbem and Mrs. is. ordered
the cook to prepare a dinner accord
ingly. "After she had gone the Colonel
a-ked the cook what Mrs. IS. bad
ordered. He found that one turkey
was all that she had thought neces
sary and his big southern hospitality
was shocked at the idea. He did not
like preachers as a class, but if they I
were to eat at his table at all then I
thev should be treated in a way to do
credit to the plantation and the fam
ily. Accordingly he ordered ducks,
geese, chickens, pigeon, turtle, lauiii,
mutton, beef, veal, pork, ovsters and
trout, besides the turkey. He ordered
vegetables and pastry in proportion,
and by the time it was all on the
great table, set out with the family
silver, there was almost enough for
forty preachers.
"Presently the Colonel's wife re
turned and with her was only one
little, wizened, loug-balred. freckled
young maa She introduced it tothe
big Colonel, who could only gasp,
Is that all, Claribel? 'All the
preachers I found bad previous en
gagements,' whispered his wife in a
disappointed tone, 'but this young
man is a music teacher, who led the
choir at the convention. He is very
pious aud gives promise of great
things. 1 liope you won't use anv
bad language while he is here, Col
onel.'
'Well, they sat down to the loaded
table, the Colonel, his wife, the
organ player, and the Colonel's son
Kob, aged 13, sturdy, violent, un-l
tamed, a careful observer of his fath-i
er"8 wavs, and gleaner of his father's !
oaths, a constant source of worry to !
bis mother, and the idol and king of .
every negro on the plantation.
'Will you have some turtle soup,
sir?' asked the genial Colonel, beam
ing with pleasure as the darkles re
moved the covers.
" 'No, thanks,' replied the organ
player. 'I never take soup.'
" 'Some oyster then9,
"Same answer.
Trout?' '
" 'No, thanks.
" Pigeon?'
" 'Never eat pigeon, thank you.'
" 'Lamb?'
"Fame answer.
"The Colonel's smile disappeared,
and he began to look troubled. 'Beef
then'" he said.
"Same answer.
" This veal,' said the host plead
ingly, 1s excellent my own raising.
Try some?'
" 'I never eat veal, thank you.'
" Turkey?'
"Same answer.
'' '"Duck? ' - -
" -No, thanks.'
" 'Goose?'
" 'Not any.
"Only the pork was left now, and
the Colonel was In despair. What
sort of-a man was this, anyway?
What did he eat? Tbe thoroughly
disappointed Colonel was just about
to offer the last dish when his son
Kob, who had been listening with
open-mouthed wouder to all these re
fusals of the good things of this earth
until he could hold himself no longer,
blurted out;
" 'Say, pop, p'raps the durned lit
tle snipe would suck an egg.' "
Modlflnd Prescription.
Mr. Oscanyan, In his book, "The
Sultan and bis People," says that a
Turkish physician was called to visit
a man who was very 111 of typhus fe
ver. The doctor considered the case
hopeless, but prescribed for the pa
tient, and took his leave. The next
day, in passing by, he inquired of a
servant at the door if his master was
dead.
"Dead!" was the reply; "no, he is
much better."
The doctor hastened up-stalre to
obtain the solution of the miracle.
"Why," said tbe convalescent, "I
was consumed with thirst, and I
drank a pailful of the juice ot pickled
cabbage.
"Wonderful" quoth the doctor;
and out came the tablets, on which
be made this inscription: "Cured of
typhus fever, Mehemcd Agha, an up
holsterer, by drinking a pailful of
pickled cabbage juice."
Soon after, the doctor was called to
another patient, a yaghllkgee, or
dealer In embroidered handkerchiefs,
who was suffering from the same mal
ady. He forthwith prescribed "a
pailful of pickled cabbage Juhe."
