A Unit.
When I was camplnp on the Volga's banks ,
The trader Zanthou with a leash of tnnres
went by my lent. I know the wily Jew ,
And ho know mo. Ho muttered ns lie passed ,
'Tho last Uathony , und his tuslca are grown.
A broken 'scutcheon is a 'scutcheon still ,
And Amino'g token in my caftan Hcs
Amlno , who weeps and walls for hlH return. "
Ho caught my eye , and slipped inside the tent.
'Haw , Zanthou , up from Poland , at your
tricks 1
JIow veer t ho boura on old Bathony'e towers ?
True to the winds that blow on Poland's
plains ? "
4'They blto the dust , nay lord , as boast to
beast.
\Vlieu Poles conspire , conspiracy alone
Survives , to hover In the murky air.
Jiy lord , Biithony'8 gates lire loft ajar
For you to enter , or remain outside :
The forest holds the secret you surprlFOd.
And men tire there , to dare us they have
dared. "
* Haw. Zantron. toll me of the palatine.
Tlio alv of Jlussltt mako8 a man forget
Ho was a man olfowhero : the trumnets'squeal
J follow and the thud of drums. You spoKe
.As If I were of princely birth : hntkye ,
Ualtalion is the imino I listen to. "
"Tho cranes that plunder iu your fens , niy
Lord.
The doves that nest within your wo'ls , I Faw
riyixjund the Raping walls , and pluuia thclz
wlnirs
Upon your fathers crave. Do you know this ? "
"A lolriiii , Ziinthunso a ulthcied Mower !
You think 1 wore ono In my swoid-hlltoncc ?
> .T < ! lliluks thcro N no perfume In thi * flower.
"Watch , whiio J illrif , ' It on the .Volga's tide.
The chief , mv father , Kent me with a cur o
To tr.ivel In llio steppe * , and so I do.
The nit1 of Uus'-la make * a man forget
Hi ! was : i mini elsewhere , for lovf. or hope.
And us ho nmrchcb , ho b comes but thir.
H.IW , Zanthon. would you learn the reason
why ?
Punch en the Caucasus , the northern seas ,
L-Kik in thof-K-y. or over Crth. then ar k.
Ti.e answer wheio will " "
every he. "The Tzar !
Elizabeth Siotldard.
M'SJITTf ' SISTER ,
It was a dull , rainy day towards the
cud of September one of those dav.s
wl.cn earth and sky are grey and
dritary. and the rain drops puttering
-apiinst the window sounded like
human sobs. The clock thai hung
gainst tiie wall pointed to the hour ni
3 in the afternoon , and I was silting in
our little inner olh'co , looking oiit at
the expanse of dull , grey wall that
"
formed"my only prospect from the not
ever clean window , and thinking. I
ii.id read every square inch of type in
tiu : newspapers.
1 was musing about Kilty Elton and
wondering how long it would be be
fore 1 should be able to marry her.
Dear little Kiltie ! she was as sweet
: iid as patient as jt was in the nature
of a woman to bi' ; but I knew it was
a hard life for hsr in that overcrowded
ed milliner's work-room * and I longed
to sot her free from the monotonous
captivity. She was a pretty , blue-eyed
girl of 50. with a dimple "in her chin ,
: ind the sweetest roses on her cheek.
1 was no poet , yet I think I understood
and appreciated all her womanly beau
ty as fully as if my heart's thoughts
could shape themselves into verse.
And it was of them I was thinking
when the door opened aud Mr. Clenncr
came in.
Mr. Clenner was our "chief" a
dark , silent , little man , with square
stern mouth and clouded grey eyes ,
which appeared almost expressionless
when they were turned full upon you ,
ttiid 3-et which seemed to see every
thing at a glance. He sat down be
side me.
"Meredith , " he said in a quiet sub
dued toue that was natural to him.
