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diff --git a/old/60083-8.txt b/old/60083-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index d3b2e92..0000000 --- a/old/60083-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,3546 +0,0 @@ -Project Gutenberg's Harper's Round Table, December 8, 1896, by Various - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll -have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using -this ebook. - - - -Title: Harper's Round Table, December 8, 1896 - -Author: Various - -Release Date: August 9, 2019 [EBook #60083] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HARPER'S ROUND TABLE *** - - - - -Produced by Annie R. McGuire - - - - - - - - -[Illustration: HARPER'S ROUND TABLE] - -Copyright, 1896, by HARPER & BROTHERS. All Rights Reserved. - - * * * * * - -PUBLISHED WEEKLY. NEW YORK, TUESDAY, DECEMBER 8, 1896. FIVE CENTS A -COPY. - -VOL. XVIII.--NO. 893. TWO DOLLARS A YEAR. - - * * * * * - - - - -[Illustration] - -THE BOY WRECKERS. - -BY W. O. STODDARD. - - -CHAPTER I. - -THE THREE-CORNERED BOAT. - -"It goes through the water like a wedge," said Pete. "Old Captain Kroom -had it made for himself. That's why it's so wide." - -It was "so wide" only at the stern, and it narrowed to a blunt edge at -the prow. All of its lines were pretty nearly straight. Its bottom was -as flat as a floor. At its forward end it was decked over for about two -and a half feet. It was a bit of deck that might serve for a seat, but -in the middle of it was a round hole, and from this there stood up a -straight stick nine feet high. - -"There's a pretty long boom for that mast," said Pete. "When the sail's -on it's a kind of cat-boat. Old Kroom won't row a stroke if he can help -it." - -"Well," said Sam, "I guess I wouldn't, either. But won't it tip over -with a sail?" - -"No, sirree," replied Pete, confidently. "It needn't ever tip over. Why, -if you know how to sail a boat, you won't let yourself be upset." - -"Boys," roared a deep husky voice behind them, "what are you doing with -my boat?" - -They both whirled around instantly. - -"We weren't touching it, Captain Kroom," said Pete. "I met him up in the -village, and he wants to go fishing. He says his name is Sam Williams. -We've bought some clams and some sand-worms." - -"Both of you get right in," commanded Captain Kroom. "I guess he's a -city fellow. We'll show him some fishing. Pete, put in that pail of live -bait. They're prime minnows. Sam, take the sail and boom and lay them -forward, ready for me. Jump, now! the tide's turning. If we don't get -right out across the bay we won't catch a bite." - -"Sam," said Pete, as his companion seemed to hesitate, "pitch in. He -knows fish." - -The two boys were not so much unlike in their height and age, but there -was hardly any other resemblance between them. Sam had no need to tell -anybody that he did not belong on that shore. He was too nobbily -dressed, his dark hair was too smooth, and his hands were too white. -There was some healthy sunburn on his face, but it was nothing to the -tan on Pete's. Besides, Pete was red-headed, and had a full supply of -freckles. What was more, his rig, from his straw hat that turned up in -front, down to his bare feet, was as unlike as could be to Sam's neatly -fitting navy blue. Nevertheless, they were a bright-looking pair, and -Sam stepped ahead quickly enough, after his momentary flush of rebellion -at being "ordered around." - -The fact was that old Captain Kroom was "bossy." It was his boat, to be -sure, but he stood there and looked in all directions, as if he owned -the bay, if not also the sand-bar on the further side of it, and the -Atlantic Ocean beyond that. - -He was a very large man, and very heavy. The three-cornered boat hardly -seemed to feel the weight of Pete and Sam when they went into it with -the bait and fishing-tackle and the other things. It rocked, of course, -but it was steady enough, as if it were accustomed to boys, and did not -mind having them on board. When, however, Captain Kroom finished his -observations of the sea and the sky, and very deliberately put one foot -into the boat at the stern, that end began to go down. - -"Hold hard, boys," he said; "I'm a-comin'. Steady, now." - -His other foot came in, and he at once sat down upon the stern seat; but -at the same moment Sam, at the prow, felt as if he and the mast and sail -were going up. - -"Boys," said Captain Kroom, "I'm glad you're here. Keep well forrard, -and it'll kind o' trim the boat. Pete, you and Sam can 'tend to the -sail. Cast her loose from the wharf. Give her her head." - -"Sam," said Pete, "let the sail swing right out. You and I'll have to -row till we get out of the creek." - -"No, you won't--not with this breeze," growled the Captain. "Give me the -ropes. We'll dance right along." - -"He knows how to handle a boat, Sam," said Pete. "He can get out all -there is in her." - -Right at the shore of the mainland there was a kind of small shut-in -harbor. It had a rickety old wharf, at which the boat had been fastened. -Other boats were there, hitched a little way out from the wharf. Some of -them were pretty good sized sailing-boats. Straight across the harbor, -the patch of open water in front of the wharf, was a wide reach of -rushes, and among them wound the narrow crooked ribbon of water that -Pete called "the creek." Outside were the dancing waves of the bay, and -there was bright sunshine everywhere. - -If it was all a kind of every-day affair to Pete, it was not so to his -friend, and Sam's eyes were glistening with excitement. "Ain't I glad I -met you!" seemed to almost burst from him; but Pete's reply was uttered -in a very matter-of-fact tone. - -"You'd better be glad that Captain Kroom came. We wanted a boat, too, -but it's the best kind of luck to have a man that knows fish. I've known -lots of fellows like you come out here to fish, and that didn't catch a -thing." - -"Up with her!" shouted the Captain, and in a moment the sail was full. - -In spite of the two boys forward, the boat was inclined to lift its -nose, but away it went slipping into the creek, and making swift headway -along the crooks and turns among the rushes. - -The steering and the management of the sail were all in the hands of the -old fisherman. It almost seemed as if the wind must be, too. There was -enough of that, and the boat went this way, that way, so far as Sam -could see, with very little regard to the direction the breeze came -from. He said so to Pete. - -"Guess so," replied the 'longshore boy. "He knows his boat. So long as a -wind isn't dead ahead, he doesn't care. But he hates oars. So do I." - -There the oars lay, along the sides of the boat, two of them; but an oar -stands for work, and Sam was quite willing to let the sail work for him. -He was now sitting forward of the middle of the boat, looking ahead, but -every now and then he glanced back at Mr. Kroom. He looked all the -bigger and heavier for being in a boat and because he weighed it down. -It occurred to Sam that it probably would not tip over so easily with so -much human ballast to steady it. - -"Queerest kind of beard," he said to himself. "His mustaches are awful." - -Not that the beard was so very long, but it was stiff-haired and -curling, and it stuck out on all sides. Below his chin it came down in a -great gray bunch. That and his gray mustache and his jutting eyebrows -and the deep wrinkles across his forehead gave him a fierce look. It -grew worse every time he gave an order. His hands, too, were large, -hairy, and looked as if they had been stained like old mahogany. It was -not by any means a shallow boat, and it was not short, but it was not -exactly like anything else that Sam was familiar with, and he said so to -Pete. - -"Of course it isn't," said Pete. "He'll go out to sea in it, where -nobody else'd dare to. But he knows the sea. He's been everywhere." - -"Out, boys! We're out o' the creek!" shouted Captain Kroom, as if it -excited him to get clear of the rushes. "Hurrah! Troll, both of you! Get -out your lines! I won't fish; I'll sail. Quick!" - -Sam felt as if something in Kroom's voice took hold of him and set him -going, it was so tremendously bossy. - -"He's a captain," thought Sam. "He's been a ship-captain, and he's used -to ordering sailors. Guess they jumped." - -That was what Pete had done, for he had the basket of tackle on his side -of the boat. She was dashing along now, right out into the bay, and she -rode the waves capitally. The sail swung away out and the boat leaned -over, but for all Sam could see, the stern with Captain Kroom in it sat -almost square on the water. No boat bends in the middle, but it had that -look. - -"She's going!" exclaimed Pete. "Tell you what, Sam, the _Elephant_ can -outsail some of the fastest boats along shore. She's a ripper!" - -"Out with your lines!" growled the Captain of the _Elephant_. "You won't -catch anything, but I like to see the lines out. No bluefish in the bay, -unless they came in last night." - -Sam evidently felt very much as Captain Kroom did about having the -trolling-lines out, but Pete seemed entirely willing to let his city -acquaintance have the first line that was ready. Both of them had -already said enough to let Captain Kroom know that Sam's city relatives -were boarding at a sea-side hotel a mile or so up the coast, and that he -had visited the village that morning for the first time. There he had -met Pete, and they had agreed to go fishing together. - -"Humph!" said Captain Kroom. "I always had to pick my crews anyhow I -could. Made sailors of 'em, though, after we got afloat." - -The boys heard him, but Pete was making no haste with his line. He -remarked to Sam, - -"If he says there are no bluefish, then there ain't any. He knows." - -"None yesterday," came hoarsely from the stern of the boat. "What do you -know about fish? Did you ever catch a whale?" - -"Never trolled for one," said Pete. "Guess you didn't, either." - -They must have been old acquaintances, but Sam looked astonished to hear -Pete answer so tremendous a man in that free way. - -"Didn't I?" grumbled thunderously out of the deep chest of Captain -Kroom. "Well, I did, then. Struck him, too, and made him tow my schooner -further than across this bay. What do you think of that?" - -"What did you do with him?" exclaimed Sam. "Did he get away?" - -"No, sir, he didn't get away," replied the Captain. "But he sounded, and -that's where the whale-line went." - -"Sounded?" gasped Sam. "I didn't know a whale could holler." - -"Holler?" put in Pete, with some contempt in his voice for the ignorance -of a city fellow. "He means the whale dove to the bottom." - -"Don't know about the bottom," went on the Captain. "But he pulled out a -mile of line, and when he came up the harpoon was in him yet. We got -him." - -"Oh!" said Sam. "You trolled for him with a harpoon. Oh! Hullo! I've got -a bite. Oh!" - -His hook was a pretty big one, set firmly in a bone that Pete called a -"squid," and this had been glimmering over the waves astern while Pete -was getting his own line unsnarled. - -"Hold hard!" shouted the Captain, as Sam tugged and strained. - -"I can't," said Sam, as the line was jerked from his hand and began to -run out swiftly over the side of the boat. "He's getting away!" - -"Lost him!" almost groaned Pete. "He pulled like a shark." - -"More like a stick of timber," very quietly but gruffly remarked the -Captain. "I'll tack and see what it is." - -He was swinging the boat around while he spoke, but the moment he had -done so he reached out and grasped the line which had been so suddenly -jerked away from Sam. It was running loosely now. - -"Haul it in, boys," he shouted. "We'll see what's at the other end of -it." - -"Biggest kind of fish!" said Sam. "It hurt my hands." - -"Fish?" said the Captain. "Don't you know a fish-bite from a snag? You -will when you've catched more of 'em." - -Nevertheless the boat could not go directly back upon its former trail, -and the line the boys were pulling in grew taut again. As soon as it -straightened, the Captain once more touched it, and his fingers told him -something, for he remarked: - -"It's kind o' loose, too. There are lots of stuff floatin' 'round this -bay. It might be wreckage." - -Sam was hardly enough of a seaman to get a clear idea from that, and he -stood up to watch. He was a pretty good-looking young fellow, with -bright dark eyes, and with, just now, a very enthusiastic, highly -colored face. - -"I knew we'd have some kind of luck if we sailed with Captain Kroom," -said Pete. - -"Here we are!" shouted the Captain, and down dropped the sail as he -added: "Take the oars, Pete! Sam's catched a cod-lamper-eel." - -Pete sprang to the oars with the activity of a monkey, and they were -instantly in the rowlocks. - -"I'll bring her around," he said; but Sam was leaning over the side of -the boat to get a glimpse of his "eel." - -"Humph! Canvas! Old sail! Bit of spar!" growled the Captain. "I'll cut -Sam's squid loose. Sam, hand me that boat-hook." - -It lay on the bottom, and hardly was it in the Captain's hand before the -three-cornered _Elephant_ began to lean over with his weight. - -"'Twon't do," he said. "Fetch her starn around. This 'ere's a find. -Boys, there's been a wreck somewhere. It's a jib-topsail. That's a -spritsail-yard." - -"He knows," said Pete; but Sam was in the dark as to how one piece of -half-sunken canvas could be distinguished from another. - -"Steady, Pete! Pull!" commanded the Captain. "I'll get a good look at -it. It's worth towin' in; but we'll make this tide carry it as far as it -will. Pretty good bit of duck." - -Sam saw no kind of water-fowl, but in an instant more he remembered -something, and said, "Cotton duck." - -"English duck," said the Captain. "Pretty near new. And there's -something down there hitched to the spar. We don't need any fish to-day, -boys. I'll gear this fast to the boat, and then I'll gropple 'round." - -He had spare rope enough in his three-cornered boat to make a hitch -with, and the _Elephant_ was quickly anchored to the all but sunken -prize. While he was doing that, however, and while Pete worked the oars, -Sam had not been idle. He had a very clear idea that whatever this might -be, he had caught it. Of course it belonged to them all, like any other -fish, but it had bitten upon his hook. Now that he had that back again, -he was disposed for more catching, but not one of his motions had -escaped the keen eyes of the Captain. - -"That's it," he said to Sam, after making a fruitless sweep through the -water with his boat-hook. "You can gropple, too, but put on a sinker, or -it won't go down. Heaviest chunk of lead there is in my basket." - -It was plain that he liked the quick and handy way with which Sam -followed his directions, for he said: - -"I've known a young lubber like you, green as grass, turn out to be a -right good foremast hand. Tie it tight and swing it out. That's it. Let -it go down. There! Pull!" - -"I've struck something!" said Sam, breathlessly; but even as he did so -he was thinking. - -Wrecks? He had heard all sort of things concerning wrecks. What if a -sunken ship should be away down there? The Captain said this was a -topsail. He must know. Then there were lower sails. There were masts. -Every ship had a hull. What about drowned people? What if he were about -to pull up somebody that had been drowned? - -It made a kind of cold chill run all over him, but he tugged upon his -line, and something at the end of it slowly yielded and came nearer. -Meantime the Captain plied his long-handled boat-hook, and now he -suddenly exclaimed: - -"I've hitched on a hawser! Here she comes! Look out for the boat, Pete." - -"Guess I'd better," said Pete, for the _Elephant_ was tipping around in -a most disorderly way, and the water was a trifle rough with waves. - -"Only a rope," thought Sam, as the Captain's catch came in sight, but -the old sailor's eyes twinkled, and he said to himself, - -"There's something at the other end of it." - -"Sam!" exclaimed Pete. "You've struck a bundle! Haul it in!" - -"Can't," said Sam. "I guess it's fastened to the rope the Captain -hooked." - -"No, bub, it's hitched to the spar," said the Captain. "Cut it loose, -and in with it." - -Sam pulled out his pocket-knife, but his fingers trembled so that he -hardly could open it. Then he reached over and began to cut away, but -before the bit of rope that held the bundle was severed the Captain -shouted: - -"Wreck it is! Got another catch! It's a valise. There comes the spar, -all afloat. Hullo! That's too bad. Somehow I unhitched that sail. It's -gone to the bottom." - -It was just so. The water-soaked canvas had been buoyed only by the -wood, and as soon as that was cut away it went down out of sight. - -[TO BE CONTINUED.] - - - - -[Illustration: CHILDREN OF THE CONGO.] - -BY CYRUS C. ADAMS. - - -The schools for black boys and girls in the Congo country have a very -unusual feature that perhaps is not found in any other part of the -world. Some of these schools are exclusively for boys, and the others -for girls, and the intention is, when they grow up, to have them marry -one another, thus creating civilized families, who will help to improve -the people around them. Probably the young men and women will not think -this is a hardship, for it is believed they will prefer to choose their -wives or husbands from among those who have had some education, like -themselves; and if they do not, they will undoubtedly have the privilege -of choosing where they please. Whether this plan is wise or not, it -shows at least that the white race is beginning to think a good deal -about the black children in Africa; in fact, these coming men and women -are expected to help far more than their barbarous fathers and mothers -of to-day to civilize Africa. - -[Illustration: SISTER OF CHARITY AND SOME OF HER PUPILS.] - -If we were to visit Belgium this summer we should find many little black -girls from the Congo in the convents there learning to read and write, -sew and cook, and to do many other useful things. When they go back to -their homes it is expected that they will wear the garb of the Sisters -of Charity, and teach their people as the devoted white Sisters have -been doing since 1892; and if they do well, they will ultimately take -the place of those pale-faced women from Europe, who suffer from the -trying climate. Thus far one-fourth of all the girls in the chief Congo -Catholic school, the brightest among them, have been sent to Belgium for -years of training. - -All through the French Congo we see the government