MY ; POOR WIFE .
9
BYJ. P. SMITH. v -
CHAPTER XIX.
"Great heavens ! "Was it an accident ,
or do you mean she committed sul-
cldo ? "
"Suicide , ay , that's what they called
it I didn't rememher the word until
ye mentioned it 'suicide while in a
Ktate of trumpery insanity' was the
jury's verdlck. For nigh on six months
uforo poor little Helen came into the
wurrld her mother was a hopeless
ijiot , that ought to have been locked
up safe in a 'sylum , as I ought to know
well. "
"Great heavens ! And this wasjtcpt
from mo intentionally kept by that
wretched old woman who flaunts hoi-
religion "
" "Charity an' religion begins at home
with wan o' her kind. If slie had
tould you , tlie chances are ye'd have
eloped off an' left on her hands a
burthen she hated an' had fretted
against sore for the last eighteen year.
She saw her chance and didn't let it
slip. Who'd be after blamin' her , when
ye come to think of it ? "
"The madness was inherited in the
family , I mean ? " I asked , with sullen
bitterness.
"No , it wasn't. Sorry a Casey I ever
heard of bein' took that way before or
since. "
"What was the cause of it ? "
"Sorrow , treachery , cruelty , an'
wrong , them was the cause of it
Avrong such as 'ud drive women o' my
kind by degrees to the whisky bottle
an' the county jail , but which , in wan
summer's day , turned poor Nora Casey
from a light-hearted sunny lass into ,
as I've already tould ye , a'broodia'
hopeless ijiot ! "
"Tell me all about it ; nothing must
be kept back from me now. What was
the mother's story ? Quick ! "
"Aisy , aisy , I'll tell it yc soon
enough , " remonstrated Molly sooth
ingly , squatting herself on the ground ,
her hands clasping her knees. "Nora
was the ould wan's only daughter , an'
the youngest o' the family ; when the
boys all went their ways she had to
remain at home. She was me nurse-
child , and as purty a girl as ye'd care
to meet in a day's walk , and as like
her daughter as two peas , only brighter
an' more winnin' in her ways , an'
never wid that broodin' heavy look
Miss Helen often had. She was let
.grow up jest as yer wife was , with no
more eddication or care or Icokin' after
than if she was thrown on the wurrlcl
without a sowl of her own. She used
to wander about the mountains all day
Jong , and in course of time met a
scoundrel.
I "He had come in a grand yacht that
anchored in the bay. Every day he
used to meet her somewhere or other ,
nn' soon won her heart , for he was
handsome an" elegant , like no wan
she'd never met before. One day he
tould her to meet him next night at
II o'clock in St. Brigid's ruined church
beyond the point below , an' that he
would have a minister to marry them ,
making her swear she was to tell no
wan , for if it was known he was about
tto marry a poor girl he'd be rained for
life. But after a few months he said
lie was to come in for a large fortune
and be his own master , an' then he'd
bring her to his home in England an'
iutrojuce her to his people.
"Poor Nora believed him and went
lo the abbey , where sure enough there
was a minister all in white ready to
make them wan. She kept the saycret
safe , poor sowl , an' , when the cowld
Taiu and the bleak wind came , he sailed
away in his yacht , an' after he'd been
a couple of months gone -news came
wan day from Droomleague that he
had been married over in England to
some grand lady with a lot of money
the week before. But Miss Nora only
.laughed when she heard it , an' didn't
seem in the laist put out , though I
watched her close , suspectin' there was
eomethln' between them , though not
the cruel truth. Heaven knows.
"Well , just three days after we heard
! the rumor , a letter came to Miss Nora
euclosin' a check for fifty pounds , and
leilin' her that the marriage up at the
old church hadn't been a rale one at all ,
that the miaister was only his valet
dressed up , as he'd dare say she'd sus
pected all along. An * he was mortal
sorry he had to give her up ; but hard
necessity obliged him to marry his
present wife , to whom he had been
engaged for the last two years , an'
he begged her pardon an' wished her
well an * would never forget or cease to
love his dear mountain maid. That
was arl.
