* * ' A WISH.
Alone with the evening breeze ,
I listen to the bird
"Whose melodies In leaf-crown'd trees
At twilight's hour are heard.
On every floating , fleecy cloud ,
My fancy seems to trace
The outline of onenoble , form
The beauty ot one'face :
And In ray dear , deep dreams to-nlcht
The splendor of two eyes
"Will shine on me in fadeless light ,
Like stars in southern skies 1
I'll hear his mild , melodious voice
Its dulcet wooing tell
For I hold its echoes in my heart ,
Like the sea in a rose-llpp'd shell I
0 Love of mine ! so far away
Full many a weary mile I
Mv thoughts ot thee by night and day
The dreary hours beguile.
1 wlsn , my Sweet , that wings had II
I'd fly away through space ,
And ere an hour of life passed by
I'd gaze upon , thy face.
And as within the rose's heart
The sun's warm kisses rest ,
I'd cling so close , we could not part ,
In rapture to thy breast.
'Tis well , perhaps , Beloved , the power
Cannot to me be given
For ere the flight of that brief hour
This world had turned to heaven I
Nelly Marshall McAfee , in tfie Current.
THEBINSTEAD EAEM.
We all knew when sister Clarissa
loaned the thousand dollars which was
the accumulation of her six years of
teaching , to Sam Binstead , that it was
as good as sunk in the sea. And we
told her so , but it was of no use , for
you see , Clissy is one of those visionary
people who see the "angel in the
human heart" most clearly when
it isn't there ; and Sam , cousin by a
good many removes , had borrowed out
every other relative before he thought
of us. Al hadn't a dollar to spare.
She wouldn't have if Judge Hilton had
divided his legacy with her , and I
wouldn't have given him a nickel of
my three hundred if he had gone on
his knees for it ; not I but Clissy think
of it , will you , actually and positively
handed over .her thousand dollars as if
she'd been a princess , and said :
"I'm very glad to accommodate you ,
Sam. You needn't mind a mortgage ,
your note is quite sufficient I know
that you will pay it all back. "
Did he ? Well , I think not You
never knew him or you wouldn't ask.
To be sure he died ; but he wouldn't
have paid'it if he had lived , for he was
one of those easy-going men who wear
sack coats with the pockets sagging
down , and who always complain of their
bad luck , and never pay their debts.
That was the way that Clis happened to
go West. He did give her a mortgage
on a farm out in Missouri , and when he
died , it fell to her. i don't suppose
that she'd have taken it if there'dbeen
anybody to give it to ; but there wasn't ,
and no stranger would have accepted
it for a present , so she had to keep it
She couldn't sell it , and she couldn't
rent it for enough to pay the taxes ,
and her tenants burnt the fences be
cause they were too Inzy to cut wood.
Let the barn tumble down and the
house go to ruin , until one evening
Clissy looked up and said : "I'mgoing
out to my farm. "
Al almost screamed with surprise
and I was speechless. It was no use to
say anything , for Clissy is very decided.
So , the da } ' that her school closed , she
went down to the depot and bought a
'ticket tq St Louis , and took the eve
ning train out as qoolly as if she ex
pected to return next day. Al and I
went home and had a good cry , and
decided that we should start as soon as
our schools closed , and spend the sum
mer with her. Wo taught in town ,
and had a ten-months year while Clissy
was out in the east-"end , where the
schools close the last of May.
No length of years will ever make
me forget the night that we reached
Sparta that is her town and saw dear
old Clissy on the rickety plattorm ,
whip in hand , waiting for us. Bless her
heart , ho\v she hugged us , although she
hadn't been away five weeks ! Then
she took us around , behind the station ,
to her red , spring-wagon , Hitched to the
most killing little gray mule you ever
saw , and we clambered in. She was
mortally afraid of the little beast , and
he knew it. You'd have died to see her
untie him from the post , standing-
arm's length from him. It was two
miles to the farm , and we all three
talked as hard as we could , and yet we
hadn't begun to tell our news when we
reached that forlorn , unpainted old
wooden house , with the chickencoop
right in front We were starving after
our three days' ride , and Clissy had a
good supper , and then our life in the
West began.