"didn't you say that you were tired of
doing nothing ? "
"Yes. sir. "
"Well , I have something for vou to
do. "
-What is it , sir ? "
"Something that will bring you both
credit and friends , if you "manage it
skillfully. I had intended to go my
self , but circumstances happened un-
towardlv " , and I shall send you in
stead. "
Bending his head toward me and
speaking scarcely above a whisper , he
told me the special business on which
I was to be sent
There had been , it seems , a series
of very skillful forgeries lately com
mitted , with boldnessTaud audacity that
fairly seemed to set the authorities at
defiance. For some time he had been
in doubt as to the exact perpetrator of
the crime ; but after much quiet in
vestigation and casting hither and
thither , he had detected the hidden
spring one Perley Mattison , who had
skillfully eluded all pursuit , and was
now somewhere in hiding iu the north
of England. His whereabouts had
been ascertained as nearly as possible
.and it was for me to go quietly up and
.apprehend him before he should become -
come aware of our knowledge of all
Jiis movements.
I sat and listened to all the various
details of our plan , as they were
sketched out by Mr. Clenncr. The re-
\vard that had" been privately offered
was high ; my heart leaped as I reflect
ed how" much nearer it would bring
' me to Kitty Elton , nor did the enter
prise seem" particular difficult to ac
complish.
"Do you think you can do it ? ' * Mr.
Clenner asked , after the whole thing
Jiad been laid out before me.
"Yes. sir. When shall I start ? ' '
"Now , within half an hour. " '
"So soon ? "
"Yes ; why not ? "
I could think of no sufficient reason ,
except one. which I did not care'to
communicate to my superior .the
longing to see Kitty once more before
J-l started.
"Just as you decide , Mr. Clenner , of
course. " I said rising. "If 1 take the
night express I shall be there early in
the morning. "
"Yes. and that is altogether the best
plan. He will not remain long in any
one place just at present , depend up
on it , and what you have to do must
"be done at once. "
All througlr that long night journey
I mused upon the task that lay before
me. The house to which I was direct
ed was quite in the country , about half
ti mile beyond the village of Berwood ,
rand was the residence of Mrs. Matti
son , the mother of the audacious
forger. If help was needed I was ful
ly authorized to call upon the con
stabulary authorities at K ; but I
.expected to need no assistance.
The rosy dawn was just ushering the
eastern sky when I alighted , stiff ,
weary and jaded , from the train.
"Can vou direct mo to Mrs. Mtitti-
son's place ? " I asked of the sleepy
station-master.
"Mattison Mrs. Mattison ; I don't ,
know her , but I can tellyou'whero she
lives. Just 3ou follow the main street
of the village to a wood , with foot
path running through it. Get over tlis
stile , follow the footpath , and in a lit
tle while you'll see a yellow house the
last place in the world where you'd
expect to see a dwelling. There's
where Mrs. Mattison lives. "
I thanked my informant and set out
at a brisk walk , carry ing my traveling-
bag iu my hand. It was half an hour
ere I diverged from the main road , or
ruth or lane. The stile at the end of
the footpath through the wood was
quickly reached , and the littJe yellow
house a cream-colored cottage literal
ly overgrown with honeysuckles
uresently rewarded my search , and , as
1 knocked at the door , a clock some
where struck the hour of 7. .
A decent-looking elderly woman ,
in widow's weeds , came to the door.
"Is Mr. Mattisou in Mr. Perley
Mattison ? "
"No. " she answered quickly , with ,
as I imagined , rather a confused look.
I did not believe her , and asked
quietly , "When do you expect him
homo ? "
"Not at present. "
Apparently she expected me to go
away , but , instead , I slipped into the
passage.
"Mother. " asked a soft voice at the
head of the stairs , "who is it ? ' '
And then , for the first lime , I be
came aware that some one had been
watching and listening lo our collgquy
from the head of the stairs a young
, girl , dressed like the mother , iu deep
j biack , with very brilliant eyes and a
j profusion of jet black curls.
"Some one to see your brother. "
She came half-way down the stairs ,
pushed back her curls with one hand
and looked at me with her wonderful
eyes. Even then her beauty struck me
ns I stood gazing at her.
"Perley is not at home , " she said ,
hurriedly , "lie has gone away. We
do not know when he will return. "
Evidently this mother and daughter
were in the secret of Mattison's vil-
liauy and doing their best to screen
him from its consequence. My heart
bled for both of them ; but it was no
time to indulge in sentimental pit } " .
Speaking as briefly as I could , I told
them it was my duty to compel them
to remain were they were while T
searched the house.
Mrs. Mattison sat down pale and
trembling. Her daughter colored
high.
"Mother. " she said , "why do you
stand by and listen to such" slanders ?
