• * The Mystery of a Silent Love
$rQwdm WILLIAM LE QUEUX
(J AUTHOR of "Tttt CLOSED DOCK/’ FTC
ILLUSTRATIONS /% CDItflODES
COPYRIGHT OY THC SMART SC7 PaOUSMHG CO
WWW
CHAPTER XVII—Continued.
—17—
"In sheer desperation I went to the
ministry of the interior end sought
an interview with the baron, who,
when I told him of the disaster, ap
peared greatly concerned, and went at
once to the online department to maxe
inquiry. Next day, however, he came
to me with the news that the charge
against my mother had been proved
by a statement of the woman Ship
roff herself, and that she had already
started on her long journey to Si
beria—she had been exiled to one of
•lhose dreaded Arctic settlements he- j
yond Yakutsk, a place where It is al- j
most eternal winter, and where the j
conditions of life are such that half !
the convicts are insane. The baren.
however, declared that, as my father's
friend, it was his duty to act as guar- j
dian to me, and that as my father had '
been English I ought to be put to an
English school Therefore, with his |
self-assumed title of uncle, he took !
me to Chichester. For years I re- j
mained there, until one day he came i
suddenly and fetched me away, tak I
ing tse over to Helsingfors—for the J
czar had new appointed him governor j
general to Finland. There, for the :
first time, he introduced me to his son j
Michael, a pimply-faced lieutenant of ;
cavalry, and said in a most decisive j
manner that I must marry him. 1 ■
naturally refused to marry a man of
whom I knew so little, whereupon, j
finding me obdurate, he quickly a'.- j
♦ered bis tactics and became kind- I
ness itself, saying that as I was young j
he would allow me a year in which to !
make up my mind. 1
“A week later, while living in the !
palace at Helsingfors. I overheard a !
conversation between the governor- [
general and his son. which revealed to
me a staggering truth that I had never
suspected It was Oberg himself who 1
had denounced my mother to the i
minister of the interior, and had ]
made those cruel, baseless charges
against her! Then 1 discerned the 1
reason. She being exiled, her fortune,
as well as that of my father, came to 1
me. The reason they were scheming
for Michael to marry me was in order
to obtain control of my money, and
then, after the necessary legal for- ,
mnlities. I should, on a trumped-up ,
charge of consniracv share the same
fate as my mother had done.’’
"The infernal scoundrel!" f fjaou- '
lated, when I read her words while -
from Jack, who had been looking over ;
my shoulder, escaped a fierce and for
cible vow of vengeance.
"The baron took me witfc him to •
Petersburg when he went op, official |
business, and we remained there near
ly a month,” the narrative went on. j
"While there l received a secret mes-1
sage from ‘The Red Priest,’ the unseen
and unknown power of nihilism, who i
has for so many years baffled the po- ■
lice. 1 went to see him, and he re
pealed to me how Oberg had con- '<
trived to have my mother banished ,
upon a false charge. He warned me
against the man who had pretended to ‘
be my father’s friend, and also told j
me that he had known my father in
timately, and that if 1 got into any I
further difficulty I was to eommuni
cate with him and he would assist .
me. Oberg took me back to Helsing |
fors a few months later, and in sum- !
mer we went to England. He was a j
marvelously clever diplomatist. His •
tactics he could change at will. When j
I was at school he was rough and bru- :
tal in his manner towards me, as he
was to all; but now he seemed to be
endeavoring to inspire niv confidence
by treating me with kindly regard
and pleasant affability.
“In London, at Claridge’6. we met
my old schoolfellow Muriel and her
father—a friend of Oberg’s—and in
response to their invitation went for
n cruise on their yacht, the Iris, from
Southampton. Our party was a very
pleasant one, and included Woodroffe
a'Hd Chater, while our cruise across
the Hay of Biscay and along the Portu
guese coast proved most delightful
One night, while we were lying outside
Libson. Woodroffe and Chater, togeth
er with Olintn, went ashore, and when
they returned in the early hours of
the morning they awoke me by cross
ing the deck above my head. Then I
heard someone outside my cabin door
working as though with a screw
driver, unscrewing a screw from the
woodwork. This aroused my interest,
and next day 1 made a minute exam
ination of the paneling, where, in one
part, I found two small brass screws
that had evidently been recently re
moved. Therefore I succeeded in get- j
ting hold of a screwdriver from the
carpenter’s shop, and next night,
when everyone was asleep, I crept
out and unscrewed the panel. when»to
my surprise I saw that the secret
cavity behind was filled with beauti
ful jewelry, diamond collars, tiaras,
necklets, flue pearls, emeralds and
turquoises, all thrown in indiscrim
inately.