It would take a book to tell about the
events of that summer , so I must just
pck out two or three things , that led
directly to the grand finale :
She had things started pretty well
when we came. It was to be-a stock-
farm , and she had bought sheep and
calves , and a cow , and chickens , and a
ferocious old mother pig with a lot of
dottie dumpling little piggies ; but the
old cannibal ate up four of them-hdw 1
hated her for it and a hoe , and a big
shovel , and lots of other things.
The first morning Al and I thought
we'd take a ramble and see how we liked
it. But she wanted to go down to the
etream and I wanted to go up to the
knob , " as Clissy called it , and see the
landscape. I hadn't got there when a
cow looked menacingly at me , and I
ran as I never dreamed I could run.
The man was milking in the barnyard ,
and he looked up with a grunt when I
came. We had to call him Cornrod be
cause he woudn't answer to Conrad.
Al didn't appear to breakfast ; but she
is such an irresponsible creature any-
H. way , that we supposed she was sketch
ing some stump , so we kept her chops
H.r warm , and washed the dishes so as to
churn before it became too hot
r About ten o'clock I went out to hunt
eggs , and was sure that I heard my
name , in accents wild. I called "Clis-
sv ! " and "Cornrod ! " and we followed
the sound until we could see the poor
girl perched in a little , shaking thorn-
tree , about four feet from the ground ,
while a murderous old ram stood guard
below. She had been there three
blessed hours. Conrad threw a piece
of earth at him. and he walked away ,
u d the poor child limped home with
tis. Her hands were all'blistered with
cling ng to the tree , and she had
screamed for us till her throat was sore.
"I have a fine flock of sheep there , "
remarked the proud owner , as we
climbed awkardly over the bars.
"They are more profitable than cat
tle , because they increase so rapidly
and mature so quickly. The increase
is quite wonderful. The gentleman of
whom I bought these says "
"Yaw he lie " inter
, yaw sav von ,
'
rupted the'stolid Conrad. "He sell you
forty ram , he keep de ewe. Increase !
Nein ! "
Clissy was silent for two minutes.
Then she said :
"A beautiful , sensitive plant grows
wild here ; it is a briar ; perhaps we can
find one here. "
"I shall be delighted. " I replied ,
faintly. When we reached the yard-
fence , Al cried in amazement ,
"Where's the barn ? " And sure as I
am telling it , that vicious little mule
had kicked it down.
It was what they call a "Kansas
barn , " made of poles , with a straw
roof , tied down , to keep it from blow
ing off , and the beast was eating the
roof. When Conrad went up to see
about it , he was sent flying heels over
head , and I laughed ; he never forgave
nie , either.
It rained that afternoon , and we
helped Clissy cut carpet-rags for a
kitchen carpet We were afraid to go
down cellar on account of the enor
mous rats , so we stood in the stairway
and passed milk and meat to and from
the invincible Conrad. He set the three
gaping steel traps , and we retired the
second night in the blissful fancy that
the rats would soon ba vanquished. To
ward morning we were awakened by
an oder that would have made those
stenches of the plague-stricken Egyp
tians seem as perfume by contrast
Poor Clissy sat up and gasped. Al be
gan to cry , as usual , and 1 wished that
1 were a man long enough to swear.
It would be two hours before Conrad
came to investigate , and we should all
die in that time I knew.
What could it be ? Several things
were suggested , but the solution was
not satisfactory until Al sprang up from
her cot ( we only had one bed ) and
screamed. "Oh , I know ; its natural
gas. Your bored well has struck it
We shall light the town and make our
fortunes. Hurrah for old Clissy ! Now
you must do the handsome by us. I
will take a diamond necklace for my
wedding-present and you can build a
house in town and we'll live with you. "
It seemed so probable that even
Clissy forgot her usual caution and
planned a substantial barn on the pos
sibility. We were sure that we heard
a rat dragging the trap down cellar ,
and we ventured to the head of the
stairs in the gray dawn and peeped
down. The natural gas , the supply of
which was apparently unlimited ,
seemed to emanate from the cellar ,
and was so stiffl ng that we could not
investigate long at a time.