.It is false ? Let this man search the
house if he will ; my brother is as in
nocent as I am ! "
No opposition was offered to my
search. It was'eutirely fruitless , how
ever ; there was no where any trace of
the missing bird. Nevertheless , I re
solved to remain there quietly , for a
day or two , to see what a little waiting
mi < rht bring forth.
The same afternoon Clara Mattiso'n
came iu as I sat by the window , keep
ing a silent watch on all round.
"Mr , Meredith , " she said , softly ,
"mother thinks I have been rude to
you. She says it was not your fault ,
personally , that you were sent here on
such a mistaken errand and , perhaps ,
she is right. I am sorry if I have hurt
your feelings. "
The prcttypenUent way in which she
spoke quite won my heart , and a few I
questions on my part seemed to unlock
the hidden recesses of her confidence , i
She talked at first shyly but after
ward with moi-e assurance , of herself ,
her absent brother and her mother ,
giving me a thousand little family details -
, tails which I almost dreaded to hear.
This twilight talk was one of the
pleasanlcst episodes of my by no
means universally pleasant life , and I
was not a little annoyed when it was
broken in upon by the arrival of the
constables from K , who were to
watch through the night.
At the sound of their footsteps ,
Clara rose up. and sat down again ,
confused and frightened.
"Oh , Mr. Merpdith those men. "
"Be easy , Miss Mattison , " I said
"you shall in no way be annoyed by
them. Your privacy shall not be
broken iu upon , believe me. " !
"I know 1 am silly , " faltered Clara , '
"but oh , it seems so dreadful ! " '
My orders to the men were simple
aud succinct. I stationed them as
seemed best to me , and then returned
to spend the evening with Miss Matti- i
son. And when I was at length left
alone I could not help thinking God
forgive me how much more winning
and graceful she was than poor Kitty ,
Elton.
At last answer came to my report
lo Mi * . Clenner. It was short and to
the purpose. " |
I rend the missive with a pang.
Clara Mattison's cheek deepened in
color as I announced my departure to
her. |
"You have been far kinder than we '
dared to hope , Mr. Meredith , " she '
said , ae I held her hand in mine. |
"You will think of mo sometimes ,
Clara ? "
The reader will easily perceive from
this how our intimacy had progressed.
She smiled , hung her head , and , Uik-
ing a pair of scissors from the table , I
severed one bright , olack curl from ;
the abundant tvesses that hung over J
her forehead. . j
"Keep this , Mr. Meredith , in memory - I
ory of me. "
Was I foolish to press the jetty ring
let to my ,15ps ere I laid it closely
against my heart ? Clara evidently
thought I was , for she laughed , but did
not seem displeased. i
Mr. Clenner appeared to be a good ,
deal annoyed when I got back to town
rather an unreasonable thing on his
part , for I certainly did all that man
could do under the circumstances. i
"We have been mistaken all the
way through , it seems , " ho said bilin < r
his lip.Strange very strange , I
never was mistaken before in my cal
culations. Well ; we must try again. "
I went to Kitty Elton's that night.
She received me with a sweet , shy
sadness of welcome , that should have
made me the happiest man iu the
world ; but it did not. Clara Matti
son's dark beauty seemed .to stand be
tween mo and her like a visible bar
rier. When I took my Isave there
were tears in her eyes ,
"Kitty , you are crying. "
"Because you arc "changed. Edward.
You d not love mo as well as you
did. ' !
" what ! "
"Kitty , nonsense
I was vexed with her simply because
I knew the accusation 'was true. But
I kissed her ones more , and took my
leave , moody and dissatisfied.
When I reached the office next morn
ing. Mr. Clenner was not there.
"Ho has gone to K , " said my
fellow detective ; "he wont last night. "
ToK ? " .
I was seriously annoyed. Did Mr.
Clcuner doubt the accuracy of my reports
'
ports ? Or did he imagine that I'was
unable to institute a thorough and
complete investigation of the premises ?
"It's very strange , " I mused aloud.
Jones laughed.
"Well , " he said , "you know Clenner
"
has a strange way "of doing things.
Depend upon it , he has good reasons
for his conduct. "
I was sitting at my desk two days
subsequently. , when "the door glided
noiselessly open and Clenner himsel
entered.