officials keeping a -sharp lookout for the more promising sons of native chiefs; for some day -these boys will become the most influential natives in the country, and -so the French are gathering many of them into schools near their homes, -and are sending others to France to be educated. Of course they will not -all turn out exactly as the French hope they will. - -Some years ago an African chief was killed in battle with the French -forces. One of his sons was sent to France. No black boy there makes -better progress in his studies, but visitors shake their heads when they -hear his answer to the question what he hopes to do in the world. - -"I hope to live long enough," he sometimes says, "to avenge the death of -my father." - -He will probably change his mind, and, at any rate, France will give him -no opportunity to make her any trouble. - -Professor Drummond, after his visit to Africa, said he would like to get -inside an African for an afternoon, and see how he looked at different -things. Wouldn't we like to know just how these boys and girls feel, and -what they think, when they are suddenly landed, fresh from the depths of -a savage land, in the streets of Paris, Brussels, or Berlin, and see -more things in a day they never heard of than we do in a year? They -learn many things, as a baby does, by stern experience. When Von -François brought an eight-year-old boy from inner Africa to the sea, the -youngster chased along the beach in high glee, and before any one could -stop him, tried to refresh himself with a big swallow of ocean water. -This same boy, Pitti, thought the snow he saw falling in Berlin was a -swarm of butterflies. The first horse he saw terrified him, and the -Berlin newspapers told of his unbounded astonishment at the strange -dishes and viands on his master's table. What a marvellous change in the -condition of these children! Many of them were slaves, and some of them -had been brutally treated and even wounded by cruel slave-dealers. -To-day they have good homes, and the world is doing all it can to make -them intelligent and honorable men and women. - -There are "street arabs," or homeless boys, in the Congo villages, just -as there are in New York city. They live on what they can pick up, and -it sharpens their wits to have to hustle for a living. It would take a -smart Yankee boy to beat some of these Congo youngsters in a trade. Even -a five-year-old will sometimes amass a little capital. Somehow he will -get hold of a string of beads. He may trade it for a small chicken, -which thrives under his nurturing care, and in a few months he can sell -the fowl for four strings of beads, quadrupling his capital. Pretty soon -he is able to buy a pig, which follows him like a dog, and sleeps in his -hut; and when piggy grows up his owner gets a good price for him in the -market. - -I think you have never heard of Mr. Stanley's purchase of eighteen -little black boys for three cents apiece. He told me the story once, and -as I have never seen it in any of his books, I will tell it here. On the -upper Congo he met a slave gang that was likely to die of starvation, -for little food was to be had. His offer to the Arabs of a cotton -handkerchief for each of the little boys in the party was accepted. The -handkerchiefs had cost the explorer just three cents apiece, and it is -doubtful if slaves were ever purchased so cheaply before. The explorer -tucked his boys away in corners of his little steam-boat, and as he went -down the Congo he distributed them among the stations he had built -along the river-banks, and there the boys were taught to read and work. -He took one of them to England, where the lad soon learned to speak -English, and Mr. Stanley was surprised to find how much the boy could -tell him about the language, customs, and legends of the people he came -from, far up the Aruwimi River. - -Young folks in Africa act a great deal as other boys and girls would do -under similar circumstances. If we were unfortunates who were surely -dying of hunger in a wilderness, perhaps we should be as glad as these -boys were to be sold for three cents apiece, if the change meant plenty -to eat and a kind master; and, if, free children as you are, you were -mistaken for slaves, I doubt if you could be more deeply grieved than -some untutored black children have been by such a blunder. On the lower -Niger lives Sanabu, daughter of a chief. Awhile ago, when the girl was -fourteen years old, she was permitted to accompany the French explorer -Mizon, because she knew several native dialects, besides a little -English and French, and was useful as an interpreter. One day a -Portuguese asked Mizon how much he had paid for his little slave, and -offered to buy her. Angry tears came to the child's eyes; but she -brushed them away, as she drew herself up with the air of a little -princess, and said: "I am no slave. I'm as free as you are. No one shall -ever sell me." Sanabu was taken to France, and all the French people -know the story of her life, and of her wanderings for a year as the -interpreter of an explorer. - -Sanabu is not the only little girl who has gone with an explorer as -interpreter. In 1888 Mr. Paul Crampel brought to France the little -daughter of a chief. The explorer did not want the child, but he found -that the old African would be seriously offended if he did not accept -the unique present. "Go with the white man," said the stern old father, -as he led the trembling Niarinze to Crampel. "You have no longer a -father or mother. You are going to the white man's country." - -Crampel's young wife welcomed the little girl in Paris, where she was to -learn to read and live out her days. But another fate was in store for -the bright young creature. The time came when France sent Crampel back -to Africa on a very difficult mission. He needed an interpreter among -the widely spread Pahuin tribe, who are believed to number a million -people. Niarinze was one of these people, and it was decided that she -should go back with the explorer as his interpreter. A great crowd on -the wharf saw them waving their handkerchiefs as the steamer bore them -away, and that was the last that their friends in France ever saw of -them. A few months later they were in an unknown country north of the -Congo, and there Crampel was stabbed to death by treacherous men. The -brave girl, rushing to his aid, seized a gun and shot dead one of the -men who were murdering her white friend. She was knocked down and -disarmed, and we do not know whether she ever rose again. Some of the -fugitives said she was killed on the spot; but there was a later report -that she was led away a slave, far north toward the Sahara Desert. - -Do not some of these incidents show good qualities in these far-away -African boys and girls that should attract in their behalf the sympathy -and interest of more fortunate children in other lands? What boy could -do more to show love for his mother than the little ten-year-old on the -upper Congo whose thrilling story was told by Captain Coquilhat? - -One day a woman of the great Bangala tribe was crossing the Congo in a -canoe with her little boy. Kneeling in the dugout, she leaned over the -side as she bent to her paddle. Suddenly a huge crocodile came to the -surface, closed his jaws upon the mother's arm, and pulled her out of -the canoe. The one thought in the boy's mind, a thought that triumphed -over his terror, was that he must save his mother if he could. The -paddle drifted near, and he picked it up. He could see by the swell of -the water ahead where the crocodile was swimming with his prey, just -below the surface. He started in pursuit, wielding the paddle with all -his might. - -[Illustration: WITH WHAT FRANTIC ENERGY THE BOY WORKED!] - -The animal easily gained on the canoe, and finally, far in advance, he -pulled his victim out of the water upon the shore of an island. Then he -plunged into the river again and swam away, perhaps to find his mate and -share his prize with her. The boy paddled straight for the spot where -his poor mother lay. As he gained the shore he knew that she was either -dead or senseless. He leaned over her, and saw her terrible wounds. He -was not strong enough to carry her in his arms, but he could draw her to -the water's edge and pull and lift until the poor body was in the canoe. -With what frantic energy he worked! And he had need; for before he could -push off and point his boat homeward, he saw the crocodile up the river, -and coming nearer every moment. - -When the crocodile had reached the shore, the canoe was well out in the -river. If the animal had not stopped to crawl out on the land and look -around for his victim, the boy's devotion would probably have cost him -his life. As it was, the crocodile had nearly overtaken the canoe, when -the boy's cries brought the villagers to the shore, and the shouts and -missiles frightened the angry pursuer away. The poor mother was dead, -but her little son, who had risked his life to save her, had at least -the satisfaction of knowing that her body would not be the food of -crocodiles. - -"Don't you fire guns in your country when a baby is born?" asked a Congo -native of a missionary, who had rushed in great alarm when he heard a -volley fired. - -"Come back," shouted the natives to him. "It's only a baby born, and -everybody is glad." - -That white man was glad too it was only a baby. Many an African child, -more unfortunate than most of them, has been glad to be befriended by -the white men who are living in their country. Here is one among many -stories illustrating this. - -One day, in Central Africa, Mr. Arnot found several girls in a slave -caravan, nearly dead from the hardships they had suffered. He bought -them for a few yards of cloth, and took them home. One of them, little -Mwepo, was very bright and happy, and was the favorite in the household. - -Mr. Arnot went one day to dine with King Msidi. A little girl came into -the yard where they were sitting and threw herself at the King's feet. -When he bade her tell her troubles, she said she was a slave whom the -King's soldiers had taken from her home. She said her mistress treated -her so cruelly that she had run away to beg the King's protection. Arnot -was about to leave, and the sly old King told the girl to follow him if -she wanted a good home. So Arnot took her hand and led her to his -cottage, where Mwepo and the little stranger flew into each other's -arms, weeping as though their hearts would break. Three years before -they had been playing on the banks of the Luba River when slave-stealers -suddenly tore them from their homes and parents; but after many months -of suffering they had been reunited in the home of a white man. - - - - -GOLD, AND ITS USES. - - -If the average reader or thinker will devote a few minutes to the -subject of gold and its uses, and how much of it annually disappears by -wear, leaving no possible trace, he will find himself involved in some -extremely interesting calculations. If some genius would only invent a -power strong enough to attract to it the millions of invisible particles -that have, and are constantly being worn off the various articles -composed of that metal, what an immense amount would be recovered! - -Where do these particles go? Here, there, everywhere: in your house, on -the streets, in the banks, business houses, stores, and wherever man -goes. As an instance of this the following is cited: There is at present -a veritable gold-mine being worked in an old watch-case factory in -Brooklyn. It occurred to the new purchasers of this property that during -the long years of manufacturing of gold watch-cases that took place -there, a large quantity of gold particles must have been absorbed by the -flooring, walls, furnace chimney, etc. So they went carefully to work -and tore the old building down bit by bit, and burnt and crushed the -material, afterwards assaying the ashes. So far something like $50,000 -has been recovered. Say an ounce of this lost gold were recovered. If we -melted it down and gilded a fine silver wire, it would extend more than -thirteen hundred miles; or if nineteen ounces were recovered (which in -the form of a cube would be about one inch and a quarter square), it -would gild a wire long enough to compass the whole earth like a hoop. - -If you pick up a gold-leaf, such as is used for gilding purposes, it -becomes a curiosity in your eyes when you realize that seventy-five -square inches of it weigh only one grain. Now the thousandth part of a -line, or inch, is easily visible through a common pocket-glass. Hence it -follows that when gold is reduced to the thinness of gold-leaf -1/50700000 of a grain of gold may be distinguished by the eye. But it is -claimed that 1/1400000000 of a grain of gold may be rendered visible. - -Large quantities of gold are used in gilding portions of exteriors of -public and private buildings. For instance, if we take the Church of St. -Isaac at St. Petersburg, we find that it required the use of two hundred -and forty-seven pounds of gold to gild its five crosses. They can be -seen glittering at a distance of twenty-seven miles. - - - - -A STILTED COMBAT. - -BY G. B. BURGIN, - -AUTHOR OF "GASCOIGNE'S GHOST," ETC. - - -I. - -Peele sat on the platform, surrounded by a group of youthful -sympathizers. "The fact is," he said, the light of battle in his eye, -"I'll either have Gough's gore, or he mine. Matters have come to a -crisis." - -At the other end of the school-room "Grinny" Gough made an exactly -similar speech. From time to time these youthful Montagues and Capulets -glanced ruefully at a blackboard containing the following pregnant -information: - - Composition to be written by every boy in the school, instead of - customary half-holiday. - -SUBJECT: - - Landes.--A maritime department in the southwest of France, on the - coast of the Bay of Biscay. It derives its name from the landes, or - marshy heaths, which occupy a considerable portion of its surface. - The capital of the department is Mont-de-Marsan, and its area 3599 - square miles. The population in 1893 was 35,143. - - Impositions must be handed in to Mr. Squinnige at evening - preparation. - -Peele glanced ruefully at the blackboard. His look of disgust gradually -gave way to a broad grin of delight. Gough (he was pressing a metal -inkpot against a black eye) intercepted the grin, and looked more rueful -still. - -"It seems to me," said Peele, again addressing his followers, "we're -going to have a jolly row." - -"And all because of a few potatoes," said the Tadpole. - -"And a girl," added Bates. - -"Girls always do let a man in for rows," observed a youthful pessimist. - -Peele checked his followers with a lordly wave of his hand. "I thought I -was in Ireland," he said, "I saw so many potatoes flying about, and -heard Squinnige say, 'Gentlemen, gentlemen, you forget yourselves as -gentlemen.'" - -"He never forgets himself--especially at meals," said the Tadpole. "I -don't know how the row began. When I saw the other fellows chucking -taters I chucked too. I bagged Squinnige first shot; then he got under -the table and yowled." - -"I began it myself," Peele admitted. "When I saw Polyhymnia [Miss -Wantage's real name was Polly, but Peele preferred "Polyhymnia" as being -more sonorous] giving that beast Gough two potatoes instead of one, I -didn't mean to say a word; but he pitched one into the fireplace, and I -couldn't help shying mine at his head. He shied back, and hit Squinnige, -and then you fellows all chipped in." - -From which it will be gathered that the young gentlemen of Hutton Park -Academy were in a state of open rebellion. There were several causes to -account for this; but the chief among them was the rivalry which existed -between Peele and "Grinny" Gough with regard to Polyhymnia, who was -sixteen to their fourteen. - -Dr. Wantage had a theory that to teach boys to be gentlemen they should -be subjected at an early age to the refining influence of feminine -society. - -He was a widower. The only feminine society, therefore, that he could -provide for the young gentlemen under his charge was that of Polyhymnia, -who entered into his plans with the greatest gusto, and announced that -she was perfectly willing to sacrifice herself for the good of the -school. Had the Doctor been a suspicious man, he would have wondered at -this alacrity, but a work on Greek particles absorbed most of his time, -and he noticed nothing. Polyhymnia had only been home about a fortnight -from school, and was already beginning to find time hang heavily on her -hands. She hailed the Doctor's scheme with delight, and made her first -public entrance at the boys' dinner, and sat at the head of the table in -order to distribute the potatoes. - -Peele, who was the first boy to enter the room, made her a lordly bow. -"Grinny" Gough came second, put one foot into a hole in the mat, and -tumbled heavily at his divinity's feet. The rest of the rank and file -made an awkward entrance over "Grinny" Gough's prostrate body, whilst -Peele conversed with Polyhymnia, and regarded his rival with lofty -contempt. - -Polyhymnia declined to carve for the forty young gentlemen, but devoted -herself to the distribution of potatoes, boiled in their skins--the -potatoes' skins, not the young gentlemen's. On the first day of her -doing so each boy was about to devour his potato, when the Tadpole -noticed that Peele gracefully removed his from his plate, wrapped it up -in his handkerchief, bowed to Polyhymnia, and put it in his pocket--his -breast pocket. Polyhymnia blushed; this was true worship. Her blushes -were succeeded by others when the whole of Peele's faction proceeded to -follow their chief's example, each boy enfolding the precious potato in -a more or less dirty pocket-handkerchief. But after about three days' -persistent accumulation of potatoes, Nature asserted itself, and Peele's -followers felt that it was rather ridiculous to carry about a pound and -a half of uneaten vegetables in their pockets. On the fourth day, Gough, -with a vigorous sneer at Peele, had, as Peele explained, ostentatiously -pitched his extra potato into the fireplace. The next instant he -received the point of a particularly hard-skinned potato in his left -eye. Two moments later the battle became general, Peele standing in -front of Polyhymnia, and shielding her from flying missiles with heroic -devotion. Then Squinnige, the usher, came out from under the table, and -the result was the suppression of the customary half-holiday, and an -absurd "imposition" to be done about the Landes. - -"Never heard