"When she'd read it an' understood
it at last , she went ragin' through the
house like a madwoman , the letter in
her hands ; an' when her mother read it
too , an' learnt the cruel story for the
first time , she just opened her hall- ]
door , an' wid her own hard hands
thrust the poor maddened craythure
out into the cowld night ; an' bade her
never cross the doorstep of t > ie house
she had disgraced. It wasn't until the
middle of the next day we heard what
had been done ; an' me ould man an'
me , wid our hearts in our mouths , set
out to search for her. We didn't find
her until the evening after , thirty
miles away , lyin' in a ditch , half-
famished and frozen , her poor wits
completely gone !
"We brought her home , coaxed an
nursed her as well as we could , but
she sat all day long on a stool before
the fire shiverin' an' not seeming to
hear or understand a word that was
goin' on. We thought that perhaps
when her poor child came , Heaven
would see fit to give her back her
senses , but it wasn't EO ; an' in less
than a week after Helen was born her
mother one night stole out of her bed
and threw herself from the cliffs down
to the beach below , where , as I've told
ye , her body was picked up next day.
That's her story. "
CHAPTER XV.
After a few minutes I looked up to
whisper brokenly
"And her her daughter , you mean
to say she inherited you mean I I
married a "
"Her daughter , " she interrupted eag
erly , "grew up in me keepiu' like every
other child I reared ; there was nothin'
particular about her , except that she
was a bit quieter an' sister to mind
than most babies maybe. When she
was three year old , her granny took
her from me ; whether because she was
touched with remorse or becau&e of the
511-wilf and sharp tongues o' the neigh
bors some o' the daylers at Droom
league refusin' to buy the praties she
sent into market I can't say ; but , at
any rate , she tool : her and kep' her un
til 3-011 came. "
"Molly , Molly , you mean to tell me
you saw no signs of the mother's
disease that you believe her to be
free free from Oh , for Heaven's sake
hide iip.tb.ing from , me now ! I have
been used basely enough among you
all. You must tell me everything now
everything ! " I cried , roughly seiz
ing her hands.
"I saw nothing wrong about her
nothing , I tell you , until until , as bad
luck would have it , when she vas a
slip of a girl of fifteen , she heard her
mother's story , an' it certainly
won't decalve y ° u sir preyed oil her
a sight. She had a bad fever , an' raved
a lot-always talkin' about the say aiil
the shore , v/ishiu * she was a mermaid
under the water , and a lot like that.
She several times tried to get out of
her bed and go outside : an' we hail
some trouble in houldin' her down. An'
when she recovered she toM me she
was sorry she didn't die , as she was
no use to any wan in the wurld. an' her
granny was disappointed she didn't die
too. Well , for some time af ther. I must
say , a sort of a shiver always came
over me when I saw her v alkin' too
close to the edge of the cliffs ; but by
degrees the fcelin' wore away , an' she
became almost herself again. "
"Then , Molly , Molly. " I whispered
piteously , ' -you you have no fear
about her no\v ! You feel she is safe
safe only hiding from me in a lit of
temper. I I will be sure to hear from
her in a day or two at the farthest ;
you have no apprehension no "
I stopped , for Molly turned her head
away , and , with her hands shading
her eyes , stared mutely out to sea. I
remember feeling the ground surge
strangely under me , seeing the slony
beach where roor Nora's mangled body
! ay move slowly out v.'ith the reced
ing wave , and : i lurid darkness creep
ing over the clear sunlight ; it wa * only
for a moment. I shook oft the dizzi
ness , staggered to my feet , to find a
ragged boy holding an orange envelope
toward me.
"A telegram ! She is found ! "
"She is found where where ? "
gasped Molly , seizing my arm.
"It does not say. The message is
from my housekeeper telling me they
have news ; I am to come at once.
That's all. "
Twenty-four hours later I was stand
ing in the hall at home , Mrs. Murray's
hand resting on my shaking arm.
"Hush , hush ! " she said in answer
to my incoherent inquiries. "In a mo
ment in a moment I'll tell you all.
Come into the study , Master Paul. I've
a letter you must read first. "
I followed her in ; she laid an en
velope , directed to me in my wife's
writing , in my hand ,
v "It wag found inside your desk a
few hours after you left. I I don't
know how you missed seeing it. "
I broke the seal and read the fol
lowing slowly twice through
"Paul , I followed you last night into
the wood when you thought I was
sleeping quietly in my bed. I saw in
your arms the woman you lovc , I heard
you begging her to give up home , for
tune , fame , and fly to the other end
of the world with you , for you could
not and would not live' another day
apart from her. And as I listened to
jrou the curse which had hung over
me even before I came into the world
suddenly fell.