"You are back again , sir ? And what
luck ? "
"The best. "
"You don't mean to say you've got
him ? "
"I do mean to say it , Ethvard Mere
dith. I knew I could not be entirely
mistaken. Perley Mattison is in the
next room half an hour , from now he
will be in prison. "
"Whore did you apprehend him ? "
"At home in his mother's house. "
"But"
"He was there all the time you re
mained there , Ned , my boy , "you've
made a blunder for once ; but don't let
it happen again , "
"What do"yoti mean , sir ? "
For reply he opened the door of the
private inner room his own special
sanctum. A slight boyish figure leaned
against the window , smoking a ci
garette , with black curls tossed back
from a marble-white brow and brilliant
eyes. He mockingly inclined his head
as I started at him , with a motion not
unfamiliar to me.
"Clara Mattison ! "
"Yes. " he said , in a soft , sarcastic
voice , "Clara Mattison , or Perley Mat-
cison. or whatever you may choose to
call me. Many thanks for your polite
ness. Detective Meredith'niul ; if you
would like another lock of hair "
I turned away , burning scarlet , while
Mr. Cleuner closed the door.
"Never mind , my boy ; it will be a
lesson to you. " he said , laughing.
"Ho made a very pretty girl , but I am
not at all susceptible. "
What a double-dyed fool I had been !
1 had lost the reward , failed in the esti
mation of my fellow officers and be
haved like a brute to poor Kitty and
all for what ?
I went to Kitty and told her the
whole story , and to my surprise , the
dear , faithful , little creature loved me
just as well as ever.
"I won't be jealous of Perlev Matti
son , Edward , " she said , smiling what
ever I might be of his sister. And ,
dearest , don't bo discouraged. I'll
Avait as long as you please , and you
will be a second Mr. Clenner yet. "
She was determined to look on the
bright side of things , this little Kitty
of mine ! But I felt the mortification
none the less keenly ; although , as Mr.
Clenuer said , it would undoubtedly
prove a lesson to me.
Perley Mattisou's girlish beauty is
now eclipsed in one of Her Majesty's
prison nor do I pity him. The stake
for which he played was high and ho
lost. Evening World.
Evils of Promiscuous Bathing.
A few years ago stockings were not
worn ; now they may be of Vdk or cot
ton , and the latest "advices tell us of
stockings cut so as to expose the toes ,
which some newspaper correspondent
describes as "ten tiny pink shells. "
As I see them thus arrayed or disar
rayed , to speak correctly I fear the
girl will sobn begin to calculate the
effect of what some one lately called
"artistic bareness" on the mind of
masculinity , and the man to be too
conscious of the value of muscle and
calf which he exposes.
As the mouthpiece of the crowds
who come to witness these exhibitions ,
let me quote the little girl who , in the
innocence of her heart , asked her
mother "if she might take off her dress
and play in her underclothes like the
ladies did on the beach. "
After the bath these young people
settle themselves on the sand for per
haps an hour or so , rarely having any
chaperon or older person with them.
Is it right that an innocent and
childish creature should be thrown in
to such close and utterly unguarded
companionship with one of the oppo
site sex ? A girl's purity aud perfect
unconsciousness arc her greatest
charms , and can wo expect her to
retain these graces in such an atmos
phere ?
You may say bare legs are no more
demoralizing than bare shoulders , of
which we have a surfeit in every ball
room. Granted ; but because we con
done one indelicacy are we to smile
quietly on all ? Round dances have
been the subject of pulpit oratory ; let
the moralist and preacher now turn
their attention to this rapidly increas
ing evil. Ladies' Home Journal.
Death Long Drawn Out.
It appears from a report on capital
punishment which has just been laid
before the Parliament of Austria and
Hungary that executions in that coun
try are carried out in an inconceivably
barbarous manner. The convict is
placed on the ground , where he stands
with a long rope around his neck ,
which presently jerks him off his legs ,
aud he remains struggling horribly in
the air for several minutes. A con
vict is never strangled in less than
seven minutes , and often the operation
takes a quarter of an hour , aud the
poor wretch is usualry conscious , or
nearly conscious , during the greater
part ef the time. People talk about
disgraces to civilization surely this is
one. London Truth.
Hats in England.
The rat plague in Lincolnshire con
tinues in spite of the enormous destruc
tion of the animals by the farmers
during the past few months. One
farmer , who scatters poisoned barley
about his yards every night , gathered
in one day a crop of 1.300 rats. Three
hundred rats were killed from ono
stack of grain in another place.