of the blessed places," said the Tadpole, with a rueful -glance at the blackboard. "What are they, anyway?" - -"Oh, it's easy enough," said Peele. "You fellows needn't trouble about -it. It's where every one goes about on stilts. Now just settle down and -do your 'impo,' or Squinnige'll be at us again. He's a victim to duty, -is Squinnige, and I want to make things easy for him." - -At this moment Gough, surrounded by his faction, approached the -platform. - -"Come down, and I'll lick your head off," he said to Peele. - -Peele, who was an admirable boxer for his age, regarded Gough with -particular contempt. - -"Squinnige would be at us before I'd blackened the other eye," he said -to Gough. "Name your weapons. We'll fight this thing out like -gentlemen." - -Gough was staggered. If he did not assert himself his ascendency was -gone forever. - -"I'd like to punch your head," he said; "but, as you say, when gentlemen -fight about a woman they don't do it with fists. Swords and pistols are -common. I'd like something worse." - -Gough's followers crowded to the support of their chief with a thrill of -delight. - -"I call this prime," said the Guinea-Pig. "Prime!" he repeated, smacking -his lips. - -Peele waved his hand with lofty condescension. - -"As you please," he said, glancing idly at the blackboard. Then a -thought struck him which did credit to his love of the dramatic. - -"What do you say to stilts?" he asked. - -"Stilts!" said Gough, in amazement. "You might as well talk of 80-ton -guns." - -"Not at all," said Peele. "Quite customary in France. Much deadlier than -pistols." - -"But how d'you do it?" asked the crestfallen Gough. - -Peele shrugged his shoulders. - -"Oh, stand on one stilt and hit with the other," he said. "Gentlemen -generally leave details to their seconds." - -"That's all very well," said Gough. "I didn't come over to England with -a Norman pig-driver, and ain't used to those things; but we can't make -fools of ourselves in the middle of the playground. If you can hit on a -way of working it without making asses of ourselves I'm game." - -"All right," said Peele, loftily; "I'll work it out. The Tadpole acts -for me. I suppose the Guinea-Pig will do the same for you?" - -"Yes," said Gough, sulkily, creeping away to his end of the school-room. - -Peele's followers gathered round him again and began to worship. - -"Of course it's all guff," said the Tadpole. "Nothing but a stork could -fight on one leg." - -Peele again waved his hand. - -"Can each of you fellows rake up a shilling?" - -It being Saturday, the amount required was speedily subscribed, and -handed over with unquestioning faith to Peele. - -"What are you going to do with it?" asked the Tadpole. - -Peele sat down and hastily drew a pair of stilts. "I'll take this to the -village," he said, "and get Smith to make us forty pairs. Then I'll show -you fellows how to use them. It's often struck me we could play 'footer' -in this way and get a lot of fun out of it. Now, Tadpole, go and explain -to the enemy." - -When the plan was explained to the enemy, the enemy immediately -acquiesced in it. About a week later Dr. Wantage was surprised to see -his pupils mounted on stilts and tumbling about in every direction. When -he came to the Tadpole, who sat on the ground, ruefully rubbing the back -of his head, the Doctor sternly ordered that big-headed youth to rise. - -"What's the meaning of this tomfoolery, Wilkinson?" (the Tadpole's name -was Wilkinson) he demanded. - -The Tadpole looked imploringly round at Peele, who at that moment -appeared on stilts which covered about six feet at a stride. - -"It's this way, sir," Peele explained to the Doctor, as he leaped to the -ground. "Mr. Squinnige gave us an 'impo' on the Landes last Saturday, -where the people do everything on stilts. We got so interested in it, -we're going to play a football match on stilts when we've had a little -practice." - -The Doctor looked round and saw half of his pupils reclining in various -involuntary attitudes on the ground, whilst ten or twelve others put -their stilts against the wall and tried in vain to get on them. - -"Oh, very well, Peele," he said; "don't let your zeal carry you too far. -It will be awkward if half of you are laid up with broken arms and -legs." And the Doctor continued his way to a neighboring wood, there to -meditate on particles. - -Polyhymnia could not understand this sudden craze for stilts. She -pressed Peele for an explanation. - -"I'm sure you're at the bottom of it," said Polyhymnia, with emphasis. -"You are the worst boy I ever knew--and the handsomest," she added, -weakly. - -"If you look in your glass," said Peele, "I think you'll find I'm not at -the bottom of it all. I wish you wouldn't speak to that beast Gough." - -"Gough is full of good points," said Polyhymnia, angrily. - -"So are a lot of other beasts," retorted Peele, more than ever decided -that the combat should be waged to the death. - -A bogus match was played under the Doctor's nose one afternoon, in which -Peele's followers got decidedly the worst of it. Gough, emboldened by -triumph, proposed that Peele and himself should settle their differences -in Homeric combat then and there. - -"I fight," retorted Peele, "when there is no chance of interruption." - -This remark made the matter irrevocable, and the combat was fixed to -take place on the following Saturday afternoon, when it was known that -the Doctor would be away. - -On the appointed afternoon all the boys in the school were drawn up into -two armies mounted on stilts. - -Peele and Gough stalked into the middle of the playground, attended by -the Tadpole and the Guinea-Pig respectively, and ceremoniously bowed to -each other, although the feat was difficult. - -Now that everything had gone so far, the Tadpole began to funk it. -"Hadn't you better let him off?" he said, apprehensively, to Peele. - -"Say another word," threatened Peele, "and I'll begin on you." - -[Illustration: THEN THE FIGHT COMMENCED.] - -Then the fight commenced. - -The Tadpole and the Guinea-Pig had drawn up a code regulating the manner -of the combat. - -The combatants were not allowed to push against each other, but might -strike with one stilt, or thrust. Whenever one fell, it counted to his -opponent. - -The two began shuffling warily round each other, like wrestlers waiting -for an opening. By a dexterous thrust of the right stilt Gough succeeded -in bringing Peele to the ground, amid derisive shouts from his -followers. Peele's face was badly scratched by the gravel, but he was on -his stilts again in a second. - -In the next round he fought more warily, and balancing himself on one -foot, delivered a swashing blow at Gough's shoulder-blade. He was about -to follow it up as Gough wavered, but the Guinea-Pig came behind him, -and, utterly regardless of the laws of the duello, struck Peele a -crushing blow on the back of the head with his stilt. - -Peele fell to the ground for the second time. There was a cry of horror, -as Polyhymnia, who had not accompanied her father, rushed up and -supported his head on her lap; whilst Gough stood moodily looking on at -his rival, and the abashed Guinea-Pig bolted, amid a shower of stilts -flung at him by the enraged boys. - -"You coward!" screamed Polyhymnia to Gough. "Oh, you base, cowardly -wretch; you daren't fight him yourself, so you got some one else to -attack him from behind. I'll never speak to you again." - -Gough was too proud to exculpate himself at the expense of his -injudicious follower. Peele at last opened his eyes. "It wasn't his -fault," he said, magnanimous to the last; "don't let on to the Doctor," -and fainted. - - * * * * * - -Peele remained a month in the sick-room. The first day he was able to -come down into the matron's parlor he found Gough there, gloomily -waiting for him. - -"I've come," the latter explained, "to let you know I wasn't cad enough -to plan hitting you from behind." - -Peele looked at him curiously. - -"I never thought you were," he said. - -"The Doctor fancies it was an accident," moodily continued Gough; "and -he's ordered all the stilts to be burned. Since then I've been thinking -things over." He hesitated. "We could finish this affair in the -holidays, on the sands at Boulogne. Perhaps pistols would be better; -stilts are too uncertain," he added, darkly. "You shall have first shot -to make up for this." - -Polyhymnia entered the room. - -"Shake hands," she commanded, "or I'll never speak to either of you -again. Besides, if you don't, I'll tell the Doctor all about it." - -Dogged to the last, the foes reluctantly shook hands, and Gough left the -room. Polyhymnia remained, looking at Peele rather doubtfully. - -She came a step or two nearer, but he did not glance at her. - -"Philip!" she said. "Aren't you beginning rather early?" - -Peele looked up. - -Polyhymnia put out her hand, and insisted on his shaking hands with her. - -"I've not given Gough a single potato since you were ill," she said; -"and I never, never will, as long as I live." - -Peele began to feel better. - - - - -A LOYAL TRAITOR. - -A STORY OF THE WAR OF 1812 BETWEEN AMERICA AND ENGLAND. - -BY JAMES BARNES. - - -CHAPTER VII. - -HARDSHIPS. - -Now behold the third attempt that I have made to condense this part of -my narrative. - -In desperation, for I wish to push on, I have adopted the measure of -giving but an outline of my personal history covering two years. - -So I jump to a day in June, after I had been living in the little house -on Mountain Brook some seven months. - -During this time I had been to Miller's Falls but once with my uncle, -but so insolently was I stared at that I did not care to withstand again -the ordeal of pointed fingers and the whispered conversations of the -curious. But now on this June day, here I was standing at the edge of -the pasture waiting for some one most impatiently. - -From the door-step of Belair but one other dwelling was in sight; except -this, nothing but ranges of hill-tops. But a mile below lived a farmer -named Tanner, who managed by hard labor to gain his living from the -ground. But I was not waiting for him, nor for my uncle, nor for Gaston, -who, by-the-way, had been constituted, or had appointed himself, my -guardian to such an extent that I might at times, with no stretching of -the imagination, consider myself a prisoner. No, I was not waiting for -any of them, but for some one who soon hove in sight across the slope of -the opposite hill. It was a little girl of my own age, and the only -living being at that time who knew anything of my thoughts or life; and -they were both strange enough for a boy of fifteen to possess or to -endure. - -Perhaps if I should tell of our conversation on this day it might -recount something that would show how things were with me. In our -meeting there was nothing but the friendship of two lads, to put the -case as it really appeared to be, and when she had climbed up on the top -rail of the fence beside me, and hooked the hollows of her feet behind -the bar to keep her balance, the way I was doing, we began, as children -do, to speak without preliminaries of any kind in the way of greetings. - -"Why weren't you here this morning?" she said, as if accusing me. - -"He had one of his fits on and kept me at work," I replied. "First I had -to practise with the small sword for two hours. If I don't look out he -will run me through some day. I almost wish he would." - -"I heard you shooting," said the girl. - -"Yes, he wouldn't let me off until I had placed three pistol balls -inside a horseshoe nailed to the side of the barn; but I'd rather do -that than go through the fencing." - -"Down in the village and at our house every one says you're all -crack-brained up here," the girl said, making a grasp in the air at a -yellow butterfly that flittered over her head. "What else did you do?" - -I was ashamed to say that I had been at my dancing-lesson, so I said: "I -had to translate four odes of Horace and learn all about a lot of stupid -people named De Brissac. I'm glad they had their heads cut off." - -"Why did that happen to them?" asked the girl. "What did they cut their -heads off for?" - -"Because they were nobles and offended the French Republicans by being -polite and well dressed and clean, my uncle says." - -"Tell me all about it." - -I had had the history of the great French revolution, at least one side -of it, drilled into me ever since my advent at Mountain Brook. I had -learned that my uncle had escaped to America from France, where he had -fought for the King, and that my mother and her twin sister had also -managed to get away from the frightful prison of La Conciergerie with -their lives, but that my grandfather, two uncles, and an aunt by -marriage had all lost their heads by the guillotine for the sole reason -that they were rich, very well dressed, and very polite indeed, so far -as I could make out. - -I had learned by heart the family histories of any number of the great -noble families of France, and all of this I considered most dull work -indeed, and wasted time. However, the story that I related to Mary -Tanner, as we sat on the top rail of the fence, seemed to interest her -greatly. - -"You see," I was saying, after I had finished spinning the long yarn, -"my name is not John Hurdiss at all; it is something else." - -"What is it?" asked the girl. - -"I have no idea," I replied; "but my uncle always calls me Jean, which -means John, and, to be honest, I don't think he knows himself." - -"I don't see why _he_ shouldn't be able to tell," replied Mary, "if he -knows so much about other people." - -"No more do I," I answered. "But I don't care. John Hurdiss is good -enough for me." - -Now, the fact of the matter was this, and I may as well state it here as -afterwards: I had guessed about the truth. My uncle did not really know -my name, and for this reason: - -You see, as I have told, my grandfather was the Marquis de Brienne (I -have forgotten to set down that Gaston always called my uncle "Monsieur -le Marquis," or something that might be resolved into that). Well, the -old gentleman (my ancestor) had three children--the present proprietor -of the Château de Belair on Mountain Brook, and twin daughters, Hortense -and Hélène, who afterwards married two of the well-dressed and -well-hated ones at a time when they had more titles than gold. - -Now it happened these two latter gentlemen--my father and uncle, of -course--had each the same initials (it is no consequence what the names -were, but each ended in "de B"). Early in the great troubles they had -sought refuge in England, having better luck than their future wives, -who were taken by the revolutionists. But the two ladies escaped through -the aid of an adventurous sea-captain, and they joined the colony of -refugees in England, where they each found a husband. But affairs did -not prosper with them. In the year 1798 the Duke de B---- became -entangled in a plot of some kind for the restoration, was caught in -France, and lost his head like the rest of his family; and in the same -year the Comte de B---- had an unfortunate duel with an English Major of -infantry, and was killed. This left the two noble ladies widows, each -with an infant boy of a few months old to take care of. For some reason -they packed up their belongings and set out for America on a -sailing-vessel, commanded, it appears, by no less a person than the -sea-captain who had assisted in their first escape from France. - -Sad to relate, the ship in which they sailed was wrecked, and one of the -ladies was lost with her infant in the disaster. Whether it was the -Duchesse de B---- or the Comtesse de B---- was not placed on record, but -the commander of the ship, Captain John Hurdiss, married the survivor at -some place in the West Indies, I believe. - -Now there was no way of finding out which one of the ladies the gallant -Captain Hurdiss had married, and I had never heard my mother's first -name mentioned that I could recall. My uncle did not know it, of a -certainty. This was the situation in a nutshell, and I trust that I have -made it plain, for I have endeavored to do so in the very shortest -manner, to the best of my ability. - -Thus the loss of the letter and the burning of the strong-box were two -misfortunes that had prevented me from knowing really who I was. - -All this may seem complicated, but I have done my best to make it lucid; -and with a heartfelt apology for this long digression, let me return to -the day in June, and to the boy and girl talking together, balanced on -the top rail of the pasture bars. - -"Did you bring the book with you that you were speaking about?" I asked -of my companion. - -"No," she replied; "but I will leave it under the flat rock this -evening." - -"I'll get it, then," I answered. "Halloa! Look at that." - -"It's a woodchuck," said the girl, jumping from her perch, and we both -charged at a small brown animal that scurried into a hole beneath some -loose stones. We were busily engaged in routing him out and he was -whistling back defiance (we had almost got at him), when I heard my name -called. I looked up and saw my uncle and old Twineface approaching along -the path. - -"Jean, Jean! Come here at once!" called Monsieur de Brienne, in French. - -"I'm going to run," said the girl, who had often expressed her terror at -Gaston's appearance. - -Without another word she turned and fled, jumping over the tall ferns -like a deer. - -My uncle had now approached within a few feet's distance. - -"Who is that with you?" he inquired, angrily. - -"Mary Tanner, the daughter of the farmer below," I replied. "I have -known her for some months. She is very nice--and--and pretty," I -faltered. - -"Bah! You shall have nothing to do with her. Never speak to her, d'ye -mind me? And here's where you have been spending your time instead of -being at your studies. Come back with me; I will fence with you." - -It was one of my uncle's _young_ days; and here, to put down something -that neither I nor any person of real learning to whom I have related -the facts, could account for: at varying periods my uncle, who was past -sixty, seemed to be gifted with an agility, a nervous force and -strength, that I have never seen equalled in a man of his slightness. -This rejuvenation, during which he often sang rondeaux and tinkled an -accompaniment on an old lyre, would last for some ten hours, perhaps, -and would be followed by two or three days, or sometimes a week, of -collapse, during which he appeared on the verge of dissolution, and -either Gaston or myself had to be with him every minute, administering -from