What Dancing School Does for the Children
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ONE OK THE VERY LATEST STEPS Photo by a Staff Artist.
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I.KAIi.MXl! A
NEW Fldl'RE-l'hi to bv a Staff Artist.
f wwW tr secure their children that
I J 1 I self-possession and self-confideii 'o
member of society Is line nf the
questions to which every parent
gives more or less curliest thought, fm'
a.ttr nil there an- fe.v that 1 ) nat iniul;"
in tin o. casioiiul day ilre.ni of to ne fiiutr
tini " when their sons shall he strong. manly
men ami their daughters grat iaus, grace
ful won en. equipp. d wi ll til ! i r.-onal
qualifications to fill that exalted position in
life parental nmhitien sits is the g al of
Us chiMriti, and few parents count any
saciilice too gr. at or anything as a t!ls
couragcnit nt to attain Hits ainhil ion tin il
they take into account th se future men
and wonu n themselves. So many things
are to lie considered In the shaping of th se
iharactets, so much to instill, to counur
aet and overcome in securing the strong;
bodies that the mental anil moral qualifica
tions are to complete.
How to tide the boy or girl over that
"awkward ago," so trying for all con
cerned, and spare the painful conscinm-
f A lI,M1ItAL' SCHLEY as strolling
I I around the picturesque Naval
L. J ni.metnrv nt Annnnolls the other
day, reports the New York Times.
Happening to meet an old satlor,
he said, In his kinily way:
"Jack, this Is a biautiful spot."
Saluting, the weaihi rbiaten stilt ri plied:
"Aye, aye, sir. And it'll bo still finer,
your honor, when some more of our good
admirals gets planted here."
ness of that awkwardness that is fre
quently the beginning of a self-consciousness
that, becoming habitual, is forever a
detriment to his personality, is one of the
trying problems that all guardians of chil
dren have to consider. To accnmpli-h this
end tin y In gin at a vt ry early age giving
till sorts of advantages alleged to secure
accomplishments generally consider, d de
sirable in children, and especially valuable
to young men and women.
I'urt- fair Pimlif iilneKN.
Hut while all of this is In ing done then
Is another side of the child that, though
considered In a way, frequently never ma
tnrtB for want of prop r training to de
velop it, that Is his social side, and many
a parent has suffered the keenest humilia
tion when some small son or daughter, a
ptiragon of polite aci otupl ishnient when
In the family circle, c.r even in an assem
bly of grown people, is thrown into the
most ignominious confusion, literally forget
ting everything he know s, at the very eight
of some small stranger of his own age who
his been sent for an hour's play with him.
i i' exists Just
, I their ebil
i v. i . h child en
itee w hi n it is
ki i in;;
ilieir i Id.
ss.ii i it ion
tin
wlh
The o d-titr.c i;e;te.n that children are to
l.e si en and not In ai d m doubtless an ex
cellent theory under so;ne circumstances,
especially w In n a;iplb. d to discipline, ba
it is none the less r'-spi.n-il lo for much of
the so-called htis'ifu !:
because parent - I:. il to : r
ilr-'ti w ith prop r hit 't a :,t
of I In ir ow n a g a t t li
most necessary, instead
quietly in the ioaipany e
avoid their mid. siralde
otln r i hildri li.
The very f.n-t that the "a w kw-.i : d age"
exists Is proof ef this lack, tttd in their ef
fort to (ivei-'eme this trying period many
pari tits have hit upon a truth that has re
dounded to the benefit f their younger
children, that , the fad tint the Iv gin
ning of their sicial i ducat ion should dale
from the beginning of their desire for com
panionship. To acquaint those little p -ople with each
other and familiarize them with each o h
cr's company and the customs and rubs
that attend it is now the popular plan and
Is commenced at so early an age that It
promises to secure to th.'in a familiarity
with such things that must become eerond
nature to them by the time they tire halt
grown ami relieve them, In a tin tisiire at
least, of the additional nwkwardiie-H that
embaira siuont lends to the rapldlv grow
ing body.
l one u( lllllielliK School.
(If ail the institutions cmployid In the
Mulal cdueallon of the child there Is pi )b
ii lil y nine as ol'tcctiial in overcoming his
timidity and establishing his silf-eonfidumu
as the dancing class and dancing school.
Here, wilh many others of his own age.
i veil the most t mid, while sharing In th.
common i xeiei e. t-oon forgets himself in
the ihythiu of the music and the vailcu.s
figures thai call the motive powirs Into tho
most harmonious ad ion and extracts from
the exercise and comp.in ont-liip a most
w hob some pleasure. Associations under
such circumstances can but be refining.