"The dark still air became thick with
a thousand faces I had never seen be
fore , yet which I seemed to know as
well as I knew yours , voices whispered
in my ears ; lights , red , blue , yellow ,
danced before my eyes ; a breath of
rushing buoyant-life filled my body ; I
felt as if I could have flown round the
world for ever and know no fatigue ,
all the fever , anguish , struggle and
horror of the past week died in me ,
a horrible exultation took their place.
"I felt that the supreme moment of
my life had come , the moment for
which I had been born , lived , and suf-
fered until then. I felt that if I could j
not kill ycu my brain would burst.
I rushed forward blindly , stumbled
over the trunk of a tree , and came to
Iho ground , where I lay slunned for
a few moments. When I rose , ycu
had gone.
"I went back to my bed , slept for
some time , and awoke at dawn with
Iho murderous fever on me fiercer ( ! : _ „
before. I stole into your room , Paul
I , your wife , Ihe nameless daughter
of a mad mother , who had deceived
you basely , robbed you of peace , hap
piness , honor and love , yet who had
received nothing in return from you
but countless benefits , infinite forbear
ance , noblest patience. 1 leaned over
ycu as you slept , a razor preyed to
your throat. The touch of the steel
or the lire of my murderous breatli
awoke ycu. Ycu looked a me calmly ,
and I slunk away cowed , loathing my
self , cursing the day that gave life to
such a wretch as I.
"All that morning I knelt by your
pillow in an agony of shame , of rs-
morse , praying for strength to leave
you before you would guess my horrible
rible secret. Strength seemed to come ;
I rose to go when you were driving up
Iho avenue with her. I vent lo Ihe
window to take my farewell look ; you
were standing in the porch together
whispering eagerly , her hand wan
clasping yours. I struggled fiercely for
a moment , but passion overmastered
me again. I ran quickly down to your
sludy , unlocked a drawer where I had
seen you hide a packet of vermin-
poison one day , and poured it into the
glass of wine you asked for. You tooL
it unsuspiciously ; and when it was
half way to your lips yon turned with
a smile and a kind word to me and ,
thank Heaven , I was able to dash it
from your hands thank Heaven ,
thank Heaven !
"And now I go from you , Paul , for
ever , with a prayer en my lips and
lin my guilty heart for your peace and
welfare. Be happy with her you love ,
and forget the wretched woman who
deceived you. Put her from your mem
ory and your life as if she had never
been. Now , I can write no more my
hand shakes ; strange lights are burn
ing before my eyes ; a torturing thirst
consumes me , though I hear the splash
ing of cool water everywhere around.
I must so oh , love , love , how can I
write Farewell ? "
The paper fell from my hands. I
turned wildly to Mrs. Murray.
"Where is she , where is she ? Let
me go lo her at once. I tell you , she
is desperate , maddened ; there is not
a moment to lose ! "
Mrs. Murray , with her hands lo her
eyes , answered with a , weak v.-himper.
I rushed toward the door , and then
became aware for the first lime that
the room was full o familiar faces-
ray uncle Gerard from Kibton , nay two
cousins from Leamington , General
Stopforu , Doctor Finlay , and some
others I had not the power to recog
nize.
( To be Continued. )
DAUDET'S CHILDLIKE NATURE.
Passionate Desire to Live , Act and Kujoy i
Without Intermission. I ,
I beg to insist for a moment upon the
childlike nature of Daudet's character ,
= ays Pall Mall Gazette. 'It is true that
everything seems to have been said in.
praise of Daudct. All the forms of
eulogy have been exhausted in enu
merating his great and luminous qual
ities. But I have not seen noted in
any of the studies of the novelist this
striking feature of his character. Dau-
dot was a child , u marvelous child , ex
ceptionally gifted and possessing all
the beautiful and adorable qualities of
childhood confidence , generosity , fe
verish imagination and a passionate
desire to live , to act , to enjoy , with
out intermission or cessation. And to
the end of his life , although riveted
to his armchair , Daudet gave the best
advice , showed us how ardent was his
passion for justice and humility , and
made us shax-e with him the joy of liv
ing by ideas. If I insist upon this
childlike nature of Daudet's character
it is because I assign to this trait the
place of honor ; it is to the artless na
tures , to children and to enthusiasts
that we owe ail great progress , splen
did ideas , marvelous inventions , gener
ous and charitable impulses.