time to time a few drops from an acrid-smelling vial. - -But, as I have said, this was one of his youthful days. - -I had been awakened in the morning early by a strange sound, and had -found him jumping the colt backwards and forwards over a hurdle on the -grass-plot before the house, Gaston standing by, a grim spectator, with -no interest in his dull, lack-lustre eyes. For an hour the old man had -put me through a practice with a small sword (he was the best fencer I -have ever seen), until I almost cried out from weariness, and we changed -the exercise for pistol practice. Now we returned to Belair, and despite -my complaining, I was forced to take up the foils again, and actually to -defend myself, for my uncle kept me up to my work by now and then giving -me a clip over the thigh or forearm. At last I grew angry, and pressed -him so close that a smile of pleasure drew his lips, and he muttered -"bravo" two or three time beneath his breath. Suddenly I noticed a gray -shadow cross his face, and his eyelids drooped. He raised his hand, and -without a word fell forward at my feet. It was one of the worst attacks -that he had experienced, and for five days Gaston and I nursed him, and -I found no chance to get away to the pasture bars, or to the flat rock -where Mary had placed the book we had spoken of. - -On the sixth day my uncle was up and as spry as ever, but now I found -that I was practically under surveillance; wherever I went the frightful -Gaston would go also. He was a most unpleasant person to have around, -for although his senses were most acute and he possessed the cunning of -a wolf, it was impossible to carry on a conversation with him. He had an -impediment in his speech, a combination of a stutter and the result of -having no roof to his mouth, that made his utterances sound like those -of a savage or wild beast. To say "yes" or "no" was an effort for him, -and he usually expressed his meaning by making signs. - -One day, I remember, I had determined to test my authority over him (for -in most things he obeyed me implicitly, so far as the fetching and -carrying went, but upon this occasion, as I say, I determined to give -him a test). I had walked as far as the edge of our clearing, and paused -on the bank of the brook. - -"Gaston," I said, "go back to the house. I'm going on alone." The only -reply was a shake of the head. "Do you hear me? I'm going on alone." (It -was my intention to make my way to the Tanner farm-house, where, -by-the-way, I had never been, and ask for Mary.) - -Now, seeing that Gaston did not intend to obey me, I jumped down the -bank and dashed across the stream, but I had not taken a dozen strides -before the old servant had me by the arm; his long fingers closed on my -flesh like a steel clamp. The result was that I went back to the house. -But that evening I managed to get away, and went to the flat rock, under -which I found the book. I had to wait until daylight before I could -examine it, although Mary, a week or so before, had told me of its -contents. - -It was an old volume relating the adventures of an Englishman named -Robinson Crusoe (I can recall the musty smell of its pages at this very -instant). Oh, the delight that I had for the next few hours, reading the -greatest story, to my mind, that was ever penned! Oh, the desire for -freedom and the longing to see the world which was builded up within me -as I turned each page! Ah! Robinson, Robinson! despite the moral you -intend to teach, you have turned many lads' minds to the sea, and given -them a burning, dry thirst for adventure not to be quenched at home! I -had read few stories in English up to this time, but I fairly shook, as -I read this one, with the intensity of my sensations. - -I am afraid that living this life gave me a tendency for dissimulation, -although in my gaoler, Gaston, I had a hard one to deceive. Nevertheless -I succeeded in getting away one afternoon, and made my way through the -woods to Farmer Tanner's. Suffice it to say that I was chased out of the -door-yard by the goodwife, with a broom in her hand, who informed me -that Mary had gone away--where, she did not state. I was threatened, -incidentally, with the ox-goad, if I should return; and so my errand was -not altogether successful. - -Now to give a big jump over time. Another year went by. Oh, the misery -of it all! The long, snowed-in days of the winter when, although my -uncle had money, I think, I had scarcely sufficient clothing to keep me -warm, and barely enough to eat. M. de Brienne's conduct and manner by -now had become so strange and his mind was so volatile that I could -never say that I felt affection toward him. I had begun to hate Gaston -generously. - -When spring came, to amuse myself, I delved in the garden, and was -rewarded by seeing all my green things prosper wondrously. An illness -that had lasted over a month almost brought me to my grave in April, but -I cannot complain for lack of nursing. Now, however, there had entered -my mind but one idea--to escape, and that right soon. Why I had not -thought of it seriously before must excite wonder. The determination to -begin to prepare for an actual separation came to me in this fashion. - -Owing to the strangeness of the costumes I was forced to wear, I had -much hesitancy about going abroad. People would have taken me, I fear, -for a mountebank. My coat, much too small, was of velvet; my breeches, -of stained and heavy brocaded silk, much patched; and my hose tattered -and threadbare. I was well shod, as my uncle possessed a box of shoes -and boots of curious fashion and superior workmanship, that fitted me, -even if those I wore were not always mates. But I determined I must have -other clothing. - -I knew nothing of the goings on of the outside world. Now to come to the -day on which I was enlightened. - -June again. I had escaped from Gaston's eye (the old man had begun to -show some signs of age), and had gone down to the highway that led to -Miller's Falls. Half hid in the bushes, I was seated, hoping to catch a -glimpse of some human being, when I saw walking down the hill a man -whose appearance made my heart give a leap--a tall, broad-shouldered -figure, dressed in a sailor jacket and wide trousers. A great bundle, -that he carried as if it was a bag of feathers, was on his back, and he -was whistling merrily as he swung along the road. I knew him in an -instant, and his name came to me. It was Silas Plummer, who had been one -of the crew of the _Minetta_. I sung out to him by name. He came to a -halt, but showed half fright upon my appearing through the bushes. - -"What in the name of Moll Roe have we here?" he cried. - -"It is I, Master Plummer," I answered, and I told him who I was. In my -eagerness I must have appeared half crazed, I judge, for he looked at me -askance as I grasped him by the arm. - -"What are you doing, lad?" he inquired. "And how you've grown!" - -In a few words, and in an incoherent fashion, I fear, I told him of my -life and my virtual imprisonment. Evidently the explanation that I made -set his mind at rest in regard to my sanity. - -"Why don't you clear out?" he said. "There's a chance for a fine lad -like yourself to the southward. The sea is not far away (how my heart -leapt at the word 'sea'!), and there are great goings on there. We've -taken their frigates, and given the lion's tail a twist until it is -kinked like a fouled hawser." - -"What do you mean?" I inquired. - -"Hear the lad!" Plummer responded, setting down his bundle and going -into the pocket of his jacket and drawing out a newspaper. "There's a -war between America and England. I'm just in off the _Comet_ privateer. -Listen to this," he said. He slapped his trousers pocket, and it chinked -to the sound of gold. "And listen here," he repeated, and he tapped the -other side. It jingled musically. "Ho, but we are getting even with them -for all their mail-stealing!" - -"A war with England!" I cried, taking the paper that had "Victory!" -spread across it in large type. "Do you remember Dash, and his hand -there on the deck?" - -"Ay, like a glove thrown in the face of the King," said the sailor; "and -the news of it is about the world." - -"Plummer," I said, "sell me some clothes. I'll pay you for them--if -you'll wait." I had hidden three or four of the gold pieces under the -flat rock. "I will run and fetch you the money," I continued, eagerly. - -"Not a penny, not a farthing," answered the man, giving my shoulder a -push. "Come into the woods. I have some duds that might fit you here in -my bundle." - -My hands and, indeed, my knees also, were trembling so that I had to -have his assistance (a strange tiring-maid) in getting into my clothes. -But in ten minutes I was rigged out all-a-taun-to in the outfit of a -swaggering privateers-man, even to the shirt opened at the throat and -the half-fathom of neckerchief. I recollect that I was crazy to see how -I looked in it. - -"And here's a cap, too," he said. "It has a Portugee rake to it, but -never mind; now you're ship-shape." - -He stood off and looked at me, with his head sidewise, as if I was -wholly some workmanship of his own hands. - -[Illustration: "ANCHOR'S ATRIP!" HE CRIED; "SET SAIL AND AWAY."] - -"Anchor's atrip," he cried, imitating the shrilling of a boatswain's -whistle; "set sail and away." - -"How--_how_ can I thank you?" I said, half faltering, and blushing, for -I felt hot all over. - -"By meeting me ten days from now in Stonington. There's a crack brig, -the _Young Eagle_, about to sail from there; and though they'll take few -greenhorns, togged out that way you can pass muster. Ship with me, -mess-mate. I'll help you out!" He grasped my hand. "Ah, you've got a -good grip for a rope! And look at the chest and the arm of you! Big as -my own, I'll warrant." - -I had never realized what a size I had become; but I had been finding -out that it was only my uncle's skill that kept me from disarming him in -our fencing-bouts of late, and that Gaston had not laid hands on me -since some time before my illness. Now I was fully recovered and in fine -fettle. - -"I'll go with you," I replied, grasping Plummer's hand again, "and God -bless you!" - -"The _Young Eagle_, then, at Stonington, eh?" He slapped his pockets and -started off. "I'm bound up-country to see my sweetheart," he shouted -back from over his shoulder, and I heard him chanting the "Sailor's -Return" as he disappeared about a bend in the road. - -I gathered my rags and made for the brook, where I looked at myself -until I became fairly ashamed, and threw a stone at my reflection in the -water. Then taking off my clothes, I donned the old ones, and hiding my -bundle beneath the old flat rock where I kept the _Robinson Crusoe_, an -old horse-pistol, and many treasures (including a half-score of the De -Brienne buttons), I went up to the house. I could see that my uncle was -in a strange excitement (that he was going mad I have no doubt of now). -Gaston cast a suspicious look at me, in return for which I, elated by -the doings of the day, made a threatening gesture. Of a truth, I think -the man had grown afraid of me, for he cringed. - -At twelve o'clock that night I was awakened by some one stirring in my -room. I looked up. It was my uncle. He was in his night-dress, and his -gray hair straggled over his ears. Held close to his side, as if it -rested in a scabbard, was a narrow court sword, whose naked blade -flashed in the ray of the moonlight that came in at the curtainless -window. - -"No, by St. Michel, they shall not enter!" he cried, and he stopped -suddenly, rigid, as if he were listening for some one coming up the -stairs. Then he turned to the bed on which I lay. - -"Arise, your Majesty!" he said. "They're upon us. Come, gentlemen, stand -fast!" - -Again he listened. "No, they're gone," he whispered, softly. "Is the -Princess calling for me?" He made as if to sheathe the sword, and I saw, -in doing so, the sharp blade cut into the palm of his left hand; but he -paid no attention to it, and went down stairs. - -To say that I had shuddered would not express it. And suddenly, as if a -burst of light had come upon me, the idea that I need no longer stay -flooded my brain. - -"Why, he might murder me!" I thought, the conviction coming then for the -first time that he had turned mad-man. I arose, and only putting on half -my clothing and my shoes, I lowered myself out of the window. - -It was cloudless, and the moon was at the full. My shadow chased before -me as I ran down the path. Freedom! freedom! seemed to beckon me. I -breathed the same sensation that I had on that clear moonlight night -when the salt breeze was in my hair, and when the wide sea rose and fell -and the little brig dashed through it--as if she had caught my -exultation of I hers. - -I leaped the brook and scattered the sleeping birds out of the bushes up -the banks. "Ho for the sea! Hurrah!" I cried; and I never turned to give -even a farewell look at the Château de Belair. - -[TO BE CONTINUED.] - - - - -TYPICAL ENGLISH SCHOOLS. - -BY JOHN CORBIN. - - -RUGBY. - -Rugby was founded in 1567, almost two hundred years later than -Winchester. Its founder was not a great bishop and statesman, like -Wykeham, and much less a King, like the founder of Eton, but plain -Lawrence Sheriff, one of the gentlemen of the Princess Elizabeth -(afterward Queen Bess), and a warden of the Grocers' Company. At first -Rugby was a mere grammar-school; and it never ranked high as a public -school until Dr. Thomas Arnold, "The Doctor" of _Tom Brown's -School-Days_, became head master. To-day Rugby holds firmly to its -middle-class traditions. There is not a title in the whole place. The -boys are mainly the sons of midland manufacturers, and of the doctors -and lawyers of the neighboring cities. - -When Dr. Arnold came to Rugby in 1837 he found about as unruly and -turbulent a school as there was in the kingdom. The "houses" were mere -boarding-houses, and the masters, who usually eked out their incomes by -means of church "livings," often resided at some vicarage or rectory in -the neighborhood. Arnold, who was an old Wykehamist, required the -masters to live in the houses and govern them, as the Winchester masters -have always done. Next to the masters in authority he placed the -sixth-form boys, giving them much the same powers as the Winchester -prefects and Eton captains. When there are not enough sixth-form boys to -keep order in a house, as sometimes happens, the master selects a few of -the best scholars and athletes in the fifth form, and gives them the -power and responsibility of sixth-form boys. Instead of gathering all -the "scholars" together in one "college," as is done at Winchester and -Eton, each house has a fair proportion of scholars. This plan is -followed at Harrow also; and, as I mentioned in the first of these -articles, the college at Winchester is likely soon to be broken up and -scattered among the houses. As a result of this plan the Rugby -"school-house"--of which Tom Brown was a member--is made up not of a -picked set of scholars, but of the same proportion of scholars and other -boys as the houses. - -[Illustration: THE SCHOOL-HOUSE QUADRANGLE--SHOWING TOM BROWN'S CLOCK -TOWER.] - -Arnold's admirable manner of dealing with the boys is familiar to all -readers of _Tom Brown_, but besides the fighting, betting, and bullying -which lingered in Tom's day, Arnold encountered a great deal of open and -systematic rule-breaking. The boys used to keep guns and beagles in the -backs of shops, and employed much of their spare time in poaching in the -neighborhood. This sort of thing Arnold easily quelled by telling the -shopkeepers that he would "put their shops out of bounds"--that is, -forbid the boys from entering them, even to buy things,--if they kept on -helping the boys to go poaching. The horsy cliques among the boys caused -Arnold more trouble. Rugby is in a first-rate hunting country, so that -the temptation was very great to mount a nag and go scurrying off over -fences and hedges. On one occasion, a boy who fancied himself as a -steeple-chaser bragged that he could give any fellow in the school the -pick of all the horses in Rugby town and beat him. A boy named Corbett -accepted the challenge, selecting as a mount the best fencer he could -find. The challenger picked the fastest horse in town. In the race the -fast horse refused several of the fences, so that Corbett won. After the -race the challenger blustered so much about the superiority of Corbett's -horse as a fencer that Corbett challenged him to swap horses and try -another race. This time Corbett was so careful in taking the fences -that he fell behind; yet he did not miss a single obstacle. On the -homestretch he gave his speedy animal the spurs, and, as he had planned, -sported in ahead amid wild enthusiasm from his friends. Of all this -Arnold took no notice. This so elated the boys that they got up a grand -steeple-chase, for which seven horses entered. At this juncture Arnold -sent for Corbett, and told him that he had winked at the first two races -only because if he had taken any notice of it he should have had to -expel both boys. He added that if the steeple-chase came off he would -expel every boy who rode or was present at it. There was no -steeple-chase. Soon after, however, a great national steeple-chase took -place at Dunchurch, a neighboring town, and Arnold "put the course in -bounds" for the day. The whole school went to see it, and every sensible -and manly boy must have been won over to his master's side. - -[Illustration: RUGBY SCHOOL-HOUSE FROM THE CLOSE.] - -Fights among the boys Arnold handled with similar moderation and -firmness. It had been the custom to settle quarrels by knock-out -contests somewhere out of bounds, where there was little or no chance of -interruption. Arnold ruled that all fights should take place within the -close--that is, in the great playing-field just behind the school--every -part of which his study windows overlooked. The penalty for the breach -of this rule was the expulsion of all parties concerned. The fight -between Tom Brown and Slogger Williams, which took place in the close -behind the chapel, was no child's play; but the appearance of the Doctor -at least cut it off short of manslaughter. Once fighting was put under -rules, it was in the plain road toward being suppressed altogether. - -To ascribe all these reforms, and the general elevation of public -opinion with regard to the discipline of schoolboys, to Arnold's sole -influence would perhaps not be just. His plan of governing the school, -as I have