"Girls , " said Al , "it's not a rat , but
the dearest little black and white crea
ture that you ever saw. It's caught by
the foot Where's your book of natur
al historv. May be I can tell what it
is. "
"I take him in von bag und gill
him , " said the manly.toues of Conrad ,
coming up just then.
'I schmeil him half-mile avay. Mein
Gott , how ever I dakes him out von
dot ? "
"Girls , " said Clissy , from the other
end of the porch , "it's the most beau
tiful sunrise I ever saw. Only see the
crimson ! "
Perhaps you won't believe me , but
we didn't get that odor out of the
house for three months , or out of our
clothes either , although we almost
bought out the Lubin's extracts from
the Sparta drugstore.
The day that followed was the most
heart-rending of all. We couldn't eat ,
and were so faint that we could scarce
ly work. We resolved that no chance
visitor should be admitted to the house
upon pain of death to the offender.
I was learning to make a shortcake
when a scream from Al made me look
up.
"Somebody is coming. What shall
we do ? Go and meet him , Clis , and
keep him from the house. "
"He's only a tramp , and I think he
is drunk , too. I'd better call Conrad ,
I'm afraid of a drunken man. " She
walked timidly to the end of the porch
and met the intruder.
" 1 beg your pardon , but as I was
crossing your field in my walk , one of
3rour rams ssaulted me , and made me
so unpresentable , that 1 must ask for
some soap and water , and a needle and
thread. I am a clergyman from the
village , madame. "
" " said " "lam
"Certainly , Clissy ,
very sorry that anything so serious
should have happened to you upon my
place , " and she showed him into the
sitting room and gave him the necessary
articles. He staggered as he walked ,
and I saw that the blood was dripping
from his hair. He was hurt more
seriously than he would confess. When
he had been there an hour we thought
we had better peek , and we aid.
He had got to the lounge and fallen
upon it. The blood from his head was
dropping upon the floor , and his face
was as pale as death. We forgot all
about our mortification at our plight ,
and flew about in great distress. Clts-
sy is so motherly and knows so much
about everything that she soon brought
him around ; bandaged his cut and rub
bed arnica upon his bruises. He was
so modest and pleasant , and so patient
I knew he was suffering dreadfully
that we couldn't help admiring him ;
and it was such a surprise to him to
find three ladies in that desolate little
house , and it was such a surprise to us
to find a gentleman in one who looked
so like a tramp. And Clissy cleaned
his coat it had absorbed a great deal
of sticky mud from the rain of the day
before and took him home in the
evening in the horrid spring-wagon ,
drawn by the mule.
Well , nothing would do , when he
called the next week , but that we
should come to church and take class
es in the Sunday school and attend
the socials. And we found that the
people were pleasant and the country
beautiful , and Mr. Haven oh. well , I
shall not say one word about him or
you will guess but then , who cares if
you do ? " Lizzie Ifyer Nejf in The
< urrent.
WHAT IS DRANK ?
A. Sample of the Decoctions Served
at "FirstClass Bars" Brandy ,
Rum , Gin , and Bourbon from
the Same JTaucet Interest
ing Revelations for
Guzzlers.
A trade circular , issued by Mr. John
D. Hounihan , of Buffalo , N. Y.t lately
came into The Cincinnati Enquirer's
hands. It is not exactly adapted for
general circulation , and belongs to that
class of literature which the"recipients
are supposed to keep under lock and
key not because of any indelicate
allusions to the anatomy of the human
frame , but because. Mr. Hounihan as
sumes that he is 'addressing liquor-
dealers alone , and hence makes no
bones of mentioning the passwords ,
signs , grips , and secret work generally
of the sample-room neighborhood , He
says :
"I have written a book on the process
of making whisky , brandy , gin , ale ,
porter , lagar beer , and everything
pertaining to the business. The re
cipes are so simple that a boy 10 years
old can make in your cellar or back
room twenty gallons of Bourbon
wh'sky inside of an hour , and you may
place it side by side with the genuine ,
and you can not tell the difference by
look or taste.