Between Two Fires I *
He was a passenger on a fast train
bound for St. Louis , and when about
fifty miles from that village he jumped
from the rear platform.
"Why did.you do it ? " asked the phy
sician at the little way station , when
he had recovered his senses.
"It was fate , " replied the sufferer ,
with a faint smile. "I might have
*
gone farther and fared much worse. " '
Old-Stylo PolUencgs.
Polite Old Gentleman I perceive ,
madam , that I need not inquire about
your health. Nice Old Lad } ' Thank
you , sir ; I confess that I feel ten years
younger than I am. Polite Old Gentle
man Possibly , madam , but you can
not feel a day younger than you look.
Why Ho ITouliI.
"Do you think that Boeckle , the tail :
or , would give me credit for a suit of
clothes ? " "Does he know you ? "
"No. " "Oh , in that case he would. "
Das Kleine Witzblalt.
I
Th6 Smokeless Variety. ' c
Waggles 1 his war has shown that
powder should be unlike a child. Jag-
gles What in the world do you mean ?
Waggles It should be heard but not
seen.
Prince Albert of Monaco is having
a magnetic observatory built in the
Azores.
_
m j
TALMAGE'S SEEMON.
'A NEW YEAR'S GREETING1
THE SUBJECT.
from Book of Genesis , Chapter slvli. ,
Verso 8 , as Follow" : "How Old Art
Thui ? " Some Lessons from Life.
The Egyptian capital was the focus
of the world's wealth. In ships and
barges there had been brought to it
from India frankincense and iuna-
inon and ivory and cliairiunds ; from
the north , marble and iron ; from Sy
ria , purple and silk ; from Greece some
o the finest horses of the world , and
some of the most brilliant chariots ;
and from all the earth that which
could best please the eye , and charm
Uic ear and gratify the taste. There
r/erc temples aflame with red sand-
atone , entered by the gateways that
were guaided by pillars bewildering
with hieroglyphics and wound with
brazen serpents and adorned will ,
winged creatures their eyes and
beaks and pinions glittering with precious
cious stones. There were marble col
umns blooming into white flowerbeds
there were stone pillars , at the top
bursting into the shape of the lotu
when in full bloom.
Along the avenues.lincd .vith sphinx
and fane and obelisk , there were
princes who came in gorgeously up
holstered palanquins , carried by ser
vants in scarlet or elsewhere drawn
by vehicles , the snow-white horses
golden-bitted , and six abreast , dashing
at full run. On floors o ? mosaic tne
glories cf Pharaoh where spelled out
in letters of porphyry and beryl 2 <
ilame. There \vere ornaments twistet
from the wood of tamarisk , embosset
with silver breaking into foam. There
were footstools ma.le cut of a tingle
precious stone. TLei'c were beds fash
ioned out of a ciouchcd lien in bronre.
There were chairs spotted with the
sleek .hides cf leopards. There were
sofas footed with the claws of wild
beasts , and armed with the beaks
cf birds. As you s.iand on the level
beach of the sea on a ? iimmer day ,
and look either way , and there are
miles of breaker ? , while with the
ocean foam , dashing shoreward , so it
seemed as if the sea of the world's
pomp and wealth in the Egyptian cap
ital for miles and miles flung itself up
into white breakers of marble tcniple ,
mausoleum and obelisk.
It was to this capital and tlie palace
of Pharaoh that Jacob , the plain shep
herd , came lo meet his son Joseph ,
who had become prime minister in the
royal apartment. Pharaoh ai d Jacob
met , dignity and rusticity , the grace
fulness of the court and the plain
manners of the riehl. The king , wanting -
ing to make the old countryman at
ease , and seeing how white his beard ,
id and liovv- feeble his stop , looks fa
miliarly into his face and says to the
* ged man : "Ho\v old art thou ? "
Last night the gate of Eternity cpen-
3d to let in. amid the gr ° at throng of , ,
departed centuries , the soul of the dy
ing ypar. Under the twelfth stroke of (
Lhc brazen hammer of the city clock
; he patriarch fell dead , and the stars
3f the night were the funeral torches.
[ t is most fortunate that on this road
3f life there aie so many mile-stones ,
which we can read just how fast
.ve . are going toward the journey's cflU.
