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About The Columbus journal. (Columbus, Neb.) 1874-1911 | View Entire Issue (June 26, 1907)
55MMnssssHHssssslssll 5.SS!SgfifiSS5BBS tlZUfVti; :i fc - .' ,&?... . ," C , .. iyr- - .- X- C "i K5! is.--" MiT1; t l' r,7 "t , rr -1 fe jj; il u ET isr H. u A fc. - 'ft' n CHAPTER XlW-Continved. I took refuge in silence. I closed my eyes wearily. "Before I bid you good night, sir, I think it right that yon should know that your mother and sister are In this hotel. At the risk that you think me impertinent I dare to hope that your meeting with them to-morrow may be free from any embarrassment or un happiness." He bowed stiffly and left the room. I stared after him vacantly. The dispatch he had left, gorgeous and brave with its royal crest and em bossing, lay passively in my hand. And now a new dilemma confronted me. I was supposed to be under the influence of an opiate; they would not scruple to take from me the dispatch. To allow that might give them such in formation as would make their con spiracy, whatever its nature, the more effective. .To resist would tell them that I had been feigning. I must hide the papers. But where? It was a bare little chamber; my heart sank as I noted how bare. I leaped out of bed. Again I threw open the shutters. I could hear Capt Forbes speaking sternly; if he could but hold them half a minute! In the garden below the marble basin of a disused fountain at once caught my eyes. i tore the corner of the envelope, inserted my penknife to weight the packet, leaned over the balcony and dropped it. It fell squarely into the basin among the leaves and moss. To regain the room was the work of an instant. I heard Captain Forbes wish them a cold good night, and Madame de Varnier answer him mockingly. ,Then the bedroom door was opened and Starva shuffled into the room. "Who was that man?" I demanded languidly, and regarded him with list less eyes, my hand to my forehead. He shrugged his shoulders, disdain ing to answer. "He has left some papers here by mistake." "Perhaps." I muttered indifferently, and pretended to sleep. I heard him moving about the room for some time. Madame de Varnier and he whispered together. I felt so little concerned as to the result of this search that I actually fell asleep. The strain of the evening had exhausted me. No doubt the search was extend ed to me personally; I believe I was vaguely conscious of it. CHAPTER XV. The Castle of Happiness. "You sleep soundly, my friend." Dr. Starva was looking down at me with grim intentness. It was not yet dawn. His immense figure seemed even more huge than it was in this uncertain light It ap peared to threaten, to menace me. And yet, I welcomed his presence; at least they had not made their escape. I looked up at him with cool assur ance. "A light conscience gives deep slum ber. Do we start so early?" "Yes. Your coffee is waiting for you in the salon." I dressed rapidly. A certain depres sion would have been natural. The night is the time of follies; with the morning come clear thought and pru dence. But not so with me. It is true that I detested Dr. Starva. His meth ods were too gross; his eyes were too closely set together; his mouth too cruel and sensual. I could have wished him out of the game. And yet I be lieved that I was a match for him. But this woman who tempted and pitied! This woman whose beauty fascinated and whose treachery re pelled! This woman who -lied and prayed in the same breath! As I thought of her I was at once furious and eager. I was ashamed to think how eager. I had pledged myself to the cold Diana of my dreams. For her I ran these risks ; for her I might be disgraced and a felon. It was her gratitude I coveted; her for giveness I craved. And yet for the moment I was seek ing the flame and the glamour of the otfcer woman this warm, mysterious creature of diverse moods. Her fantastic chateau held out a promise, not of happiness, indeed, but of the joy of doing, of daring. So as I dressed my spirits were buoyant The little garden below, half hidden in the mist that came from the lake, was fresh'and charm ing in the morning dew. Patches of flowers, brave in scarlet and purple and blue, opened their eyes to the dawn. I followed mechanically the graveled paths, geometric and straight, threading the sparkling lawns. I looked eagerly down at the bat tered fountain choked with refuse. I could see no trace of the long, white envelope. It was completely concealed by the leaves. I found it impossible to rescue the little packet from its hiding place. My hostess and her cousin kept too care &il an eye on me for that. But it was a tolerably secure hiding place; and frankly I was not sorry to leave the proof of my complicity behind me. A faint breeze, cold with the snow of the mountains, fanned my cheek. .The poetry of the dawn thrilled me. Before the evening came .the placid lake might be lashed into fury. The trees, now gently swaying, might be bent and broken by the violence of the storm. But now the sky was clear. When the storms came I would try to meet them. But before they did come why should I not enjoy