.vi 5! t.2-r;-- . ?" m&$?&3w!s&- r-r?-j 5. --.-,' J6. 3.Vi Wj i ? t y&y5&' -L " A -. V, -? i. - - fc , r Tr w 5HpV5 i - -. .. It. T & r K &. I-.. The Ward of f Hm rtnuii. CopTRCkt. Mlbr A. CHAPTER V. Tae Training of Fridtjof the Wh tkat kas youth and a healthy body is not made a new being by a night of dreamless slumber? Vak eaed by tke sun's caress, to the morn ing soag of bloving trees. Randalin faced her future as became the kins woman of warriors. The tent was empty, though scat tered furs along the benches showed where sleepers might have rested. But from outside, a clatter of hurry ing feet and excited voices broke sad denly upon her. Did it mean a battle? She sat up, straining eye and ear. The jubilant voices shouted greetings that fast missed being intelligible. While she was trying to cnravel it an. one pair of the hurrying feet halted before the entrance. After a muttered word with the sentinel, they came on and brought the son of Lod brok into view. The girl started np with a gasp of alarm, then made the strange dis covery tkat she was no longer afraid of him. Though he showed against the linen wall as brawny and big of jowl as he had loomed up the eight before, she found herself moved only to dislike. What had been the matter last night? Understanding nothing of the clairvoyant power of sharpened nerves, she set it down to cowardice, and put on an extra swagger now as her eye met his. Rothgar surveyed the sprig of defi ance with no more than a perfunc tory interest. "It seems that you are the son of Frode the Dane,' he said in his heavy voice. "Frode was a mighty raven feeder; for his sake I am going to support you until you can go well on your legs. Have you had anything to eat?" As she shook her head. Randalin's heart rather softened toward him. But it hardened azain when the Z&o' jffet arJrjVVawPiaaaa "WCrtar aWMflfeJ'saBUVBaBBT mt'f-X-yJyJfl JZfV'L aaMmKOa. "" i-, " "vfy ,,, ' yjr ' ' She was kept turning, twisting, dodging, till her breath began to come in oasaa. thralls had brought the food, and he sat down and begun to share it. His thick lips, his heavy breathing bah, he was revolting! Before she had fin ished the meal she had come to the conclusion that she hated him. As he swallowed his last mouthful of food. Rothgar said abruptly. "Ca nute h" put your training into my hands. It is his will that I find out how much skill you have with weap ons. Can you handle a sword?" Randalin hesitated, uncertain how far her idle play at fencing with her brother would bear her out. "I think you will find my skill slight. I have I have grown so fast that I lack strength in my arms. And I have not exercised myself as much as I should have done." "It is in my mind that you have been a lazy cub," the warrior pro nounced deliberate sentence, as he set down his goblet. "It is easily seen that Frode has been over-gentle with on. Stand forth and show what your skin is worth. This sword will not be j too heavy." Selecting the smallest of the jeweled blades upon the floor, he thrust it into her hands. It is good to have in one's veins the liquid fire of the North, blood to which ., , .-, :.. in-,, ., ,.. the presence of peril is like the touch of the Ice King to water. At the first clash of the blades, strange tingling fires began to flash through Randalin and then a hardness that burnt while it froze- The first pass, her hands had parried seemingly by their own instinct; now she flung back her tumbling curls and proceeded to give those hands the aid of her eyes. Three times her blade met Rothgar's square ly, and deftly turned it aside. The big warrior gave a grunt of approval and tried a more complicated pass. Her backward leap, the sudden dou bling of her body, and the excited clawing of her free hand, were not graceful swordsmanship, certainly; but her steel was in the right place. The next instant, she even drew a lit tle clink from one of the Jotun's sil ver buttons. As she was recovering herself, she felt something like a pin prick her wrist; and she wondered vaguely what brooch had become unfastened. But she gave it scant attention, for the big blade was threatening her from a new direction. She leaped to meet it, and for the next minute was kept turning, twisting, dodging, till her breath began to come in gasps, and her exhausted hand to relax its hold. Her weapon was almost falling from it by the time the son of Lod brok lowered his point. Imitating him. she stood leaning on her sword. Tn"TTg futile gasps after her lest breath. A grim slowly wrinkled his face as he watched her. Tt appears that oae who is mo big ger around than, a willow twig may be capable of a berserk rage." he said. "Do you not feel that you are wound ed?" Following his eyes down to her haad. she found blood trickling from her sleeve. Oh, and pais! Now that had wakeaed to it pain! prick stiaging, stabbing. Dropping her caught at her wrist. id k kappea? I tkoagkt a had pricked me!" with laaghter. he caaght aad tossed her ia tae air. -Apam! he saoated. "Apia! A heard os wffl sea '- . , King Canute af Usfl C XcCXURG A OOu share in tke battle. I swear it by tke hilt of tke