CI
BEER SOLD TO THE INDIANS.
THE BRITISH COLONY OF NATAL
QUEEN NABO OF SWAZILAND.
Que of the most Interesting person
ages to South Africa Just now la Nebo
"TaeU-nl, queen of Swaziland, aays the
.Ptast-Dispatch. Along- with the war
new from that part of the world have
com recently many account of the
high handed doings of the Swaxi queen.
Swaziland is an Independent native
kingdom under the protection of the
South African republic As the Boers
have just now enough to do protecting
themselves, Nabo Taebenl la not in
terfered with In her little diversions.
The Dews which came the other day
of the dea-th of Nabo's son. King Bunu,
and of the vigorous manner in which
the queen had cleared the political at
mosphere by a general elimination of
objectionable persons, drew especial at
tention to her ebony majesty.
Compliments ought to be exchanged
between the empress of China and the
queen of Swaslland. These two royal
ladies have peculiarities in common, the
chief among which may be mentioned
an amiable weakness for removing peo
ple who dispute their power. Their his
tories also have a striking likeness.
Uke her ' great and good friend'' of
China, the queen of Swaslland was not
born to the purple, and, like her also,
began to plan for power and sovereign
ty as soon as she took her place among
her royal husbands wives.
In the days when the good king Um
bandine reigned over the Swazls there
was among his subjects a bold and
fearless raider, named Matafflni, who
became known as the "Uon of Swazi
land." He was of no family of Im
portance, but by his deeds of valor
he raised himself and his telatlves to
positions of prominence In the kingdom,
nd the king took for one of his wives,
Matafflnls sister, Nabo 'Tsebenl.
From the day she entered the royal
harem Nabo exercised a remarkably
great Influence over the king. She was
ihrewd and tactful and her aavice on
matters of state was sound. She deter
mined that her son should be king to
succeed his father. All her rivals met
with misfortune in one way or another.
ind finally she concentrated her efforts
unon the chief wife of the king, Ma
pungulala, who was of royal blood
nd whose son would naturally succeed
to the throne upon the death of Ura-
bandine.
As the old king drew near his death
1n 1889 the reins of government were
more and more taken up by the strong
band of Nabo. She made a charge or
Witchcraft againsn ai.""
that unhappy woman to save her life
fled from the country, thereby, accord
ing to Swazl law, disqualifying her son
from any rights to the throne. Nabo
won over to her side the commander-In-chie
fof the Swazl army, one Tlkuba.
and with him the old king's regiment,
which was on duty about the royal
kraal. That year the king died. Now.
according to the law of Swaziland, the
title of queen appertains, not to the
wife of the king, but to his mother, and
l-mbandine had living an adopted
-mother, who was entitled, with the eld
ers of the nation, to nominate the new
lng. But Nabo proclaimed her son,
Cmgwana, usually called Bunu, king,
saying that Just before he died the old
king had stretched out his right hand,
laying, "This Is my right arm, and his
mame l Bunu." She herself took the
title of queen and prepared to rule as
regent during the minority of Bunu
The dead king's adopted mother made
some faint attempt to assert her rights
WHY HE GAVE UP DUCKS.
1 1
On the regular day of the week .the;
tustomary rap was heard on the bark
door .and when it was opened the pic
turesque farmer, In bedtlck trousers,
tucked into rubber boots, stood on the
sill smiling, and gently stroking the
searf of chin whiskers that hung down
end lightly swept his wishbone. When
he had counted out the usual number
of egg" with which he supplied us, and
had put the money into the antique
wallet which he held together and In
shape with about a yard of oord and a
safety pin, the small boy of the house
hold said:
"Why don't you bring duck eggs for
a change once In a while?"