the pres ent? I threw open the door and stepped into the salon where coffee and Madame de Varnier awaited me. She greeted me with vivacity. Bat I was not blind to the cool glance that measured. "The fool has no suspic- GopyB&rr.Kxx. krZJu&Ruzaracamimo Mons," the eyes said, while the lips asked how I had slept. "Admirably," I answered gayly. "And we are to start at once for your Castle of Happiness? . , v "Ton have, a sublime' faith to still believe it that?" she questioned mock ingly as she poured my coffee: "Why not?" I cried mockingly, in my turn. "Is it not happiness to be with you, madam?" "Pas des banalltes, monsieur," she replied with an impatient gesture. "But you really believe that the tiresome-journey will repay you?" "Since I am resolved to hear your secret, yes." "Oh, ungracious!" She smiled at me ruefully. "I think I prefer an in sincere compliment to an awkward truth." "Madam, it Is not I who made the condition." "Ah, you are a very cautious friend, monsieur." "I generally try to look before I leap," I returned with composture. I was not unwilling that she think it curiosity that prompted me to accept the extraordinary invitation given with so little heed to convention. She had hinted that we were to be of mutual use i to each other; but of this I' was skeptical. I accepted the invitation precisely in the spirit in which it was given. It would be shocking form, to say the least, to be a guest that one might have the opportunity to play the detective. But she and I had fcp &&. 4P - r 1 , T A1TL c f. jyjv&-- "7C Z A J- But I Was Not Blind to the placed ourselves beyond the pale of conventionality. Either distrusted the other. An armed truce that was the word that described our relations, and she had suggested that word. Dr. Starva entered. "En route," he said gruflly. "The carriage is waiting." It was very early, scarcely past five. The night porter, drowsy-eyed and sul len, took us down on the elevator and put our luggage in the carriage. I confess I breathed more freely when the hotel was some miles behind us and we had seen neither Helena Brett nor Captain Forbes. As Madame de Varnier had warned me, the journey itself was long and tiresome; nor did Madame de Vernier and her companion exert themselves much to relieve its monotony. It was almost dusk when she pointed out to me the pinnacles of her cha teau. For the last hour the horses had been struggling up a dusty road wind ing about the mountainside. Forests of fir were on either side. From far below came the impetuous murmur of a stream. High above the forests of fir trees there were herds of cattle. We could hear the faint jingle of the cow-bells. Only rarely had there been any view, but the clear and pure at mosphere told me that the altitude must be considerable. But this sylvan scene suggested nothing of the horrors of a few days ago. The mountains, purple and pink in the dusk, were 'too far away. Suddenly there was a turn in the road. Now we had an uninterrupted view of the chateau across a green valley. In this vague light its towers and turrets seemed as unreal and ghostly as a fairy fabric. At the base of its white walls a tiny village, crouching close to the chateau for' protection, found a pre carious foothold on the steep hillside. There was a maze of red-tiled roofs, .high-gabled and sloping, tier upon tier of them., each pierced by numbers of quaint dormer windows. A wild river, fed by the turbulent streams -of the mountain snows, flung itself in headlong, rage down the slop ing valley, straight for the chateau, as if to sweep it from its base. Reach ing the castle, it spent its fury on the rocks, then, as if baffled of its prey. a msde ah abrupt half circle about the base and continued its stormy career, seeking a less, powerful fee.' , "At last," breathed Madame, de Var nier. "Well, iny.'fflend,; does Jt.fabm ise diversion" for you?" ' "The village and. tie castle breathe the spirit of romance?' I cried with animation. ' "Ah, romance! What if I say to you," she whispered, "that; your day of romance has come?" -" , I glanced toward Dr. Starva whose shaggy head was nodding. "Even we Americans, madam, are not indifferent to its glamour. But too often the no-. mance of medievalism suggests dis honor." She looked at me startled, then shrugged her shoulders. "One must take the .world as one finds It," she said indifferently. , ' We were making the last sjteep ascent to the village: We crossed the noisy stream; the driver cracked his long whip; we passed under a dilapi dated arch; we were rattling; over the cobblestones of a winding street' It was too dark for me to see much of the quaint beauty of this plctur esque village. I caught a glimpse of the timbered Rathaus, its gilt clock proudly conspicuous on the squat tow er, and of the fountain in front of it, its basin radiant with scarlet flowers. There were little shops dimly lighted, their wares heaped about the doors and windows' As we passed, women and children dropped delighted courtesies, and the men took pipes from broadly grinning mouths and doffed their hats. Evi dently Madame de Varnier was loved by this simple folk. "You