UT IS THAT ALL?
Ik tittle dreaming by the wu
U. Bttlo tolling day toy day.
A little pain, a little itrlfe,
, A little joy and that U life.
fA ahormvod. fleeting iunuir'i morn
pfnea happiness fmi nrwly born,
Whn one dav'a akv la hi
Aad one bird sings and that la love
A little wearying of the year.
n trihutA -f a f twit t
Two folded hands, the fainting breath,
peace at last and that la detth.
J tie dreaming, loving, dying, ao
The acton In the drama go;
A fitting picture on a wall.
Love, death, the themea! But la It all?
Paul Lawrence Dunbar.
AN ENEMY TO
ELECTRICITY
If Miss Sellna Emmona had known
Just a little more about the company
their tracka would never have crossed
her land.
When there wu a rumor that the
electric were coming through Brook-
ton the disapproved very strongly.
When the rumor waa confirmed, and
the additional Information given that
the cars were to run by her house, Hiss
Belina was Indignant and a little bit
Alarmed. She wondered If It would
be aafe.
But when the company wrote and
wanted to know If they might buy a
trip of her land along the liver, about
two acres in all, on which to lay their
tracks, thereby saving the building of
two bridges and a half mile or more of
unnecessary track, she waa decidedly
and unmistakably angry.
Sell her land for an electric line, for
ooth! She wouldn't have the horrid
things within sight or sound of her If
he could help It What If It wasn't
anything but sandy pasture land, grow
Ing up to huckleberry and bayberry
bushes. They shouldn't have It. It was
nothing to her If they had to build a
dozen bridges and go twenty miles out
, of their way.
She thought of the scathing replies
ahe might make to them, repudiating
their proposal. Then a happy thought
truck her. She got her pen and wrote
on the bottom of the company's letter:
"You might have the land for $50
n acre. Yours truly, Sellna Emmons."
She smiled when she had done this,
How they would feel when they got
that answer! Five hundred dollars an
ere! Why, she wanted to sell the whole
ten acres for tlOO, and that had been
thought too much. For a day or two
he smiled, whenever she thought of her
answer, and she wished she could have
ecn the fares of the company when
they opened It.
Then came the shock of discovering
that her offer had been accepted. The
company had her statement In black
and white, with her name signed to It,
o there was no possible escape for her.
This was In the fall and work on
the lectric road would not begin till
spring. Miss Sellna felt thankful that
the evil day was so far off. Perhaps
there waa a chance yet that the road
would not go through. Nevertheless
the worried and fretted over It all win
tr, and It waa the worry, the doctor
aid, that brought on the spell of slck
Bess In March. She waa not seriously
111 and by the 1st of April, when work
On the road began, she waa around
doing her work as usual.
"I'm not going to have folks say I
(ot sick on account of that company,"
he said. "Anyway, it won't do any
food to worry. Let 'em alone, but If
they expect me to patronize them they
are mistaken, that Is all. wouldn't
ride on one of those cars, not If Queen
Victoria or the president of the United
States told me to. If other folks want
to risk their lives they can."
The thought of the 11,000 was a great
comfort. It seemed like a fortune to
her ond she planned what she would
do with the Interest money. She would
have a new carpe. for the parlor the
very first thing and have the room pa
pered and painted.
By the middle of April the workmen
came In sight of the house, and fur a
day or two Miss Sellna watched them
with a hostile eye. Then In spite of
herself she began to be Interested In
the work and as It came nearer she
... - . ...... tf haf t(ma at
the. windows. When the men wanted to ;
at their dinners out under her chest-
nut tree and get water from the pump
In the yard she gave a willing consent,
"They are not to blame for what the
onanv does." she said. I
she said
One of the men carried In a pall of
water for her one day, and got to talk
ing with her. He found out that she
wanted her little garden spaded up
and the next day the men shortened
their nooning and did the work In
Jlttle while. The day after that Miss
8elina carried out to them a huge dish
pan filled with hot doughnuts, which
melted away like snow before the sun.
When the rails were all laid by the
house nd the work was no longer in
Ight Miss Belina was very lonesome,
till she could see the men go by at
Big ht and morning, and the young man
who hsd carried the water for her al
ways smiled snd waved his hnd.
The first of June the cam were run
nlng, and Miss Belina saw them go by
crowded. It was smaslng. "I didn't
know there were so many reckless folks
In the world." she said. She hsd to
admit that there was a certain com
panlonshlp In seeing all those people.