"My directions for imitating Bourbon
whisky , Irish whisky , and French
brandy are the best in existence. You
may put my imitations and the genuine
side by side , and the best judge will
pronounce them the same. Besides ,
they can be made to present the ap
pearance of being twenty years old.
' ft is a fact known to a great many
liquor dealers that half of the whisky
now sold in this country never passed
though a still , for it is nearly all adul
terated more or less.
"As reference I could mention many
of the first hotel bars of Maryland and
Pennsylvania now using my book as a
guide ; but , considering the nature of
the book , I will not mention names. "
This precious book is not a bad-look
ing little volume , and talks out in meet
ing on the title page in this style :
"The secret process of manufactur
ing whisky , brandy , rum. gin , bitters ,
wine , champagne , lager , ale , pop.
cider , spruce beer , etc. , in the cheap
est way , without the use of the still.
How to doctor poor liquors ; ' how to
double your profits by thinning down
without discover } * ; how to imitate ,
etc. "
Among about one hundred receipts ,
it gives seven for making champagne ,
one for making beer without apples ,
one for making beer without malt or
hops , and one for making old barrels
out of new ones.
As old whisky-barrels are more
valuable than those that come from
the cooper's hands , some enterprising
citizen may like to go into the business
of instantly metamorphosing young
and lusty casks into hoary patriarchs.
To do this dissolve in three gallons of
water three pounds of sulphuric acid
and one pound of sulphate of iron.
Wash your barrel with this mixture on
the outside , and in a few hours they
will be as rusty and venerable as though
they had lain in a warehouse for forty
years.
But Mr. Hounihan , of Buffallo , by no
means has a. monopoly of this branch
of instruction in the higher walks of
the spirit business.
Alexander Fries & Brother , Nos. 46 ,
48 , and 50 East Second street , in this
city , issue a boolc made up solely o'f re
cipes and price-lists for manufacturing
everything in the liquor line from
chemicals and a barrel of proof-spirits.
In the following guarded sentence
they explain the value of this method
of spirit manufacture :
"Parties not wishing to keep a large
stock of liquor on hand will iind iL to
their interest to lay in an assortment
of the oils and essence , which will en
able them to fill large orders at the
shortest notice. "
For instance an order comes over the
wires to the wide-awake merchant for
fort } ' gallons of port wine , to be ship
ped by the 6:20 P. M. express. Being
one of those parties who do not desire
to keep a large stock of liquor on hand ,
the merchant walks into his back room ,
closes the door , and manufactures the
port wine with neatness and dispatch.
In case he follows the recipe given by
Messrs. Fries & Brother , his formula is
as follows :
Port Wine For one barrel : 30 gal
lons cider after the same has ferment
ed , 5 gallons spirit , 4 gallons sirup , i
pound powdered gm kino , $ pound
tartaric acid , 6 to 8 ounces port wine
flavor. To produce a better quality ,
add either a few gallons German cher
ry juice or any kind of pure wine.
Color for Port Wine One ounce az-
uline , four ounces of sugar coloring to
the barrel.
But in case he desires to make a
cheaper wine even than can be manu
factured from the innocent ingredients
above , he fills his barrel with a mixt
ure made up of 33 gallons prepared
cider , 5J gallons natural spirits. 4
pounds refined sugar , 2 ounces tincture
kino , 1 ounce tartaric acid , 6 ounces
rhatany root , powdered ; 3 pounds rais
ins , 1 quart alcoholic starch solution.