“I replaced the panel and kept care
ful watch. At Marseilles, where we
called, more jewelry and a heavy bag
ful of plate was brought aboard and
secreted behind another panel. Then
I knew that the men w'ere thieves.
“Well, one hot summer’s night we
were lying off Naples, and as it was
a grand fe3ta ashore and there was
to be a gala performance at the thea
ter. Leithcourt took a box and the
whole party were rowed ashore. The
crew were also given shore-leave for
the evening, but as the great heat had
upset me I declined to accompany the
theater party and remained on board
with one sailor named Wilson to con
stitute the watch. We had anchored
about half a mile from land, and
earlier in the evening the baron had
gone ashore to send telegrams to Rus
sia and had not returned.
“About ten o’clock I w-ent below to
try and sleep, but I had a slight at
tack of fever, and was unable. There
fore I redressed and sat with the light
still out. gazing across the starlit bay
Presently from my port-hole I saw a
shoreboat approaching, and recognized
in it the baron with a well-dressed
stranger. They both came on board,
and the boatman, having been paid,
pulled back to the shore. Then the
baron and his friend—a dark, middle
aged, full-bearded man, evidently a
person of refinement—went below to
the saloon, and after a few momenta
called to the man Wilson who was on
watch, and gave him a glass of whisky
and water, which he took up on deck
to drink at his leisure
rhp unusual character of my fel
low-guests on board that craft was
such that my suspicion was constantly
on the alert, therefore curiosity tempt
ed me to creep along and peep in at
the crack of the door standing ajar. A
closer view revealed the fact that the
stranger was a high Russian official
to whom I had once been introduced
at the government palace at Holsiug
fors. the Privy Councillor and Sena
tor Paul Polovstoff. They were smok
ing togther, and were discussing in
Russian the means by which he,
Polovstoff, had arranged to obtain
Plans of some new British fortifica
tions at Gibraltar. From what he
said, it seemed that some Russian
woman, married to an Englishman, a
captain in the garrison, had been im
pressed into the secret service against
her w ill, but that she had, in order to
save herself, promised to obtain the
photographs and plans that were re
quired. I heard the Englishman's
name, and I resolved to take some
steps to inform him in secret of the
intentions of the Russian agent.
“Presently the two men took fresh
cigars, ascended on deck, and cast
themselves in the long cane chairs
amidships. Still all curiosity to hear
further details on the ingenious piece
of espionage against my own nation.
I took off my shoes and crept up to a
spot where I could crouch concealed
and overhear their conversation, for
the Italian night was calm and still.
They talked mainly about affairs in
Finland, and with some of Oberg’s
expressions of opinion Polovstoff ven
tured to differ. Suddenly, while the
privy councillor lay back in liis chair
pulling thoughtfully at his cigar, there
was a bright, blood-red flash, a dull
report, and a man's short, agonized
cry Startled, 1 leaned around the
corner of the deckhouse, when, to my
abject horror, I saw unddr the electric
rays the czar's privy councillor lying
sideways in his chair with part of his
face blown away. Then the hideous
truth in an instant became apparent.
The cigar which Oberg had pressed
upon him down in the saloon had ex
ploded. and the small missile con
cealed inside the diabolical contriv
ance had passed upwards into his
brain. For a moment I stood utterly
stupefied, yet as I looked I saw the
baron, in a paroxysm of rage, shake
his fist in the dead man's face and cry
with a fearful imprecation: ‘You
hound! You have plotted to replace
me in the czar's favor. You intended
to become governor-general of Fin
land! You knew certain facts which
you intended to put before his maj
esty. knowing that the revelations
would result in my disgrace and
downfall. But, you infernal cur, you
did not know that those who attempt
to thwart Xavier Oberg either die by
accident or ^o for life to Kajana or
the mines!' And he spurned the
body with his foot and laughed >o
himself as he gloated over his das
tardly crime.