said, was only a modification of that which Wykeham had framed -centuries earlier for his school at Winchester. In only one particular -did Arnold attempt to improve on Wykeham's plan. He tried to make the -sixth form report offenders to him for punishment. In the few cases in -which this was done the informers lost caste forever. The sixth form -would lick offenders, as upper boys have done, I suppose, ever since -Wykeham's day, but they wouldn't blab. It shows what a good plan Wykeham -established, that even Arnold couldn't better it. Arnold's ideas about -influencing his upper boys he seems also to have learned at Winchester. -When he was himself an upper boy his master once set him to construe a -hard passage in Thucydides, of whom he was so fond that later he edited -his works. When his master objected to the rendering, Arnold stood up -for it stoutly, even obstinately. "Very well," said the master, quietly, -"we will have some one who will construe it my way." Some hours after -school Arnold came to the master looking very crestfallen. "I have come -to tell you, sir, that I have found out I was wrong." "Ay, Arnold," said -the master, holding out his hand in forgiveness, "I knew you would -come." The question of kneeling to pray in the dormitory, over which Tom -Brown struggled so manfully in defence of Arthur, cropped out at other -public schools at the same time and even earlier. In a word, Arnold's -mastership at Rugby fell in a time when all matters of life not only in -public schools, but in general society, were being elevated and -purified. The prominent place which Rugby took in the general movement -was due partly to the fact that it was the most turbulent of the -schools, and partly to the fact that of all head masters Arnold was the -most manly, devout, and beloved. - -Since Arnold's time, the work he began has been carried steadily on. -To-day the boys break bounds chiefly to go bicycling or to take a swim -in the Avon. Bullying is almost entirely a thing of the past. Of the old -fighting spirit little remains. The very site of Tom's famous encounter -is now occupied by the chancel of the new chapel, and choir-boys sing -whereof old Rattle, in his thunder-and-lightning waist-coat, wagered -"two to one in half-crowns on the big 'un." All this, of course, is as -it should be; but one of the masters admitted to me that spite and -backbiting are probably commoner than they were in the days of black -eyes and bloody noses. I could not help suspecting that if Tom Brown -were to come back to his old haunts he would find life pretty dull, and -perhaps even hanker for another encounter with the bully Flashman. It -would be a capital joke, I often think, to make a born reformer live in -a place that was just as he liked it. - -All the dearest associations at Rugby, at any rate, have to do with the -fight that was fought in Arnold's time, and the most sacred landmarks -and customs are those which are mentioned in _Tom Brown_. As you are -shown through the school-house your guide points out the "double -study"--fully five feet by six--which is said to have been occupied by -Tom and Arthur. The boys who use it now, I am certain, never doubt that -an actual Tom Brown once lived in it. In the corridor, to be sure, the -top of the old hall table, with T. HUGHES carved boldly upon it in -capitals, is hung reverently upon the wall; but the explanation of this -is precisely that which a schoolboy once gave to the question of the -authorship of Homer. If _Tom Brown's School-Days_ was not about Tom -Brown, it was about another boy of the same name. - -In one of the dormitories you will find the oak table on top of which -new boys were--and still are--made to sing. The rule is that they must -stand with their legs as wide astraddle as possible, and hold a lighted -candle in each hand. Your guide will show you the tin candle-guards or -"parishes" in which the candles were held. On the table beside the boy -is always placed a jug of drink, composed of beer, salt, mustard, soap, -and other savory ingredients, a swallow of which the new boy is made to -gulp down if he fails to sing a song. About the walls of the room are -ranged eleven little oak cots, beside one of which Arthur most certainly -knelt to pray on his first night in school. Or if you insist that Arthur -never lived, why, then, you remember that every fellow has knelt down, -or wished he dared to, on his first night of homesickness in a strange, -rough place. - -The school-house dining-room stands almost exactly as it stood in Tom -Brown's days. There are tables all around the sides, and a table in the -middle. The small boys sit about the side tables, and, as the years go -by, move gradually around the room, until at last they are admitted to -the middle table. To sit here means much more than merely being in the -sixth form. At the side of the hall is the fireplace where Flashman -roasted Tom for refusing to sell the lottery ticket on Harkaway; and the -very benches stand beside it upon which the bully's head struck, a few -days later, when Tom and East finally got the better of him. From the -dining-room there are two doors leading into the quad, one through a -long and difficult passage, and the other opening directly upon it. The -little boys who sit at the side tables have to go out through the long -passage; only the big boys at the middle table can go out directly. For -a little boy to go out through the big boys' door would be unheard-of -arrogance. This, Rugbeians think, is an excellent custom, both because -it existed in Tom Brown's time, and because it teaches boys their -places. When I told my guide that it reminded me of the farmer who had a -big hole in his barn door for his cat, and a little hole for his kitten, -I think he thought me irreverent. - -Across the court, outside the hall, are the turret stairs leading up to -the school-rooms where Arnold met his sixth form. Many a man who is now -old and gray remembers these rooms as the place where he learned more -about obedience and more about ruling vigorously and justly than he -might ever have known except for his head master at Rugby. The walls of -the rooms are covered with old table-tops, upon which are carved the -names of these ancient Rugbeians. The tables now in use are untouched. -If a boy carves so much as his initials, he has to have the wood planed -and polished, or pay the price of a new table. Fame, you see, comes -harder nowadays. - -We walk out at last into the ample close. The three trees which used to -stand within the football-field are all gone; and many another -well-known tree was blown over in a recent wind-storm. Still, there are -plenty left for shade, and though one always grudges an old and -beautiful landmark, perhaps the football and cricket fields are better. -To an American, the Rugby close will always be of interest as the -birthplace and original home of that form of football which gave rise to -our own familiar game; but if he has read _Tom Brown_ in his boyhood, he -will think of it rather as the place where Tom made his entry to Rugby -life in the big-side football game, and where, with Arthur on his -eleven, he played his final game of cricket. About the close the -pleasantest memories of the school hover; and of all public schools -Rugby is the one which appeals most strongly to the democratic instincts -of an American. Here boys are equal not only by custom, as at Eton, but -by birth; and here many generations have learned to value themselves, in -Arnold's phrase, as Christians, gentlemen, and scholars. - -To speak of the other public schools--Harrow, Westminster, Shrewsbury, -Marlborough, Wellington, Clifton, Repton, and the rest--would of course -be interesting, but I could scarcely hope to illustrate more clearly -what a public school really is. At all of them the boys live in -"houses," much as men at the universities live in colleges. At all the -discipline is more strict than is usual at our preparatory schools, and -at all the older boys have power to flog the younger, and are -responsible for their good behavior. To an American the discipline seems -too strict to be compatible with real independence, and the idea of a -big boy flogging a little one is brutal. Certainly it is not well for an -American boy to be sent to school in England. Yet granted the strictness -with which English parents bring up their children, and the careful -watch which is kept on young men at the universities, the public-school -system seems to me the best that could possibly be devised. Independence -of character and the power of using opportunities are perhaps not to be -looked for among English schoolboys; but from their stricter rules they -learn obedience and self-restraint, while from the exercise of power the -older boys learn to govern justly and with decision. - - * * * * * - -A GIRL'S BRAVE ACT. - -"She will bear the marks of her fight the rest of her life." The doctor -who made this observation referred to Miss Anna McDowell, a young girl -of nineteen, who by her heroic act on the afternoon of November 22 has -gained an enviable reputation for bravery and presence of mind. The -heroine is a resident of Quakake Valley, Pennsylvania. A small trout -stream runs through the valley, skirting the main road. This stream was -a source of delight to little three-year-old Nettie Hinckle, who -constantly played on its banks and fished in its waters. Nettie was -fishing on the afternoon of the 22d when a whir of wings startled her, -and looking up she saw a giant bald-head eagle flying savagely towards -her. With screams of fright she started to run, but the bird fought her -back with his beak and talons. - -Miss McDowell, who was passing, heard the screams and hastened to the -bank of the stream. Without hesitating, she seized the child and tore -her away from the eagle. This apparently served to enrage the bird -further, and, defeated in its attempt to carry off the child, it turned -its attention to the rescuer. It circled around, tearing at her with his -beak and talons in the most ferocious manner. - -Nettie had fallen down on the ground, and the young girl stooped over, -guarding her, at the same time vainly trying to ward off the bird's -attacks. The bird grew more and more furious, and repeatedly dashed at -the girl, cutting ugly gashes in her shoulders and head. Without any -other means of defence, she used her arms to fight his onslaughts, but -strength was fast leaving her what with loss of blood and her high -nervous state of excitement. - -In the struggle her hat became loose, and instantly she thought of her -hat-pin. It was one of the usual long, thin, steel pins, and drawing it -out she defended herself with it against the savage bird, who, -regardless of the stabs she gave, flew at her with renewed fury. Her -heart failed her and her strength was nearly gone. Why did not somebody -come? The bird had circled off, and was coming at her with a wild swoop, -his beak half open ready to tear, and his talons extended. - -She grasped him around the neck as he struck at her, and holding him -with all the strength she had left, she thrust the hat-pin into his -head, fortunately killing him. At the same moment her senses left her, -and she stumbled forward on the ground, falling on the dead bird. Little -Nettie ran screaming to her house, a short distance away, and people -hurried to the scene. They tenderly lifted the brave girl up and took -care of her, as the bird had inflicted some bad wounds. Miss McDowell -proposes to have the bird stuffed to keep in her room as a memento of -the occasion, but the memory of her brave act will never be forgotten by -the people of her neighborhood. - - - - -FAMOUS CAVALRY CHARGES. - -AT BEVERLY FORD. - -BY RICHARD BARRY. - - -It is a fact that has been noted by many historians, in writing of the -actions in the civil war, that the sabre wounds that were reported at -the hospital were few and far between. This is easily accounted for in -the first two years of the war, for the reason that the Confederates, -from whom the Union forces learned the severest kind of lessons, used -their cavalry forces as dragoons, or mounted infantry. The celerity with -which they moved bodies on horseback from one point to another caused -consternation throughout the North. General McClellan, who had been, it -must be confessed, not very much impressed with the need of a cavalry -force, at last declared himself as almost helpless without this -assistance; and from this time on this branch of the service received -the attention so long denied it. - -Although the Confederates could rightly point with pride to their -well-organized cavalry divisions, there can be no record prouder than -that of the First Cavalry Division, known as Buford's Cavalry. To quote -from the writings of Brigadier-General Wesley Merritt, "Its history -shows that from the time of its organization until the end of the war it -captured more men, horses, guns, and munitions than would equip it twice -over, and yet that during this time it never suffered a surprise, never -lost a wheel captured by the enemy, and never met the enemy but to -defeat it." - -From the very day of the new organization that took place under General -Hooker the cavalry force of the Army of the Potomac began to live and -move, and the contempt that the victorious Southern horsemen held for -the riders of the North slowly diminished, until in its place was the -respect born of fear. - -The Richmond _Examiner_, one of the strongest journals of the -Confederacy, thus speaks of the new order of things that began to exist. -This extract is taken from that issue which speaks of the great cavalry -fight at Beverly Ford: - -"If the war was a tournament, invented and supported for the pleasure -and profit of a few vain and weak-headed officers, these disasters might -be dismissed with compassion; but the country pays dearly for the -blunders which encourage the enemy to overrun and devastate the land -with a cavalry which is daily learning to despise the mounted troops of -the Confederacy. It is high time that this branch of the service should -be reformed. - -"The surprise of this occasion was the most complete that has occurred. -The Confederate cavalry was carelessly strewn over the country, with the -Rappahannock only between it and an enemy who has always proven his -enterprise to our cost. It is said that its camp was supposed to be -secure, because the Rappahannock was not supposed to be fordable at the -point where it was actually forded. What? Do Yankees, then, know more -about this river than our own soldiers, who have done nothing but ride -up and down its banks for the last six months? - -"They knew at least the weather was dry, the water low, and that fifteen -or twenty horse, confident from impunity and success, were on the other -side. They could not have failed to know this much, and they were -surprised, caught at breakfast, made prisoners on foot, with guns empty -and horses grazing. Although the loss was insignificant, the events of -that morning were among the least creditable that have occurred. Later, -some of our best officers sacrificed their lives to redeem the day. A -very fierce fight ensued, in which it is said, for the first time in -this war, a considerable number of sabre wounds were given and received. -In the end, the enemy retired or was driven--it is not yet clearly known -which--across the river. Nor is it certainly known whether the fortunate -result was achieved by the cavalry alone or with the assistance of -Confederate infantry in the neighborhood." - -From this account it may be seen that the Confederates regarded this -action as a surprise. Maybe it was, but the Union forces had been -preparing for it for some time. Some of the divisions had been in the -saddle, moving from one point to another, for hours, in full sight of -the Confederates on the further side of the Rappahannock. - -At early dawn on the 9th of June, 1863, the Second Cavalry, with the -Fifth leading the regular brigade, moved out. But one small brigade had -passed over the river before them, led by Colonel B. F. Davis, of the -Eighth New York. With the muddied water of the river up to their -saddle-girths, several thousand men forded the stream without -opposition, and climbed the bank to the level land beyond, where the -Southern army was making ready with great haste to meet the advance of -the wide blue lines. - -No sooner had the first division formed than a volley broke out from the -fringe of timber at the edge of the rising land, and in a charge upon -the enemy that had now marched into sight, Davis had fallen, mortally -wounded. This was the news that greeted the First, Second, and Fifth as -they ranged up from the river and climbed this slippery bank, furrowed -deep by the hoof-marks of the hundreds of horsemen that had preceded -them. It was about five o'clock in the morning, and with this advance -commenced the most memorable cavalry combat ever placed on record in any -war. For twelve hours' time the struggle continued, and it was not until -seven o'clock that the Second Cavalry left the field. Brave Captain -Canfield fell dead, shot through the body. Captain Rodenbough, who had -been despatched to the front, found his squadron hotly engaged. -Dismounting his men and taking possession of a stone wall, he defended -it against attacks of more than ten times his number, until his command -was relieved by the squadron under command of Captain Loeser. - -But the well-directed artillery fire and the singing bullets of the -Confederate sharp-shooters from the hill were playing havoc with the -waiting ranks of the men in blue, who, awaiting the general orders to -advance, moved from one position to another as the Confederate -artillerists got range of them. At last the long-hoped-for order came -from General Buford, and the cavalry was ordered to advance and charge -the batteries and riflemen in the woods. The men on foot were captured -in their improvised defences, and forward rolled the Union line, a -battery of artillery keeping company with them. Now for some time -commenced an artillery battle, and then again the order was given to -charge. The column of platoons under rapid motion were broken into fours -to avoid a fence, and man after man scrambled over a sunken road, and -then stopping only for half a moment, rapidly to reform, hot of foot and -shouting, they rode with drawn sabres upon the hitherto invincible -Southerners, who, seated on their horses, had been waiting the order to -advance themselves. - -It is a rule of cavalry fighting that no force of horsemen