Take notice , please , that the first
article called for is thirty-three gallons
prepared cider. The prepared cider is
of his own preparation , and , as the
bulk of it is pure water , it ought not to
be too expensive for use in the manu
facture of port wines and champagne
by the most economical artist. The
formula upon which it is made is " 35
gallons soft water , 35 pounds brown su
gar , 2 pounds of tartaric acid , 1 quart
yeast. Stir up well and stand twenty-
four hours with the bung out. Then
add 3 gallons neutral spirit and bung
tight. .Stand forty-eight hours , and it
is ready for use. "
In case his order chances to be twelve
dozen champaign , lie is unable to fill it
in lese than ten days ; but give him that
time limit and he will at its expiration
ship the fizz duly wired down , tin-foil
ed and labeled with French labels. To
do so he first places 35 gallons prepared
cider , made as noted above , in clean
cask , following it with 4 gallons neu
tral spirits , 2 ounces tartaric acid ( crys-
tnlizetl ) pounds refined sugar , A phit
lemon ju'ci\ pounds raisns , 1 pound
honey , J pint yeast. They are to ba
mixed well and allowed to stand for ten
days. If not sparkling he adds more
acid until it is , and finally bottles the
mixture , adding a piece of white sugar
the size of a pea to each bottle , and
then corking , wiring and labeling the
finished product
The recipes given in these and other
secret books of the same ilk of which ,
at least a dozen are issued throw a
flood of light upon the puzzling ques-
tions often asked by those who know
the capacity pf French vineyards as
to how it is possible to sell French wines
and brandies in America at lower rates
than those for which they can possibly
be purchased at home. Taking the case
of Chateau Yguem , the entire vintage
never exceeds 120 casks , and the price
of the new wine is SI. 200 a cask , or § 20
a gallon say $4 a bottle. Yet one can
buy what is labeled Chateau Yguem at
almost anv * retail liquor house'at from
$2 to $5a bottle. The yield of the
Chateau Lafitte is 180 casks a year , and
the new wine retails in Paris for $4.50
a bottle. Like Chateau Marguax and
Chateau Latour , Lafitle is almost a
drug in our market But that there are
adulterated wines and liquors in the
market is a fact well known-r-much more
generally known than the other fact
thatthe cheering potations are cftener
manufactured outright from foreign
substances than adulterated. It is not
the province of this article to establish
these points ; it is raerly our inten
tion to tell in as few words as possible
how the manufacturing is carried on ,
and to give the recipes as they are fur
nished to dealers by the chemists.
To make those heart-warming drops
of distilled fire known as cordials , the
chemist furnishes the following direc
tions :
Kummel Take about one-fourth
pound of cordial essence , cut in one-
half gallon alcohol , 36 gallons spirit ,
and 4 gallons sugar sirup.
Peppemmt Dissolve one-half pound
of the essence in 1 gallon of alcohol ,
and add to 85 gallons bpirits , proof , 4
gallons sugar sirup , one-half pound of
our peppermint coloring' .
Benedictine , 1 8 ounces essence cut In one-
Chartreuse , I half gallon alcohol , 2 gal-
Curacoa , I Ions sirup to 1 barrel and
Maraschino , j color.
" Absinthe Twenty gallons cologne
spirit , proof , 1 pound essence cut in al
cohol , 1 pint sugar sirup. Color is
made of 6 parts solution curcuma , 2
parts indigo carmine , mixed.
Gin , rum , brandies , and punches may
be manufactured severally from the
same barrel of proof spirits by adding
to the spirits for apple brandy , 4
ounces of apple essence to 40 gallons
spirit ; for cognac , 4 ounces cognac es
sence to 40 gallons spirit ; for Holland
gin , old Tom , rye , Schnied-in schnapps
and London dock gin , add t ounces in
each case of the essence to 10 gallons
of spirit and 1 pints of j-ugar sirup ;
for Jamaica rum , use one-half pound
Jamaica rum essence and one-half pint
of sugar coloring to 40 gall ms of proof
spirit In each of the abovj cases the
mixture is to be reduced to the desired
alcoholic strength by the addition of
water in proper proportions. This can
be readily done when it is known that
the average alcoholic stre.igth of the
various liquors is about as follows :
Rhine wine , 11 per cent. ; sherry , 20
per cent ; claret , 10 per Ci-ntjport , 21 ;
Marsala , 20 ; champagne. 14 ; brandy ,
51 ; rum , 74 ; gin , 50 ; whisky , 60 ; cider ,
6 ; bitter ale , 9 ; lager beer 6.