"1 watched his rage, unable to utter
a single word. I saw him, after he
had searched the dead man's pockets,
raise the inert body with its awful
featureless face and drag it to the bul- |
warks. Then I rushed forward and
faced him.
“In an instant he sprang at me, and
I screamed. But no aid came. The
man Wilson was sleeping soundly !n
| the bows, for the whisky he had given
: him had been doctored,” went on the
narrative. “Upon his face was a
fierce, murderous look such as 1 had
never seen before. ‘You!’ he screamed,
his dark eyes starting from their
sockets as he realized that I had been
a witness of his cowardly Crime ‘You
have spied upon me. girl!' be hissed,
'and you shall die also!' J sank upon
my knees imploring him to spare me.
but he only laughed at my entreaty.
'See!' he cried, 'as you saw how he
enjoyed his cigar, you may as well see
this!’ And with an effort he raised
the dead body in his arms, poised it
for a moment on the vessel's side, and
then, with a hoarse laugh of triumph,
heaved it into the sea. There was a
splash, and then we were alone. 'And
you!' he cried in a fierce voice—'you
who have spied upon me—you will fol
low! The water there will close your
chatter mouth!' I shrieked, begged,
and implored, but his trembling hands
were upon my throat First he
dragged me to my feet, then he threw
me upon my knees, and at last, witn
that grim brutality which characterizes
him. he directed me to go and get a
mop and bucket from the forecastle
and remove the dark +ed stains from
the chair and deck. This he actually
forced me to do. gloating over my hor
! ror as l removed for him the traces
I of his cowardly crime. Then, witli
| liis hand upon my shoulder, he said:
j 'Girl! Recollect that you keep to
; night’s work secret. If not. you shall
When Everyone Was Asleep I Crept -
Out and Unscrewed the Panel.
die a depth more painful than that |
dog has died—-one in which you shall I
experience all the tortures of the ;
damned. Recollect, not a single word
—or death! Now, go to your cabin, j
and never pry into my affairs again.'
"A great sensation was caused when •
the body was discovered. The squad j
ron was lying oft Naples about a week 1
after the Iris had left, and while we :
were there the body w as w ashed up \
near Sorrento. At first but little no- ,
tice was taken of it. but by the marks j
on the dead man's linen it was discov i
ered that he was Polovstoff, one of the
highest Russian officials, who had. it
was said, been warned on several oc- i
casions by the nihilists. It was, there- '
fore, concluded that his death had j
been due to nihilist vengeance.
“The real reason why the baron |
spared my life was because, if 1 died. '■
my fortune would pass to a distant j
cousin living at Durham Yet his 1
manner towards me was now most !
polite and pleasant—a change that f '
felt boded no good. He intended to
obtain my money by marrying me to
his son Michael, whose evil reputa
tion as a gambler was well known m i
Petersburg. We traveled back to Fin- j
land in the autumn, and in the winter
he took me to stay with his sister in ,
Nice. Yet almost daily he referred |
to that tragedy at Naples, and threal- ;
ened me with death if ever i uttered !
a single word, or even admitted that 1
had ever seen the man who was his
| rival and his victim." i
“Last June," commenced another
paragraph, "we were in Helsingfors,
when one day the baron called me
suddenly and told me to prepare for a
journey. \Ve were to cross to Stock
holm and thence to Hull, where the
Iris was awaiting us, for Mr. Leith
conrt and Muriel had invited us for a
summer cruise to the Greek islands.
We boarded the yacht much against
my will, yet I was powerless, and dare
not allege the facts that 1 had al
ready established concerning our fel
low-guests. Muriel and I, it seems,
were taken merely in order to blind
the shore-guards and customs officials
as to the real nature of the vessel,
which went safely out of the channel,
was repainted and renamed the Lola,
until her exterior presented quite a
different appearance from the iris.