NECESSITY MADE A TONGUE.
flio Story of the Invention of thoEpuei
oral ChLaooh
Out of the necessity of a universal
'anguago ' for commercial transactions
has boon evolved the harsh , discordant
Volapuk , yet not generally accepted
[ ts only charm , if it possesses any , is
in the simplicity of its grammar. It
has no horrid irregular verbs , like the
terrible aller which is the bete noir of
all students of French ; nor has it that
iwful subjunctive mood of our own
language which the average Kansan
and Missourian. instead of letting
severely alone , has laboriously wrestled
with until they have constructed ono
or two veritable provincialisms and
which sound , when heard by the culti
vated car. like an epitapli in a York
shire country churchyard.
But years ago. in the early part of
the century , the traders of the Hudson
Bay , the Northwest , and other fur com
panies manufactured a jargon out of
the English , Indian , and French lan
guage as a means of communication
between themselves and the various
Indian tribes , whose tongues and dia
lects were like a scaled book. The
Chinook enabled them to convor.se with
the white men. and. convert , also
among themselves. It is not a lan
guage , because il has no grammar ; it
is more cuphonius than Volapuk. but
that is admitting little in favor of its
euphony. One word , like the French
on or fiiire , has a dozen different mean
ings , depending upon its relation to
another word , easily guessed at in Chi
nook , but not so easily in French if
one adheres to the irrevocable fiat of
the "Academy. " Although I have
had no use for Chinook these twenty-
five years , I have not forgotten it , and
"
presume I could carry on"an ordinary
conversation without difficulty. To
give a specimen of its character I here
present the little nursery prayer of
"Now I lay me down to sleep : "
"Al-ta ni-ka . ni-ka
- - mcosum. - tick-ey
Sah-a-le syce , close nan-age ni-ka lum-
tum. Spo.se nika mam-e-loosc clip ni-
ka mit-whit to-molla ni-ka
- - , - tick-ey
Sah-a-le is-cum ni-ka
- - syee qual-isum - , -
turn-turn. "
Literally"Now I sleep , I want the
Great Spirit to watch my soul. If I
should die before I get up to-morrow
I want the great Spirit to i'orcver keep
my soul. "
'
'During the early days of the Penin
sular campaign a certain officer of high
position and rank sent a telegram to an
other officer stationed in Washington ,
who , like myself , had been "hived" iu
one of the posts on the Upper Pacific
for years and understood Chinook , iu
which jargon the message was written.
Of course it was intercepted , as were
all suspiciousy [ wordeil messages , and
brought to the great War Secretary's
office , where cipher experts perspired
and grew desperate over it , but could
make nothing out of it. Its capture
created a terrible commotion ; and
awful was the mystery surrounding it ;
a plot against the Government it must
be , and no effort was spared to trace
it to the sender. At last this was ac
complished , and its harmlessuess clear
ly established ; the weary ofllccr before
Yorktown had simply asked his old
comrade to send down at first opportu *
nity some bottles of good whisky.
Stanton overlooked it , but warned the
principals not to indulge in such dan
gerous pleasantries again. Kansas
City Slar.
The Bulbul.
Throughout India people will make
pets of any animals which can be in
duced to contribute to their entertain
ment. We noticed in Delhi that tha
average small boy. as well as children
of a larger growth , exhibited a partie
ular fondness for a certain little bir
of ashen plumage and black crest.
This was the famous bulbul of which
Haiiz has much to say , and some
Western poets also who have senti
mentalized about the Vale of Cashmere
without even having seen ife. He is
usually tethered by a string attached
to his leg , and sits upon his owner's
finger , or hops about on his arm ; some
times too , he adorns a tall perch in
front of the.doorway. . A lady at the
hotel remarked that "it was touching
to see how fond these poor people were
of their little birds. " The mystery
was soon solved. Returning from a
i-rive one afternoon , we passed the
colossal gateway of the great mosque ,
find saw "that the broad and towering
flight of steps before the principal
entrance was covered with scattered
/jroups of people , all intent on some
Occupation of absorbing interest. So
just and imposing was the arehiteet-
3ral background that the crowd of
little figures suggested one of Martin's
weird pictures of the Judgment Day.