The farmer's face took on a worried
expression, such an expression of pain
s a man wears when the postmnn
hands him a letter which he confl-
Gently believes to contain a long looked
for check but which he finds on open
. .,. , the circular of a country
ank Inviting him to open an account
when the only thing he has that could
possibly offer to open anything with
)s a can opener. The farmer had taken
m .at, according to custom, and was
about to speak of the outrageous sys
tem of levying taxes In his particular
.locality, when the' small boy of the
household Interrupted him with the
.question referring to the duck eggs.
After the expression of paid had left
he farmers face, that dignitary re-
44; . . ......
"I can't bring you due eggs ;t.u
3 can't keep ducks." !
When he paused the small boy afore
said, who I simply a storehouse of
questions, each of which If forever
lruglinj U escape. akect "Can t
Jkeep ducks; why not?"
"Because r have tried," replied the
farmer. "I Inst year bought a lot of
gteklns and muscovas, and It was no
mo."
When he lapsed Into alienee once
.pore the small boy again went at him
jprith a QUestioa. - -
but Tlkuba and his soldiers overawed
all opposition and Nabo's mother-in-
law retired to private Ufa with celer
ity. Bunu might have grown up to be a
good king, but he got into bad com
pany. He surrounded himself with a
crowd of aristocratic young men of de
cidedly sporting proclivities, and, break
ing away from his mother's control,
proceeded to make the court of Swasl
land almost as lively a place as the
court of Servla was under that royal
blackleg, Milan.
Bunu's sycophants poured flattery In
to his ears until he began to think that
he was a very big man Indeed. Things
went from bad to worse with the young
king, until one day a leading Iduna was
murdered. Bunu at first denied any
knowledge of the affair, but the evi
dence against him was so strong that
he fled the country. He remained away
for some time, while his mother got
things straightened out, and finally
paved the way for her erring son's re
tain. He came back, but did not re
form, and so he was gathered to his
fathers the other day. Just how the
gathering was done does not appear,
but It was done effectually, and It Is
thought with the sanction of the queen,
who had got tired of trying to make a
man out of Bunu, and has a younger
son whom she intends to place on the
throne In his stead.
The death of Bunu was followed by
a thorough "house cleaning" on the
part of Queen Nabo. Several persons
who, In her royal wisdom, she consid
ered dangerous to the welfare of the
state were placed beyond the chance of
making any more trouble, and she will
hereafter look after affairs herself en
tirely, not delegating to any one even
the slight power she allowed Bunu.
Queen Nabo Is about 50 years old,
and Is not handsome according to the
debased standards of white men, but Id
Swaziland she is accounted "a fine Ag
ger of a woman." When she married
she was a slim young woman and wat
a great belle. She looks taller than
she really is, owing to the method by
which she. In common with the other
women of her country, dresses her hair.
By some mysterious process the royal
tresses are made to grow, trellis fash
Ion, over a wlekerwork arrangement of
circular shape. Round the forehead she
wears the royal insignia, a band of
wood possessing innumerable medicinal
virtueg, attached to which, in the cen-
t(fr the forehead, are a snakes orna-
der and a brilliant red learner vi mc
laurte bird.
Like other monarchc, Queen Nabc
can b very suave and nice when she
pleases, and Bhe can also be exceeding,
ly haughty and frigid of demeanor. It
Is a harsh thing to say about a royal
lady of Nabo's ability, but the truth
Is that next to power her majesty loves
rum, or drinks that go under that
generic term. Bhe drinks no native
distillation, but the white man's good
Imported liquor, and lots of It. In fact,
Nabo 'Tsebeni Is a great drunkard.
Her enemies say she Is "fuddled" most
of the time. he docs not seem to let
rum Interfere with business, however.
Apart from the firewater, the queen
has no particular regard for the pro
ducts of civilization. She prefers the
native rug or blanket as a costume to
the finest creation of Worth, and her
food and manner of living have never
changed, but remain as they were In
the days when Umbandlne first took
her, a slim young girl, for wife.
When he lapsed Into silence once more
the small boy again went at him with
a question.