seem to be very welcome," I said smiling, surprised that the vil lagers should have greeted her so cor dially. "Tou are the Lady Bountiful to these simple people, I suppose.' She smiled faintly. "I have been here for two. summers. I am the event of the year in their stupid lives. I try I to bring them a little pleasure. When I leave I like to think that they re member me with love." "Then I should not have said that the glamour of romance is always as- . . Cool Glance That Measured. sociated with dishonor," I ventured boldly. "I can see no -glamour in this ob scure village," she replied, yawning. "But the chateau is a part of the vil lage?" I persisted. "Monsieur!" she cried passionately. "You weary me with senseless ques tions." I smiled quietly., I wished Madame de Varnier4to know definitely that it depended on her playing the part of Circe or Lady Bountiful whether the armed truce was to continue, or whether there was to be open warfare. We turned at an abrupt angle from the village street. We were entering a mere passageway just wide enough for the carriage. It was flanked on either side by the houses of the vil lage; over the arch, too, was a dwell ing. Suddenly we emerged in a court yard large enough to permit a squad ron of cavalry to perform its evolu tions. A low wall inclosed it We drew up at the doorway. I was wel twt, j 9 Did Aof Believe the Story Tale of Old Testament Too Much For Artless Youth. "When I was a youth in Zanes ville," said-E. S. Timms, clerk at the Hotel Normandle, the other day,' "I was an active worker in a local SuSday school. I was pretty posular wi4h the boys, I was delegated to gather the outsiders from the glass ftrks district together in a vacant storeroom and begin their religious, instruction. "One Sunday I gathered' about .45 youngsters who had never attended Sunday school before, and as they did not take kindly to 'ike reading of the Scriptures and the regular Sunday school methods, I began telling them tales from -the Old Testament They listened with much interest to the comed by Madame de Varnier with exaggerated deference. We were at her' Castle of Happiness. I felt the insincerity of the welcome. They looked on me as a' puppet to move only when, they pulled 'the strings. I saw, too, that I had not left in the hotel at Vitsnau the character of Sir Mortimer Brett But before the next day was past I determined to know once for all the of this deception. I was de termined to put ah end to this farce. CHAPTER XVI., Thai Death-Mask Again. One- does not expect to find in Swltserland grace and charm in archi tecture. There are no historic cha teaux worthy of a pilgrimage. .This castle of Alterhoffen gave one the sim ple impression of sneer strength. It was primitive and savage and bare of pretense to beauty as its founder must have been. A rather squat tower of immense solidity, the roof steeply sloping, the windows narrow and few, it would have been commonplace andugly in the extreme had' it not been for three smaller semicircular towers placed at each angle of the larger one. The ef fect of this triangular-shaped tower, with its three supporting towers, was bizarre, but not unpleaslrig. It pre pared one for an interior unique and interesting.. We passed beneath the arched door way, -severe and bare of ornament into the great hall. At the left was the grand stairway, the balustrades of oak massive and dark with age, but ad mirably carved. ' At the end of the hall, on, the right a. fire of logs was blazing brightly. The hooded mantel, Gothic in design, was also of oak and blackened with the smoke of cen-J tunes. A stand of banners stood near the foot of the stairway. Not far from the fireplace was a curious spiral stair case leading to the gallery that ran the length of the room above. Tapes tries covered the bare walls and filled the spaces between the narrow win dows that looked out on the court yard. The furniture was of the period of the French Renaissance covered for the most part with stamped leather of gold and dull red. I could not repress a cry of delight as I entered. I had passed in an in stant from the world of commonplace hotels and railway trains into an at mosphere of charm and beauty. For no matter how industriously the con noisseur in America may gather about him exquisite and beautiful things, he cannot shut out the scream of the railroad train; he cannot transplant across the seas the charm of medieval ism that clings to castle walls. It is one thing to see the Cluny with a guide book; it is quite another to find one's self a guest at the Cluny. "You like my Castle of Happiness?" asked Madame de Varnier; pleased at the pleasure I showed. "It promises its adventures," I re plied meaningly. "I have told you that your hour of romance has come. -But remember, romance in these prosaic days is a gift of the gods given only to children and poets, a few women and lovers,- and to the very bold. If you would claim the gift monsieur, you must "ve some thing of the nature of ill of these. The sincere trust of the child, you must certainly know what this is, monsieur. The poet's imagination, his delightful power of