“The port of Leghorn was our first
place of call, and for some reason we
ran purposely upon a sandbank and
were towed off by Italian torpedo
boats. Next evening you came on
board and dined. Muriel and myself
having strict orders not to show our
selves. We, however, watched you,
and I saw you pick up my photograph
which ? had that day torn up. Then
immediately after you had left Wood
roffe. f'hater and Mackintosh went
ashore and were away a couple of
hours in the middle of the night. Just
before they returned the baron rapped
at the door of my cabin saying that
he must go ashore, and telling me to
dress and accompany him lie would
never allow me the-luxury of a maid,
fearing. I suppose, that she might
learn too much. In obedience 1 rose
and dressed, and when I went forth
he told me to get my traveling cloak
and dressing bag, adding that he was
compelled to go north, as to continue
the cruise would occupy too much
time. He was due back at his official
duties, he said. As soon as 1 had
finished packing, the three men re
turned to the vessel all of them look
ing dark-faced and disappointed
Woodroffe whispered some words to
the baron, after which I went to
Muriel's cabin and wished her good
by, and we went ashore, taking the
train first to Colle Salvetti. thence »o i
Pisa, and afterwards to the beautiful I
old city of Siena, which I had so ,
longed to see. One of my teeth gave j
me pain, and the baron, after a couple I
of days at the Hotel de Sienne, took j
me to a queer-looking little old Italian
—a dentist who. he said, enjoyed an
excellent reputation. 1 was quirk to
notice that the two men had met be- j
fore, and as I sat in the chair and gas
was given to me I saw them exchange
meaning glances, in a few moments
I became insensible, but when I awoke
an hour later I was astounded to feel
a curious soreness in my ears. My
tongue, too. seemed paralyzed, and in
a few moments the awful truth
dawned upon me. 1 had been rendered j
deaf and dumb!
i ue uarun preienuea ro ue greauy
concerned about roe." it went on, “but
I quickly realized that 1 kau been the
victim of a foul and dastardly plot,
and that he had conceived it. fearing
lest I might speak the truth concern
ing the Privy Councillor Polovstoff,
for of exposure he lived in constant
fear. To encompass my end would
be against his own interests, as he
would lose my fortune, so he had si
lenced me lest I should reveal the ter
rible truth concerning both him and
his associates. He was not rich, and
I have reason to believe that from
time to time he gave information as
to persons who possessed valuable
jewels, and thus shared in the plunder
obtained by those on the yacht.
"From Italy we traveled on to Ber
lin. thence to Petersburg, and back to
dreary Helsingfors, journeying as
quickly as we could, yet never allow
ing me opportunity of being with
strangers, ftolh my ears and tongue
were very painful, but I said nothing.
He was surely a fiend in a black coat, ;
and my only thought now was how to
escape him. From the moment when
that so-called dentist had ruined ray
hearing and deprived me of power of
speech, he kept me aloof from everv
one. The fear that 1 should reveal
everything had apparently grown *o
haunt him. and lie had conceived that
lerrible mode of silencing my lips.
But the true depth of his villainy was
not yet apparent until I was back in
Finland.
"On the night of our arrival he
called in his son, who had traveled
with us from Petersburg, and in
writing again demanded that 1 should
marry him. I wrote my reply—a firm
refusal. He struck the table angrily
with his first and wrote saying that
I should either marry his son or die.
Then next day, while walking alone
out beyond the town of Helsingfors,
as I often used to do, I was arrested
upon the false charge or an attempt
upon the life of Madame VakuroY
and transported, without trial, to the
terrible fortress of Kajana. some of j
the horrors of which you have your- I
self experienced. The eliarge against j
me was necessary before I could he
incarcerated there, hut once within, it
was tile scheme of the governor-ger,
eral lo obtain my consent to the mar
riage by threats and by the constant
terrors of the place. He even went
so far as to obtain a ministerial order
for my banishment to Saghalieri and
brought ft to me to Kajana. declaring
that if in one month 1 did not consent
he should allow me to be sent to exile
While I was in Kajana he knew that
his secret was safe, therefore by every
means in his power he urged me to
consent to the odious union.