Hanger! " For a moment the girl forgot her wound aad hung limp in the great bands. "The battler she gasped. "I I fight?" Roaring afresh, the Jotun gave her another jubilant toss. "Ton bluster ing field-mouse! Showing your teeth already? Why knows? If you meet a blind Englishman without a wea pon, yon may even kill him. Here," he tumbled her roughly to the ground, "tie up your pin scratch and then come after me. I must go up yonder to Canute, under the oak tree. Putting out one great band, he patted her soft curls as though she were some shaggy dog, then hurried out to his chief. It was a respite to be alone, aad she accepted it gratefully. But it was only a respite; she never for a moment lost sight of that. The battle must be faced, and faced boldly. One word of reluctance would be the surest be trayal of her secret. A betrayal meant Rothgar! She shivered as she fancied she still felt his greasy touch upon her hair. To become his property that he might even kiss! With a gasp of relief, she turned her thoughts back to the battle. None too soon; above the outside din a horn clarioned. loud and clear. Through the nush that followed could be heard the voice of Canute, assign ing their positions to the different bands. I and my kinsman. Ulf JarL shall be foremost. To the right of my stand ard Edric Jarl shall stand, and the men with whom he joined us. He shall have another standard. To the left of my bodyguard shall stand the men of Eric of Norway. Friends and kinsmen shall stand together. There each will defend the other best." Then Rothgar's harsh voice sounded, shouting her name Fridtjof s name. Giving her scarf a hasty twist about her arm, she knotted it with her teeth; and seizing the sword in her little brown hand clotted with her own blood, she ran out into the tumult. Shrill and clear from the opposite hills came the notes of the English horns, as down the green slope moved the ranks of English bowmen. The hum of Danish voices sank in a breathless hush. Down the line came the young King upon his white war horse, clad for the battle as for a feast. The sun at noonday is not more fiercely bright than was his face. His long locks flowed behind him on the wind like tongues of yel low flame: and like northern lights in a blue northern sky. the leader's Are flashed in his eyes. As he came, he was calling out terrible reminders; words that were to the ears of his champing host what the smell of blood is to the nostrils of wolves. His answer was the bursting roar of the Danish battle-cry. Like an ava lanche loosed from its moorings, they swept down the hillside upon the Eng lish bowmen. From that moment, Randalin rode in a dream. The son of Lodbrok was beside her, singing as he went, and tossing his great battle- "- IT, 7 the handle. In front of them rode Canute the King; in his hand his gleaming blade, whose thin edge he tried now and again on a lock of his floating hair, while he laughed with hoyish delight. On. till the bowmen's faces were plain before them; then suddenly it began to hail "the hail of the string." Arrows! One hissed by the girl's ear. and one bit her cloak, to hang there quivering with impotent fury. The man on her right made a terrible gur gling sound and put up his hand to tear a shaft from his throat. Would they be slain before Canute rose in his stirrups with a great shout. The horns echoed it; the trot became a gallop, and the gallop a run. On. on, into the very heart of the hail-cloud. How the stones rattled on the armor! And hissed! There! a man was death-doomed; he was falling. To the side of the young leader, Thorkel the Tall waa spurring, head ing urgently from his saddle. "Craft. my King! Craft! Why spin so much good blood? listen to Edric the Gain- Canute's furious curse cut him short. "To the Troll with your craft! Swords shall make us. or swords shall mar us. Use your blade, or I will sheathe it in you." Only the wind that took it from his lips heard the Tall One's aaswerr for at that moment his horse reared aad sheered away before a spear-prick, and into the rift a handful of English rushed with shouts of triumph. There were no more than half-a-dozen of them, and all were on foot, the two whose eoId-hHted sword pro claimed their nobility of birth wy the lot of their lesser comrades, ac cording to the old Saxon war-custom; but it-needed not the daring of. the at tack to mark them as the very Sower of English chivalry. The young ao ble. who hovered around his chief much as Rothgar circled about Canute, would have been lordly ia a serfs to nic; aad the leader's royal kearfag distinguished him even more than his mighty frame. At tke sight of him Rothgar attered a great cry of "Edmaad!" aad moved forward, swinging his pKf r Bat tke IroasMe caaght it oa, km shield aad delivered a sword-taraat ia that drepatd the Daae'a arm V &IXJ. 1 : f. -ir-ri i. . . .-A?-kL.. ?wjLrS3L -... . J, -..,.. .V. il.