make-believe, you must not despise that A woman's tenderness, and a lover's ardor, these, too, are necessary. And last of all, the daring of the hero." She had whispered these rather comprehensive attributes as I walked across the hall to the staircase, follow ing the servant with my hag. "A rather large bill, madam," I sug gested humorously. "Oh, but I am serious, very serious. I assure you that it is not sentimental talk." "I am afraid I must contradict you. The daring of the hero, for instance, even one so optimistic as yourself could scarcely expect that of me." "Monsieur," she protested earnestly, "I have already told you that I refuse to believe you a coward. Do you be lieve it yourself? You know you do not, The task I am to give you would appall any but the bravest heart It requires audacity, absolute assurance, and a clever brain. But I believe in you. You will not disappoint me. We dine in half an hour." Dr. Starva had stood with his back to the fire. He called after me, scowl ing, as I ascended the stairs: t "You will find, as I have said, that madam is an admirable host But if the guest is to be quite happy he must accept the diversions madam offers and when they are offered." It was not the words so much as the tone that menaced. It emphasized the conviction I already felt: Dr. Starva did not welcome my coming to the cas tle. As I reached the gallery I saw Madame de Varnier address him al most fiercely. I was not blind to his sullen contempt though evidently the woman was the ruling spirit here. (TO BE CONTINUED.) stories of Adam and Eve, and Moses in. the. bullrushes, and so on, but when I came to the story of Jonah and the whale they listened with particular attention. "When I concluded the story of how Jonah was cast overboard from the ship and" received by the whale who afterwards cast him upon shore, one fellow broke -the silence 'by saying: "'I believe that's a d .lie. Give me a chaw of terbacker.' "Well, everybody, joined in a laugh, and I passed over the remark. In time I got about 30 of those boys to attend Sunday school regularly." De troit Free Tress. " English Friendship. In, London you seldom make friends; you buy them. London Truth. '' t NOTES YARM 4rmtffit The best farm hand Is the farmer himself. It's easy to be shiftless, but It doesn't pay. Raise poultry whether you like it or not and learn to like it Fresh, clean water is essential to hogs as it is to other stock. Timely and judicious spraying is good and cheap fruit insurance. See that the collars fit the horses, and keep them soft by proper care. The best time to dock lambs is when they are about two weeks old. Keep ahead of the weeds or it will be a tail end race with them all sea son. Feed grain to the ewes in pasture if extra growth on the lambs is de sired. Regularity in the care of farm an imals has much to dp with obtaining the best results. Never let the horse stand when heated without blanketing no matter hew warm tho weather. It takes more skill to market a crop profitably than it does to grow it at least often times it does. Broadcast rape in the corn after the last cultivation and it will afford good pasturage in the fall after the corn is cut 'You may not be able to afford a new sanitary stable but you can af ford white wash which will make the present stable more sanitary. The sore places on your horse should be kept clean by washing every day with carbolated water and then dressed with a little good tar oint ment Be sure that the new trees you set this spring have "ho label wires left about the trunks, as they will cut off the circulation -of the tree and per haps kill it Turpentine soaked rags fastened to the horse manger will do much toward curing the animal of cough or dis temper, as he will have to inhale the fumes of the turpentine while he feeds. .!. . a The lazy hen, it has been said, bears the same relation to the hen nery that th.e lazy man does in the community. The only difference is tnat tne former does make good pot- pie, while the lazy man Is good for nothing. Oats cut in the milk and cured as hay makes the finest kind of hay. One farmer says that last season his hay crop being short he cut three acres of oats for hay and 'found that the stock ate it more greedily than any other hay, and that Jt proved excep tionally good for his milch cows. A successful asparagus grower says he .keeps rust out of his asparagus and saves cultivation, by sowing two bushels -of cow-peas to the acre at the first cultivation after the cutting season is over. The peas keep down the weeds and shade the ground, but do not interfere with the growth of the asparagus. The pea and aspara gus stalks are left on the ground un til the following spring and then burned off. "There Is no doubt that there are many portions of the country which at the present time are practically unde veloped agriculturally which have a great future before them, but do not let the alluring advertisements of such localities turn your head. Re member that the man who has writ ten them has something he wants to sell, and that he may be just stretch ing it a little. Go slow In considering a change of