“Ail the rest is known to you—how
Providence directed you to me as my
deliverer, and how WoodroFfe followed
yon in sectet. and pretending to be
mv friend, took me with him to Peters
burg. He had learned of my fortune
from the baron, and intended to marry
me himself. But now that all is ovei
it appears to me like some terrible
dream 1 never believed that so much
iniquity existed in tlie world, or that
men could fight a defenseless woman
with such double-dealing and cruel in
genuity. Ah! the tortures I endured
in Kajana are beyond human coneep
tion. Yet surely Oberg and Wood
roiTe will obtain their well-merited de
serts—if not in this world, then in the
world to comp. Are we not taught by
Holy Writ to forgive our enemies?
Therefore, let us forgive."
•**»*••
There my silent love's strange story
ended. A bald, straightforward narra
tive that held us all for some moments
absolutely speechless—one of the
strangest and most startling stories
ever revealed.
She watched every expression oi
my countenance, and then, which I had
finished reading and placed my arm
tenderly about her slim waist, she
raised her beautiful face to mine to re
ceive the passionate kiss I imprinted
upon those soft, full Ups.
"This, of course, makes everything
plain,” exclaimed Jack. “Polovstof!
was a very liberal minded and upright
official who was greatly in the favot
of the czar, and a serious rival tn
Oberg. whose drastic and merciless
methods in Finland were not exactly
approved by the emperor. The baron
was well aware of this, and by in
geniously enticing him on board the
Iris he succeeded by handing that
small bomb concealed in a cigar—a
nihilist contrivance that had probably
been seized by his police in Finland—
in freeing himself from the rival whe
was destined to occupy his post."
"Yes." I said with a sigh. “The
mystery is cleared up, it is true, yet
my poor Elma is still the victim '
And i kissed my iove passionately
again and again upon the lips.
THE END
WAR IN THE CARPATHIANS
Passes Which the Russians Are En
deavoring to Force Are of Im
mense Importance.
The Carpathian chain, from south ol
Krakow to the Roumanian border
runs a distance of 300 miles. Months
ago, before the Russian recoil from
Bukowina. there was contact along
nearly the entire line Today the
armies are in clash on a line of abuut
120 miles In the north is Dukla pass
by forcing which the Russians would
clear the way to Barfa or Bartfeld
and the railway line leading through
the important city of Kassa to Buda
pest. Thirty miles southeast of Dukla
lies Lupkow pass, through which runs
the railway from Przemysl by way of
Mezo-Lamorc. toward the Hungarian
capital. Fifty miles southeast of Lop
kow is Uzsok. the strategic center ol
the Carpathians, through which comes
the railway from Lemberg. Thirty-five
miles to the southeast lies Beskid pass
through which the Russians at one
time had penetrated as tar as Volocz
in Hungary. Midway between Uzsok
and Beskid. on the Galician slope ol
the Carpathians, the German forces
sent to brace up the Hapsburg troops
have been standing on guard in the
vicinity of Koziowa, where terrific
combats took place when yet there
was hope of relieving Przemysl. From
Koziowa the Germans will not attempt
to bar the Russian advance through
the Uzsok gap. Should the Russians
force their way through—and Petro
grad lias been claiming successes in
that region—a march of less than
twenty miles will bring them out on
tile Hungarian plain, while further to
the north and south the Carpathian
barrier widens out and presents ditil
cult country for a rapid advance.
Along the fifty miles from Lupkow to
Uzsok the decisive clash will take
place.
Why We Christen Boats.
The modern custom of christening
vessels is without doubt an adaptation
of an ancient custom, just as so many
of our other customs and habits have
been adapted from ancient ones. The
ancients used t<r place the image of
a titular deity at the stern of their
vessels, in tlie tutela. or'shrine. Do
you remember that the boat men
tioned in the twenty-eighth chapter of
the Acts the boat that carried Paul
from Malta to Homo, was "under the
sign of Castor and Pollux?’’ It was.
so says Acts
The ceremony of breaking a bottle
of wine on the bow of a new vessel as
it is launched is another ancient
adapted custom. For the ancients of
fered a libation to Neptune or Posei
don. who ruled the seas, as they
launched their boats.