Some great religious ceremony was
evidently going on. So we got out.
deeply impressed , to obtain a nearer
view , vyhen , behold , in the centre of
each little group was a pair of these
birds in mortal combat ; and they
fought as pluekily as the bravest o'f
game fowl , and breathless was the in
terest shown by every spectator ,
whether street urchin or shawled and
turbaned merchant. Edwin Lord
Weeks , in Harper's Magazine.
About Men and YTomcn.
When a woman gets cross , she gilts
cross at even-body.
Smile at some women , and they will
tell you all the troubles they ever hi'l. :
When a woman can wash ilauncls so
they will not shrink , sheknoivs enough
to get married.
A women is never so badly in love
that she docs not 'try to find out the
cost of her engagement ring.
One of our delicate women will never
admit that she is hungry ; she will say
that she is feeling a little faint.
There is only one thing that pleases
woman more than to be referred to a *
a dove , and that is to hear man referred
to as a hawk.
A woman never becomes so intelli
gent that she learns that it is no pleac-
urc to others to hear her coax her chil
dren to speak a piece ,
A man who Attempts to flatter you
takes you for a fool.
Man , liue the fire , is apt to torment
women by going out at night. Boston
Commonwealth.
Bismarck takes snuff , but when ha
docs so Germany uo longer sneezes.
THE FORGOTTEN MILLIONS.
A. Study of American I-lfo ns Typlllotl by
the IimnbltnutH nfTklt. Dosort.
The cost of bringing up a family of
five or six children comfortably in the
town of Mount Desert does not exceed
$250 a year if the house , a garden
patch and a cow pasture be already
provided from savings of the husband
and wife before marriage , and if the
family , as a whole , have normal health
and strength. Very few heads of fam
ilies earn more than that sum in a
year ; for , although a day's wages in
summer is commonly § 1.75 , work is
scarce , the winter is long , and few
men can get more than five months'
employment at these wages in a year.
The man and boys of a family'can ,
however , do much for the common
support , even when there is no work
at wages to be had. They can catcli
and cure fish , dig clams , trap lobsters ,
pick the abundant blueberries on the
rocky hills in August , and shoot ducks
Bt the seasons of migration. Wild
nature still j-ields to the skillful seeker
a considerable quantity of food with
out price. Dwellers in a city may
wonder how it is possible for a family ,
to live so cheaply , but there is no
mystery about it. There is no rent to
pay ; the schools are free : water costs
nothing ; tire garden patch yields pota
toes and other vegetables , and the
pasture milk and butter ; two kerosene
lamps aijd a lantern ? upply all the
artificial light needed , at a cost not
exceeding $2 a year ; the family do all
their own work without waste ; there
is but one fire , except on rare occa
sions , and that single lire is iu a stove
which delivers all its heat into the
house ; the wife and daughters knit ths
family stockings , mittens and mufflers ,
mend all the clothes , and for the most
part make all their own. The readymade -
made clothing which the. men buy at
the stores is very cheap ( $10 to § 15 a
suit ) , being made of cotton with but a
small admixture of wool. The cloth
is strong and warm , and looks fairly
well when new , but soon fades and
wears shabby. For children the old
clothes of their ciders arc cut down ,
the wear being thus brought on new
places. The" Hessian country girl
wears proudly her grandmother's
woolen petticoats , and well she may ,
for they are just as good and handsome
as they were sixty years ago. A Scotch
shepherd's all-wool plaid withstands
the wind and the rain for a lifetime.
The old Swiss porter , who is carrying
the mounted traveler's valise over the
Gemmi , puts on a thicli woolen jacket
of a rich brown color when the shower
begins , with the remark. "The rain
won't wet me. sir ; this coat has kept
me dry for twenty-live years. " The
American farmer and laborer use no
such good materials as these , and
therefore they and their children look
shabby most of the time ; but their
clothes are very cheap in first cost ,
and , like the cotton clothes of the
Chinese , they answer the main pur
poses of all clothing. In a city the
best clothes of the family must be
often put on , in the country but sel
dom. Shoes and boots must be bought
for the whole household , but these arti
cles are also very cheap in New Eng
land , and the coarser sorts are durable
in proportion to their price. For pro
tection from rain the Mount Desert
man who is obliged to be out-of-doors
in bad weather uses , in sailor fashion ,
not rubber clothing , but suits of oiled
cotton cloth , which keep out not only
water but wind , last long , ana cost
little ( § 2 to $3 a suit ) . However hard
it may be for city people to understand
it , the fact remains that $230 a year is
a sum adequate to the comfortable
and wholesome support of a family of
seven or eight persons in the town of
Mount Desert , provided that a house ,
a garden and a pasture are secured to
them. President Charles W. Eliot , in
The Century.