location. Don't sell the old farm and rush off to the new loca tion. Investigate first Inspect the land personally, and then don't make the move until after the sober second thought 'Another serious scale, pest' has made its appearance and is the sub ject of investigation by the govern ment agricultural department It is known as the terrapin scale (Eule canium nlgrofascinatum), and au thentic specimens have been received' by the bureau of entomology from every state east of the Mississippi river; and from- Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, Minnesota and On tario. Further detailed Information has just been made public In a special bulletin prepared by J. G. Sanders of the department of agriculture. The bulletin says that this species of scale, more conspicuously marked than any other of the genus, is the most t generally injurious one. In consequence of its wide range of food plants, including both wild and culti vated trees, "it must be considered a dangerous -pest which may be con trolled, but never eradicated." Kero sene emulsion is the remedy recom mended for fighting this pest Remember, In order to make the richness of your soil available you must put the ground in good, tilth and cultivate generously. III BwasBsmi tmmv" . y iWll BlZtPBBBBSSBSSBBBBBBBKBmBM .YBSSSSr Neglected agriculture marks the de cline of a'aatioa. - ' It's the chickens you raise not the chickens you batch ihleh count - k ar t. Jt 1 'Serve prompt notice on the potato bug 'to move ciiito nhe kerosene - V T .It spoils, the grind. stone ;to let. It stand in the trough partly filled with water. 4- ' v Use pea ground foliate potatoes, peppers, tomatoes, or shy other suit able crop. Clean out the nest boxes occasion ally and burn the straw. It helps keep down the lice, :, Extra rush in farm work should not be allowed to interfere with the regu lar milking hour. Cultivate the corn through June and July but don't run too deep. Severed roots limits the capacity of the plant to mature its ears. The fine delicate aroma of 'freshly made butter is quickly lost and for this reason it should be gotten to the consumer as quickly as possible. The price, of eggs keeps up which makes the outlook for the poultry business good. It seems at the pres ent time as if there was little danger of overdoing the poultry business. How much did your carelessness contribute to the following figures: Two million two hundred and twenty thousand nine hundred and ninety- five cattle, 3.342,769 sheep and 2.681,-s 166 swine were lost by disease and exposure in the United States in the year ending March 31, 1907. As an indication of the ever-increasing demand for the services of com petent instructors and investigators of horticultural we have but to state that a foremost western college has received within three weeks requests from three different states and one foreign country for such horticultural experts. Remember to give the cow a little of the milk of human kind ness while she is filling the milk pail. Every effort towards more cleanly dairying is commendable and for this reason we take pleasure in telling of the plan of the patrons of the Areata creamery In California, and, which is worthy of emulation in other dairying communities. An agreement has been entered into among the patrons that each will deposit a dollar in the bank every time he cashes his check from the creamery, this money to con stitute a fund which will be awarded by a committee' at the end of the year to the three men who have made the best showing in sanitary conditions during that period. Experiments have shown that 60 per cent of all the feed a dairy cow can eat is appropriated to sustain her body. If a cow is fed to 70 per cent of her capacity only ten per cent of the ration can be used for milk pro duction. Liberal feeding is necessary but its profitable extent depends on the individual animal. Successful dairying depends fully as much on the feeder as on the cow. A propor tion of two-fifths concentrates to three-fifths roughage is widely and successfully used. Of course feed stuffs must be chosen to balance well and with an eye to their market value. Take a "corn ear census" on your farm this summer. It takes but lit tle time to walk through the rows and count the stalks that have no cars, and find what percentage they bear to the fruitful stalks. One farm er, who took a census last year, found that the barren stalks averaged about 20 In 100. It is a good thing to' know. It means a loss of one-fifth In the yield of corn. Now it is claimed that these barren stalks will fertilize the ears of the other stalks and so breed more and more barrenness In the years to come. If this is true, it would pay us well to go through our corn just before it silks and cut off the tassels of all the barren stalks. During the trying heat of the sum mer remember that hog cholera is a germ disease, and spread by bacteria. Contagion can spread from one ani mal to another and from herd to herd only by these minute organisms. They are carried in- every way by swine, by the clothes of persons, by vehicles, feed, dogs, birds and by streams. Poor