[ feel that it is not an inappropriate
luestion that I ask today , when I look
nto jour faces , and say , as Pharaoh
lid to Jacob , the patriarch , "How old
irt thou ? "
People who are Iruthful on every
) lher subject lie about their ages , so
hat I do not solicit from you any
ileral re&pouse to the question I have
iskeri. I would put no one under
emptation , but I simply want , Ihis
norning , to see by what rod it is we
tre measuring our earthly existence ,
rhere is a right way and a wrong way
) f measuring a door , or a wall , or an
irch , or a lower , and so there is a
'ight way and a wrong way of meas-
iring our earthly existence. It is
vith reference to this higher meaning
hat I confront you this morning with
he stupendous question of the lext ,
ind ask : "How old are thou ? " * *
It is not sinful egotism for a ChrSs-
ian man to say , "I am purer than I
ised to be. 1 am more consecrated to
Christ than I used to be. I have got
iver a great many of the bad habits
n which I used to indulge in. I am a
treat deal better man than I used to
ie. " There is no sinful egotism in
hat. It is not base egotism for a
oldier to say , "I know more about ;
nilltary tactics than I used to before
took a musket in nij' hand and learn-
'd to 'present arms , ' and when I was a
icst to the drill officer. " It Is not base
igotism for a sailor lo say , "I know
> elter how to clew down the mizzen
opsail lhan I used lo before I had
sver seen a ship. " And there Is no
inful egotism when a Christian man ,
ighting the battles of the Lord , or , If
ou will have it , voyaging toward a li
laven of eternal rest , say , "I know
oore about spiritual tactics and about
'oyaging toward heaven lhan I used
o. "
Why , Ihere are ihose in this pres-
nce who have measured lances with
nany a foe and unhorsed it. There
tre Christian men here who have be-
ome swarthy by hammering at the
brge of calamity. They stand on an
mtirely different plane of character
rom that which they once occupied ,
rhey are measuring Iheir life on earlh
> y goldeu-galed Sabbalhs , by pente-
: oslal prayer meeting , by communion :
ables , by baptismal fonts , by hallclu-
ahs in the temple. They have stood
in Sinai , and-heard it thunder. They
lave stood on Pisgah , and looked over
nto the Promised Land. They have
itood on Calvary , and seen the cross
> leed. They can , like Paul the Apos-
le , write on their heaviest troubles
'light" and "but for a moment. " The
larkest night their soul Is irradiated ,
as was the night over Bethlehem , bj
Ihe faces of those who have come t
proclaim glory and good cheer. Thes
are only waiting for the gate to open
and the chains to fall off and the glory
to begin.
I remark again , There are many
and I wish there were more who ar
estimating life by the good they can
do.
John Bradford said he counted tha
day nothing al all in which he hat
net , by jjen or tongue , done some
good. If a man begin right , I canno
icll how many tears he may wipe
away , hey ; many burdens he may lift
how many orphans he may comfort
how many outcasts he may reclaim
There have been men who have given
their whole life in the right direction
concentrating all their wit and in
genuity and mental acumen and phys
ical force and enthusiasm for Christ.
They climbed llic mountain and delved
into Ihe mine and crossed Ihe sea
and trudged the desert and dropped ,
at last , into martyr's graves , wailing
for the reit-rrection of the just. They
measured their lives by the chains
they broke off , by the garments they
put upon nakedness , by the miles they
traveled to alleviate every kind of suf
fering. They felt in the thrill of every
nerve , in the motion of cvei-y respir
ation of their lungs , Iho maguificen
truth : "No man livetli uuto-himself. "
They went through cold and through
heal , foot-alistcred , cheek-smitten ,
back-scom-geii , lemyFt-a..hed. ! to do
their whole duty. That is the way
they measured life by the amount of
good they could do.
Do you want to know hew old
Luther was. ; how old Richard Baxlcr
was ; how old Philip Dodtliidge was ?
Why , jou cannot calculate the length
cf their lives hy any human arithme
tic. Add to their lives ten thousand
times ten thousand years , and you
have not e.\ijresseu it what they have
lived or will Ihe. Oh , what a stand
ard lhai is to measure a man's life
Ly ! There are those in this house
who think they have only lived thirty
years. They v-ill have lived a thou
sand they have lived a thousand.
Theie are those who think Ihey arc
eighty years of age. They have not
even entered upon their infancy , for
ono must become a babe in Christ lo
begin at-all.