Oa warm days ths motormen , and
Conductors would stop nearly every
trip tad got a k of water at her
pump, and he t pride In the cool
smm of the watr , and la having ths
tmbtar eat thu- clean aad bright
Altar a tlmo all tl me, seeing her
always at tka window, would speak to
matit on the weather. There was ens
young motorman who waa her espe
cial favorite, and he was the Drat one
to discover her aversion to risking her
life on the cars.
"Any time you want to try It," he
told her, "Just come along on my car,
and I'll be extra careful of you."
Miss Selina laughed and told him that
she would go on his car when she went,
but that she didn't think either one of
them would live long enough to see the
day.
In August he told her one day: "You'd
better go with me tomorrow. It's my
last day on the line. I've been trans
ferred."
Tm very sorry, Mr. Bally," said Se
Una.
"8o am I," he answered. '
On his last trip in the afternoon he
said: "Be ready at 7 sharpv" then
laughed and swung onto his car and
clattered away. Miss Sellna watched
it across the pasture. Then she took
a long breath, straightened up and
said: "I will do It."
The next morning at 7:15 she was all
ready, her work done and the door
locked behind her as she sat on the
step watting. Bally could hardly be
lieve his eyes when he saw her.
"Going?" he calied."Well, that's good.
Sit on the front seat here, then you
cos see and get the air." He noticed
that her hands shook and that she was
a little pale. A mile further on he
looked around at her.
"Like It?" he asked.
She nodded. Her eyes were very
bright.
On their return they had to watt at
a turnout for another car, and Ually
sat-down beside her. Her hair waa
blown about her face, and her expres
sion was animated. "She must have
been pretty when she was young," he
thought.
"Do you usually go faster?" she
asked.
"Oh, Just about the same, I guess."
"I was going to say you needn't go
any slower on my account. It doesn t
scare me a bit. I like to go fast."
When he stopped at her house she sat
motionless. "I guess I won t get out
yet," she said. "I think I will ride a
little more."
The next time there was a wait she
seemed abstracted. She was busy with
problem in mental arithmetic, name
ly: How many car rides can be got out
of the Interest on $1,000? The solution
seemed to please her.
'I can get along without the carpet,"
she said to herslf, "and the paint and
paper don't look very bad, anyway."
Canary Birds and Consumption.
Almost every week the medical pa
pers add another item to their list of
deadly dangers. The latest is conveyed
n a remarkable communication on the
subject of Infection among song birds
n the Lancet, contributed by Dr. A.
Tucker Wise, of Montrcaux, Swltzer-
and. He says:
While engaged on an Inquiry Into
the sources of baclllary Infection in
cases which have recently come under
my notice I have been struck by the
number of patients who have lived In
qontact with diseased canaries and
other feathered pels.
Among cage birds, pigeons and poul
try, tuberculosis is a common disease)
and there is a strong: probability that
avian infection can be conveyed to hu
man beings who keep birds within the
house. The objectionable practice or
allowing them to place their beaks In
contact with the lips Is a risky and
dangerous proceeding as regards lia
bility to receive bacilli in this way If
the bird Is not healthy.
Feeding and nursing sick birds and
blowing the dust and husks from their
seed and cleaning the cage are not
without danger. In my opinion the
canary or any other bird kept in the
kitchen Is a positive peril to the house
hold, as by fluttering and whisking
the dust from Its cake or mucus from
its beak the food of a whole family
can be contaminated.
Parrots can also be attacked by tu
bercle, which Is characterized frequent
ly by new growths of horny skin, which
sometimes attain a considerable size.
They can easily be broken oft and they
contain numerous tubercle bacilli in
their basal granulation tissue. Tuber
culosls of' the- lungs is often met with.
According to a compilation by Eberleln
i . . . . .1 r 1 stAnt
me sum ... - -
the tongue in is per cent, ano in.
and articulations In 12 per cent of al
the cases. From a diagnostic point of
view It is Important to note that the
tuberculosis of parrots Is distinguished
Dy me presence vi ci.w. ...vmo
ben of bacilli.
"PsIttaeoclB, an Infectious disease of
parrots, has already been observed to
cause a serious and fatal pneumonia
of a special type transmitted by these
birds to man. In 1892 about 60 persons
In Paris were attackd; since that time
other milder epidemics have been no
ticed and studied by Gilbert, Fournler
and Debove.