As a great many customers judge of
the fineness and quality of a sample of
liquor by the bead which it carries when
newly poured into the glass the chemist
has put the gray matter of his brain to
work in devising an artificial bead for
the manufactured product What is
meant by the "bead" is the appearance
presented on the surface of the spirit
by a number of pearly , oily-looking
drops or beads hanging 10 the sides of
the glass , and it may be attained by
half of "bead-
adding only an ounce -
oil" to each forty gallons of proof
spirits. "The beads will be of a uni
form size , " says the chemist'sbook ,
"and perfectly natural at any and all
temperatures. "
One ounce of raisin-oil added to one
barrel of Bourbon or ryo whisky will
give the taste of age to the same , and
tour onces of raisin-oil in a barrel of
Bourbon whisky will make a most beaji-
tiful brandy equal to the imported
The Dimensions of Heaven.
"And he measured the city with the
reed , 12,000 furlongs. The length and
breadth and the height of it are equal. "
Rev. xxi. 16.
Twelve thousand furlongs , 7,920,000
feet , which being cubed , 496,793,088-
000,000,000,000 cubic feet. Half of this
we will reserve for the Throne of God
and the Court of Heaven , and half the
balance for streets , leaving a remainder
of 124,198,272,000,000,000,0 JO cubic feet
Divide this by 4,096 , the cubical feet in
a room sixteen feet square , and there
will be 30,321,843,750,000,000 rooms.
We will now suppose the \ orld always
did and always will contaSi. 990,000,000
inhabitants , and that a gencjralion lasts
for 83J years , making in all 2,970,000-
000 every centurv , and that the world
will stand 100,000 years , or 1.000 cen
turies , making in all 2,970,000,000,000
inhabitants. Then suppose there were
100 worlds equal to this in number of
inhabitants and duration of years , mak
ing a total of 297,000,000,000,000 per
sons , and there would be more than a
hundred rooms sixteen feet square for
each person. Temple of Knowledge.
A Sham Story.
One of the numerous commercial
philanthropists who go about on the
streets selling patented wares called at
the residence of a well known citizen
on Henry street , and was confronted
by the householder himself.
"I am selling an improved sham-
holder " he began and was curtly in
terrupted :
"I detest shams. "
"But this puts them on , folds them
"
up
"I don't deal in shams ! "
"If you will try our patent sham "
"I don't deal with shams. "
The philanthropist looked at the
irate citizen who was getting ready to
close the door.
"My dear sir , " he asked humbly ,
"are you in real earnest , or only sham-
ming ? "
He sold him one. Detroit Free
Press.
WEDDING ETIQUETTE.
False and Loose Methods Hollow
Mockeries and Shams.
Exception is taken in high quarters
to the statement in last Sunday's Times
that wedding invitations do not require
an answer. They certainly do not re
quire an answer as a rule , and as a
general thing are not answered. Bnt
there are exceptions. It is generally
understood that an invitation to a
church wedding does not require any
acknowledgement , though many con
tend that it is only optional , and
though the person invited is free to
take no notice of the invitation it is as
well to do so and more polite. As a
matter of fact , the number of people
who acknowledge invitations to church
weddings is exceedingly small. It is
stoutly contended , however and with
much force , thatinvitations , to a wed
ding ac home should be acknowledged
and either accepted or declined , for the
reason that on such occasions some
sort of entertainment is always pro
vided , and it is necessary to know how
many to provide for , especially when
the number of invited guests is likely to
be large. Yet there are many who
think that invitations simply to a wed
ding ceremony in the daytime , when
there is no regular reception , do not
demand a formal acknowledgement.
It is , of course , better etiquette on
such occasions to send a card.
The whole difficulty about wedding
etiquette and the difference of opinion
that exists on so many points is the
result of the false and loose methods and
the hollow mockeries and shams into
which people have been drifting for
several years. Weddings , which were
once the most charming as well as the
most beautiful of social events inciden
tal to the home life , have been allowed
to become to a great extent mere spec
tacles for the exhibition of vanity.
The bride commissions some one to
look after her dresses , the bridegroom
appoints some one to hire carriages ,
employ clergymen , etc. , and the bride's
family put the whole arrangement of
the house , the church , the feast , etc. ,
in the , hands of some caterer or decora
tor. The getting up of the invitations
is given to an expert in such matters in
some shop , and very often the invita
tions are sent out wholesale by some
one who is employed for the purpose.
