FEAR RETURN OF THE DEAD Significance of Str nge Funeral Rite* That Prevail Among Un civilized Peoples. Nearly all savage people (and not a f« w civilized ones), dread lest the dead should return to trouble them. For this reason an Australian tribe v.'dl always desert a camp in which a man has died, and erect new mlaitiias at some distant spot. Among many African tribes a hole la knocked in the ■wall of a hut in which a man dies, and the corpse Is carried through that In siead of through the doorway, so that the spirit of the dead man may not he able to find its way back. Some Boftiean tribes have a similar dread, find elaborate precautions are taken to prevent the dead from returning to the living. At the graveyard a stick, cleft in the shape of a V, Is placed tp the ground, and through this the funeral procession passes In single file. As soon as the coffin has been placed on the stage erected for the purpose, the people commence their re turn. following one another’s heels as quickly as possible, saying as they re pass through the V-shaped stick: "Keep back, close out all things evil «nd sickness.” When the whole par ty has passed through, the cleft ends of the stick are tied together, and this is then regarded as "a wall that sep juates the living from the dead." By ho doing they believe that they shut out the spirit of the deceased. They believe that the spirit of the dead is not aware that life has left the body until a short time after the coffin has been taken to the graveyard, and then not until the spirit has had leisure to notice the clothes, weapons, and oth er articles belonging to its earthly es tate, which are placed with the coffin. Pastor’s Puzzle Made Plain. The pastor of a West Philadelphia church was very much surprised and pleased Inst Sunday night when in the course of the service a crowd of per sons fully 40 strong entered and seat ed themselves in the rear pews. The service continued with the clergyman congratulating himself on his unusual ly large congregation when suddenly the door opened and a man stuck in his head. ' Here she comes," he announced in fi loud whisper. Instantly the late comers arose en masse and rushed to the door. Tho pastor was so perplexed at the strange occurrence that after service he spoke to one of the vestry who had been Standing by the door. "Don’t you know what happened?" asked the vestryman, laughingly. "No," an voted the clergyman, “but 1 would lilii to.” "Why, a ear broke down right in front, of the church. Everybody got out after a few minutes, and, seeing a chance to sit down, they all came in hero, leaving one man on watch." Dating a Skull. The ingeniousness in placing the date of the Gibraltar skull at 600,000 years ago lies in the fact that the basis of argument thus laid defies tea 8