DISASTERS LAID TO WIRELESS j
^"Possible Explanation of Events That
Have Been More or Less of a
Mystfery.
A well-known scientist recently sug
gested that the mysterious explosion
which destroyed the British battleship,
the Bulwark, might have been due to
the influence of wireless waves. The
theory that wireless causes explosions
was put forward some time ago by a
fi*rench engineer To prove bis point. !
he called attention to the fact that the j
disaster to the British steamer the ;
Volturno, which was burnt in the At
lantic. took place Just on the Junction |
point where the wireless waves from
the Eiffel tower and Glace bay meet.
The mysterious mine explosion at
Genghenydd also occurred on the CUf
den-Paris wireless line.
The French engineer also points out
that in his opinion wireless has a
strange effect on the mind, and he con
siders that it is for this reason that
collisions between ships have greatly
increased of recent years. Many of
. hose mishaps h»v« taken place at the
junction of wireless wave routes, and
It is said that the wireless so affected
the brains of ships' commanders that
in critical moments they lost control
of their vessels. This theory is con
firmed by the fact that birds flying
near wireless stations move in an un
easy, agitated fashion, as lr their
senses were under some strange in
fluence.
Zeppelins or 8piders7
A story is told ol a young French
woman who observed with punctil
iousness the wartime precautions or
dered by the police.
She kept the shutters closed at
nightfall and the curtains pulled
down, so that not a speck of light
would escape from her apartments.
But one night, when reading the news
paper. she said that she had reached
the limit.
The newspapers said that if the
ZeppelinB came all persons must go
into the cellars. She told her friends
she would not go down Into the cel
lar.
"I do not care a flg for the Zep
pelins.” she said. “It is no us-; ask
\
ing mo. I will not go down into the
cellar."
“Hut why?" asked her friend "Be
cause," she replied, “I am afraid of
spiders."
Churchgoing Collies.
The article in a recent number of
the Companion about the shepherd
dogs that accompany their masters to
church in some parts of Scotland has
reminded a contributor of another col
lie story.
In a district of Sutherland, where
the population is very scanty, the con
gregations are often made up one-half
of dogs, each human worshiper hav
ing his canine companion. These dogs
sit out the Gaelic services with com
mendable patience until toward the
end of the last psalm, when there 1b a
universal stretching and yawning, and
all prepare to scamper out, barking in
a most excited manner while the ben
ediction Is being said.
The congregation of one of these
churches determined that the services
should close more decorously. ands
took steps accordingly. When a
Btrange clergyman came there to ofh
eiato. he found the people all sitting ,
when he was about, to pronounce the 1
benediction He paused. expecting
them to rise, until an old shepherd,
looking up to the pulpit, said: "Say |
awa', sir; we're a-sittin' to cheat the !
dowgs."—Youth's Companion.
Service of Aircraft.
It cannot be said on the e\ ideuce
so far furnished by the war that the i
striking power of aircraft—as dis- j
tingnished from their use for recon- :
noissance—has as yet been absolutely ;
vindicated, except perhaps as a |
means of attacking definite points un- |
assailable by other means, such as j
ammunition stores and airship sheds j
in the heart of the enemy country, j
On the other hand, it would seem that
against aeroplanes as distinguished
from airships the present methods of
attack from the earth are almost neg
ligible.—London News and Leader.
Something of a Hint.
Mr. Slowboy (calling on girl)—“You
seem—er—rather distant this eve
ning.” Girl—“Well, your chair isn’t
nailed down, is it?"—Brooklyn Eagle.
Laboratory Gtms.
Jewelers say that the statements of
the chemists as to laboratory sent*
have been exaggerated various
ways anti ns a result dishonest deai
ers often take advantage of the situa
tion. Such dealers may try occasion
ally to sell an imitation for a real
jte.ni. but more common frauds tire in
making extravagant claims for the
imitations.
Kilbies and sapphires are declared
hy the jewelers to be the only gems
that are real!'- reproduced in the
laboratories with the same chemical
composition as the natural stonea.
Bntl. are gems of the corundum group.
Complete Understanding.
"I understand that you are a great
peace advocate, Mr. Dolan?”