"Dldn' tyott have water?"
"That's Just what was the matter,"
said the farmer. "I couldn't keep the
ducks because I had water, and not be
cause I hadn't water. I have a fine
stream right beside the house."
"And wouldn't the ducks get Into It?"
asked the boy,
"They would and did," said the farm
er, "and that Is Just where the trouble
came In. If they had kept out of the
water they would have been all right.
"Why. what did the water do to
them?" asked the boy, with the per
siatency of a washerwoman who car
rles news budgets from house to house
"What did it do to them?" said the.
farmer, rising and Jumping onto his
wagon, because he was so mad ha
couldn't keep still. "What did It do to
them?" he repeated as he made a crack
at the horse with the Whip. "This Is
what It did to them. It took them
down the current. Five minutes after I
turned them loose they were on the
stream, and they shot out of sight on
the tide as If they'd been fired out of a
cannon, and I ain't saw them since.
Chickens Is all right around a place
where there's water; but when I want
to keep ducks again guess I'll go off
somewhere where there ain't no stream
and then, if the ducks has got to have
water, I'll put up a shower bath In the
barn for them. Oee up!" then he shout
ed with vim at the recalcitrant horse,
and was soon out of slght.R. K. Mun.
klttrlck.
White stockings and tics of sheet
lawn which are actually made to wash
are attractive. Some have turnover
hem-stitched bows, and others with
tie plainly stitched to make a bow and
ends to hung half way to the waist
None of these bought at a nrst-claw
haberdashery are expensive, but thej
are well made and show it.
Omaha, Neb. (Special.) An interest
ing sequel to the ferociously bloody
double tragedy enacted at Ponca agen
cy the night of May 1, is Just work
ing Its way Into the United States
court here.
Indian Agent Balrd arrived this week
from Santee Agency, of which Ponca
Is a sub-agency, with Bertha Black
bird, Ed Howe, Emma Howe, his wife,
and two Indian boys, all wltlTthe blood
of the ancient sons of the soil In their
veins, and all concerned In the drunk
en row and double shooting, May 1, In
which Perry Laravle shot and killed
Pete Blackbird and was In turn shot
and killed by the mother of the mur
dered man and hacked to mincemeat
by some one, presumably his father.
At the coroner's Inquest, held shortly
after, It was developed that a wholesale
selling of liquor to the Indians has
been going on under the very noses of
the officials, by means of a device, by
the side of which, for Ingenuity and
convenience, the niekel-in-the-slot ma
chine Is a relic of antiquity. The In
dians testified that they were In the
habit of going to a certain building
where they made known their presence
outside by certain prescribed and gen
tle warwhoops. Thereupon they would
thrust an amount of money Into a hole
in the wall where It was swallowed up
and lost to sight. Almost Immediately
and with the precision of the more me
chanical device, a keg of beer, or two
kegs, according to the amount of money
they had put Into the hole In the wall
would come rolling down an Inclined
plane, and would be Immediately seized
and carried away by the Indians.
There are many places In Ponca
where one can get the fluid which mad
dens, and full as many, according to
the authorities,' where the noble red
man can tank up and become a verita
ble red devil. It is chiefly this condi-
tlon of affairs mat mmss
to Omaha. Although one of his pur
poses is to file information before the
grand Jury against the old Blackbirds
on the charge of having murdered Lar
avle, the great thing Is his attempt
FACING DEATH
Bombardier Stephenson, of the Sixty-
sixth battery, has sent to his relatives
at Manchester an account of the at
tempt to save the guns at Colenso. The
following are extracts:
"When I tell you I was the only man
of a gun detachment ana tnree unvn
(making twelve men altogether) to re
turn safe out of that hell of fire, you
will wonder why and how I got through
It . . The range was 1,200 yards,
and our gunners, and officers worked at
those guns as if on parade. Then tne
.... - A fi T was thp
enemy s ariuiery uprutu u.c. -
lead driver of No. 8 gun, and we were
right in the center of the two batteries,
and there we stood facing the guns, ex
ited to all that fire for nearly tnree
hours. It was after we had lost half
of our drivers and horses that we found
a donga, exactly 1,000 yards from the
enemy's position; we unhooked the
horses we had left, and every man, a
n a cucumber, walked his norse
into this donga. We had to leave our
horses on the bank, and they were in
stantly shot dead. It was while doing
this that I nearly lost my life."