On calling tbe next day to congrat
ulate bis patient on his recovery, he
was astonished to be told that the
man was dead. ' 1 '
In his bewilderment at these phe
nomena, be came to the safe conclu
sion, and duly noted It in his memo
randa, that "Although in cases of
typhus fever pickled cabbage juice is
an efficient remedy, it is not to be
used unless tbe patient be by pro fes
slon an upholsterer.
CrMlty ta lOTtsieea.
The obtaining of tortoise shell In
volves intense cruely to the tortoise.
When tbe creature Is caught it is
fastened down to the ground and cov
ered round tbe shell with leaves and
grass, which are set alight Tbe beat
foroas tbe scales of tbe shell to sepa
rate and tbey are then cat off with a
knife. Tbe poor reptile is then re
leased to grow fresh scalea .
WT We
One practice of feudal time baa
survived the diapprrance of most
feudal things. It is the custom of
using or ch -o-lng family and personal
mottfs In America, at least, peo
ple who do not inherit a coat-of-arms
or a crest are free U adopt one at
their pl'-asure, and to put upon it
whatever motto or ensign armorial
they choose.
In this country the use of a crest
or coat-of -arms upon a seal or at the
head of leiUrs is sometime a matter
of honest family pride, and some
times, beyond a aoubt, of pure van
ity. There are some Americans who
feign an appearance of aristo ratic
descent by making ue of heraldic
emblems to which they have no right
what ever by inheritance.
But tbe adoption of an original
emblem or motto of one's own, juit
regardless of what's ancestor rfiay
have been, is entirely a matter of
ptrsoua! t-iste. Many people make
ue of such emblems; and the prac
tice, supposing it reallv to represent
personal tastes, preferences, andchar
a:ter, is a pretty one.
Nearly all the ancient mottoes
which in the course of time beearue
badges of arlstociatic descent had
tbeir origin in mere whim.
Some of them commemorated an
act of flrrnness or courage which the
hero wished to perituate in his en
sign. A marshal of France, for In
stance, Bugeaud by name, who added
extensive agricultural operations to
his reputation as a soldier, took the
device, Ense et aratro; "By the sword
and the plough."
Another motto, typical of the old
nobility, is upon the crest df the aris
tocratic family of Cues In France:
"By Iron, not by gold."
Modern mottoes are sometimes iron
ical and intentionaly humorous. A
celebrated singer, M. Capoul, has
placed upon his seal the figure of a
duck, with tbe motto, "Quack!"
Satirical mottoes, too, are occasion
ally Ijestowed by wits or wags upon
other people, A French General,
who bad been defeated both In Ger
many and In Italy, found one day
that, while he was absent from his
bouse, somebody had decorated his
door with an armorial tearing repre
senting a drum, upon which was in
scribed this motto. "1 am beaten on
both sides."
The mottoes chosen by authors are
occasionally apt and Interesting. The
famous poet of Southern France,
Mistral, the singer of tbe 'land of
the sun," whose works have been
beautifully transplanted Into En
glish, had for his emblem a locust,
with these words in the Provencal
dialect: Lou souleu me fal canta,
"The sun makes me sing."
A motto expressive of worthy sen
timent is an excellent thing to have,
provided one bears it In mind, and
"lives up to iu".
Made to Repent.
When one feels that he has been
harshly treated It Is perhaps natural
that he should wbh to make the door
of the lnju-tice regret his action,
The best way to accotfiplisb such a
result is to merit a different kind of
treatment; and this may be done in a
way to display as much courage and
spirit as would be required for a less
justifiable revenge. In his memoirs,
the Marshal de Luxembourg relates
an incident bearing upon this point
The occurrence took place during his
service In the army of .Handera.
Noticing one day on a march that
several soldiers were not in their
places, he sent an aide-de-camp to re
call them. All obeyed promptly ex
cept one. The marshal, then Count
de Bouttevllle and a lesser officer,
hastened to him, stick in hand, and
threatened to strike him.
"If you do that you will repent It,"
cried the soldier.