“I am that,” answered Mr. Rafferty.
■ An’ might 1 Inquire what you’re go
ing to do to preserve peace?”
“I don’t have to do anything. Maq
an’ boy I’ve met about everybody
that thinks he’s a fighter In this neigh
borhood. There's none of 'em that
won’t admit I’m the best man. sc
what’s there to quarrel about?”
BUILD ROADS IN MOUNTAINS
California Highway Commissioner
Points Way for Opening of Arable
Lands—Convicts to Be Used.
“If you will give us the convicts to
build roads through the mountains
there are 7,500,000 acres of arable land
on the eastern plateau of the Sierras
that can be opened for settlement,”
said Charles F. Stern, highway com
missioner of California, in supporting
the bill which passed the California
legislature to permit prisoners to be
employed in road building.
California prisoners have not been
employed in thi3 work other than in
a small way around the prison, but
the need of opening the mountain dis
tricts has started road building by
the prisoners.
The act just passed is modeled after
Colorado legislation, under which ex
cellent results have been obtained.
The highway department is authorised
to make requisition upon the prison
department for the number of convicts
required, and i3 to organize and main
tain the camps as well as supervise
the road work. The prison depart
ment, however, retains control over
the discipline of the prisoners, and, al
though the national committee on
prison^ and prison labor believes bet
ter results can be had under the West
Virginia system, where the prison de
partment maintains the camps, both
the convicts and the state of Cali
fornia will assuredly benefit under the
new legislation.
The men are to be worked under the
honor system, and the prison depart
ment is empowered to grant additional
good time allowance to convicts em
ployed in this work, conditioned upon
their loyal, obedient and efficient co
operation with the state.
To bring about the earlier comple
tion of the state highways which will
make the isolated regions accessible,
the bill went Into effect ninety days
. after the adjournment of the legis
lature.
Reporting the successful passage ol
the act to the national committee on
prisons and prison labor. Mr. Stern
writes: "We expect to use from
1,000 to 1.500 convicts on our moun
tain roads, and a year hence will
it
Good Road Through Mountain Pass.
doubtless have very interesting facts
to relate.”
California is the last of the western
states to employ her convicts in this
way, ami it is hoped the new legisla
■ km is a step toward the reconstruc
tion of her whole prison system along
the lines advanced by those who have
the welfare of the convict at heart.
Eottomless Illinois Roads.
While the American submarine that
car. cross the ocean and come back on
one helping of fuel is a great machine,
the perfected submarine will be able
to travel on the bottomless "roads" in
southern Illinois after a rain.
Influence of Automobiles.
1 In spite of much lingering preju
dice against automobiles their influ
ence in improving roads is every
where in evidence in a way w-hich
cannot be denied.
Help Strawberry Plants.
If strawberry runners are not root
ing well throw a little dirt over ends
of the runners or places at which
plant lets have started.
Supplement the Pastures.
Loss, expense and risk hasten in the
wake of withered pastures, unless sup
plemental feeds are promptly supplied.
The Greatest Tax.
It costs the American farmer more
to feed his Insect foes than it does to
educate his children.
Reduce Hog Cost.
Forage plants are the feed that
cheapens the cost of hog raising. Look
after your pastures and save money
thereby.
One Farm Necessity.
A repair shop is quite as much a
farm necessity as the more common
equipment.
Spraying Controls Insects.
Chewing insects and the plant dis
eases are both controlled by summer
■praying.
IN STERLING
LIVES A GIRL
Who Suffered A* Many Girls
Do—Tells How She
Found Relief.
Sterling, Conn.—“ I am a girl of 22
years and 1 used to faint away every
month and was very
m-mam
weaK. 1 was uso
bothered a lot with
female weakness. 1
read your little book
'Wisdom for Wo
men,’ and I saw how
| others had been
! helped by Lydia EL
Pinkham’s Vegeta
ble Compound, and
decided to try it, and
1-’ it has made me feel
like a new girl and 1 am now relieved
of all these troubles. I hope all young
girls will get relief a3 I have. I never
felt better in my life.”—Mrs. John
Tetreault, Box 116, Sterling, Conn.