People invited go or not as they feel
inclined , and go to shops and order
presents sent in the most perfunctory
way , so that a bride is as likely as not to
get twenty vases , or a dozen lamps , or
fifty spoons of different patterns.
Where presents are sent they should , if
possible , be sent early , so as to give the
bride-elect plenty of time fo acknowl
edge them ; and if worth sending at all
they deserve that some time and care
should be given to their selection. It
is a common thing to hear brides say-
that of all their wedding presents they
appreciate and value most the few ap
propriate and often inexpensive things
that come from their intimate friends.
It should not be forgotten that a wed
ding is the first , choicest and most im
portant of all social incidents , and that
an invitation to one is one of the great
est compliments that can be conferred.
Invitations to bails , dinners and parties
may be perfunctory and meaningless
but almost-without exception it is only
friends or acquaintances who are hon
ored who are invited to a wedding , and
a point should ahrays be strained to
make some soil of acknowledgment.
Philadelphia Times.
AMERICAN WOMEN IN PARIS.
Yankee Girlswith Handsome Dots
Seeking : Titled Husbands.
All sorts of people with light purses
turn up in the gay French capital , and
manage for awhile somehow to keep
out of the morgue , \ \ rites Henry Wnt-
terson to the < ouricr-Jonrnul. Among
the Americans , the most notable ex
amples in this category are the women.
How they get here heaven knows ; but
they do get here , ranging all the way
from the would-be prima-donna to the
humble aspirant for a place as govern
ess. Rarely docs any one ot them
speak French. Just as rarely have they
any kind of professional experience or
fitness. Most of them are simple-
minded visionaries though .may not
be described so charitaby'who / , like
M. Sardou's Califarnia hoyden , were
"bound to see Paris or bust" Usu
ally , the adventuress outright , who
comes abroad on a speculation , brings
a stake with her , and for a season , at
least , contrives to keep up appearances.
In the end , however , she is bound to
fail , because foreign husbands with
money are not to be had. There are
thousands and tens of thousands of no
ble loafers and titled paupers who
make it the busnpss of their lives to
look up rich American girls. But
those gentry nr j very wary. They
are not to be caught , oven if they are
worth catching , by anything short of
cash in hand , withouthich , indeed ,
few of them could procure a marriage
outfit or pay for a wedding-ring.
At this very moment 1 happen to
know of two young countrywomen
who are at dagger's points about a
Frenck duke , who is not fit in morals ,
intellect or character to black boots ,
and the ladies are not without a certain
social position at home , either. The
duke thinks they have fortunes of
their own , which is a mistake. As
soon as he finds this out he wilJ be oil'
and there is no danger of his not find
ing it out , for in business of this kind
your impecunious Frenchman is as un
erring as death.
Iii Europejabject poverty is the only
spur which can goad a nobleman into
marrying a Yankee , and the Yankees
are preferred solely because , as a rule ,
they have more money when thev have
anv money at all , than the natives , and
then they are further away from base ,
and in taking one of them for a wife
the aristocratic swindler is not obliged
to dirty his felonious lingers by .shak
ing hands with the rest of the'family.
Money motives apart no titled gentle
man would think of marrying an
American. When such a one marries
out of his own country it is for. the rea
son that he can not make an eligible
match at home. In every instance the
poor American girl gets the scum of the
nobility , and if , happily , she escapes a
brute in her husband , she is pretty
sure to find him a vagabond , j
COAL CONSPIRATORS.
The ! Law Brands Them as Public
Offenders and Criminals An Out
rageous Monopoly.
Whether the great anthracite coal
combination is beyond the reach of all
law is now an issue of vital importance
not only to the commonwealth of Penn
sylvania , but to the entire coal-consum-
ing community. Gov. Pattison ha !
taken the stand that the law is violated
and must be enforced. The coal pool
defies the state and the courts. It in-
sists that the authorities are powerless
to prevent the combination from regu
lating the sale and fixing the price of
coal to suit Its self.
The Pennsylvania supreme court has
already decid'ed this question , and. de
cided it adversely to the combination.