The Color of the Hair.
It does not matter whether the color
of the hair be the. shining black , now
comparatively rare in this country ,
and evidentfy becoming gradually
more so , the rich chestnut brown , with
its glossy sheen , the golden strands of
which take a thousand new hues in as
many different conditions of light , or
the pale blonde which , possessing little
of color , has still an indescribable
glory of its own. Each of these , with
all the varying gradations of hues , if
properly kept ai.d attractively worn. [
has a beauty of its own , not by any ,
means to bo despised. Fortunately , i
our people seemed to have realized ,
for a time , this fact. We have had
the craze for black , brown and gold (
but just now the sensible American ,
seems to have reached the conclusion
that Nature understands this matter
pretty well after all , and that the
color she furnishes is the most appro
priate.
Possibly the faet that black is be
coming less prevalent , and the lighter
shades are taking its place , may be ac
cepted as an evidence of the advance
ment of the race intellectually , since
scientists tell us that as a nation grows
in civilization the color of the hair of
its women becomes proportionately
lighter. This may be merely scientific
theory , but the thoughtful reader will
immediate ! } ' recur to the fact that iu
most savage races the black hair is a
universal feature. However that ma } '
be , we must drop tlie theory before we
get to individuals , because , as often
occurs , a family of sNters posiessir-g
the same traits and dipoaitions and like
degrees of refinement , may , iu com
plexion and hair , present the most
striking contrast. Usually , of course ,
the complexion , the eyes and the hair
correspond in hue. The black hair and
eyes and olive complexion are natural
ly associated , while in the blond we
expect to see the hair and the skin in
harmony , with the eye of light blue or
gray ; yet this is by no means invaria
bly the case. Black hair and blue eyes
are not infrequently met , especially
among the Irish , and there is some
times a combination , such as hair of
fiery red. with very light eyes , brows
and lashes , combined with an unpleas
ant complexion , which renders tne
possessor miserable. The texture of
the hair depends very much upon its
color , and of a normal head the aver
age thickness of hair is about 400 to
the square inch ; but the blonde is fiu-
2St. with the brown , black and red
growing coarser in their order , so that
it is estimated that the finest texture
fl
I elves a total of about 1-10,000 individ-
1 nal hairs to the head. The browa
would count up some 110.000 , the
black move than 100,000. while the red
will fall below 1)0.000. ) These are ap
proximate figures ; any one wishing to
obtain greater exactness can do so by
n little patience , and a careful 'Count.
A moderate estimate is that any of our
readers , in their morning toilet , will
dress from forty to fifty miles of hair
in the very few minutes usually given
to that necessary operation. As the
ordinary hair has a breaking capacity
of about four ounces , a rope composed
of all the hairs growing from a single
well-covered head would bo strong
enough to lift t least 25.000 pounds ,
or about 200 times the weight of the
wearer. ' Good Housekeeping. "
THE ZODIAC !
An ImaRlnary Belt That Anclnnt Astrono.
raers Kxtoudocl Arouiul the Heavens.
The ancient astronomers gave the
name of zodiac to an imaginary belt
extending around the heavens , having
for its middle line the ecliptic , which is
the line of the earth's orbit , or the ap
parent path of the sun through the
heavens. The ecliptic forms the cen
ter of this belt , which is about eighteen
degrees in width , which in ancient
times included the orbits of all the l
known planets about five in number
as well as the sun. The eighteen-
ilegree belt of the old-time astronomers -
mers , says the St. Louis Jlepublic , will
not now'contain the orbits of all the
recently discovered planets and aster
oids , which are now technically known
ns ultra zodiacal planets. The stars
in the zodiacal belt were grouped into
twelve constellations , to each of which
was assigned one-twelfth of the cir
cumference of the circle , or thirty de
grees. This arrangement made it pos
sible to readily define at any time the
position of the sun and the planets.