New , I ilo yet knew vriiat your ad
vantages Oi disadvantages are ; I do
not know what your tact or talent is ;
[ do net know what may be the fasci
nation of your manners or the repul-
siveuess of them ; but I know this ;
Ihere is for you , my hearer , a field to
i-uittire , a harvest to reap , a tear lo
wipe away , a FGU ! lo pave. If you
na\e worldly means , consecrate Ihem
Lo Christ. If jou have eloquence , use
it on the slue that Paul and WHber-
"orco used ihehs. If you have learn
ing , put it al ! into Ihe poor box of Ihe
ivorld's suffering But if you have
joce of tlic-re neither wealth , nor elo-
luence , ncv learning you , at any rate ,
: a\e a s > miie with which you can en-
: oirage the disheartened ; a frown
.vith which you may blast injustice ;
i voice v.ith v hich jmi may call the
vandcrer back to God. "Oh , " you
say , "that is a very sanctimonious
: iew of life ! " It is not. It is the only
) right view of life , and it is tlie only
jright view of death. Contrast the
! eath-scene of a man who has meas-
ii-cd life by the worldly standard with
he death-scene of a man who has
neasurcd life by the Christian stand-
inl. Quin. the actor , in his last mo-
nents , said , "I hope Ihis tragic scene
nil Foon bs over ? and I hope to keep
ny dignity to the last. " Malherbes
aid in his last moments to the con-
essor , "Hold your tongue ! ycur mis-
style puts me out of conceit
nth heaven. " Lord Chesterfield in his
iisl moments , when he ought to have
icen praying for his sou ! , bothered
limself about the proprieties of the
ick-room , snd Paid , "Give Daybcles a
hair. " Godfrey Kneller spent Ins last
loi.rs on earth in drawing a diagram
f his own monument. e
J
Compare the billy and horrible de-
°
arture of such men with the seraphic
; low on the face cf Edward Payson ,
{
s he said in his last moment ; "The
ireezes of heaven fan me. I lioat in
. sea of glory. " Or , with Paul the ' _
iposlle , v.'ho said in his last hour. "
a
I am now ready to be offered up , and
S
he lime of my departure is at hand.
have fought the good fight. I have
: ept the faitn. Henceforth there is
aid up for me a cro-.vn of righteous- '
a
es which the Lord , the righteous
udge , will give me. " Or , compare ic
nth the Christian death-bed that you
, -itnessed in your own household. Oh.
ny friends , Ihis world is a false god !
t will consume you with the blaze _
'
u which it accepts your sacrifice , , .
i'hile the righteous shall be held in '
verlasting remembrance ; and when
he thrones have fallen , and the monufa
fa
nents have crumbled and the world
as perished , they shall banquet with 11
he conquerors of earth and the hier-
a
rchs of heaven.
This is a good day in which to be-
in a new style of measurement. How
Id art thou ? You see the Christian
. -ay of measuring life and Ihe worldly
; ay of measuring it. I leave it to you
o say which is the wisest and besl
ii
ray. The wheel of lime has turned
Ic
ery swiftly , and it has hurled us on. j . ,
'he old year has gone. The new year „
as come. For what yon and I have : o'
een launched upon it , God only i
nows. Now let me ask you all. j ! j
Ia\e you made any preparation for
lie future ? Ycu have made prepara-
ion for time , my dear brother ; have
ou made any preparation for etcr-
ity ? Do you wonder that when that
ian on the Huds'bn river , in indigna-
ion , lore up the tract which was
anded him , and just one word landed
n his coat-sleeve the rest of the
ract being pitched into the river
that one word aroused his soul ? It
was that one word , so long , so broad ,
so high , so deep "eternity ! " A dy
ing woman , in her last moments , said ,
"Call it back. " They said , "What do
you want ? " "Time , " she said , "call
it back ! " Oh , it cannot be called
back ; wo might lose our health , and ,
perhaps , recover it ; we might lose our
good name and get that back ; but time
gone is gone forever. * * *
What fcols we all are to prefer the
circumference to the center. What a
dreadful thing it would be Ifv we
should be suddenly ushered from this
wintry world into the May-time or
chards of heaven , and if our pauper
ism of sin and sorrow should be sud
denly broken up by a presentation of
an emperor's cr.stle surrounded by
parks with springing fountains anil
paths , up and down which angels of
God walk two and two.