Bouttevillc struck him several
times, and forced him to return to
his regiment
Two weeks later the count offered
a large sum of money to any man
who would execute a perilous errand
for him. A soldier who was consld
ered the bravest In his regiment pre
sented himself for the commission,
and ac juitted hlmcclf with great suc
cess and courage.
Bouttevllle praised him highly, and
presented him with the reward which
he had offered. The soldier lmmed
lately distributed the money among
bis comrades and said:
"I did not serve you for money;
but if you think 1 deserve some
recompense, will you make me an
officer? Do you recognize me, sir?"
The count replied that he had
1 never seen him.
1 "I am the soldier to whom you gave
I a severe beating two weeks ago. I
said that you would repent it"
The count embraced him with emo
tion, promised to be his friend, and
tbe man received an officer's commis
sion that very day.
, 1 She Could Tell.
A French chronlqueur records an In
teresting and, perhaps, valuable dis
co vei yon the part of a child of a
means of ascertaining whether people
are young or not This child,
a little girl, had been playing merrily
in the country w.th a gentleman who
was known to have come very close,
to say the least, to his fiftieth year.
The little girl's mother, seeking for
her, came up just as she left this
gentleman s company.
"What have you been doing, my
dear?" the mother asked.
"Oh, I've been playing with that
young man over there."
Tbe mother smiled, "What is your
way of telling when people are young,
dear?" she asked.
"Oh," answered tbe little one,
I 70ung penpie are mose mat nave a
good timer .;
It Is a queer thing that after a
girl bas consented to fly with a nan
she usually has to walk.
WONDERFUL POWIH OF KINO-NE8R.
rilB4an I'efrla'a Way a Uetttag Hie Wark
of Ki ptoratlaa IMma.
Tbe Meydoum pyramid stand In
the burying ground of oldest Egypt
and there, day by day. are conducted
most careful explorations under the
management of Flinders Petrie, says
the Gentl'-men's Magazine. Thus
does the tomb yield up its secret,
but these are not more Interesting
than the facts demonstrated through
out these operations that even the
id!e temperament of Egyptian work
men is more powerfully influenced by
love than by fear. At Luxor a swear
ing bully of an oversier hu-tled the
hildien, with their palm baskets of
mould, from pit to bank, lashing
them mercilessly at times and hicx-
ng his elephant-hide whip for pure
truelty at the half-naked bodies or
the poor little boys and girls, who.
in tbe name of science, were working
like slajres, through beat and dust.
to bring back the colossi of Kameses
the Great, or the temp e of his lather,
Seti, from the grave of centuries.
It was a sight to make one s iiioxi
boil to see the lash curl with a crack
round the leg of a lad or the naked
ankle of a eirl as they toiled up the
iteep bank with a heavy palm basket
on the head. Sometimes it would
bring the poor creatures to their
knees, but when I remonstrated I
was told: "It matters not No whip,
no work."
Now Mr. Petrle gets twice a9 much
work out of his meu and tioys as does
this bully at Luxor, and yet his Inter
course with them is uniformly, gentle
and serene. It was refreshing to sit
there in the shadow of those vast
mounds, at the building of which the
land had groaned and the lash had
been busy, and to see how men to
day labored with the same tools,
dressed in the same way, had much
the same simple wants to satisfy, and
the same home to return to at even
tide. A light was in their faces and a
smile on their lips, for they toiled for
honest bread at honest prices, and
tholr master was a friend. That
evening 1 heard a boy's voice and saw
a boy's hand thrust through the tent
where we sat Mr. Petrle cut a piece
of soap in two and gave the lad half.
saying, quietly: "I find there's noth
ing like soap for sore heads." Soon
another voice piped in the darkness,
and the same knife now dived into
a pot of ointment and spread some
carefully on a bruised face.
Presently, with a low salaam, a
dusky man with an ache In his dusky
stomach, applied for cure. The
parafilne lamp was kindled, a cup of ;
coffee was made, and a spoonful of j
pepper stirred therein. The poor'
fellow swallowed It with a gurgie, and
turned to go. "May God increase .
your goods exceedingly!" were the'
words of thanks, and the grateful i
ones went back to their reed huts, !
tbeir burnluses and sandy beds for
the night.