Massena, N. Y.—“I have taken Ly
dia E. Pinkham’s Vegetable Compound
and I highly recommend it If anyone
wants to write to me I will gladly tell
her about my case. I was certainly in
a bad condition as my blood was all turn
ing to water. I had pimples on my face
and a bad color, and for five years I had
been troubled with suppression. The
doctors called it ‘Anemia and Exhaus
tion,’ and said I was all run down, but
Lydia E. Pinkham’s Vegetafc'e Com
pound brought me out all right"—Miss
La visa Myres, Box 74, Massena, N. V.
Young Girls, Heed This Advice.
Girls who are troubled with painful or
irregular periods backache, headache,
dragging-down sensations, fainting
spells or indigestion, should immediately
seek restoration to health by taking Ly
dia E. Pmkbam’s Vegetable Compound.
It is just as well it you prefer abuse
to violets. You will get more of it
When all others fail to please
Try Denison’s Coffee.
A plum Dei, by *he w.y, is a skilled
mechanic, who sits on a soap box
while bis helper does the work.
Wash day is smile day if you use Red
Cross Ball Blue. American made, therefor*
the best made. Adv.
Military training Is compulsory on
all male citizens between the ages of
twelve and twenty-five in New Zea
land.
Because.
Drawing Teacher — Rastus, your
drawing of the mule is very good, but
why didn't you finish it?
Rastus—'Cause. Miss Emily, you toi
us to leave out de tail.—Judge.
Where the Idea Originated.
Mrs. Newlywed—1 saw a piece in the
paper tonight that people would fee
better to go without breakfast'
Mr. Newlywed—H'm! Wonder wtnco
of our cooks wrote that?—Puck
Underground Fighting.
Mrs. Church—Wouldn't your hu»
band like to go and tight in the
trenches?
Mrs. Gotham--No; trying to get a
seat in the subway is about aU th-<
underground fighting he wants.—New
York Telegram.
What She Had She'd Hold.
It was the happiest moment o?
their lives. He had just proposed
and she had grab—er—accepted
him.
Then he look a tiny leather case
from his pocket and slipped a spar
kling circlet on her finger, while she
beamed with pride.
"I'm afraid it’s rather loose, dar
ling,” he murmured. “Shall 1 take it
back and have it made smaller?"
The damsel shook her head decided
iy
“No, Rupert." she said calmly. An
engagement ring is an engagement
ring, even if I have to wear it around
my neck.”
A DOCTOR’S EXPERIENCE
Medicine Not Needed in Thi* Case.
It is hard to convince some people
that coffee does them an injury! They
lay their bad feelings to almost every
cause but the true and unsuspected
one.
Hut the doctor knows. His wide ex
perience has proven to him that, to
some systems, coffee is an insidious
poison that undermines the health.
Ask him if coffee is a cause of con
stipation, stomach and nervous trou
bles.
"1 have been a coffee drinker all my
life, and when taken sick two years
ago with nervous prostration, the doc
tor said that my nervous system was
broken down and that 1 would have to
give up coffee.
"1 got so weak and shaky. I could
not work, and reading an advertise
ment of Postum I asked my grocer if
he had any of it. He said. Yes,’ aad
that he used It in his family and it
was all it claimed to be.
“So I quit coffee and commenced to
use postum steadily, and in about two
weeks I could sleep better and get up
in the morning feeling fresh. In about
two months 1 began to gain tlesh I
weighed only 146 pounds when 1 com
menced on Postum and now l weigh
167 and feel better than 1 did at ”0
years of age.
“I am working every day and sleep
well at night. My two children were
coffee drinkers, but they have not
drank any since Postum came into the
house, and are far more healthy than
they were before.” Name given by
Postum Co., Battle Creek, Mich.
Postum comes in two forma:
Postum Cereal—the original form—
must be well boiled. 15c and 25c pack
ages.
Instant Postum—a soluble powder—
dissolves quickly in a cup of hot wa
ter, and, with cream and sugar, makes
a delicious beverage instantly. 30c
and 50c tins. |
Both kinds are equally delicious and
cost about the same per cup.
“There's a Reason” for Postum.
—Bold by Grocers