Continuing the story, Stephenson
ay: "Wlhle we were in this donga
General Buller galloped up and told us
to try and save the guns at all costs.
He was as cool as ever. It was Just at
that moment my center driver got shot
in the head. When one got shot It left
myself and the wheel driver with six
horses, and we had to go and face
death to try and capture our gun. 1
VETERAN OF
Over 200,000 men were enrolled In the
American armies during the war of
181 Of this vast host one single man
remains on the pension rolls of the
United States. This lonely veteran is
Hiram Cronk of Dunn Brook, Oneida
county, a man 100 years old.
Mr. Cronk was born on April 29, 1800,
at a humble home in the town of
Frankfort, Herkimer county. He came
of sturdy Dutch stock, or a ramuy
which has won fame through a lltlga
tlon to regain the Cronk estates in the
Fatherland. In the early childhood of
Hiram the family removed to Wright
settlement, about two and a half miles
from the city of Home. There the
family lived about ten years, the boy
attending school and helping about the
chores. From Wright settlement the
Cronks migrated to farm In the town
of Western, then practically In the
wilderness, and In that neighborhood
Mirum Cronk has spent the greatei
part of hl life. In 1837 he bought about
HQ acres of land, on which he erected
the house wherln'he now lives with nis
Dnly living daughter, Mrs. Haran a.
Rowley. ,
Before Hiram was 15 years old hln
r,plrft was roused over the Issues of the
war, and, with Mb father and his two
brothers, John and Jephtha, he ui
llsted in the United States army and
went to Backet's harbor, where he
served about 100 days. Hiram wag so
young and of such sllfrht build that the
other soldiers tried to Joke with him,
savin, that. If need be, his father
could pick him up and carry him to a
niace of safety. But such an act was
to secure an Indictment against Adam
Foster, proprietor of the Foster brew
ery at Ponca, on the charge of selling
liquor to the Indians.
According to the agent, the two In
dian boys In his band will swear that
they, together with Pete Blackbird, on
the day of the fatal affair, bought the
two kegs of beer, which caused all the
mischief, directly from a brewery by
means of the money in the wall con
trivance. Bertha Blackbird will testify
that her husband told her that the
beer was bought at the" brewery, but
that the two boys, who were sent to
the Ponca agency from Oklahoma,
bought it.
Agent Balrd said last night: "With
the evidence we have in the matter we
will be able to prove beyond a shadow
of a doubt that the brewery has been
selling liquor to the Indiana for some
time, with only the slightest pretense
of concealment. I understand that this
building from which they roll the beer
on the payment of money through the
wall Is either on or Immediately adjoin
ing their premises. All of the Indiana
knew of the graft and have been work-
Inir It for all it was worth,"
"We have the two empty kegs which
were found at the Blackbird place in
our possession, and they appear to have
hart no revenue stamps affixed, i nai
however, Is a minor offense compared
with the one we have in hand, and
would properly come before the internal
revenue department."
An attorney for the brewing company
said last night that as he came down
on the train from Columbus, he ques
tloned Bertha Blackbird, who was also
in the train, and that Bhe declared pos
itively that the kegs bore the revenue
.mr. rnntinulne. he said: "There
is nothing 'to prove that the brewery
sold the beer the the Indians. There
can be no doubt that they bought It of
bootleggers, with which the agency is
infested." w .