The constellations that gave rise to the
zodiacal divisions were as follows :
Aries , the ram ; Taurus , the bull ; Ge
mini , the twins ; Cancer , the crab ; Leo ,
the lion ; Virgo , the virgin ; Libra , the
balance ; Scorpio , the scorpion ; Sagit
tarius , the archer ; Capricornus , the
goat ; Aquarius , the water-bearer , and
Pisces , the iishes. As one half of the
ecliptic is north and the other hall
south of the celestial equator , that is , \
the line uiiere the plane of the earth'a
equator if extended would divide the
heavens , the points of intersection of
their planes are known as the equi
noctial points. The old-time stargazers -
gazers regarded these points as fixed
and immovable , and therefore , the one f
at which the sun crosses the equinoc
tial line from south to north was fixed J
upon as the first point in the first di (
vision of the zodiac , the sign of Aries.
After the sun had traveled 30 degrees
eastward in this division he entered tht
second sign. Taurus , and thus contin
ued his course through all the signs ,
crossing the line from north to south ,
when he passed from the sign Virgo
into that of Libra. The equinoctial
points are not stationary , but move
slowly in the heavens , thus the first di
vision of the zodiac has been almost
entirely separated from the constella
tion of Aries , and now corresponds
more exactly with that of Pisces. An
ciently the signs of the zodiac were
supposed to have an abnormal effect
upon all animal and vegetable life , but
this is now looked upon as rankest
superstition. The constellations of the
zodiac were arranged by the astrono
mer Uipparchus in the year 200 A. D ,
or thereabouts.
Now.
Kisses which fall upon the dead's nrto lips ,
Like dew on ro cs which the llrst Irost nips.
Comciill too lute :
'TIs better far to give them while the lips cat
speak :
The golden chord of life at best is weak !
All ! do not wait.
Kind words in cars whose earthly powers art
spent ,
lake sunshine on the tree by lifrhtning1 rent.
Can Kive no balm :
'Tis better far to give them while those ears
can hear ;
For lite has much of wo and much of fcarl
And love brings calm.
Tt is too late when life's lamp Inirncth low.
When 1 Kinds oucu warm are chili as winter's
snow.
To do hind deeds ;
'Tis better here , where feet are prone to slidei
'Tis better now than wait till eventide-
To help their needs.
Ah , friendsl dear friends if any such then
be
Keep not your lorinar thoughts away from mt
Till I am frone ;
I want them now to help me on my way.
As lonely watchers want the light of day
it is morn.
And though Fomctimcs my heart , o'er semi
Eororr n f
Longijroodinjr. . weaves some bitterness Ir
sougr - ;
r . Tis but a ? ! itde
"Within life's texture wheie the best sire poor
O , close uot up to many faults Love's door !
1 need 3 our aid.
P. F. Hodges.
Stringent Liquor Laws in Norway.
The bona iidc traveler in Norway
appears to sull'er occasional inconven
ience from the stringency of the local
"
liquor laws. Mr. Beyer "in his Weekly
News , published at Bergen , has invited
English tourists to speak their minds
on this subject , and the result is a
rather extensive correspondence. One
gentleman , who signs with the inap
propriate name of "Waters , " writes
from Vossevjiugen to tell how his party
of English tourists discussed the mat
ter , and agreed that a glass of "whiskv
today all round' ' would have tended to
promote the festivity of their gathering ,
but even this confessed indulgcr m
"night-caps" acknowledges that the
Norwegian legislature cannot be ex
pected to make special exceptions on
his behalf. 'Another thinks that "ina
bility to obtain a glass of spirits in a
hotel would scarcely deter any but an
inveterate dtunkard ' <
from pla'nnjng a
summer tour in Norway. " While 'J.
E. B. " , wiio dates from Odde , suggests
that those who , like himself , talie an
occasional glass of spirits and water ,
should carry a supply with them.
London Daily News.
All TTmlcr "Water. \
f
Geologists assert that if the conti
nents and the bottom of the ocean
were graded down to uniform level the
whole world would be covered with
water a mile deep.
The invention of smokeless powder
has ijceu followed bv a counter-inven
tion in the shape of "a "smoke rocket ? :
to be used lo screen the advance -of 'a ' . *
body of troops. It has been tried witii
success.