"Taking Into consideration the unnat
ural and unhealthy life to which man
subjects the domestic animals, especi
ally birds confined In small cages. It
Is not surprising that these captives
should become diseased and pollute the
sir with pathogenlo microscopic or
ganlsms."
Abraham White, the successful bid
der for Boston's new loan of four mil
lions, started out early In ISM with a
capital of one postage stamp. With this
he sent In a bid for a big lot of United
States bonds, then offered to the public,
bidden not being required to make a
deposit or send certified check, aad his
hid happened to be high snough to
bring him Into the list of accepted one
end juat lew enough to enable him to
contrast la advance for the sale of the
bends at a gooa prom. He aad
wife cleared ap a has
UUla i
tuac b tail brewd stroke.
A RELIC OF THB PAST.
The Oreat Cnlnese Wall Soon to Be
Torn Down.
The great Chinese wall Is to be torn
down. The most famous feature of the
Celestial Kingdom, known to every
schoolboy and schoolgirl In America,
one of the wonders of the world. Is at
last to make way for maiden progress
The dowager empress of China has
decreed It. and contracting firms In
New York and Chicago have underta
ken to do the stupendous work,
The tearing down of the great wall
along China's northern border Is like
the task ot raxing ail the buildings of
New York, Boston and Chicago.
The Chinese wall is 1,500 miles long.
It would extend from New York to
he cit or St. Paul, Minn. In places It
is thirty feet high, twenty-five feet
thick at the base and fifteen feet wide
on top
It is the greatest example of useless
labor and oriental stupidity and exclu
slveness ever exhibited. By this means
the Chinese In the year 214 B. C 2.100
years ago thought to fence In their
kingdom and forever keep out invading
strangers and foreign customs.
Now the shrewd empress has decided
to turn the great wall to some use. Its
stones and bricks and mortar will be
used to build levees along the rivers
which yearly devastate China's most
fertile valleys and bring starvation and
death to myriads of her people.
Where the great wall runs near cities
its material will be used in the con
struction of long needed public build
ings, equeducts and other public lm
provements.
It is estimated that there is enough
material In the great wall to build one
hundred cities the size of Peking, Chi
na's capital, besides constructing all
the levees and aqueducts needed In
northern China.
The Chinese officials realize that It
would probably take another 2,000 years
to accomplish these things by Oriental
methods. So they are letting contracts
to American firms on condition that
this great work shall be done in five
years.
Already steam drills are at work at
the huge wall, and dynamite charges
are breaking up the masonry that has
withstood twenty centuries of progress.
The great wall was built by the cm
peror Tsln Chl-hwangtl, two centuries
before the Christian era, in order to
repel the Tartar hordes of horsemen
from the north, and to keep out all for
elgn influence from his empire. This
Idea of shutting China up within a wall
was not altogether original with this
emperor. Other rulers had built walls
along certain exposed frontiers to keep
out invaders. Tradition fixes the data
of these earlier walls at 3.322 B. C. Tslo
Chl-hwangti determined to Join all the
fortifications together into one mighty
barrier.
It took ten years to do this, and the
labor of two million men during that
time. This same mighty emperor who
built the great wall is also notable for
another deed. He burned all the books
and written records of China, in order
that the written history of his empire
should date from his re'gn.
The part of the great wall which is
most interesting is Nankow Pass and
the Patallng Gate. The wall here forms
a dividing line between the rocky hlUs
of China and the barren plains of Mon
golia. Along the mountain summits
and zigzagging up and down their sides
runs this endless chain of masonry un
til lost to view on the farthest range.
In this way It extends in an Irregular
line across valleys and mountains from
the Pechlll gulf, an arm of the Yellow
sea on the east, to the Qobl desert on
the west.
In some of the most distant parts the
wall degenerates Into a simple stone
and earth embankment. Hut for the
most part Its sides are faced with solid
stone and brick masonry. The middle
portion Is filled In with earth and bro
ken stones. On top of this a pavement
of large square bricks is laid. These
bricks are put together in the form of
steps wherever the wall makes a steep
ascent of a mountain. At intervals are
large square parapets, giving It a most
formidable appearance as a fortifica
tion. The fronts and changing seasons of
two thousand ears have made but little
Impression on this mighty but useless
work. From time to time Chinese rul
ers of the Christian era have repaired
and built additions to the great wall.