Texan Railroad In a;.
"There is some queer railroading
down in Texas," said W. A. Shaw, as
hestood in the Lacledcannex and gave
bis glass a peculiar circular motion
calculated to make the sugar and pep
permint sociable. There is a
road down in the southern part of the
State fifty-three miles long, whose
cannon-ball covers the distance in
just four hoars, if it bas an excep
tionally good run of luck. Trains
are run each way three times a woek,
if one doesn't chance to get lost and
so blockade traffic until a hand-car
tracer can be sent out for It There
are no telegraph or telephone stations
on the road, and when a train leaves
the terminal where the general offices
are located, the conductor Is master
of the situation until he gets buck
again. Sometimes the pneumatic
tire comes off the sulky of the man
employed to ride ahead and drive the
cattle off the track, and the train is !
a week making the round trip. I
rode over the road once, then walked
back, because I was in a hurry On
the trip out we picked up a drunken
farmer who had laid down on the
track. The Conductor chanced to
know him, and held the train while
the brakeman and baggage master
carried him to his home a mile away.
In about an hour tbe brakeman re
turned with an Invitation from the
farmer's wife for crew and pas
sengers to come over to supper. We
went, and after the repast an old cot-ton-tleld
African with a cracked fiddle
was Introduced and we had a dance.
The conductor then wanted to pro
ceed) but the engineer, who was sit
ting up to the hilarious farmer's
buxom daughter, said tbe bogs had
rooted out several cross-ties down be
low the water tank, and be was ap
prehensive of a repetition of the Ash
tabula disaster If we attempted to
run over that part of the road at
night So we staid and danced until
daylight We got off after breakfast
next , morning, and the farmer's
daughter was a passenger. She wore
a big sunbonnet and a large tin pail.
Three miles out we stopped and tbe
crew helped her pick wild strawber
ries enough to fill her pall. Then we
backed up and tbe engineer carried
the bucket of berries over to the
bouse 'or her. When he got, back he
discovered that be was out of coal and
couldn't budge. Tbe farmer kindly
donated enough fence rails to pull us
out or the difficulty and we got
through, by great good luck, In just
twenty-eight hour. Obi somo of
those roads down there are light
ning." '
A Tree oa a Tower.
Seeds of trees taken by birds, or by
winds, frequently lodge In some de
caying mortar crack on the tops of
high buildings, and will grow out and
make quite large treea One of these
Is In tbe city of Utlca, N. Y., where
on the top of a city church tower Is a
mountain asb, whicn, snout
fifteen
or sixteen years ago probably, sprouted.
It still continue t grow, and has
now re bed a height of aW : seven
feet The roots push their way Into
the cracks and crevice of tbe maann
work. During the last two or three
yars It has blosso'iied and borne
clusters of scarlet berr e. It, Is said
by some friend to be one of the in
teresting sights of I'tica. Medians'
Monthly.
The Praflta at Monta tariov.
Some remarkable facts were dis.
cloied at the half-yearly meeting of
tbe shareholders of tbe Sodete
Anonyme des Balnsde mer et da Cer
cle des Etrangers de Monaco. The
total rerenue from the tables during
the last vear has been a little over
23,000,000 francs, or about $4,tXJ,00J,
which is a million francs more than
the receipts of the previous year.
The capital of the society is 30.0O0,
000 francs. In (so, 000 shares of 500
francs. Each share carries an Inter
est coupon of 2 francs per annum, or
5 percent upon tbe original value.