care may weaken the hog's constitution and make him more, susceptible to disease than he would be otherwise. . Diseases may be pre vented largely through disinfection. Bacteria are preserved in filth; hence, entire cleanliness will go far to pre vent disease. Hogs should have dry, well-ventilated quarters, with the sleeping room raised a little above the others. Feeding and drinking places must be clean and the water pure. " Nearly all, sheep-have worms in the liver, but they do no harm unless they are in such;numbers as to' cause sickness and death.' The treatment for sheep thus afflicted is a tonic, made up as follows: Linseed meal or coarse wheat flour, 40 pounds; powdered anise or gentian, and sul phate or oxide of Iron, four pounds each; half a pint daily to .each sheep. In all treatment It is necessary to re move the affected animals to a per fectly dry pasture or salt marsh, on either of which the parasites will per ish. To turn them on a fresh pasture that is not dry. Is to stock it with the. Pst An atmosphere of fault-finding on the farm is one of the fruitful sources of dissatisfaction and discontent on the part of the children with farm life. Be patient, and instill love for that which you would have them con tinue, r Too much work and too little read ing and study of farm topics makes of farmer John an unprogressive agri culturist Read up and then work out S-JZ- . r - Smr ' T ''BBBBBBBBmmiwsViBBBBlfflr ' M sEKaVBsSasBEasE -'? -WV9BSBBBBBB0Ew9fek ' ni -i The . I i Fourth of July I By T. C. HARBATJGH Old Glory is waving on land and on; The hope of the Nation, the pride of: the free. Our fleets bear it outward to harbors' afar, . And dear to the eye is the gleam of each star; j In beauty it floats over hemlock and pine. " : Adown to our orange-fringed troplcaI ' line, Our fathers, beneath it were willing' to die, : And new luster it gets on the Fourth of July. i The Old Continentals! methinks that; they come Out of the past at the tap of the drum, j Their swords are aloft and their bay-j onets shine , ; And Washington rides at the head of j the line; j There Sumter and Schuyler are light-r ing again, And yonder is charging "Mad Asrt thony" Wayne! ' They fought and they fell 'neath the! Union's blue sky, And gave to Columbia her Fourth of I July. We reach out from ocean to ocean j afar. I A nation of freemen all matchless ini war, 1 Our eagle's a-wing,of his grandeur un-j shorn, i For never by foe has .his plumage' been torn: And woe to the hand that would fetter! his flight, Or sully the banner he guards In hisj might; He watches our land from his eirie on high. And our flag waves for him on the! -Fourth of July! Our forefathers gave us this home off the free. And tenderly guarded young Liberty's! tree; Undaunted in battle heroic they- stood! And nourished the soil with the best: of their blood; Blow, blow the wild bugles, but not' for the fray. The morning has dawned upon Liber1 ty's day; Unfurl the proud emblem that kisses' the sky For this is the world's only Fourth of July. The rollicking drums! let them sound' in their might, And rally the people, but not for tho fight; The land is aflame, and the rocket's fierce fire Will show where our eagle mounts higher and high'r; And listen! o'er Brandywine's historic plain The old Continentals are swarming again; With the tread of the brave and the soldier's true eye, .They march, as It were, to our Fourth of July. The Past Is our pride and the 'cycles of fate .Await us inside of the Century's gate;! We dress to the colors that flutter and! , shine. While Liberty's stands at the head of; the line; Look up at the Flag that will neven grow old As long as the tale of our fathers is! told! As long as our land is our home may; it fly To crown with its glory each Fourthr of July. DOTS FOR THE fOURTH Don't allow the firecrackers to go off; in the grass unless you want the lawn ruined. " Don't, wear a thin inflammable frock. Put on a cloth skirt if there are fire crackers, about. Don't attempt to set off complicated pyrotechnics without thoroughly com prehending the process. . Don't lay away left-over fireworks' for another year. They are dangerous things to pack away where mice can! get at them. Buy only so many as can be used on the day appointed. r Torpedoes. Torpedoes- or "throw-downs" are generally compositions of chlorates or' chlorates and sulphur, with gravel toi give the device weight, all wrapped in, tissue paper. Some genius has in-! vented a firecracker of compressed air; to take the place of the present giantt crackers, which contain dynamite. Mere Pleasantries. Sky Rocket Ah! I'm going off oai the Fourth, and have a high old time. Pin Wheel Bah! You're always: shooting off about yourself., I never blow about it but generally have a. gay little whirl myselL. A Definition. . "Pa, what Is refined cruelty?" "Reading the Declaration of Inde pendence to a lot of people who are aching to get at the lunch baskets.' 1 i ; AyK JU- r?,k'-Sil if. i. , i-..iA-? 5. - -.-?? .; ..r. .-.n$yt t-V & . . icf . . t t -T " " V K1A - I 7 snit'i m i ii, i I i I'iiMt i F1 7 r-f-;3S'S3'i&i .. , - .-t. . ii-. .-. i3. ! i