In the seventh century l.soo.OOO men
were employed In strengthening the
part of the wall which crosses the Nan
kow pass JuBt northwest of Peking. At
the same time 200,000 men renewed an
other portion of it. Again, five hun
dred years ago. In the dynasty of the
Ming emperors, vast armies were em
ployed In building additions to the wall
and adding new battlements and par
a pets.
In explanation of the present Chinese
government's change of policy Indicated
by the tearing down of this ancient
landmark, Chl-Yuen-tl, a Chinese man
darin from Peking, who was In New
York last week, made this statement:
"The mighty undertaking that is be
fore our government In this destruction
of the eighth wonder of the world is a
proof that China is ubout to take a gi
ant stride toward a better and stronger
civilization. The mighty wall created
by the Emieror Tsin two thousand
years ago is no longer a safeguard
against the asuaults of an army armed
with the weapons of today.
"For many years the Chinese govern
ment has studied and pondered the util
ity of the great wall, and It is now con
ceded that It Is no longer needed. The
immense amount of material in Its com
position will suffice to build twenty
cities like New York.
In the northern portion nr our vast
empire there are mighty rivers th" Mqdows, so the window was never ac
traverse regions thickly settled wlthn . . ..'
towns and villages. In the rainy sea
sons these rivers frequently overflow
their banks and carry death and devas.
tatlon to thousands of families. Shortly
after one of these disasters about a
year sgo, the empress sent LI Hung
Chang to visit the scene of the great
flood snd advise what ought to be done.
"On his return to the capital he told
her Imperial majesty of the mighty riv
er In the heart of America and how It
waa prevented from sweeping away
the cities that Ho along Its shores. An
Imperial decree went forth to pull down
the wall and dyke the rebellious river.
China will soen control the waters of
the might Yang-tse-Klang In a leash
formed from the masonry of the great
wall.
"Although no longer keeping out the
savage tribesmen from the north. It will
continue to stand between the Chinese
people and the fierce enmity of too
Water Dragon."
THE POET.
Ills home Is In the heights; to him
Men wage a battle weird and dim.
Life Is a mission stern as fate,
And Song a dread apostolate.
The toils of prophecy are his,
To hail the coming centuries
To ease the steps and lift the load
Of souls that falter on the road.
The perilous music that he hears
Falls from the vortice of the spheres
He presses on before the race.
And sings out of a silent place.
Like faint notes of a forest bird
On heights afar that voice is heard;
And the dim path he breaks today
Will some time be the trodden way.
But when the race comes toiling on
That voice of wonder will be gone
Be heard on higher peaks afar,
Moved upward with the morning star.
O men of earth, that wandering voice
Still goes the upward way, rejoice!
Edwin Markham.
ROMANCE OF A WINDOW.
The other evnlng one of the members
o the very exclusive KInloch club of
this city, relates the St. Louis Globe
Democrat, pointed up to the beautiful
colored glass window immediately over
the fireplace and asked the group if
they knew the story of the window
It was the evening on which the re
ception was given to Captain Coghlan
of the Raleigh, and there were many
Invited guests, in addition to the mem
bers of the club. They all gathered
about the fireplace and gazed up at
he stained glass. Those Who had
glanced carelessly at the window be
fore looked at It carefully, and com
mented on it as a genuine work of art
It Is not an ordinary window, with
Its part Joined by frames of lead, but
is of the finest kind of colored cathe
dral glass, so perfectly Joined that the
seams are not visible. It is paneled In
shape, and In the colored glass appears
the face and form of a beautiful woman
She is In the costume of a dancer and
her skirts fall but little below the
knees. The figure is perfect In Its
proportions, and the face Is one of sur
prising beauty. A close Inspection tells
of the worth of the window, and con
vlnces one that the production Is a real
work of art, of rare value, and not the
chance Idea of a window designer.
The story of the window, which is
known to but few outside the circle
of the club Itself, was told as follows by
the clubman:
"You see. when It came to the deco.
ration of the clubhouse, on its complex
tlon, we wanted something out of the
ordinary and we appointed a commit
tee to go to Chicago and select a num
ber of articles which we thought could
be selected to good advantage there,
We got the notion of securing some
good colored glass in the way of fancy
windows and the like, and the three of
us dropped into a State street store for
the purpose of picking out something
of the kind. We looked at a lot of
pictures and designs, and heard the
dealer expatiate on the merits of dif
ferent kinds of colored glass until we
had a hopeless and confused idea of
the whole transaction and felt that the
buying of colored glass windows was
something that ought never to be at
tempted by anyone but an expert. When
we had all finally reached the point
where we were about to admit our help
lessness, one of our number spoke ot
and, with as much dignity as he could
muster declared that the photograph
and plan business was all right, so far
as it went, but what we wanted was
to see something of the real thing in
the way of work done by the firm.