ever meet -another force while standing still, for with the impetus of quick -movement those in motion have force that would make up greatly for lack -of numbers. Unfortunately for the Confederates their regiment that had -charged the Union skirmishers, halted and broke before the main body of -troopers as they came flying up the hill, and now ensued one of the -strangest happenings of the war--the Southern line, stampeded and -broken, was mingled with the horsemen of the North. Sabre blows and -pistol-shots rang on every hand. No one halted to make prisoners, but -riding on in one great fighting charge, it became an individual -conflict, the victor never pausing to see how well he had done his work, -but surging in the wild rush for a fresh foeman worthy of his steel. - -The Captains, Lieutenants, non-commissioned officers, privates, fought -boot to boot. Through the fierce heat and dust and smoke could be heard -the chough of the sabre or the cracking of the revolver. Up the hill and -across the plateau to the crest of the ridge they fought it out. So -weakened had the men's sword-arms become from continual blows and -parrying, that oftentimes two troopers of opposing sides rode on -together, neither having the strength to unhorse the other. - -Rodenbough, a good swordsman, who had lost his best horse early in the -action, found himself opposite a tall Virginian, who also knew his -sword-play, and succeeded in wounding the gallant Captain. But an -instant later he was brought to the ground by a stroke of Rodenbough's -sabre. Captain Loeser was severely wounded, and his two Lieutenants -also. - -[Illustration: SABRE BLOWS AND PISTOL SHOTS RANG ON EVERY HAND.] - -Although the charge had swept everything before it, or at least along -with it, it was seen, when the top of the hill was gained, that fresh -bodies of troops were hurrying up from beyond in order to take advantage -of the confusion of the Union line. Obeying the hurried orders of their -officers and the call of the bugle, the Second whirled about and -returned to the rolling ground in order to reform and be in better -condition to meet the enemy. This regiment had defeated in its charge, -in a hand-to-hand fight, more than double its own number; its losses had -been terrible, but soon it was in condition to fight once more. But now -the battle had been renewed by the enemy's firing rifle and carbine from -the woods on the south. To quote from what General Wesley Merritt says -of his personal adventures during the charge: - -"The charge was begun with the sabre, of course; but when the enemy -broke and fled, a number of us in advance drew our pistols, and enforced -our demands for surrender by rapid shots with our revolvers, still -riding at a charge, with sabres in hand. I had emptied my revolver, and -before returning it, rode at an officer whom, in the dust and smoke, I -thought to be refusing to surrender to one of my men. I brought my sabre -to a point, with the remark, 'Colonel, you are _my_ prisoner!' His reply -was more forcible than courteous, as, after a moment's surprise, he made -a cut at my head with his sabre. I partially parried the cut, and at the -same time Lieutenant Quirk called to me that we were surrounded and -alone. The rebels, who were all around us, then commenced a rapid fire -with their pistols, and must have been surprised to see Lieutenant Quirk -and myself, in spite of their firing and orders to surrender, ride -safely back to the regiment. A kindly Hibernian of the Second made good -my only personal loss by giving me the hat off his own head. From a -description of the officer who didn't surrender on this occasion, -General Buford was of the opinion that it was Colonel (afterwards -General) Wade Hampton." - -He also related the following episode, which shows how close and upon -what _intimate_ relations the conflict had continued: - -"As Sergeant-major Delacour was assisting Lieutenant Lennox from under -fire, a horseman in gray rode up and fired at the officer, who said, -'Don't shoot; I'm wounded!' With an oath the Confederate emptied another -barrel of his revolver within a few feet of Lennox's head, when -Delacour, pausing, drew his pistol, fired, and as the unfortunate -tumbled off his horse, coolly remarked, 'And now _you_ are wounded.'" - -The account of every regiment was a repetition of this, except that the -Second engaged more men and suffered a heavier loss. Late in the day it -was relieved by the Sixth United States Cavalry--one of the few regular -bodies of mounted men in the service which was not separated into small -detachments. - -But it was a great day for the mounted forces of the Union army. -Major-General Henry J. Hunt, Chief of Artillery of the Army of the -Potomac, says, in referring to this action: "This was in the main a true -cavalry battle, and enabled the Federals to dispute the superiority -hitherto claimed and conceded to the Confederate cavalry. Stuart -reported his losses at 485, of whom 301 were killed and wounded. -Pleasanton reports an aggregate loss of 907, of whom 421 were wounded." - -The Second Cavalry alone lost, out of 225 men who were engaged, 68 in -killed and wounded, and 73 horses killed or disabled. "From that day," -says Merritt, "the prestige of the Confederate cavalry was broken and -its superiority gone forever." - -In a volume called _A Rebel War-clerk's Diary_ occurs the following -entry: "The surprise of Stuart on the Rappahannock has chilled every -heart. Notwithstanding it does not appear that we have lost more men in -the encounter, the question is on every tongue, 'Have our Generals -relaxed in vigilance?' If so, sad is the prospect." - -Although the fact of this combat did not check Lee's advance materially, -it gave a confidence to our troops that bore fruit afterwards. - - - - -[Illustration: INTERSCHOLASTIC SPORTS] - - -The annual Thanksgiving-day game between Berkeley School and St. Paul's, -Garden City, resulted in a victory of 24-2 for St. Paul's. The -Long-Islanders fairly outclassed the Berkeley players, who have not been -quite up to the standard this year. If it had not been for carelessness -on the part of Pettit, Berkeley would not have scored. By lack of -judgment on the part of this half-back at a critical moment, St. Paul's -was forced to make a safety. - -The feature of the game was Starr's kicking of goals. He had four -chances, and accepted them all, two of them being at good angles. -Berkeley had the kick-off, and Bien sent the ball down to St. Paul's -twenty-five-yard line, whence Pettit made a run of twenty yards before -he was stopped. The ball was kept going by steady advances, until it was -carried across the line. S. Starr caught the ball on the next kick-off, -and ran thirty-five yards, protected by good interference. When he was -downed, the ball was within fifteen yards of the line, and by a couple -of plunges through the centre, and Starr around the left end, St. Paul's -scored again. - -There was no more scoring in the first half, but these figures were -duplicated in the early part of the second. It was in the latter part of -the second half, too, that Berkeley scored. It was Berkeley's ball on -the third down, and a pass was made to Bien for a punt. The leather -sailed over into Pettit's territory, and he caught it on St. Paul's -ten-yard line, but was so slow in handling it that Berkeley was down on -him before he realized what had happened, and they had shoved him across -the line for a safety. Apparently the St. Paul's rushers were so anxious -to get through and stop the kick that they did not think of protecting -their back. It is not fair to place all the responsibility for the -misplay upon Pettit. - -Another exciting and interesting Thanksgiving-day game was that between -Brooklyn High and Poly. Prep., played at Eastern Park, the victory -going to the High-School, 6-0. This match developed as good football as -has been seen in Brooklyn this fall, and the teams proved to be very -evenly matched. In the first half it would have been difficult to decide -which was the better eleven, but in the second half the Poly. Prep. line -weakened a trifle, and the High-School backs were sent through at centre -and tackle for repeated gains. The High-School team was slightly the -heavier, and this advantage is accountable for the work of the line-men -during the latter part of the game. - -The only touch-down of the day was scored almost at the close of the -second half. By mass plays the ball had been brought down into Poly. -Prep.'s territory, and from the five-yard line Geirasch was shoved over -for a touch-down. Some exciting play followed this, Poly. Prep. having -secured the ball on the High-School's twenty-five-yard line by a fumble. -They took a tremendous brace, and rushed the leather fifteen yards, but -the High-School players pulled themselves together at this point, got -the ball on downs, and the game closed with neither goal in danger. - -The championship of the Long Island League was not affected by the -result of this game, inasmuch as St. Paul's had practically secured -first place by defeating Brooklyn High, 8-0, on November 12. St. Paul's -had no easy time of it with the Brooklyn players, and only managed to -score once. This was done in the first half with good centre plays, S. -Starr being shoved across the line. The other two points resulted from a -safety by the High-School. - -The championship of the Cook County High-School Football League has been -won by Englewood H.-S., the deciding game being against Hyde Park, 38-6. -Both teams played good football, and although Hyde Park was in some -respects outclassed, the men nevertheless worked hard, and succeeded in -not being shut out altogether. - -Most of Englewood's gains were made around the ends, the Hyde Park line -being stronger than had been anticipated. Teetzel, as usual, proved the -star player of the day, and made one unusually good run. This was in the -second half, when he was sent through Hyde Park's tackle, and after -clearing his hole and dodging the half-backs, he put down the field for -sixty yards, and scored. The team-work of Englewood was better than has -been developed by that eleven in any previous game; and as for -individual work, Henry and Ferguson deserve mention. Henry followed the -interference well, and got through the Hyde Park line whenever he had -the ball. Ferguson's strong point was in protecting the runner. - -The best work for Hyde Park was done by Captain Linden, who got into -every play, and made a gain almost every time he took the ball. He did -the scoring for his side. He took the leather on Englewood's -twenty-five-yard line three times in succession, making short gains at -every plunge, and finally managed to get himself pushed across the line. -This is only the second time that Englewood has been scored against in a -League football game this year. - -The Chicago High-School Football-Players seem to have little pride in -making any kind of a showing against out-of-town teams, if we may judge -from the performance of Englewood against Elgin, and of Hyde Park -against Madison. The Englewood High-School had a game scheduled with -Elgin for Thanksgiving day, but as soon as they had won the Cook County -championship the eleven disbanded. Manager Knox was at his wits' end to -get a team to go to Elgin, and only succeeded in enlisting the services -of three of the regular players, filling the other positions as best he -could. - -Of course this was not a High-School eleven, and had no right to -represent itself as such. The Elgin players even claim that one of the -men who came along with Manager Knox's patch-work team had played this -year with Lake Forest University. The Elgin eleven was the same that has -represented that school all season, and which has not been defeated. The -game against Englewood, or rather against the eleven that was -masquerading in Englewood's colors, ended in a dispute, and was awarded -to Elgin. The best element among students at Englewood believe that if -the regular team had gone to represent the school the result would have -been different. As it is, however, Elgin claims the championship of the -Illinois High-Schools. - -The Hyde Park H.-S. football-players also went out of training as soon -as they had been defeated by Englewood for the Cook County championship. -Consequently, when they were called upon to play against Madison -High-School, it was impossible to get the regular eleven men together, -and a few outsiders were taken in to make up the team. As might have -been expected, the influence of these outsiders was of the worst -possible kind, and they resorted to methods during the game which would -not have been countenanced by the regular players. - -This sort of thing brings a bad reputation to the Chicago High-School -football-players. Of course this is to be regretted, but it is richly -deserved, and unless some of the better element take a hand and -introduce rigid reforms in matters athletic, things will go from bad to -worse, and the spirit of semi-professionalism, which has proved such a -dangerous thing in other quarters, will effect the ruin of sport in -Chicago. - -The championship of the High-School football teams of Wisconsin and -Minnesota was won by the Madison High-School, which defeated the -Minneapolis South Side H.-S., 21-0. Both teams played good, hard -football, but Madison, although the lighter of the two elevens, had the -better system, and plunged through its opponents for repeated gains. -Captain Dean of Madison massed his plays on tackles, where he was very -successful in gaining ground. The best work for Minneapolis was done in -the second half, and their gains were chiefly obtained around the ends. -The feature of the game was a goal from the field, kicked by Anderson of -Madison H.-S., toward the end of the first half. Madison had forced the -ball down to their opponents' 20-yard line, but Minneapolis here took a -brace and managed to hold. The ball was then passed back for a kick, and -Anderson succeeded in making a beautiful goal. Some of the best work for -Madison was done by Wheeler and Curtis at tackle, and by Nelson, who -made many fierce plunges through the Minneapolis centre. Davis at centre -held well on the defence, and likewise put up a strong offensive game. -The best work for Minneapolis was done by Von Schlegell. He did -excellent work in the interference, and tackled hard and low; he -likewise made a number of gains around the ends. Other good work for -Minneapolis was done by Dumas and Shepley. - -It is announced that again this year the Knickerbocker Athletic Club -will hold a large in-door interscholastic track-athletic meeting. The -success of last year's venture will probably help to make the coming -occasion one of the biggest interscholastic affairs in any city of the -country this winter, and if it is properly conducted it ought certainly -to achieve this distinction. I believe it has already been decided that -last year's experiment of a dirt track in the Madison Square Garden will -not be tried again, and that at the coming meeting the runs will be held -on a board flooring. In addition to securing entries from the schools of -Boston, Philadelphia, Hartford, New Haven, and other near institutions, -an attempt will be made to induce the young athletes of Baltimore, -Washington, and possibly Chicago to compete. If this could be done, the -meeting would be fully as representative as the National Interscholastic -out-door meeting of last June. - -[Illustration: EXETER FOOTBALL SQUAD.] - -[Illustration: ANDOVER FOOTBALL ELEVEN.] - -[Illustration: ANDOVER VS. LAWRENCEVILLE--THE BALL ON ANDOVER'S -THREE-YARD LINE.] - -When Exeter and Andover determined to renew their athletic relations, -they drew up a set of rules to govern their meetings in the future; and -as the paragraphs adopted by the two schools seem to be of considerable -importance for the welfare of amateur sport, I give them below: - - The undersigned, representatives of the Phillips Andover and - Phillips Exeter Athletic Associations, agree on the following - regulations to govern all contests between the two Associations for - the period of one year--from October, 1896, to July, 1897, - inclusive: - - 1. There shall be annual contests between the two Associations in - football, base-ball, track athletics, and tennis. - - 2. The dates for these contests shall be arranged from year to year - by the managers of the several Associations, and announced six - weeks before the contest. - - 3. The officials for each game shall be chosen by joint agreement - of the representatives of the two Associations, and shall be - announced to each school at least two weeks before the date of the - game. - - 4. No player shall take part for more than four years in these - games. - - 5. No student shall be allowed to represent Phillips Academy in any - such public contest unless he is regularly enrolled as a member on - the register of the school and is taking at least twelve hours of - work per week. No student shall be allowed to represent Phillips - Academy in any such public contest who either before or since - entering the school shall have engaged in any athletic competition - for money, whether for a stake or a money prize, or a share of the - entrance-fees or admission-money; or who shall have taught or - engaged in any athletic exercise or sport as a means of livelihood; - or who shall have received for his participation in any athletic - sport or contest any pecuniary gain or reward whatever, direct or - indirect, provided, however, that he may have received from the - school organizations, or from any permanent amateur association of - which he was at any time a member, the amount by which the expenses - necessarily incurred by him in representing this organization in - athletic contests exceeded his ordinary expenses. - - 6. The school manager of each athletic team shall submit to the - manager of the opposing team, at least three weeks before the date - of the contest between the two teams, a list of all players whom he - may use in such contest, together with the home address of each - player, and shall also upon request furnish any other information - which may aid in the enforcement of the previous rules. No player - not so named shall take part in the contest. - - 7. All protests which may be made concerning eligibility of - players, and all other disputes, shall be decided, without appeal, - by a referee, who shall be chosen by the joint agreement of the - Athletic Committee or Representative of the two Associations. - - 8. All expenses incurred in the enforcement of these rules and in - payment of officials shall be shared equally by the two - Associations. - -If Brookline High had won the game against Hopkinson on the Tuesday -before Thanksgiving she would have won the championship of the Senior -League in Boston, but her defeat, 16-0, will probably give the -championship to Cambridge M. T. S. The Hopkinson-Brookline High game was -one of the best-fought battles that have been seen in Boston this year -among the schools. During the first half the play was of a high order. -Both teams gained ground, and each was strong enough to secure the ball -from the other on downs, and it was more because of a misplay by -Brookline than by superior work of Hopkinson that the latter made a -touch-down toward the close of the first half. Hallowell managed his -team splendidly, but the star player of the day was undoubtedly Mann. -Further details of the game and of the closing matches of the Boston -Leagues must be delayed until next week. - -"FOOTBALL FACTS AND FIGURES."