Helen Gould's contributions to char
ity for the month of April are said
to have been J9.000. ,
AT COLENSO.
unhooked the center horses, and we
started off at a mad gallop, with four
horses In the limber, and Just as we
were about sixty yards from the gun
both of my horses were shot dead un
der me, and the wheel driver was shot
ir, tho lee. . . , I crawled from
under my rider and considered what 1
should do. I wanted to get to the guns,
as I had got so far, but I had two dead
hiirses, and they were hooked to the
other two. While I lay trying to get
the horses unhooked I became aware
that my wheel driver was shot.
"Then," concludes the gallant gun
ner, "I cut the harness away from the
dead horaes and freed the other two.
Just as I was going to mount these
other horses the driver got shot. I had
one live horse left, which was hooked
to a limber, and it was behind these
horses and limber I lay for three and
a half hours. Another team of four
horses started off at a mad gallop to
try to reach the guns, but the horses
ran straight in my dead (horses and
would not move an Inch. I told the
drivers to crawl up to a trumpeter with
two horsesto try and reach the major,
but he was shot In the ankle, and fell
from his saddle. He also crawled up to
where I lay. That made three of us un
injured and two wounded. The wheel
driver, who got shot again through the
left cheek, died Immediately." At last
these heroes made a run for it, and,
after many escapes, safely reached
camp. London Leader.
WAR OF 1812.
unncesary, for in a skirmish with the
British the youthful soldier carried
himself bo well that Captain Davis,
who had command of the troops, said
it he had a regiment of such soldiers
he could go Into Canada and fight the
enemy on their own ground. For his
services In the war of 1812 Mr. Cronk
gets a pension of $8 a month. He is
one of Agent Orr's pensioners, on the
rolls of the Buffalo office.
After the war the Cronks went home
and Hiram took up the trade of Itiner
ant shoemaker, going about the coun
tryside and repairing the footwear
of the people in their own dwellings.
He generally made the trip twice a
year, and thug kept the farmers' boots
In condition for wear.
When 25 years of age Hiram met his
fate and married her In the person of
Mary Thornton. For sixty years they
lived happily together. She died In
1885. Six children were born to them.
Five of them are living. One son lost
his life In the civil war. Of grand
children and great-grandchildren Mr.
Mr. Cronk has about a score.
Chicago Post: "She Is worth her
weight In gold," they said: He looked
at her critically and then shook his
hPRd. "Won't do," he said. "I'm look
Ing for something of about that weigh
In diamonds,"
During the year 1899 the United
Stales Issue dabout 2,500,000,000 of 2
cent postage stampsI',hlch, if placed
and to end, would reach a distance of
nearly 40,000 miles.
Until the first rude awakening of a
few months back, with the Initial les
ions at Dundee and Glencoe, ninety-
nine men out of every hundred knew
nothing and cared less about the col
ony of Natal. Even Great Britain
scarcely realized that It was on ine
map, but now that it Is the seat of a
possible revolution England hastens to
placate that energetic bit of South Af
rica after a long period of neglect ana
even abuse.
The colony derives its name from
the fact that It was discovered on
Christmas Daq, 1497 (the birth or "na
tal" day) by the celebrated Vasco de
rjama, when that gentleman made his
historic voyage (the first on record)
to the East Indies, via the Cape of
Oood Hope.
Until developed by others this beau
tiful country had but little Interest for
Britishers. In 1836-7, however, the Bo
era accomplished the celebrated "trek"
which landed them In Natal, and were
not slow to turn to their advantage
the" wonderful resources of the fertile
land. This they were allowed to do In
peace until, of a sudden, the Hon on
an Idle prowl discovered that here was
a garden spot of nature that had been
temporarily overlooked. An excuse was
hard to find, but finally It was decided
that the Boers were treating the poor
blacks with almost as inhuman cruel
ty as a loyal British subject could In
flict. It was not to be borne. At once
the British authorities Intervened "In
behalf of the suffering blacks," and in
1843 Natal was formally annexed by
the British crown. .