'The dealer looked surprised, hesl
tated and finally said he had something
that might please us in a decorative
colored glass panel window. He went
to the back of the shop and carefully
lifted from Its box a beautifully col
ored window panel. It was in the
richest of colors and depicted a danc
ing girl in short skirts. The dealer
said that the glass had been prepared
abroad and was left on his hands under
most peculiar circumstances'. A rich
Chlcagoan had, immediately after mar
rying, decided that as a part of the
decoration of his new home he would
have a window In which the face and
form of his wife would appear. He
got together the necessary photographs
In appropriate costumes and brought
them to the glass window concern,
where estimates were made as to the
probable cost. He wanted naught but
the best and was not content to have
the picture painted or burned Into the
glass. He wanted the work done In
the actual colored glass.
"The dealer was obliged to send the
photographs and an extended explana
tion of what was Wanted abroad and
there the window was made. It took
ten months for Its completion and when
It was finished and returned the dealei
notified his rich patron. But the win
dow never found a place In the rich
man's house. They had been married
long enough to become estranged and
divorced. The rich man had completed
the house he had built for his bride
nnd was living alone in it. There were
enough sad memories about the house
without having the face of the woman
from whom he had separated looking
down on him from one of the great
pied.
Same one thoughtfully took away the
Rev. H. Abraham's new silk hat at the
Cardiff Baptist college meeting oh
Tiiurscay and, of course, left a very
poor one behind, says the London Tele
gram. With view of finding the cul
prit, the reverend gentleman composed
nd hsd the following lines read out
by Dr. Edwards at the luncheon:
I've sometimes lost my head.
But there's not much In that;
A sadder thing has happened hero,
For I have lost my hat;
I'd like to find the thievish sinner.
Perchance he's sitting hero at dinner,
Before the reverend gentleman left
the table the hat waa returned a Om
tribute to poor poetry,
. - .
THB SCARECROW APPENDICITIS
It Is remarkable how our forefathers
managed to live "long and happy" in
their ignorance of the vermiform ap
pendix. Perhaps like the X-ray, thia
appendix is the creation of modern sci
ence, or the need of modern surgery.
Certain it Is that this vermiform ap
pendix or the knife of the new sur
geon has largely curtailed the pleas
ures, if not the duration of life. We
are In mortal dread of berries, grapes,
figs and small seeded vegetables, lest
that useless appendix or the ready knife
of the surgeon will "do us up." Which
Is which? I confess I am In consider
able dougt. But one of the profession.
Dr. Hutton, appears to attach much
more blame to the knife than to the
appendix. He may be right. He ought
to know; I don't. I do know that the
knife is feafully fatal. This eminent
and experienced Dr. Hutton gives some
very cheerful encouragement to those
chronic sufferers with supposed appen
dicitis in the Medical Record, from
which I quote:
"This paper is a protest against the
current surgical theory and practice
that all cases of appendicitis must be
spilt open. The protest is based on
twenty-seven years' experience as phy
sician and surgeon. . . . My experi
ence is that appendicitis and all other
ellyaches for which men now operate,
are promptly amenable to proper med
ical treatment. I can recall one hun
dred cases treated with symptoms of
this malady, . . . but I have never
yet met a case of It In which I felt it
was my duty to cut, or which terminat
ed fatally. ... I shall cite other
unimpeachable practitioners who share
my vlews.that medical treatment avails
in this malady, one showing forty-nine
out ot fifty-one cases successfully treat
edbeing more than 96 per cent. My
treatment for appendicitis is free calo
mel and soda purgation, supplemented
by hot applications, to be followed by
a saline if action is too slow."
Perhaps It would be well to forget the
vermiform appendix and let science
and surgery fight It out In their own
sweet way. Atlanta Constitution.
Dazzling Richness Prevails,
The Russian court, military and min
isterial dress Is costly and rich In the
extreme, and this richness is carried
out even to the liveries of the servants,
their scarlet coats being literally ablaze
with gold. It is a fact that no court In
the world presents such a picturesque
and magnificent appearance as does
that of Russia. At any function, there
fore, the show Is brilliant, but more es
pecially, perhaps, at a ball, when the
rich evening toilets of the ladies, en
hanced by Jewels of priceless worth,
add much to the already brilliant effect.