I lancing has bi en truly called an educa
tional pleasure, for owing to lt unlitu.ted
variety of combination a continued Interest
is preserved through which the child for
gets hlnisilf and attains that grace of
inovenieut ami manner that only accompa
nies mental ease. 11 Is the embodiment of
that quality of hilarity and recreation that
the normal child most enjoys, action, sun
diliil with courtesy and gentleness that Is
Ideal ill cipline.
Il givcts lo the In y or girl a firm walk
and good carriage, sustained by a corre
sponding composure.
Nor is this physical cuilure the only
bein 111, lor while he 1 attaining thlj
grace of bearing from an early beginning
and unsocial ion w ith companions of h la ow n
age, under elieiimslanci s where genteel de
portment Is constantly emphasized, ho U
urn oKtidiuisly acquiring an cusy, graceful
puiBonalily that subsequent association or
circuuisi unci s, no matter how adverse, can
never t radicate.
With Kticli preliminary advantages, the
half-grown boy and girl and all those wn.t
tiro unsocial! d with them are spared much
and to the future men ami women are se
cured the self-cohlldeiioo that will enable
them to hold I lie . r o" n 111 socit ty whose
members are otherwise their equals.
Gleanings from the Story Tellers' Pack
mi
A young ollleer at San Francisco had
bee n ordered to the Philippines. Accoidlng
to a western paper, he received the follow
ing telegram from the War department at
Washington :
"You can go to New York and tall on
transport that goes by Suez."
The otllci r repliid: "Would prefer to
cross racific diriM't."
Then the department telegraphed him
again: "Tiansport will make good time;
has sixty women school teachers on hoard."
The young lieutenant answered: "Save
me a berth on transport."
Tho late Senator Allen CI. Thurman of
Ohio was by no means an abstemious man.
Like a sailer, he enjoyed his grog, and
though he was regular In his potations he
seldom passed the lino of perfect sobriety.
Once upon a time his wife, leaving for a
visit to friends, exacted from the judge u
promise that he would be a "teetotaler"
during her absence. On the day of Mrs.
Thurman's return the Judge stopped In the
dining room before going to welcome her
to take a drop of that from which he hail
abstained during her absence. While in
the act of pouring whisky into his glass he
heard Mrs. Thurman path ring down the
stairs. Quickly putting his left hand. In
which he held the glass, behind him, with
his right hand extended he said: "I'm gb.d
to see you home, my dear."
"Allan, what have you behind you?" she
asked.
"Whisky, my dear."
"Oh, Allan, don't you remember last year,
when you were stumping the 6tate, you did
not take a drop, and you were never so well
In your life?"
"Yes, my dear, I remember, but we lost
the Btate."
The dim and misty past has been re
lieved of another anecdote concerning
James O'Neill which is worth the space.
It seems O'Neill was playing Romeo to
Adelaide Neilson's Juliet one time at Mc
Vicker's in Chicago. It was the woman's
custom in the final act, when she bends
over Romeo' body, to kiss the empty air
Instead of Romeo himself. Once Mr. O'Neill
decided to change this little Bcene. Aa
Juliet leaned over for the final situation
be let bis chin sink with a long-drawn
sigh and then suddenly threw lack his
head in plain view of the audience. That
once Miss Ncilson kissed him, but as the
curtain went down she sprang up. "How
could you?" she cried.
"How could I what?" asked Mr. O'Neill.
"How how " she hesitated. "How
could Homeo throw back his head afli r he
was dead?"
"Miss Neilsun," the actor said solemnly,
"your Juliet was the cause of it. Il would
make anyone come back to life."
A story is told of a canny Scot who dealt
in old horses, alternating his spells of
labor with heavy sprei s. During the pcricd
of depression which followed each overin
dulgence John habitually took to bed and
there diligently studied the family bible.
Inning one of these fits of attemptid refor
mation his erudition prompted his wife to
call In Rev. Mr. Wallace, the parish min
ister, who at the time happened to be pass
ing. "Oh, Malster Wallace, come in and see
oor John; he's rale bad."
"What's wrang wl' him?"
"lies feart to meet his Makker," said
Mrs. John.
Quick as fire came the crushing reply:
"Humph! Tell'm he ncedna be feart for
that; he'll never see'm."