BOERS TREKKED AGAIN
An immediate exodus of the Boers
was the inevitable and usual result
the ancestors of Oom Paul's present sol
dlers trekking northward to found their
present home In the Transvaal in 1841.
The next problem was how to get suffl
clent of the chosen people to take their
place.
In this dilemma the British govern
ment was greatly assisted by the pri
vate enterprise of one Joseph Charles
Byrne. This gentleman was at that
time the owner of huge tracts of land
In Natal, for the development of which
man ythousands of immigrants were re
quired. For this reason he put for
ward what is known as Byrne's Immi
gration scheme, the alluring prospects
of which were successful in bringing
some 5,000 or 6,000 people into the col
ony about the year 1850.
Unfortunately for the scheme, the
majority of the immigrants were of
precisely the same class that still flock
from Albion's shores whenever a suffi
ciently alluring bait is held out to
them, be it from the frozen solitudes
of ic'e-bound Klondike or the blazing
heat of the African diamond fields.
There were, however, some few solid
men among them, ana tnese sei m
work and made the town of Durban
what It la today, a thoroughly modern
seaport, with beautiful suburbs, grand
roads, excellent lighting and water sup
ply, which welcomes the ships of the
world to Port Natal.
Durban is distant seventy-two miles
by rail from the capital, Pietermarltz
burg. The route thither winds contin
uously upward, a physical feature which
Is characteristic of the colony. Indeed,
from the seaboard to the Drakensburg
mountains the ground rises in a contin
uous succession of long terraces. The
natural consequence is that practical
ly every temperature, from frizzling to
freezing, may be chosen by the incom
ing colonist, according to his inclina
tion and purse.
Just what this means to the Inhab
itants will best be appreciated, per
haps, when It Is stated that practically
jvery fruit and vegetable in creation
SOME MUSIC
The following true story shows that
toads have not only an ear for music
but possess powers of discrimination
heretofore undreamed of:
At a weir known summer resort we
were staying at the same hotel with
a party of musical people, among whom
was Mme. , famous lor ner ncn
;ontralto voice.
These people were engaged to sing
nightly at the amphitheater; and we
guests of the hotel had a double share
of pleasure, for on their return each
night they gave a brief open-air concert
on the hotel veranda. At such times
every window In the hotel held an eager
listener. Madame herself rarely sang
it these moonlight parties, but one
svenlng she was prevailed upon to do
to. We were on the veranda at the
time; and some one called our atten
tion to a toad, which at the sound of
madame's voice had hopped out of the
srrasg on to the gravel walk close to
the veranda steps, where he stood
blinking and winking In the bright
moonlight, his face turned toward the
ginger.
When she had finished, the toad wait
ed. . Then, at the sound of a choAs of
voices, he hopped hastily away ' into
the grass, and was lost to sight.
The second night he appeared again,
this time with a companion; and they
took up their places on the gravel walk.
Madame had been notified of her new
listeners, and was charmed with the
oddity of the thing. While she sang,
phe watched their queer little faces',
snd not once were then seen to move.
4 . , A
) fiut when maflame ceasea to sing anu
Ihe tenor began, they turned abruptly
and hopped away, to the amusement
f all.
can be grown between the
burg and the sea coast.
For instance, the low-lylns; i
chards produce guavas, pineapples, bar
nanas, mangoes, and. In fact, praeticml-
ly all the fruits of the Eaat and was
Indies. The higher lands produce tha
familiar plums, pears and applaa
our own gardens, whilst oranges, ssnv
ons and most of the fruits of Southern
Europe are almost as common a OM
own gooseberry bushes. In addUJaat
to these, there is a growing traau m
tea and sugar planting, which snap
mean much to future generation at
colonists, once the present crisis is pant.