The Russian dances are of a very
stately description and both the em
peror and empress take part in them
very thoroughly.
The aspect of the armorial hall where
the supper Is often laid Is grand be
yond all description. This meal Is not
partaken of standing, as at the major
Ity of courts, but the guests sit down at
the long row of tables. A procession is
formed, which Is headed by his lm
perial majesty and the most dlstln
gulshed lady present, and the room is
then entered In the order of prece
dence. Of course, an Immense quantity
of plate is displayed. This, and the
china that is also used are noted all
through Europe for their richness and
beauty. There Is one service alone cap,
able of dining 500 persons that is com,
posed entirely of the purest silver over
laid with gold. Added to all this the
use of a variety of the choicest fruits
and the rarest flowers, among which
orchids figure largely, makes the scene
one of the most gorgeous magnificence.
During the evening a state progress
through the suite of rooms Is made by
the Imperial personages and the chief!
officers of the household, the guests
forming up into a long avenue on either
side. One special feature is that two
or three of the largest halls in the paf-
ace are on the occasion of the ball fitted
up as a huge conservatory, palms, ex
otics, ferns, banks of flowers and even
fruit trees being transplanted thither
with the most marvelous effect.
Electric light is carried throughout
and glows down from myriads of globes
and a variety of colors. In this verita
ble fairyland hundreds of seats are
placed for the convenience of the gyests
Wween the dances. It would be utter
't Impossible to mention the rare works
of art to be seen In this palace, com
prising paintings, statuary, collections
of Jewels, antiquities and curios of ev
ery description. Everything Is of ori
ental magnificence and to see it all the
eye must weary of the continuous aaz
zle. English Magazine.
Brutes Not Deceived.
"It's a singular fact," said a man In
the show business, "that 'luslons as
we call 'em. don't fool animals. I've
seen that proven over and over again.
A few years ago I had what is known
as the 'Mystlo Maze' at the Nashville
exposition. It was simply a small
room filled with morrors, so arranged
that you seemed to be In a narrow cor
ridor full of turns. It was very puz
zling, and I used to get lost In the place
myself, but It never bothered my dog a
moment He would run through It
from end to end at full speed and never
bump against a mirror.
"I saw something on the same line
In 'Frisco not long ago. A friend of
mine had an illusion called 'The Haunt
ed Swing.' You get In what seems to
be an ordinary swing, hung in the cen
ter of a good-sized room, and the thing
begins to move. It goes back and
forth and finally clear over ths top
that Is to say, It seems to. What really
turns round Is the room Itself the
swing stands perfectly still. It Is a good
'Illusion, and when the room Is revolved
rapidly there never was a man who
could keep hi head In the swing. It
seems as If he must certainly pitch
out, and If the motion Is kept up he
gets deathly sick. But a pet cat be
longing to my friend used to lie on the
edge of the seat and never turn a hair,
,no matter how fast the thing waa
worked.
"The elder Hermann told me that an
imal were never deceived by false ta
ble lags, built up with looking glasses,
aad used la stage tricks. They always
passed around on the other aide. 1
guess they must see better, somehow
TORY OP ROBERT BONNER.
A story told of the lata Robert Boa
ner la sometimes laid to the nimble wtl
of the Inimitable William R. Travers
Mr. Bonner was riding in a street cai
one day with his son, then a little boy
Tl.e car was crowded and Mr. Bonnet
had taken the little boy on bis knee
Presently a handsome and stylist
young woman entered and Mr. Bonnet
nudged his son from his knee.
"My boy," he said, gravely, "get ui
and give the lady your seat."
Even the young woman had to jols
In the titter that followed.
The only time in his life that Mr.
Bonner ever made a bet was when b
was a typesetter on the old Hertford
Courant. l "Jour" of the name of Han
came down the line with the advanct
reputation of being the swiftest com
positor on earth.
"Maybe," said the Courant men, "bul
you haven't tried Bonner yet."
"Huh!" said the "Jour," "I'll try him
for $10 a side."
"I never bet," said Mr. Bonner.