The dividend Is distributed early in
May. This varies according to the
takings at the table. Last May it
amounted to 163 francs, making a
total revenue 190 francs per share, 39
per cent upon the original value,
nince marriage the present Prince
has never touched the 1,250,000 francs
which thegamoling society contracted
to pay annually for the concession to
the ruler of Monaco. This $250,000
per year has been spent in improve
menu at the palace, in building the
tine Cathedral, erecting new schools,
and the Ilka W hen 1903 arrives the
principality will have some stately
edifices to call its own, and the Prince
and Princess will rule over a domain
as magnificent in Its outward sem
blance as it is beautiful in its natural
position. In addition to tbe sues
paid out as the lance's share of ths
profits the society bears all the ex
penses of governing the principality,
minding' a Shark. .
A successful diver must possess
great courage and nerves of steel.
Such a man, connected with a large
wrecking company, was visiting ths
pearl fisheries io the Gulf of Cali
fornia. On one of his trips in quest
of the pearl oyster he had a narrow
escape from a fearful death. Frank
Lenl it's Magazine tells the story.
He had been Instructed never to
stir from tbe bottom until he had '
looked up and around. Fortunately
le heeded tbe advice.. Having filled
his hag, he glanced quickly about,
and caught sight of a huge shovel
nosed shark watching him.
In' an emergency men think fast
Near the diver was a large rock. Ha
moved quickly to the other side of It,
hoping to dodge the ferocious mon
ster. But tbe maneuver did not
work; the shark watched every move
ment, changing his position by a
slight motion of his powerful tall.
Time was precious, and the divei
conceived the idea of blinding ths
shark by stirring up the mud. Undei
cover of that he might escape. Its
worked for dear life, and had the wa
tertblck with mud in less than ball
a minute.
Slipping around the rock again, h
rose to the surface, having barelj
strength enough to reach the side ol
the boat and was hauled on board
Just as the voracious man eater mads
a rush for blm.
A Oha.Uy Joke.
Biff! and a young medical studeni
went to mother earth. It happened
at the University ot Cincinnati A
young man was desirous of experience
Ing the hoirors of a real dissecting
room. A friend of his is a student
and to him the young man applied
for the necessarv membership. Ths
friend assented and so managed H
that his friend got Into the room
where the festive students are sup
posed to hold high riot over ths
bodies of the unfortunates who, io
death powerless to help themselves,
are hurried to the dead-houses of ths
college. While in the room a sly but
not very popular student sllpjied ao
ear from the subject into his pocket
It was the ear of a woman. The visi
tor was as mad as a hornet On ac
counuof the unpopularity of the prac
tical joker he had little trouble In
finding who did it He hunted and
found him, as the whole class wai
leaving, In the vestibule of the "col
lege. There the scene suggested io
the opening lines was enacted. Ths.
practical joker is not much of t
tighter and made his exit very qulckli
to a chorus of students horse laugh.
Cincinnati Enquirer,
A Wonl'p Loaa of Caata.
Words have their destinies as well
as books. Mr. Darcy Lever, In an
amusing article on this subject la
ments that the "good old English1'
word "tiddler" should have utterly
lost caste and dragged down "fiddle'1
with It in Its fall "Fiddle" and
"fiddler" have certainly been name
of S'.'orn since Mrs. Plozzl's second
husband was contemptuously com
pared with her first husband, Mr.
Thrale, and dismissed as "a fiddler."
Mr. Lever might have cited an earlier
example in the case of Lord Chester
field, who, It will be remembered, re
minded bis son that a gentleman
never fiddles. Had his lordship lived
to these days be would have ao
knowiedged that Princes and Prin
cesses take dellghtln thtslnstrumi-rit,
though, to be sure, tbey call It a
"violin." But tbe question Is why Is
the word "violin"1 respectable, whlls
the ola word "fiddle" - which has a
respectable derivation and means ths
same thing is clothed with mean
and ridiculous associations? Tub)
question Mr. Lever confesses bitnseil
compelled to. leave to "sharper wits."
London Daily News. ,
Ws bare noticed that It Is always
the girl vo tbe prettiest name who
marries a man . with such an ugly
name that the legislature should bs
i called upon to change Ik '