--BY WALTER CAMP.--POST 8VO, PAPER, 75 -CENTS. - - THE GRADUATE. - - - - -ADVERTISEMENTS. - - - - -[Illustration: ROYAL] - -The absolutely pure - -BAKING POWDER. - -[Illustration] - -=ROYAL=--the most celebrated of all the baking powders in the -world--celebrated for its great leavening strength and purity. It makes -your cakes, biscuit, bread, etc., healthful, it assures you against alum -and all forms of adulteration that go with the cheap brands. - -ROYAL BAKING POWDER CO., NEW YORK. - - - - -[Illustration: Copyright, 1896, by Harper & Brothers.] - -[Illustration: BICYCLING] - - This Department is conducted in the interest of Bicyclers, and the - Editor will be pleased to answer any question on the subject. Our - maps and tours contain many valuable data kindly supplied from the - official maps and road-books of the League of American Wheelmen. - Recognizing the value of the work being done by the L.A.W., the - Editor will be pleased to furnish subscribers with membership - blanks and information so far as possible. - - -The final stage of the run from New York to Newburg is given this week. -In the previous three weeks the country between Hoboken and Newburg up -the western bank of the Hudson has been published, and, of course, the -wheelman, if he chooses, may run on further up the Hudson. Beyond -Newburg, however, the country becomes very hilly, and some of the roads -are practically unrideable in some cases because the hills are too steep -to ride up, and in others because they are too steep to ride down. Some -of the roads around Newburg are very bad for the same reason, especially -those running southward from the city through Canterbury and Cornwall, -and down below West Point. Through this part of the country in the -vicinity of the river it is wiser, both for your own good and that of -your wheel, to refrain from wheeling at all. - -The main road to Newburg is good riding, however--that passing through -Tuxedo, Highland Mills, and Woodbury Falls, on last week's map, to -Mountainville. Thence turn left, and run to Salisbury Mills, keeping -always to the right until you leave the latter place, and run up to Orrs -Mills and Vails Gate, thence proceeding direct to Newburg. None of the -roads hereabout can be called first-class, and this particular route is -by no means the best. If your run is to be as far as Poughkeepsie, it is -wiser to keep further westward, and run from Blooming Grove on last -week's map, out through Otterkill, Maybrook, and Coldenham. Any -bicyclist who wants to reach Poughkeepsie from New York is strongly -advised to keep to the east bank of the Hudson all the way up. The -wheeling through the country where Tuxedo is situated is good, but -except for a few roads outside of this small bit of territory, the -riding is pretty hilly. The road-bed, as a rule, is in fair to good -condition, but the unevenness of the ground is a constant worry to a -bicyclist--the kind of worry that wears him out in short order, unless -he is an experienced wheelman. - -The only reason for riding through this country is a historic one, for -the ground is covered with objects of interest connected with the -Revolutionary war, and of course West Point itself is one of the sights -of the Hudson, both from the fact of its being the seat of the military -academy, and because of the scenery thereabouts. - -This closes the particular trip which for several weeks we have been -discussing, and for the present, during the winter season, the -Department will be discontinued. Questions on bicycling matters, where -they can be answered, will be attended to as before, and the Department -will be resumed in the early spring. All applications for explanations -as to the method to be followed in becoming a member of the L.A.W. will -also be answered as heretofore. - - NOTE.--Map of New York city asphalted streets in No. 809. Map of - route from New York to Tarrytown in No. 810. New York to Stamford, - Connecticut, in No. 811. New York to Staten Island in No. 812. New - Jersey from Hoboken to Pine Brook in No. 813. Brooklyn in No. 814. - Brooklyn to Babylon in No. 815. Brooklyn to Northport in No. 816. - Tarrytown to Poughkeepsie in No. 817. Poughkeepsie to Hudson in No. - 818. Hudson to Albany in No. 819. Tottenville to Trenton in No. - 820. Trenton to Philadelphia in No. 821. Philadelphia in No. 822. - Philadelphia-Wissahickon Route in No. 823. Philadelphia to West - Chester in No. 824. Philadelphia to Atlantic City--First Stage in - No. 825; Second Stage in No. 826. Philadelphia to Vineland--First - Stage in No. 827; Second Stage in No. 828. New York to - Boston--Second Stage in No. 829; Third Stage in No. 830; Fourth - Stage in No. 831; Fifth Stage in No. 832; Sixth Stage in No. 833. - Boston to Concord in No. 834. Boston in No. 835. Boston to - Gloucester in No. 836. Boston to Newburyport in No. 837. Boston to - New Bedford in No. 838. Boston to South Framingham in No. 839. - Boston to Nahant in No. 840. Boston to Lowell in No. 841. Boston to - Nantasket Beach in No. 842. Boston Circuit Ride in No. 843. - Philadelphia to Washington--First Stage in No. 844; Second Stage in - No. 845; Third Stage in No. 846; Fourth Stage in No. 847; Fifth - Stage in No. 848. City of Washington in No. 849. City of Albany in - No. 854; Albany to Fonda in No. 855; Fonda to Utica in No. 856; - Utica to Syracuse in No. 857; Syracuse to Lyons in No. 858; Lyons - to Rochester in No. 859; Rochester to Batavia in No. 860; Batavia - to Buffalo in No. 861; Poughkeepsie to Newtown in No. 864; Newtown - to Hartford in No. 865; New Haven to Hartford in No. 866; Hartford - to Springfield in No. 867; Hartford to Canaan in No. 868; Canaan to - Pittsfield in No. 869; Hudson to Pittsfield in No. 870. City of - Chicago in No. 874. Waukesha to Oconomowoc in No. 875; Chicago to - Wheeling in No. 876; Wheeling to Lippencott's in No. 877; - Lippencott's to Waukesha in No. 878; Waukesha to Milwaukee in No. - 879; Chicago to Joliet in No. 881; Joliet to Ottawa in No. 882; - Ottawa to La Salle in No. 883; Jersey City to Englewood in No. 890; - Englewood to Nyack in No. 891; Nyack to Washingtonville in No. 892. - - - - -[Illustration: THE CAMERA CLUB] - - Any questions in regard to photograph matters will be willingly - answered by the Editor of this column, and we should be glad to - hear from any of our club who can make helpful suggestions. - - -PHOTOGRAPHIC-PRINT EXCHANGE. - -We have received many letters from members who are interested in the -print exchange, and for the benefit of those who did not see the -suggestion details will be found in the Camera Club Department for -October 13. If any member who desires to exchange prints does not -succeed in getting those which he wishes, if he will send word to the -editor, the "want" will be printed a second time. - - SIR KNIGHT ARTHUR INKERSLEY, 709 Hyde St., San Francisco, Cal., - wishes to exchange prints of Alaska, Mexico, and the country round - San Francisco, for England, Ireland, and Scotland prints; and of - the forts, guns, navy-yards, and coast defences of the United - States. Sir Arthur's prints may be had in silver, salt, or - aristo-platinotype, and are 5 by 7 in size. - - SIR KNIGHT FREDERICK CLAPP, 175 Boston St., South Boston, Mass., - has prints of Boston and vicinity to exchange for photographs of - State Houses, as he is making a collection of such photographs. Sir - Frederick makes fine pictures, judging from the specimens sent to - the Round Table. - - SIR KNIGHT LOUIS A. DYAR, Winona, Minn., wishes to exchange prints - of the bluffs of the Mississippi River, the Maine coast, and - interior or animal studies, for pictures taken near Ogunquit or - Strong, Me.; interesting figure or animal studies; or historical - places in the United States. His pictures are 3-1/2 by 3-1/2 and 4 - by 5, clear and well finished. - - ERNEST T. SELIG, Lawrence, Kan., wishes to exchange photographs of - the collection of animals in the Kansas State University for - pictures of the government buildings at Washington, D. C. A part of - the collection mentioned was in the Kansas building at the World's - Fair. - - SIR KNIGHT JOHN N. PROTHERO asks how to filter solutions. Take a - piece of filtering-paper, which may be bought either at the - druggist's or of the dealer in photographic goods, fold it through - the centre (it comes cut in circles), then fold it back and forth - from the centre like a fan. Crease these folds, open the paper, and - put it inside a glass funnel, and turn in the liquid to be - filtered. The funnel may be set in a bottle, or one can use a - regular filter-holder. The creases in the paper prevent it from - sticking to the glass funnel when it is wet with the solution, and - the liquid runs through faster. - - SIR KNIGHT F. ELTON MORSE, 11 and 13 Market St., Lynn, Mass., - wishes to exchange photographic views with members of the Camera - Club. Sir Knight Elton says that he has a 5-by-8 Rochester Optical - Co. single-view lens which he would like to exchange for a 4-by-5 - size of the same make, if any member would like to make the - exchange. - - SIR KNIGHT WILLIAM MERRITT, Rhinecliff, N.Y., says that he has a - 4-by-5 Manhattan Camera, almost new, carrying three double - plate-holders, and is suitable for instantaneous or time exposures, - which he would like to sell. He also asks when the next contest is - to be held. The contest is now in progress, and will close December - 15. - - SIR KNIGHT L. P. DODGE asks if films are made for the pocket kodak - for more than twelve exposures, and if there is any contest open to - Knights and Ladies who own pocket kodaks. Twelve exposures is the - regulation length for the pocket kodak. A box of films containing - four spools (forty-eight exposures) may be bought for $1, and as - the camera may be loaded by daylight, the small rolls are more - convenient. There is no contest open for pocket-kodak pictures. A - pocket-kodak picture may be enlarged to a 4-by-5, and sometimes - even larger, if clear and sharp. - - Sir Knight S. F. Macquaide writes that he has an Eastman pocket - kodak which he would like to sell, as he wishes to buy a larger - camera. This camera, he says, is in first-class condition, and has - been used but a short time. His address is 46 Mechlin Street, - Germantown, Pa. - - SIR KNIGHT VINCENT AULES, New Dorp, Staten Island, asks if plates - on which pictures have been taken can be used again for making - pictures. They cannot be used for making pictures unless the glass - is cleaned, and then coated again with the sensitive solution, and - for an amateur this involves more trouble and expense than to buy - fresh plates. Old plates may be used for making transparencies, - directions for which were given in No. 857, March 31, 1896. - - LADY EDNA KNAPP encloses a print with a white streak across one - end, and says that all her negatives have the same defect, and asks - the reason. The camera leaks light and fogs the plate. There is - probably a pin-hole in the bellows, or perhaps the lens is not - fitted tight enough. As Lady Edna is a beginner the editor would - advise taking the camera to an expert and have it examined, or to - return it to the dealer and have it exchanged for a perfect one. - The latter course would be the better of the two. - - SIR KNIGHT JOSEPH K. FORNANCE asks why the film of negatives turns - an olive color; if there is any way of burnishing prints without a - burnisher; and if a picture taken with the No. 2 Bullet, pictures - 3-1/2 by 3-1/2, is eligible for the contest. The olive color of the - film is due to insufficient fixing, leaving in the film undissolved - silver salts. Pictures may be burnished by squeegeeing them to a - ferrotype-plate, directions for which were given in No. 884, - October 6, answer to Sir Knight Hubbard Marsh. The smallest size - picture admitted to the contest is 4 by 5. - - SIR KNIGHT JOSEPH GIBSON, JUN., Ingersoll, Ont., Canada, asks how - the focal length of a lens may be found; what causes a plate to - turn yellow after it is developed and fixed; if warm water will - loosen the film from the glass. Directions for finding the focal - length of a lens will be given in an early number of the ROUND - TABLE. The yellow staining of the negative is caused by its not - being left long enough in the fixing-bath, and portions of the - undissolved silver salts remain in the film. Warm water would - soften the film, and cause it to swell and separate from the glass. - Use cold running water; 70° is a safe temperature. - - * * * * * - -FEED THEM PROPERLY - -and carefully; reduce the painfully large percentage of infant -mortality. Take no chances and make no experiments in this very -important matter. The Gail Borden Eagle Brand Condensed Milk has saved -thousands of little lives.--[_Adv._] - - - - -ADVERTISEMENTS. - - - - -Arnold - -Constable & Co - -LYONS SILKS. - -_Plain & Brocaded Moiré Antique,_ - -_Brocaded Metal Effects._ - -RICH WHITE SILKS. - -_White Satin, Moiré Antique,_ - -_Moiré Veloutè, White Faille,_ - -_White Brocades,_ - -for Wedding Gowns. - -_Fancy Silks and Gazes,_ - -for Bridesmaids' Dresses. - -Broadway & 19th st. - -NEW YORK. - - - - -[Illustration: PISO'S CURE FOR CONSUMPTION] - -CURES WHERE ALL ELSE FAILS. - -Best Cough Syrup. Tastes Good. Use - -in time. Sold by druggists. - - - - -Important - -Notice! - -[Illustration] - -The only genuine "=Baker's Chocolate=," celebrated for more than a -century as a delicious, nutritious, and flesh-forming beverage, is put -up in =Blue Wrappers= and =Yellow Labels=. Be sure that the =Yellow -Label= and our Trade-Mark are on every package. - -WALTER BAKER & CO. Ltd., - -Dorchester, Mass. - - - - -EARN A BICYCLE! - -[Illustration] - -We wish to introduce our Teas, Spices, and Baking Powder. Sell 75 lbs. -to earn a BICYCLE; 50 lbs. for a WALTHAM GOLD WATCH AND CHAIN; 25 lbs. -for a SOLID SILVER WATCH AND CHAIN; 10 lbs. for a beautiful GOLD RING; -50 lbs. for a DECORATED DINNER SET. Express prepaid if cash is sent with -order. Send your full address on postal for Catalogue and Order Blank to -Dept. I - -W. G. BAKER, Springfield, Mass. - - - - -_X-RAY CAMERA._ - -[Illustration] - -Roentgen and Edison out-done. The great up to date Sensation! Penetrates -any object inserted between its lenses, no matter how thick or dense. -You can see through a solid piece of iron or a part of your body, as -through a crystal; of all optical marvels ever discovered this is the -most wonderful. Two sets of compound lenses in handsome telescope case -3-1/2 in. long. Sells for 25c. Sample complete and mailed postpaid with -catalogue of 1000 Bargains for 15c. 2 for 25c. $1.25 Doz. AGENTS WANTED. -DON'T WAIT--DO IT NOW. - -Robt. H. Ingersoll & Bro., Dept. No. 62, 65 Cortlandt St., N. Y. - - - - -Postage Stamps, &c. - - - - -[Illustration] - -The neatest and most attractive Stamp Album ever published is =The -Favorite Album for U.S. Stamps=. Price 25c. (post free 30c.). - -Catalogue of U.S. Stamps free for the postage, 2c. Complete Catalogue of -all Stamps ever issued, 10c. Our Specialty: =Fine Approval Sheets= at low -prices and 50% commission. - -R. F. ALBRECHT & CO., - -90 Nassau Street,--New York. - - - - -[Illustration: STAMPS] - -100 all dif., Venezuela, Bolivia, etc., & =POCKET ALBUM=, only 10c.; 200 -all dif., Hayti, Hawaii, etc., only 50c. Agts. wanted at 50% com. List -FREE! =C. A. Stegmann=, 5941 Cote Brilliant Ave., St. Louis, Mo. - - - - -FREE - -50 dif. stamps, Olympic Games, etc., to all sending for our 50% approval -sheets. 105 dif. Djibouti, etc., 10c.; 200 dif. Fine 35c. List Free. - -GAY BROS. & CO., 552 Herkimer St., Brooklyn, N.Y. - - - - -U.S. STAMPS! 