"You better not," laughed the chal
lenger. Mr. Bonner changed bis mind. He put
up $10, got down to work, and besides'
consuming two pieces of custard' pie,
set 25,100 ems of solid minion type in
twenty hours and twenty-eight min
utes. The feat has never been equaled.
Md. Bonner's greatest pride was that
he never borrowed or owed. The only
thing he ever borrowed was a maxim
from Emerson "Ob, discontented man!
Whatever you want, pay the price and
take It!" He did. Whenever he wanted
anything he paid for It. The price
sometimes came high. But Mr. Bonner
got It all the same.
Mr. Bonner's place at Tarrytown
was one of the finest trotting farms in
the country. But, strange to relate, he
never spent a night there from the
time he bought it till the day he died.
Why, no one ever knew. It was a no
tion of his just that and nothing else.
Once Mr. Bonner wanted a place in
Westchester. He found one that waa
satisfactory and asked whether there
was malaria In the neighborhood. The
agent said no; there was no malaria in
Westchester, but over across the line
there was plenty. Every householder
in the county told him the same thing.
So Mr. Bonner bought the place and
promptly got malaria. A few days aft
erward an advertisement appeared in
the New York newspapers. Mr. Bon
ner offered his place for sale. In the
advertisement he enlarged upon the
fact that it was the only place In the
entire county where malaria could be
caught, but, notwithstanding this great
and uncommon advantage, he would
sell it at a reasonable price. In sup
port of his statement Mr. Bonner called
attention to the assertion of every real
estate dealer in the neighborhood that
there was no malaria In the county. He
sold the place.
"It's too bad." said a friend to him
one day, "that Charles Dickens won't
write for American publications."
"He won't, eh?" cried Mr. Bonner.
"Just wait till I try."
He rushed down to his office, wrote to
Dickens asking for a story and with the
letter sent a draft for $5,000. Dickens
was carried off his feet. He accepted
and at the same time asked whether
this was the way American publishers
did business.
"It's the way this one does," answer
ed Mr. Bonner. A while afterward Mr.
Bonner captured Tennyson by the same
plan.
Mr. Bonner, with all the tens of thou
sands of stories he published, never
read fiction. The only stories he ever
finished were Dlcken's "Hunted Down"
and Sylvanug Cobb, jr.'s "The Gun-
maker of Moscow." It was his custom
to read merely the opening chapter.
and if he found it satisfactory to have
the story read through by his readers.
Once, when Mr. Bonner's capital waa
Just $8,000, he determined to make cer
tain advertising. When the estimate
was brought to him it was $10,000. .
"Too much," said he to the adver
tising agent. "Cut it down to $8,000.
That's all the money I have."
"Can't do It." said the agent, "but
I'll trust you for the $2,000."
I know that," said Mr. Bonner, "but
I won't let you."
The agent cut the difference.
"Am I a teetotaller? No," said Mr.
Bonner In answer to the question. "No," '
am not a teetotaller. I had a glass
of sherry when I came to New York
In 1644." It is not on record tha ho
ever took another.
A Royal Love Story.
From a London ccble letter; Th
quiet marriage of M. le Comte de Jame-
tel to the Duchess Marie Mecklenberg
Strelltz Is one of the most romantic
royal unions of the century. Jametel
the handsome and distinguished
looking son of an apothecary' at 6Fn-
talnebleu, who made a considerable for
tune. Young Jametel went into . the
arm, goty In with the smartest French
noblesse, became acknowledged as the
Due de Sagan's only-serious rival foi
the position of the best dressed man la
Paris, was made a count ot the Holy
Roman empire by the pope for his re
ligious benefactions, and at the age ol
31 nas marnea a gooaiooking daugh
ter of one of the most exclusive of Ger
man princely families, has become
hereditary duk and pniiiln if h. k.i.
ser, grandnephew of Queen Victoria,
ana Kinsman or every royal ramiiy la
Europe. But be has got Into serious
trouble wjth his patron, the pope, ovei
the marriage. The duchess la a Protes
tant, and the pope gave his dispensa
tion on the usual condition that there
hould be no ceremony except that la
a catholic cnurcn, nut after the Cath
olic ceremony the bridal party drove U
Protestant church, where the mar
riage waa solemnised according to the
Protestant rite, though Jametel protooti
he thought that nothing mora was be
ing aene tnaa tao recaiai or a prays
rite marriage took place after a
month's engagement, the rouag fUOY
ms having fallen violently la keka wi-h
lametol last May la Farm,
kexr good moraia