Capta n Thomas H xby. under whom Sam
uel L. Clemens (Mark Twain) served as
pilot and eng tie r on the old M ssis-innl
river boat Swallow, has given a New Or
leans paper the following description of
tho engine of Swallow: "The craft was a lit
tle, shaky affair, which plied betwien St.
Louis and Cairo. It had a stern wheel, a
place for freight and passengers, a pilot
house tmd a place on what may be called tho
pilot deck for the engine. That engine
vent aboard when it was needed and onlv
then. It burned no wot d or coal, but ale
a powerful sight of grass. It was a large
gray mule named Jerry, which worked a
treadmill that propelled the boat. Samu. I
Clemens was chief engineer and pilot. Ho
had a system of signals which was effective
and ingenious. By pulling a cord he could
ra se a head of cabbage Just out f reach of
the niu!e. The 'engine' would start and
begin to wilk after It and the boat floated
majestically up or down the river, as th'
case might be. Without desiring to bo per
sonal. I will say that Jerry was one of the
n ost Intelligent animals I ever met. His
voice was more of the order of a foghorn
than a whistle, being too much cf a bari
tone for the latter. When Samuel wanted
to whistle for a landing he Just hit Jenv
with a si iek."
velopment ef mlipi.se tissue. Everybody
who rode with him liked him. Like many
other conductors on the line, "Kaiiy" had
been greatly annoyed by men who would
yeiled, "put your helm hard over: w 're
alnii si ashore; there's a big town right
ahead and we're running ium a blamed
di ugstoru! "
One of the former street car conductors
of Washington was known as "Fatty" be
cause of bis tendency to an abnormal de-
get on his car and ti ndi r him a $10 note
from which to deduct the fare. Of i nurse,
the conductor could not make the change
and the man got. his ride flee. At last,
however, "Fatty" di tormined Unit he would
tiach at least one of these a lesson. So
one morning In-fore starting out on his run
he wmt to the cashier and goi from him
Jin in n nil it .s. A few days luur a man
In aided the i sir and hiindi d "Fatty" a M
note. "Fatt.V spoke not a word, but went
stiaiht to the ci mi r of Hie car, where ho
had deposited the bag containing the p n
nics mid, abstracting live of tliein, l.atnlod
'he balance to the passenger.
The lattir protested thai he did nil want
that kind of change, but "Fatly" insisted
that be could not do any betler and the
passenger itcceptid the bulky package wilh
the In tit grace he could under the cireiitu
stalieis. "Fatly" felt gm d i! day over
what he had done and after hi . da s work
he was recounting t some if bis cot
leagues at the conductors' room at I lie barn
how he had gotten ahead of the obnoxious
passenger.
All of a sudden the ca.-liier tailed nut:
"'Fatty,' did you tuin in IhU $1" note?"
"Yes," was the reply.
"Well, you will have to make it good,"
said the cashier; "it's a ci untcrfeit."
Naval n serves are not popular wl li the
regular si amen in the I'nited Sta n ivv.
I'erhais the dislike tin' regulars bear towaid
the "fresh water sailors," as the reserves
are calltd, will account for this storv that
is being li Id on beard many naval f-hitis:
During the Spanish war one of the small
coast patiol boats had abi ard a numb r of
the naval militia One of them was sta
tioned as a lookout In the bow of the vea
si I. Carefully he had learned port from
slaiboard and to know that us b okout he
must rtport all lights win n seen. The ves
sel was appn aching the entrance tf a har
bor. The man bad been at his po-t half
an lour when be saw a light. Carefully
noting its pnslll-iii. he buwbd tint to tln
officer t n t he I ridge :
"Rid light n port b w sir'"
"All right." came the lieiiti mint's r -
spi use.
A few minutes passed. when tinnier
1 ght sippcand. The reserve man was te
coming anxious.
"Another light on the Ftarboard b aw. sir."
"All right." answind the olfi er a'm'v.
Suddenly a steamer appeared dead a n ad
showing Its saloon lights and the red a'il
green side lights. The lookout was now
Colonel JlIiii F. Finerty was one of tho
slatT of the Chieugo Tribune, In tho old
days, and was doubtless u participant lu
the l'.il. owing incident which ho relaies:
"Way back in the merry obi days, win n
Juo Mediil ran the Tribune as chief, whin
his brother, Sum, was managing editor;
Fred Hall, city editor; Todd Cowlcs, spoil
ing editor; "Fatty" Meachaui, night edi
tor; and (ieorgo l'erey English, alas
"Johnny," giueial ut lity muu, the thirsty,
but temperate souls of the forte were sup
plied with ice water from a big tunk soino
where mar I he roof. It was hot summer
time and the tall upon the lank wus some
thing astonishing.