50 VARIETIES 25c. - -APPROVAL SHEETS 20% DISCOUNT. - -S. L. COE, 267 Portsea Street, New Haven, Ct. - - - - -U.S. - -25 diff U.S. stamps 10c., 100 diff. foreign 10c. Agts w'td @ 50%. List -free! L. B. Dover & Co. 5958 Theodosia, St. Louis, Mo. - - - - -[Illustration] - -POLITICS IN THE LAND OF SHADES. - - -According to the old Latin idea, people at death take up spiritual -abodes across the River Styx, a fabled spot somewhere, and reached -somehow. Puzzle stories are required to stick to well-settled facts in -chronology and theology no more than was ancient fiction. The following -"true" story pretends to stick closely to neither "ology" mentioned. -Here is the telegraphic (kite line) report, just to hand: - -_TO FOLK STILL ON EARTH:_ - -Did you know there was an election held recently in the Land of Styx? -Your newspapers have been so filled of late with details of your -campaign that the contests in a mystical country have been left -unnoticed. It is left to me to give to you the first news of both -campaign and its results. - -It was a three-cornered contest, this late political fight of ours, and -here are the tickets in the field: - -A. - -For President of the Styx Club, the "Father of Chicago" (1). - -For Vice-President of same, the great Egyptian who had his pillar -ornamented with palm-trees (2). - -For Trustees, the President of the United States who first suspended the -writ of habeas corpus (3); the man (4) who ordered that Sunday should be -made, in his empire, the Christian Sabbath; the discoverer (5) of the -Ohio River; and the inventor of binary arithmetic (6). - -For Chief Engineer of the Styx Fortifications, the architect (7) of the -Great Fire (1666) Monument, London. - -For Custodian of Estray Sprites, the founder (8) of the Order of Sisters -of Charity. - -B. - -For President, the author (9) of the Marseillaise Hymn. - -For Vice-President, the leader (10) of that company of Icelanders who -discovered Greenland. - -For Trustees, the king (11) who founded the Order of the Garter; the -only United States Senator (12) from California who was ever nominated -for President; the discoverer (13) of Cape Horn; and the inventor (14) -of the panorama. - -For Chief Engineer, the inventor (15) of silver mirrors. - -For Custodian, the father (16) of ancient moral philosophy. - -C. - -For President, the first Roman (17) to wear a crown. - -For Vice-President, the author (18) of "Hail Columbia." - -For Trustees, the President (19) of the United States famous for his -"Kitchen Cabinet"; the queen (20) who said, "We will not have our -prerogatives brought into question"; the father (21) of tractarianism; -and the discoverer (22) of aluminium. - -For Chief Engineer, the architect (23) of Trinity Church, Boston. - -For Custodian, the man (24) who ran second on the Presidential ticket -with Horatio Seymour in 1868. - -The election came off yesterday, and the ticket marked "B" was -successful. To-night there is a grand river parade of rejoicing. At the -head of the parade is the ship (25), building for a German firm, that -has just been launched in Glasgow, and rivals the _Great Eastern_ in -size. Following it are all manner of craft and all sorts of people. Of -the latter are those ancients (26), described by Cæsar, who burned -everything they owned preparatory to migration, not knowing where they -should go to. Behind them came the first permanent base-ball club (27). - -But the feature of the unique parade was a great company of people (28) -who first used parasols. And they carried such queer banners! - -Three of the banners bore legends. The people, who have little else to -do here, busied themselves all night trying to guess the things -described. Maybe you can do better than we have, for up to this hour we -have guessed but one of them. Here they are: - -I (29) am soft and spongy because I haven't had time to dry. Some people -doubt my existence. But that doubt is easily dispelled, for everybody on -earth has seen me many times. I always float and have funny marks on me. -I live in the cold and travel much. Good to eat? Yes,--and no. - -I (30) am thin and thick; a liquid and a solid. I am long--very long, -and I am short. I have written epic poems and doggerel rhymes. I have -overturned nations, and carried news of deaths and births. I am several -colors, but most people prefer me black. Everybody uses me. - -Millions of dollars have been spent to find me (31). So have many lives. -And yet everybody knows where I am. Fame awaits any man I touch, and yet -I don't exist, and wouldn't be a particle of use to anybody if I did. - -Above these words were real birds, perched on cross-arms and carried -high in air. One was the bird (32) that might be expected always to -carry a knife--to stab the candidate, maybe--as the politicians say. -Another was the bird (33) that came from the backwoods. A third (34), -one that would never do for a campaign torch, and a fourth (35), one -that would make a good out-fielder in a base-ball nine if it didn't talk -so much. - -As I write you this the cannons boom, the adherents of the great -Frenchman are jubilant, and the sound of his inspiring hymn is -everywhere heard. - - * * * * * - -In this fanciful story are mentioned some famous people, either persons -or classes, some birds and some other things which you may give the -names of. All are described by a sufficient clue, it may be an act, or a -peculiarity of their names. In sending answers, do not write out the -story. Number names as numbered here, write one below another in the -proper order, and put your name and address at the top of your first -sheet of answers. Mail answers not later than December 27, 1896, to -HARPER'S ROUND TABLE, New York--no street number required--and put in -the lower left-hand corner of your envelope "Puzzle Answer." Correct -answers, with names of winners, will be published in HARPER'S ROUND -TABLE as early after the close of the contest as possible, probably -within about two weeks. - -The prizes, which will be awarded by the Messrs. Harper & Brothers, -Publishers, New York, are: $40, divided among the ten best solvers -according to merit. If one solver stands conspicuously ahead of the rest -he or she will be given from $10 to $25, as the comparative excellence -of the answer warrants. Persons of any age may help find the answers, -but only those who have not passed their 18th birthday, and who are -members of households in which HARPER'S ROUND TABLE is regularly read, -may send them in. Merit signifies correctness and neatness, and has no -reference to the solution reaching the office of HARPER'S ROUND TABLE -first in point of time. Elaborate decoration of answers is not -encouraged. Use common stationery, note size, and do not roll. Write on -one side of the paper only. Everything comes to those who--try! - - * * * * * - -Much the Cleverest Yet. - -The cleverest amateur journal the TABLE ever saw--and it has seen a -great many--is _Ye Jester_. The last issue, a "Bicycle Number," is full -of fun and pictures Here is one example: - -HIS DEFINITION. - -"Say, Denny, phat do thim letters mane, 'L.A.W.', on thot bike-mon's -coat?" - -"'Long Av Wind,' ye ignoramus." - -Here is another: - -MOTHER GOOSE UP TO DATE. - - "Pussy-cat, pussy-cat, where have you been?" - "Out on my bicycle taking a spin." - "Pussy-cat, pussy-cat, what saw you there?" - "Some stones in the roadway--myself in the air!" - -In pictures there is, 1. A scorcher. 2. He meets a bull. 3. "But I -didn't learn to break broncos for nothing"--and the bull is throwing the -scorcher over its head and over a ravine, in fine style. 4. "Sorry I -can't help you, Mr. Bull, over the ravine too. Good-day." - -Another very clever picture is of a bicycle-dealer who painted his sign -each side of a window. The sign aims to attract customers of course. It -happened that when the dealer threw back his window shutters they -covered all save a few letters on each outer edge of the sign. And they -read, - -I AM A FAKIR. - -The dealer sits in the window and wonders why no one comes. - -What adds greatly to the attractiveness of _Ye Jester_ is the fact that -it is not set up in type and printed, but is written on a mimeograph or -some similar machine, and then printed in red and blue. The drawings are -clever, and the whole publication so far above the usual grade of -amateurs that all lovers of play journalism ought to see what a high -standard has been attained in this year of N.A.P.A. grace. Its address -is 31 New York Avenue, Brooklyn; single copies are five cents. It is -published by the Avalonia Chapter, No. 792. - - - - -[Illustration: STAMPS] - - This Department is conducted in the interest of stamp and coin - collectors, and the Editor will be pleased to answer any question - on these subjects so far as possible. Correspondents should address - Editor Stamp Department. - - -Through some misunderstanding I published in this column the name of a -gentleman in New Zealand as desiring to exchange stamps. I have just -received the following letter from him: - - DUNEDIN, NEW ZEALAND, - _October_ 10, 1896. - - Messrs. HARPER BROTHERS, Publishers, New York: - - GENTLEMEN,--If you send me a set of Columbian issue, will forgive - you for inserting the fact of my being a stamp fiend; as it is, I - am simply inundated with applications for exchange of stamps. Your - paper must be extensively read, as I am quite unable to answer half - my correspondents--the postage alone would ruin an ordinary mortal. - Please apologize for me, and state post-office cannot supply me - with stamps required to answer so many anxious inquirers. - - Yours truly, - C. H. OSMOND. - -The collection of Plate Nos. continues to grow, and true values are -gradually being ascertained. Some of the Nos. which were formerly quoted -at high prices have fallen seventy-five per cent. On the other hand, -Nos. formerly low in price have advanced in a corresponding ratio. Three -months ago I called attention in this column to the fact that 9000 full -sheets having 72,000 Plate Marks of No. 89 had been printed. Several -copies of this No. have turned up in small Western post-offices, and the -finders obtained $50 each. The last copies to come into the market came -from Shanghai, China. The U. S. post-office in that port had a large -number of No. 89 sheets, but most of them were used up for postage -before their value as Plate Nos. was known. The same thing happened at -Shanghai with one of the early 5c. sheets. Almost all the sheets printed -in Washington of this No. were sent to Shanghai, and a very few copies -only were preserved. - - E. R. THOMAS.--The Revenue stamps mentioned are worth from 1c. to - 5c. each. The 5c. 1861 is worth 35c. The earlier issues are worth - much more. - - CYNTHIA A. HOGE.--Apply to any stamp-dealer for catalogue. - - A. LOHRMAN.--I cannot quote values on long list of common stamps. - You can buy 2000 varieties of stamps for $35 or $40, or 1000 stamps - for $10. This last is just 1c. each, and would form the basis of a - very good collection for a beginner. - - J. J. PARKER.--The dies for the 1869 issue, as first prepared, had - the numerals of value quite small. Before any of the stamps were - sold, it was determined to make the numerals larger. The complete - set from 1c. to 90c. is known with small numerals, and blocks of - them were comparatively common twenty-five years ago. Strictly - speaking, they are essays, but doubtless would go through the - post-office to-day. A few weeks ago a block of four 2c. small - numerals were shown at the Collectors Club. They were sold for $40, - but have changed hands several times at advanced prices. - - F. X. RUSH.--The best way to sell great rarities is by auction. For - good scarce stamps worth from $5 to $25, the exchange sheets of one - of the large city societies is a very good way of selling; but to - avail yourself of that means you would have to join the society, as - none but members have that privilege. For ordinary good stamps the - A.P.A. exchange department is very good. That also is limited to - members, but the cost of membership is only $1.80 per year. At the - last reports the A.P.A. had over 1000 members. - - R. STARKE.--From your description I should say you have the - ordinary 1871 issue of Tasmania, as all stamps from 1871 to date - have the water-mark T. A. S. - - A. W. DE ROADE.--The $2, $3, $4, and $5 Columbian stamps, unused, - are turning up in great quantities lately, and have been sold at - ten per cent. discount. The $2 stamp is advertised for sale in - single copies at $1.75. The present issue dollar values have no - premium, as they can be bought at any large post-office at face. - - PHILATUS. - - - - -[Illustration: IVORY SOAP] - - Her graceful presence, everywhere - Suggests the fragrance, faint and rare - With which the sweetest flowers allure: - To such a dainty gown and face - The touch of soap seems out of place-- - Save Ivory, which itself is pure. - -Copyright, 1896, by The Procter & Gamble Co., Cin'ti. - - - - -[Illustration] - -To Show - -Your - -Heels - -To other skaters wear the - -Barney & Berry Skates. - -Highest Award World's Fair. - -Catalogue Free. - -BARNEY & BERRY, Springfield, Mass. - - - - -LAUGHING CAMERA, 10C. - -[Illustration: MY! OH MY!!] - -The latest invention in Cameras. You look through the lens and your -stout friends will look like living skeletons, your thin friends like -Dime Museum fat men, horses like giraffes and in fact everything appears -as though you were living in another world. Each camera contains two -strong lenses in neatly finished leatherette case. The latest -mirth-maker on the market; creates bushels of sport. Catalogue of 1,000 -novelties and sample camera 10c., 3 for 25c., 12 for 90c. mailed -postpaid. Agents wanted. - -ROBT. H. INGERSOLL & BRO., - -Dept. No. 62, 65 Cortlandt St., N.Y. - - - - -YOU CAN GET - -BABYLAND - -Six Months For 10 Cents - -by sending two other 6-months' subscribers on the same terms. Write for -the necessary _special subscription blanks_. - -Alpha Publishing Co., Boston. - - * * * * * - -Boys! Girls! earn - -$5 to $25 - -before Christmas. - -Particulars free. - -Alpha Publishing Co., Boston. - - - - -HOOPING-COUGH - -CROUP. - -Roche's Herbal Embrocation. - -The celebrated and effectual English Cure without internal medicine. -Proprietors, W. EDWARD & SON, Queen Victoria St., London, England. All -Druggists. - -E. Fougera & Co., 30 North William St., N. Y - - - - -HOME STUDY. - -A practical and complete =Business College Course= given by =MAIL= at -student's =HOME=. Low rates and perfect satisfaction. Trial lesson 10 -cents. Catalogue free. - -BRYANT & STRATTON, 85 College Bldg., Buffalo, N.Y. - - - - -BOYS AND GIRLS - -can earn money by working half an hour daily distributing free samples -of Headache Powders. For full particulars address, - -CAPITAL DRUG CO., Box 880, Augusta, Me. - - - - -JUST PUBLISHED - -THE BOUND VOLUME OF - -HARPER'S ROUND TABLE - -FOR 1896 - -Volume XVII. With 1276 Pages and about 1500 Illustrations. 4to, Cloth, -Ornamental, $3.50. - - This unusually attractive volume contains three long serial stories - for boys, by James Barnes, Kirk Munroe, and Molly Elliot Seawell, - besides many shorter stories by other popular writers. - - Modern Outdoor Life is very fully treated, some one hundred and - fifty pages being devoted to subjects of that nature, and in - addition there is an important series of articles illustrated by - instantaneous photographs on the different athletic sports. - - A few of the other features of this volume are the interesting - papers by Mrs. Lew. Wallace on The Tower of London, and the twelve - articles by Mrs. Emma J. Grey, on getting up entertainments for - young people. Each article describes amusements suitable for one - month in the year. Cyrus C. Adams contributes a series upon - different interesting subjects connected with recent African - explorations. - - * * * * * - - Of the previous bound volume of HARPER'S ROUND TABLE, the _N. Y. - Sun_ said: "There is nothing, we imagine, that the young reader - would be likely to prize more." - - * * * * * - -READY DECEMBER 10 - -A VIRGINIA CAVALIER - -By MOLLY ELLIOT SEAWELL. Illustrated. Post 8vo, Cloth, Ornamental, -$1.50. - - Miss Seawell was born within a few miles of the birthplace of - Washington, and both from her knowledge of Virginia life and from - facilities which have been afforded to her alone she has been able - to gather what little knowledge can be secured concerning the - incidents of his boyhood. The story, however, should not be thought - of as a history, for, while the incidents are founded upon fact, - the book itself is historic fiction, with the Father of his Country - as its hero. The book ends with the early fights with the Indians, - in which Washington took part during his Western trips, and - includes his appointment as Commander-in-Chief of the Virginia - troops at the age of twenty-two years. - - * * * * * - -HARPER & BROTHERS, Publishers, New York - - - - -[Illustration] - -A DILEMMA. - - WHEN TACKLER TRIED TO BLOW THE BALL--PERHAPS 'TWAS BUT A WHIM-- - HE DIDN'T DARE LET UP AT ALL, LEST IT SHOULD BLOW UP HIM. - - * * * * * - -An amusing story comes from India. It concerns a distinguished officer -who was constantly embracing some new hobby, much to the disgust of his -brother officers, and to the annoyance of the soldiers on whom the -hobbies frequently involved extra duty. His latest fad was amateur -gardening. One day he was strolling past the officers' quarters, when he -saw a couple of soldiers busily raking a lot of gravel-stones over a -patch of earth. - -"Ah, men, I'm glad to see you taking an interest in gardening. It's a -very nice occupation." - -One of the men, not knowing him by sight, replied: "Nice, is it? Umph! -That's all you know. We wouldn't be hiding this earth with gravel if we -didn't have an old fool of a General that's mad on gardening. Here we -are scraping these stones about in case he should pass this way and want -to grow cabbages on the bit of earth underneath." - - * * * * * - -Here is an enjoyable little bit of history that has descended to us. It -seems that some hundred and fifty years ago the natives of one of the -Scilly Islands boasted a library which consisted of but one book. It was -the pride and delight of the people, and went from hand to hand until -its pages, from perpetual thumbing and handling, grew utterly worthless. -This alarmed the proud natives, and a meeting of the dignitaries was -held to decide upon the purchase of a new library, this time of more -than one book. Long and loud they argued, and the matter was nearly -approaching a disastrous crisis when a deputation of townspeople, -desiring to have a voice in the matter, waited upon the dignitaries. -Again the discussion waxed furious, and the ultimate result was the -following resolution: - -_Resolved._ On the next fine day, weather permitting communication with -the mainland, an order be transmitted to Penzance for another copy of -_History of Doctor Faustus_. - -Then the meeting joyously broke up. - - * * * * * - -THE WEATHER. - - The snow comes down from the sky in flakes, - The rain comes down in drops, - The sunshine comes in beams, and makes - The earth yield bountiful crops. - - * * * * * - -A DAINTY SPRING FLOWER. - -"The flowers that bloom in the spring," or any other season, for that -matter, we find, by an English magazine, are not all suitable for -boutonnières. The following is a description of the _Rafflesia arnoldi_, -named by the discoverer, Dr. Arnold, found on the island of Sumatra, in -1818. The circumference, we are told, of the full expanded flower is -nine feet, its nectarium calculated to hold nine pints; the pistils are -as large as a cow's horns, and the entire weight of the flower is -computed to be over fifteen pounds. - - * * * * * - -[Illustration] - -REASSURING. - -"OH, DON'T GO SO FAR OUT, BOYS; I'M AFRAID THE ICE IS NOT STRONG ENOUGH -TO HOLD US!" - -"WELL, THE WATER IS NOT DEEP, NELL. THIS IS JUST ABOUT WHERE CARRIE FELL -THROUGH LAST WINTER, AND SHE ONLY WENT IN UP TO HER CHIN,--AND YOU ARE -HALF A FOOT TALLER THAN SHE!" - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's Harper's Round Table, December 8, 1896, by Various - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HARPER'S ROUND TABLE *** - -***** This file should be named 60083-8.txt or 60083-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/0/0/8/60083/ - -Produced by Annie R. McGuire - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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