-V.j . - 6 wtSarT-- .A- JtJica.. jlSifc SyattS MflC Aft at MS, MlgKS MCI kaam.piaeaed fiartaafeksaaa, bat tke Caste's siapss had need to dart like a northern light The aobJe sad oae of tke admen bad forced tkair war to tae side tram which Tnernel had been riven, aad a third tkreateaed aim treat tke rear. Three atode bias at aim as vitk oae motion. It was a strange thing tkat saved" i aim Baadalfa coald explain it Jeast of alL Bat m a lightning flash it waa bust iato her miad that, while her Icing's sword was a match for the two ia treat of him, the one he hind was going to deal him his death. Aad eves as she thought, it. she found that she had tkrown herself across her horse's seek aad throat oat her sword aim out witk tke force and frenzy and down iato tke shoulder of the Englishman. In a kind of dazed won der, she saw Ms blade, fall from his grasp and his eyes roll up at her. as he staggered backward. Canute laughed out. "Well done. Berserker!" and redoubled his play against those before him. A turn of his wrist disarmed the soldier, aad his -poiat touched the young noble's breast; but before he could lunge, the mighty figure of Ed mund rose close at hand, his blade heaved high above his head. (To be continued.)- SACKED CACTUS OF INDIANS. Plant Once Important Object to In- an Abertflima. The chief Sabbath attraction in an uptown church recently was a pyra mid cactus. It held the most con spicuous place oa the altar, and scores of strangers visited the church to see it. "It was given to our home mission ary, said oae of the members, "by an Indian convert in New Mexico. The cactus grows only in caverns, and is found in the Gaudalupe mountains. The beautiful vase-shaped maroon blooms develop to over, two inches in diameter, and there are as many as 120 on a mature plant. In early times the faithful Indians used the caverns as churches, and beautiful places of worship they must have made, with majestic walls of variegated lime stone wreathed in flowering juniper and mountain laureL They marched over the mountain trails in spring chanting seasonal songs to their gods. When they reached the mouth, of the cavern the chiefs were decorated with the pyramid cacti, and a dance was performed. "Then chanting, dancing, and the sacrifice of animals took place in the cave. Often the redskins, worn out with their exertions, fell asleep and stayed through the day and night of devotion within the mysterious walls, j To sleep near the sacred cactus plants was the same to the aborigines as a visit to Mecca is to the Mohammedan. The touching of its leaves was a puri fication in itself. From some mys terious part of the plant a liquid was extracted to serve for medicine, and the flower petals were placed upon a babe's forehead at christenings. New York Times. Russia's Many Holidays. Russia has over 100 universal holi days in the year, and. in addition, every village has the holdiay of its own saint, so that on the average there are only about 18 working days in a month. Each village also has certaia holi days of its own. Thus the village of Mikhailovo celebrates as a festival the anniversaries of: "The day the village was burnt down in 1897." "The day Piotr Morosoff tumbled into the ravine and broke his neck." "The day Pibtr was buried." "The day the Czar Alexander Niko laivitch. the emancipator, visited Count Zhilinsky's bouse at Bobr." "The day the Virgin Mary was seen bringiag lood to the famine-stricken in 189L" All these festivals are celebrated by the consumption of "gorkf (another pet name for vodka). The drink is not paid for by private individuals, but out of the communal revenue, the amount to be expended being fixed at a special meeting of the "mir," or vil lage parliament. Stray Stories. Trouble at Sea. Harry Lehr and John Jacob Astor visited Philadelphia recently in a mo tor car. They stayed overnight in Philadelphia, and during the evening a number of young men called on them. Mr. Lehr was in good spirits. His conversation was amusing. The faTir happened to turn on sea voyaging, and he said: "Once, crossing the Atlantic, a tre mendous row arose among the sailors. They fought down in the forecastle like a lot of beasts. Luncheon was going on at the time, and the first offi cer left the table to see if he could quell the disturbance. "He had only been gone a little while when the hubbub began to die down. Everything was quiet when he returned. The captain called across the saloon to him in an approving tone: "Things seem to be smoother now.' Tes.' returned the first officer. We have ironed the sailors, sir.' " A Change for the Worse. Jacob H. Sen iff, the New York bank er, was talking about plain and direct speech. "To be plain and direct is always best," he said, "but to be too plain and direct is to be uncouth to be ludi crous. "A good example of that was afford ed by a clergyman. He was address ing a congregation of fishermen, and he waated to be sure they would un derstand him. " The Bible teEs us. said this cler gyman, that it is as difficult for a camel to pass through a needle's eye as for a rich man to enter the king dom of heaven. That, though, is a roundabout, confused way of stating the case. I should state it like this: "'It is as dimeult for a rich -n to enter the kingdom of heen as for a shad to go up a smooth-bark apple tree tail fore: Harmless Korean Emperor. The