In 1823 the French resolved that at
Ghent they would have a kind of mu
sical demonstration that had never
been heard of. It would be made up of
the chimes cf bells and the discharge
of cannon. The experiment was a per
fect success. What with the ringing
of the bells and Ihe report of Ihe ord
nance , the city trembled , and the hills
shook with the triumphal march that
was as strange as it was overwhelming.
With a most glorious accompaniment
will God's near children go into their
high residence , when the trumpets
shall sound and the Last Day has
come. At the signal given , the bells
of the towers , and cf the lighthouses ,
and of the cities , will strike their
sweetness ir.lo a last chime that shall
ring into the heavens and float off
upon Ihe sea , joined by the boom of
bursting mine and magazine , aug
mented by all the cathedral towers of
heaven the harmonies of earth and
the symphonies of the celestial realm
making up one great triumphal inarch ,
fit to celebrate the ascent of the re
deemed to where they shall shine as
the stars forever and ever.
GREAT SPANISH ACTRESS.
The Daughter Of n jci , Merchant of
Madrid.
Or.e must love Madiid and be famil
iar with its history to know how rep
resentative is the Spanish theater of
its glory , its genius and its beauty ,
says the New York Herald. It arose
phoenixlike fjom the very ashes of Ihs
famous Coliseum of the Cross , whose
performers , toward the close cf last
century , crested that sitmosphere cf
abandon and fanta.-y which is the very
breath of life to the modern Spanish
stage. Far twenty years the famous
Rafael Calve nir.de the Spanish theater
the representative of the choicest dra
matic art of his poople. His death left
a vacancy which was not filled until
the appearance of Maria Guerrero.
The season in Mad'-id lasts barely six
month ? . During Ihe rest of the year
: he company nik ? tours lo Ihe prov
inces or abroad. In 1897 , for example ,
it scored brilliant successes througn-
jut the countries of Spanish America.
Fliis year a tour of Europe is con-
.emplated. wilh a first appearance at
Paris. The choicest classic and mori-
? rn drama will form its repertory. The
: on Fany. which the Figaro has hap-
liiy called a "company of hidalgos. "
s manured by Mne. Guerrero and her
itisband , Smor Fernando Diaz of
Mentioza , a feliow-aftor. and by title
he mfifquis of Fontanar.
The 'laughter of a rich merchant o"
UndriJ and carefully educated in a
: onvent , an irresistible vocation at-
racted her to the stage. She made
ler debut at the Spanish theater in
SOO. In 1S92 , _ at the Comedia. she
nade her first great success. She has
ivcr since retained her place at the
lead of her art in Spain.
Eucalyptus Iivcij > cnI- .
Germany is about to make a radical
ieparture in paving some of the streets
n its big cities with the \vcol of the
ucalyptus tree. The substance has
icen Icsted thoroughly in the Antip-
des. and Ihe German authorities are
atisficd that it is better lhan stone
or the purpose. Eucalyptus wood has
ieen in use in Sydney. N. S. W. , as
treet paving material for Ihe past ten
ears. It lias proved tn be so service-
bl ard durable that all the principal
trrets of lhat city have been paved
, -ith it. The great density , hardnes ?
nd elasticity of the wood of certain
inds of cura'yptus trees , rich : n pitch
nd fatty oils make the wood morf
daplnbse fcr tli" purpose than that of
ny other tree. It is ? aid to he proof
gainst rapid deterSoraticn and does
ol absorb Ihe moirture of city streets ,
"or hygienic as well as economical
eascns Germany is now expcrimenling
, -ilh it. In Loipsic .1 street in the
usiest section of Ihe city has been-
aved half with eucalyptus wood and
alf ordinary material under equal cir-
unistances and Conditions. Despite
ts hardness , the wood surface does
ot get slipppry ami it seems to be su-
erior to aspbalc in many ways. Dres-
en and several other German cities
re making similar experiments.
Another I'.ilr.
A new anecdote to show the evils of
r.temperance is found in Modern So-
iety. A Russian peasant returning
rom town , where ho had bought a naw
air of boots and drunk a few glasses
f spirils , fell asleep by the roadside ,
ud was stripped of his boots by a
ight-fingered tramp. The fellow's
lecp remained unbroken until a pass-
ng wagoner , seeing him lying half
cross the track , shouted to him to
take his legs out of the way. " "My
igs ? " echoed the half-aroused sleep-
r , rubbing his eyes , "those legs a'm'f
line mine had boots on ! "
Why isn't a man who wears specta-
les troubled with see-sickness ?