To ascend from plants to people, par-
haps one of the greatest surprises ex
perienced by the stranger constat; to
Natal Is the tremendous dlsproporrjoa
that exists between the black and tfta
white population. Roughly speJdnv
there are ten Kaffirs and one coou m
every white man, and the task of keep
ing this enormous colored population
(there are upward of 500,000 Kafflr
Natal) In hand during the present tranv
bles can only be appreciated by taoM
who have themselves lived in tne col
ony. Of late years the imported Indian
coolie has made considerable numeric
progress In Natal. Hailing principally
from Madras, he is Imported under a
five years' Indenture; and, although pri
marily Introduced for the tea and ansa
plantations of the coast, is now to b
found all over the warmer portions) ot
the colony, upon the sheep and cattl
farms, and as odd man generally. Un
like his brethren In the West Indian,
and the Chinese in the United State)
the Natal coolie is of real benefit W
the land, since he does not hoard up v
his wages, In order to become a "bloat
ed bondholder" upon a return to tha
land of his birth.
On the contrary, he frequently net
tles down at the expiration of bis In
denture, and opens a small retail etore
for the benefit of the Kaffirs and anon
whites as will deal with him.
The one great danger of this coolls
importation will arise when the present
50,000 industrious coolies shall have been
Increased to such an extent that the
shall have fully monopolized the shal
low margin of work by which the 50,
000 indolent Kaffirs at present manna
to pay their annual hut tax and pro
vide the necessaries of life. The result
will probably be one of two extreme
courses. Either the rapidly tncreaata
coolie competition will incite the Kaf
fir to serious work, or the government
will be forced to follow Australia and
California In their imposition of a. poff
tax upon the guileless Asiatic.
The principal work done by the Kafna-
1- of a domestic nature. According
nis aesiraoiiny or umennc, .u
hired at anything between $2.5ft
J7.50 a month, plus his board, lodgtna
and clothing. Happily, the latter nee
never be a large item in one's expenaesv
as long as one possesses any highly
colored cast-off garments, male or fe
male attire being accepted with cheer--ful
impartiality, providing the pervad--.
Ing hues are sufficiently startling. In
addition to this, a weekly gift of m
few cents is usually bestowed on Bnt--urday
nights.
Finally, Is1 should not be forgotten.?
that, as in most antipodean countxiesv
everything in Natal Is upside down, an
compared with horry; ideas. For in
stance, you burn at Christmas and
freeze in June. Your south winds am
icy; your flowers are beautiful, but
scentless, and your birds most gorge
ous, but songless. In short, beautiful ast
It all Is, there Is not one colonist in.
a hundred who does not yearn in bin
old days to return to the land of hta
birth. 5
-LOVING TOADS.
The third evening every one was ci
rlous, and madame herself begun the
concert, Almost as the first word fell
from her lips there was a rustling ot
the grass, and out hopped the two
toads; and, following them, one by one.
seven others. They all took position
along the walk, all facing the veranda,
and proceeded to drink In the melody.
In spite of her usual care of hea
voice, madame "laid herself out" that
night, and sang one after another ol
her choicest songs, her eyes all tn
time turned upon her queer little lis
teners; and, though they gave no ap
plause, madame insisted that she had
never met with a more sympathetic and
appreciative audience. Their very al
ienee showed their deep attention.
The two following nights the nunbtt
of toads Increased, .until there were m
score or more; and, if madame's en
gagement had not closed on the ntxth
night, it Is probable that her
would have spread until all the
at the resort had gathered to hear I
As it is, no other vocalist has
proved attractive enough to co
such an audience. Youth's Co
A well-equipped cotton mill.
and operated by negroes, has Just
started at Concord, S. C. The mill i
tains 5,200 spindles and 140 looms.
mill management recruited its
from the agricultural colleges and othet
colored educational Institutions,
pays a slight percentage less than
regular rale prevutyng In southern
ton mills.
A servant girls' union has
ganlzed with a membership of MP tt
Copenhagen, Denmark.