emperor of Korea was paying tribute to Chiaa as his suzerain this time ten years ago. He may be quite as inept aa ke is said to be. but ac cording to Lord Curzon he is personal ly aot at aa a bad fellow. He has an unpleasant habit of ckewiag the betel while eae is talking to him. Upon tke royal brow rests a double tiered violet headpiece; km robe is of scarlet fig ured sflk. paneled witk gold embroid ery aad. ke wears a gold studded pro jectiacbett. He m smaX af statmw, bat pleasant of featarea, gentle aad wkk wmnmc ways. "Qnite a harm less little maa," writes a. traveler. Did She Threw Him Overt ."That Charlie Pinchbeck m a "What kas he doaer "Ton kaow, he's engaged to Rickrack. WelL he foaad a riac somewhere ct a bargain and gave It to her. It was too small for her flager. What do you suppose he did?" "Wkatr "Advised her ta diet until she coald get it oa." Stray Stories. Must Leek the Little Sister was complaining tear fully about something her mother aad told her to do. "Very wen," said grandma, "we will trade oft! this mamma for aaotker one.' "AH right," said little sister, "hat well have her look just like my mam ma now, wont we?" a w -"Tl -J - .'A" Rescuer How lucky It is I'm a t'unner! Now I can save a life by running for help! When Subjects RebeL For three weeks he had borne all -he horrors of spring cleaning without a murmur. Then his patience- gara way. "And you," sobbed bis wife "yoa used to tell me I was your aueea." "Yes." he said, with a wild glare in his eye; "but when a man finds his queen has used his tobacco jar for pale oak varnish and his best meer schaum pipe for a tact hammer he he begins to grasp the advantages -of a republic" Stray Stories. Force of Habit, The master plumber had become ich. and was going abroad for his health. On tne voyage a school of whales was sighted and the plumber was seen to rub his hands ia cies. "Why is he so happy?" asked a cari ous passenger. "He can't help it," whispered the captain. 'He imagines each spoat ia a burst of water pipe, to be repaired by him at his old rates." Her Ruling Pi "The next house I build IH leave out all the woodwork." "Why so?" "Because at home now every time I get a poor dinner my wife says: There was no time to bother with the cooking, Henry. We had to wash all the woodwork to-day.' " How It Looked to Him. She had been hammering the piano for half an hour. "And you call that playing?" he remarked- "Yes," she returned indignantly. "Why not?" "It looks to me like work." Those Melancholy Days. "I wonder what inspired Bryant to write the line, "The melancholy days have come, " remarked Mrs Smithers inquiringly. "Why, in Bryant's day the women did their housecleaning ia the faD,' said Smithers. " Evening Up. T wish you would not give me sack short weight for my money, saidthe customer to a grocer, who had an out standing bill against him. "And I wish you wouldn't give aw such long wait for mine," replied th' grocer. Willing to Oblige. "I may as well tell you, young man." said Miss Spooner's father, "that I always close up the house and turn out the lights by 10 o'clock." "Don't bother to-night sir," replied Jack Nervy. "Ill attend to that Car you." An Unwilling Victim. Miss Q. Ery Who made your tvoae i, little boy? Willie B. Oston Madam, way da you interrogate what is a setf cilJcat truth? I am the victim of arq ers good intentions. He Didnt -av Councilman 'lawkaway Do think your paper will print an I said? Reporter Oh; yes. Councilman Tawkaway nice, m be glad to see my speech m run.- Reporter Oh. 1 doat say wen prmt your whole sreeei; well merely print what you said. He Had The Bride Ten me yoa proposed weren't yoa a fittle vous for fear I skoald say "No"? Tke .Bridegroom (who far mosey) I skoald tkmk I Why. I owed nearly $MM, am creditors were getting awfaOy tke oae maa ia a TJiggs IsthataH? I yarded himself as tka LJsasnaaHenCC Eaw Bsamw. aaav jm j -i Taw jr - paKHr c JaTaBaaflE atff a9eee&tPaTei 4afY7aaam& r jm .NBsusr5aav. mU aWxav!aKaav NjawNJa m T" tkeasjktker aaS habitants. "What's aoiac am native of Wita a plied eaickly There's gwiae to he a meetia of tke barkeepers "Are. yoa sere ef that asked. "Certainly I am. Aiat I a txm tke tables for an them aew? Tkey ought to be a good crowd far moaey; yoa knew, they make it easy, and they ought to let it go loose. They are tke slickest lookm' crowd I have seen down here. They beat the members of the Iegislatare an to pieces." he coatinued. While tke waiter am waa thaa de livering htmsptf oae of the judges of the ccart of appeals was standing a short distance away conversing with several lawyers. The colored maa caught sight of them, and. turning to his questioaer, said: "That big maa there, I bet. is a barkeeper in one of the Dig hotels. He is the slickest aad fattest maa of them alL" Baltimo-e Ssn. JAPS USE A GOOD POWDER. It Never Faila a io Off When De sired and Daas Effective Warfc. The explosive powder used by the Japaaese ia their projectiles is the best ever employed ia warfare- It is the iaveatioa of Prof. Shimnw. a Jap anese. He claims that with regard to explosive force the powder stands next to blasting gelatia aad