The decision , though rendered fifteen
years ago , still stands as an expression
of the law of the commonwealth as in
terpreted by its highest court The
facts in the case then decided and the
legal principles involved present a re
markable likeness to those now in issue.
A combination of five companies was
formed to control the sale and fix the
price of the bituminous coal production
of northern Pennsylvania. The com
panies forming the combination repre
sented almost the entire bituminous
coal region in that part of the state.
They had the power to control tha
market in the state of New York and
to effect the market elsewhere. A dis
pute arose between two members
of the pool as to their respective
schares of sales and profits. The pool
ing agreement was made in New York
and was to be carried out in this state ,
the chief market being here. The
parties were within the jurisdiction oi
the courts of Pennsylvania , where the
coal was mined , and the suit wag
brought there. On one side it was
contended that the combination was
against public policy and therefore il
legal. On the other it was claimed
that its purpose was to lessen expenses ,
to advance the quality of the coal , and
and to market it in the best order to
the consumer.
The supreme court of Pennsylvania
decided that the agreement to combine
was a contract against public policy ,
and therefore illegal , void , and not to
be enforced. The court went further ,
and held that the combination was a
criminal conspiracy under the law of
New York , which makes it a mis
demeanor for two or more persons to
conspire "to commit any act in
jurious to trade or commerce , " , and
also a criminal conspiracy by the com
mon law in Pennsylvania. Here
is what the court said of the character
and nature of the combination :
The important fact that these com
panies control this immense coal-field ;
that it is the great source of supply oi
bituminous coal to the state of New
York and large territories westward ;
that by this contract they control the
price of coal in this extensive market ,
and make it bring sums it would not
command if left to the natural laws ol
trade ; that it concerns an article ol
prime necessity for many uses ; that its & * 1
operation is general in this large re " \ \ \
gion , and affects all who usu coal as a
fuel , and this is accomplished by a com
bination of all the companies engaged
in this branch of business in the large
region where they operate. The com
bination is wide in scope , general in its
influence , and injurious in effects.
These being its features the contract' is
against public policy , illegal , and there
fore void.
The court then cited numerous
authorities to show that a comb nation
to create a "corner" ' in a necessary of
life and to advance its price to the con
sumer is a conspiracy pun shable by
the criminal law , and proceeded as fol
lows :
The restrictions laid upon the pro
duction and price of coal can not be
sanctioned as reasonable in view of
their intimate relation to the public in
terests. The field of operation is lob
wide and the influence too general.
Singly each member of the combina
tion might have suspended deliveries
and sales of coal to suit his own inter
ests and might have raised the price ,
even though this might have been det
rimental to the public interest There
is a certain freedom which must be al
lowed to every one in the management
of his own affairs.competiou is
left free , individual error or folly will
generally find a correction in the con
duct of others.
But here is a combination of all the
companies operating in the Blossburg
and Barclay mining regions and con
trolling their entire productions. They
have combined together to govern the
supply and the price of coal in all the
markets from the Hudson to the Miss
issippi river , and from Pennsylvania to
the lakes. This combination has a pow
er in its confederated form which no
individual action can confer. The pub
lic interest must succumb to it , for it
has leit no competitor free to correct
its baneful influence.
When the supply of coal is suspend
ed the demand for it becomes impor
tunate , and prices must rise. Or if the
supply goes forward the price iUed by
the confederates must accompany it.
The domestic hearth , the furnaces of
the iron master , and the fires of the
manufacturer all feel the restraint ,
while the many dependent hands are
paralyzed , and hungry mouths are
stinted. The influence of a lack of
supply or a rise in the price of au
article of such prime necessity can not
be measured. It permeates the entire
mass of the community , and loaves
few of its members untouched by its
withering blight Such a combination
is more than a contract It is an
offense.
The direct fcrce and applicabilty of
this language to the case of the
anthracite coal
combination are ap
parent The attorney general of Penn
sylvania can make effective use of this
ilecision. which is dead against the
pool. New York Herald.
Several years ago gold badges , at a
cost of $40 each , were presented to the
Yonkers. N. Y.f city council for some
remarkably good ordinance that they
had passed. The gold leaf havino-
worn off the honest aldermen find
themselves in possession of leaden
ones.