One day Joe Mediil came into Sam's
room, armed with an ear trumpet, and
shouted in bis ear, "Say, Sam, wherj old
ycu get Unit sulphur water that's in tho
lank?"
"Sulphur water!" echoed Sam. "Thai
isn't sulphur water it comes from the
lake!"
"Tho d - 1 it does," remarked Joe. "It
smells as if was drawu out of llealy'B
slough! Eh? eh? Sam?
"Will, now you speak of it," auswertd
Sam, at the tup of his voce, "I was sick
as the devil last nlghi. All of the fori e
are sick, more or less, and even Fred Hall
bus quit smoking bis torn cob and taken
to emetics. What the deuce can it all
mean '!"
"I'll gu and Investigate," volunteered
Todd Cowles.
"We'll form a committee of the whole,"
cried (Joorgo I'. Upton, who looked veiy
unsettlid, and so all proceeded to tie
ta nk.
"Fatty"
wart "Ed'
"reservoir'
thoroughly alarmed. Liaving bis post,
rushed upon the bridge. "Lieutenant."
Meat.'ham, assisted by thj stal
Markbam, lif-ed the lid f the
' uud a stent h sulncli nt to knock
down a regiment of cavalry itsued (here
from, "Itrlng a light!" cried Sam.
The light was brought and revealed about
a dozen dead rats Ileal ing in thi; watirl
Tableaux!
A week was given the sufferers to clean
themselves out.
ty-
Chairnian Cot per of the house committee
in insular uftuiis is a lawyer. Hij Is fre
quently called upon by constituents to de
fend them in court when at his home In
Wisconsin, relates the Washington I'ost. A
vot'T came to him last summer and asked
him to go to court fur him in an assault
ase. The other man was badly beaten.
The complainant explained that the do-
f. li ialil ln.il In ti 1 1 li him. lie i xhiblted his
i ru. ses and contusions.
' idi.it oitl oo beat tins man so iiniui rci
luily lor ."' aski d ihe Judge.
'mill' honor, 1 il tell you," explained the
di I'eiidaiit. "lie uud I were playing hcvcu
up. 1 wus six and he wus two. 1 deult and
he begg. d. 1 gave him a point. 1 played
the tune spot tor low; he played the two.
1 played the king for high and he took II
Willi tin ace. 'linn be came back at lite
Willi I be queen and eauglil my JacK. Right
lit it' friendship ceased."
"Ill dismiss tins ease," declared the
Judge, "I. r the reason that any man who
would beg Willi such a hand is not holiest
Ull'l sll. Old be licked."
1
Rear Admiral J. A. Howell is noted for
his gtnius as an invent or. So devoted was
ho for years to the d.-vi lopuieiit of torpedo
warfare that moot of hU frit mis were
greatly surprisi d when he loiunl time to
got in u r i it'll . Some years after this auspic
ious event a brother ollleer tailed al tin)
admiral's home and found the ilit.tinguls.uod
sailor sealed on his doorsUp ami contem
plating several of his children who were
playing on the lawn in front of iho bouse.
"11 is stringe to think of you as a father,
Howell," remarked the visitor. "Tin re was
a time when no one thought of you as a
marrli d man. What Induced you tu take a
wife?"
"Well," returned the admiral medita
tively, "I got tired of hearing my si If re
ferred to us only 'the father of the modern
torpedo.' "
A Painful Siicstion
Cleveland l'lain I ealer: The Judge In
view of the fait thai the defondulit , a fid
oral otlleltil, intends in mtike a stubborn
tight for an aequiiiul and Unit it seem
quite impossible to -i i lire a vinli t aguinsl
him in this court, I have delermliied to
send him to be triid in the civil courts of
Cuba.
The Defendant's ('..unsel (excitedly) -Walt,
your In nor, wait. We plead guilty,
your honor, guilty, without any reservation.
A Troublesome Trio
Chicago N'i ws: "The tin st troublesome
member of my Hoik," said the parson, "Is
ti young woman who wants a husband."
"My most troublesiitie client," said the
lawyer, "is a in;ddle-iigi d woman who wants
a divorce."
"The most Iroiihliwomo patient I have,"
said the physician, "is a spinster of un
certain age who doesn't know what she
wants."