oa a much higher level- than dynamite or gun cotton. A handful exploded on an iron plate oae and one-half inches thick forces a hole through the plate. A shell charged with the compounds ordinarily used ia Europe is broken iato a comparatively small number of fragments, whereas one charged with Shimose powder bursts iato from 2,000 to 3,000 pieces. At a special test made two years ago a six-inch shell loaded with gun cotton made a hole a little larger than its own diameter in the target and burst with, trifling effect in the back ing of coaL A shell charged with Shimose powder tore an aperture three feet ia diameter. The composi tJoa is handled with, the greatest safe ty and it costs only about one-half of gua cotton. Surarteiiif. Mrs. Stuyvesaat Fish relishes few things more thaa puncturing the pre tensions of a flirtatious fop. A well known Manhattan beau, who pleads guilty to 60, was discussing his physi cal condition within earshot of the lady. "Feeling pretty well myself. Did think my wind a' bit bad, but doctor says my arteries are as soft as a babe's aad my heart works like a well-built pomp. Pretty good for an old 'ua of 60, hey?" "Quite surprising, indeed," inter posed Mrs. Fish in her cynical way. "How so, how surprising?" he asked suspiciously. "Surprising that your heart should work at all after you've thrown it at the feet of every good-looking woman in New York." New York Mail and Express- Frost an the Julep. VThen the liquid is all ambcretJ, Toned with spices aad trapped. And the fluid in thermometers Touch one hundred in the shade How gently rolls the world away. Hot soon the hours pass. When the frost is on the jalep. And the straw is in the giass: . What pretty dreams come laughing with Each vigorating- quaff. And as we keep on quaffing, how We linger, lore and laugh. Until the raveled vestiges Of care, and all they pass. When the frost is on the julep. And the straw is in the glass! What fond, endcring memories Come trooping back from year". Unmoved by stinging conscience whips. UnburntT by gnUing tears On. how we drift asd drowse and dream And watch the humdrum pass. When the frost is on the julep? And the straw is in the glass I Yet. hold! The while we drift and dream. The world moves on apace: The sands are filtering through the glass. And we we lose the racel Oh. how the dead years haunt us And watch the humdrum pass. When the frost is on the julep. And the straw is in the glass! New Orleans Time-Democrat. Too Hungry to Heed. Aa old. old woman sat on the curb of Park Sow. Her clothing was rags. Her bleared eyes were deep in a set ting of wrinkles. Upon her scant gray hair there was something that once had been a hat. She trembled" with weakness. Beside her was a bas ket filled with trumpery, evidently a stock in trade. Passing her were scores of well-clad men and women. Few noticed the wretched wreck. Her feet, shoeless, but wrapped in strips of carpeting, had been bruised on the stones of the street, and she was ad justing the covering. "Terrible!" said a lady to her escort. "Yes," he replied. "WhereTI we go for lunch?" New York World. A Gamin's Caaatic Criticism. Lawrence DOrsay, the English ac tor, lads the American gamin a source of endless delight. While standing in the doorway of a theater in Philadel phia he saw a newsboy leading a dis reputable yellow dog by a string. "If yoa will give me that dog," said D'Or say, "TO get you Into the show." The boy replied: "How do I know you'd take care o' de pup? The actor laugh ed aad got the little chap a front seat ia the gallery: Next day he saw the newsboy and asked: "How did you like the show?" "Huh!" growled the Tm glad I kept me dog." Black: Skin Prsssction Against Oa tke bare arm paiat a broad line in Isdiaa ink: aad expose the arm to tke strong- saasadae. A slight infiam matins sets ia oa the unprotected -skxa. bat aot aader the black paiat, which eadsdes the Hgat rays (bat, af coarse, aet tke keat rays). Some days after the skin is darker (sunburned), except where tke Indian ink was is a wkke One in the ag the arm again, the sets iaoary ia tke white line. Tke browa pijmi af caused by the saa (sunburned) at tae first ex- protects tke skfa against tke rays. Taerefare are aegruea td tiaielsta of white skin metres ia the tropics from tae saa by black or red News. aroased tie cariosity ef tke ia- .aaaMBaaaaarBaaaawlW 5$S m( TmvI9bW aaaaCaaaal a catered waiter. 'm,mmSSSm5SS9lSmmBtBM kaewinr air. the aegro re- &&l&GM& . -SaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaK ferei to saanty SVJM aegrses fta m- Vsr ia the Transvaal aad to agree to delrrer them at Ioareaco-MaraweK witnin twelve leaks, at SIM per "-rdaad Isdgkmc- T,KMUHKjflF3Bhv " -- aw,MmM. aaBa2aaaaaaaViwBBBBBBBBaaTBBBBBBBBBBaaa ..aamamMBBBBBBBBBBBBBBaL herer asked a SKmBKSStStftJtKKIKmKKBK Jty-jli A ' GORtVCTED JT MaryMad." -EaXraM VK. FKaUOfinaaf -?' waa Wa-fcZLVfc, Z?'rLJJJZZ .::" .- - " - costrfoettaae cC that risitars at this fa ir wish to areseaL aad wrald Tae oteased to answer correspoad- cata (Twtrmr information on subjects AUtsresa x. J. wraca: waa- Xowa.7 HORTICULTURE IN RURAL SCHOOLS. There kas been a great deal of talk lately in regard to the teaching of agriculture, and horticulture ia the rural schools. Doubtless great good coald be accomplished in this way if there were teachers qualined for the work. Bat the so-called normal schools tarn out too many drilled au tomata and do little in the real teach ing of aatare. If the country school teachers could all be given a short coarse In agriculture and horticulture at tke state colleges of agriculture we might after a while have mea aad women prepared to take up the work in an elementary way in the rural schools. But as the short courses at these colleges mostly come in the win ter months, when the teachers are em ployed, there arises a need for sum mer schools for this purpose. These might be made a strong force in the progress of nature teaching. With teachers enthused for the work, there would soon come some application of what they have learned in the plant ing and beautifying of the school grounds. There is nothing like' the actual work in planting trees and flow ers and caring for them to make chil dren fond of nature and her products, and there is nothing better calculated to drive the young people from the farm than the comfortless and ugly schoolhouses and their ill-kept sur roundings. Getting the young people interested in plant life will then be apt to draw them to the farmers in stitutes, and the institutes will never accomplish what they should in the the education of the farmer till they catch him young enough. H. B. Gurier of DeKalb, Illinois, re cently reported at a farmers' institute that as soon as his cows were taken off of ensilage and put on spring pas ture (even though the pasture was good) their milk dropped off twenty per cent. Silos which thus increase the output of a cow twenty to twenty-five per cent are too valuable to ignore. If a farmer has twenty cows the silo will give as much milk as any five of them and costs nothing to feed. for ensilage is cheaper than any other winter feed. The lesson from this is that ensilage may be fed throughout the spring if not all the year round, supplementing other feed. STRAWBERRY ENEMIES. In common with all other domestic fruits the strawberry has its insect and fungus enemies, says a straw berry grower. Among the more de structive of the former are the white grubs, a name given to the larval stages of the different species of the June beetles. As these work no ap parent injury until the patch -is two years old. it is advisable where injury Is liable to occur to plow under the patch as soon as the first crop is harvested. Other insect pests are the Strawberry Sawfly, or slug, and the Strawberry Leaf Roller. These may be controlled to a certain extent by spraying. Rust, or Strawberry Leaf Blight, as it is commonly called, is perhaps the most destructive enemy of strawberry culture. This disease if not checked, soon spreads all over the leaves and attacks the fruit stems, often completely girdling them, caus ing them to shrivel up, and the berries are consequently useless. Fifty per cent of the crop is often lost from this cause. The most satisfactory remedy for this evil is spraying with the Bor deaux mixture, which should be ap plied in July or August of the previous year and before and after blossoming of the fruiting season. BREVITIES. Plausible lies are "facts made of wax." Klondfkers are having their golden daze. The silo is a cow buoy a dairy lighthouse. Money breeds the moral backbone oat of men. conceited Christian may be guilty of idolatry. A dishorning saw may raise a crop of cow peace. No. sir men with a dual purpose seldom do all they should. Make 'em eat dirt! Who? The crops. Pulverize the s"U so they can do it. It is a good maxim that "A man is bst dressed when his dress is suited to his business." But that is no rea son for patronizing an overall manu facturer who takes his patterns from a eag factory. POCKET GOPHERS. I have been over my fields this spring with a supply of poisoned par snips, to kQl those pests, the pocket gophers. I used strychnine in small pieces of parsnip, just about enough to make a good mouthful for the gopher. "Witk a spade an opening is made in their run-ways, into which a bit of the poison is placed aad the hole is then eavered. In a day one can lay out a fsod deal of poison and a great many gaphers, which are very destructive fa tke orchards, meadows and an cul grated fields. Do not think that because the hi hot the cattle do not want salt. If they have it where they can Men: a Utile of it every day they win aot get so hungry for it, and your milk test wffl be the more uniform for ' fact. A Hard Trip. T understand that your husband took a fiyer in the stock market." Tee. answered, young Mrs. Tor Bias, "that's what Charley caUed it. Bat I gaess he must have used oae of newly-invented air, ships." He Has Bbjgs Did yoa ever notice kea&ky looking man Dr. Pellet is? s- he looks so different his iti its. I woader who kis f UK. wtnUta? toVfwCS ON CORN CULTIVATION. How to caltivate core to tka advantage is a question very alive. It seems tkat ao rale earn be laid dowa which is beat. The object of caltrratioa is to produce tke most favorable coaditioas for tae growth of tke can. aad wafle tke ideal eaadi tkm is largely tke same always, tke methods of reaching it are many, aad vary according to sarroandiag stances, conditions aad previous tillage. The coaditioa to be attained m to hold ia the soil the fullest amoaat of moisture that does not retard tke growth of the crop, and to keep the weeds from growing. Every knows that by plowing up tae wi he destroys them and that by taining a surface mulck ke keepa tke moisture ia tke ground. Knowing- tke object sought, every one growing: corn should carefully study tke coaditioas prevailing ia his owa fields, and use such methods that, ia his best judgment will turn these conditions to good account. The meth ods that would be best adapted to one kind of soil might be the very worst for some other soiL Consequently it is not wise to adopt any method with out careful consideration of its effect under the specific conditions prevail ing: To read and know of different methods is advisable, if it instructs along general lines, and it is a wise farmer who does it. But it is a still wiser one who gains general knowl edge and seeks to apply it to specific cases. Study the effects of different modes of cultivation and apply the one that seems best adapted to the particular needs in the ease. "Down in the woodland pasture The thistles and briers grow. And the buttercups are yellow as gold. And the daisies white as snow. And Brindle, and Bessie, and Gray. When the afternoons grow late. Take the trodden. homward path That leads to the barn-yard gate." POULTRY POINTERS. Save the meat scraps for your fowls. It is a good rule to scald out the drinking vessels once a week. Ground bone can be fed alone or in soft food. Tobacco stems covered with straw in the nests will prevent insect breed ing. Proper food and a variety of it make strong, healthy chickens. One disadvantage of guineas s that they are not good market fowls. If you want to keep eggs for aay length of time turn them over every day. Clean earth is one of the best ab sorbents that can be used in the poul try house. Whitewashing the nests, inside and out. is a good means of keeping them free from vermin. Mark your chicks each year so you can know their age, and kill or sell them after the third year. The jog by reason of its peculiar makeup needs more shade than any other domestic animal. The person who neglects shade for fat hogs is liable to meet with a loss for his negli gence. Hogs require a dense shade and an abundance of water with ac cess to the breezes. SUMMER REDOING. Too-many fanners have an idea that little bedding Is needed by either horses or cows during the summer. They take the stand that the bedding would be too warm for the animals. This is nonsense for the horse, espe cially, needs clean bedding during the months when it perspires freely from labor. Any material may be used for summer bedding that is used during the winter, but the bedding should be removed from the stalls each morn ing and aay that is to be put back should be thoroughly aired. Sawdust is good for bedding and will not be injurious to the soil provided it is mixed on the compost heap with manure and a certain amount of hay or straw bedding, so that when it is applied to the soil it will not be too hard to distribute. Many farmers use weeds for summer bedding and there is no objection to this as they are not used when in seed so that when thrown on the manure pile the seeds will be kept in full germinating power to make trouble later when placed on the farm. Bed the animals as care fully aad as cleanly during the sum mer as during the winter and they win be an the better for the good care. GRAVEL AND SHELLS. Gravel is valueless unless IK Is sharp. As soon as the fowl rounds off a sharp substance in the gizzard, it Is voided; hence, hens prefer sharp shells to round graveL The reason they eat more shells or more sharp grit of any kind when they are lay ing is because more food is then re quired, and consequently there is bet ter digestion. If an egg has specks or takes of "lime on the shen it does not imply that it Is due to feeding oys ter shells, as the same thing occurs when no oyster shells are gives. It may also be due to the food. As a rule such hens are fat. Some kinds of gravel are of limestone and of ex actly the same composition aa oyster shells. There is plenty of reason for west ern farmers complaining of excessive freight rates; but the maa who eon verts his grain into butter, wool or first-class fat ttocx wffl not be "bast ed" by tke fn hjhr ke kas to pay. Soft soap is a good scaly legs in fowls. faf Did He Think They Ware Cass? "Yoa offce holders." sneered the man who was vainly trying to be "don't die very often, do yoa?" "No." replied tke maa who one, as ke smiled benignly, "eary once." Stray Stories. Vary thiagsat St. Loais they reafiy appal the Tarn Aftert Hm! they tke kscai bills." OftCHAHO NOTES. to arane a fnrit tree l mot tafL Back tree must be earn drcaawtaacea. Tha principal tin aa.il mnat be to give it light, air. a anew farm, aad prevent its growtk aa it wffl spirt apart some day. For mataace. tram tka yoaag tree so it will aet spread its mala branches at oae poiat. "Open the top" is the cry of moat praners. aad a good oae. Once every year, sometimes twice, we have to teQ yoa to wait for a good soaking rain aad thaa tkrow a couple of forkfuls of straw maaure around every newly planted tree oa tke place. Do it first ekaace. Doa't aak why go do it. Old Peter Tumbledown lets his orchard grow into a tough sod. and is surprised tkat his aelgkbor. who does sot. has larger aad finer fruit than he. He does not seem to know that tough sod will not do for aa orchard. When a twig of your tree appears as aa if covered witk ashes, look sharp for Saa Jose scale: also, if whea the . bark of infected twigs is scraped an ofly yellowish liquid appears oa the surface. If aay fruit skoald be thinned it is the plum. Nature herself, recognizing that this fruit ia proae to overbear. sheds some fruit ia early summer. This is aot enough, however, aad the grower should continue the process af ter the June drop. Muzzle the horse in the yoaag orch ard and tie up tke single trees with fertilizer bags. Frequent harrowing: will destroy weeds by kffliag them while still very young and tender. vex. no gram npea Bear a young tree. Doat forget to go to a picnic occa sionally this summer; it is not time lost. Give the women and children the recreation and change which Is es sential to their well-being. The farm er who is so "practical" that he does not believe in recreation is practically idiotic in his blindness. He gets a fair share of change and recreation for himself in his weekly or semi weekly trips to town where he gos sips at the stores. Let him be wise enough to give his family the same amount of change from the humdrum aad drudgery of the farm. He will "get more work out of them" in the course of a year and a lifetime than he ever will by holding them continu ally at toiL Fruit is a profitable product of the farm even if none of It is sold. The eating of it promotes health, saves doctors' bills, and saves money that would be otherwise spent for thing3 to take its place. If there Is no fruit arrange for it; if some fruit is now grown, arrange for more. LAST CHANCE FOR RAPE. A CROP OF There is time yet. but it win soon pass away, for a crop of rape. I won der if one in ten of our readers grow rape. "What is that plant?" pointing to a rape field and saying that he had never seen or heard of it before. Rape is practically a rutabaga which srrows rapidly and converts all of it3 nutri ment into ruch succulent leaves in stead of storing it in the plant as does the rutabaga. Any land that is reasonably fertile will grow rape. Oat, wheat or rye stubble can be plowed and made fine and three or four pounds of seed sowed to the acre and covered lightly and if dry weather. roHed. The rape plant don't mind what kind of weather we have. Dwarf Essex rape seed looks like rutabaga seed, not turnip seed, as does the mustard rape. Many fanners have been badly injured by getting the worse than worthless seed. Stock can be turned Into it after the plants are eight or ten inches high. Even milch cows can have about two hours after they are milked to eat some. Many young men leave the country and go to town for city life, because town life is easy, or they think it i3. which serves the purpose of argu ment. The result is that ninety per cent of them earn enough money for grub, clothes, a street car ride and an occasional seat at a cheap theater. Farm life la aot over-luxurious, but it is not anywhere near so hard a3 it Is claimed to be, and compares favorably with average city life. Successful farmers are just as numerous as suc cessful business men. POULTRY NOTES. In nearly all cases the best aad strongest chicks come from two-year-old hens united with a good strong cockercL While there Is but little sale in mar ket for guineas, they are the nearest approach to the wild fowls of any meat known. It pays to bake food for young chicks. Take equal parts of coarse corn meal, wheat bran and a handful of meat or meal or ground scraps to a quart of the mixture and bake like a shortcake, using baking soda to light en it and enough wholesome fat to shorten so it can be easily crumbled. If weU baked it wffl keep a long time- It is a nice thing to have a first class education, but it is not absolute ly necessary. A very great many of our eminent and successful men never went to college aad a very great maay hare. Do aot set mixed uo in factions. Keep oat of aU little bug-house sqnab- bles do aot take sides we are here to work; doart you know mac? Johnny Was On. "Jeaaay." said his employer, "my aaat died yesterday and I shall be absent from the office to-day. I want yoa to look after things." "AH rigkr, sir," repUed Johnny. "1 hope youH see a good game." Oid He Da? "If yoa feel chilly said he, as they stroQed, "remesaber I have your shawl here aa my arm." "Ton might pat it aroaad me," ska ' V4 .-. :. .I'?t I . &2fi ijagBPli BfeaasasLjP jm m ilffafffirrJ -iTTTt laW t iihaV a Jjg t,skJfSrKJFmSKmmr!&SSJ-r Jm MP "I M 1 ffaagastf iJBpt!mr9mvr - vf