diff options
Diffstat (limited to 'old/62125-0.txt')
| -rw-r--r-- | old/62125-0.txt | 2157 |
1 files changed, 0 insertions, 2157 deletions
diff --git a/old/62125-0.txt b/old/62125-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index d76619f..0000000 --- a/old/62125-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,2157 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Chambers's Journal of Popular Literature, -Science, and Art, No. 738, February 16, 1, by Various - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere 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/license - - -Title: Chambers's Journal of Popular Literature, Science, and Art, No. 738, February 16, 1878 - -Author: Various - -Editor: William Chambers - Robert Chambers - -Release Date: May 16, 2020 [EBook #62125] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CHAMBERS'S JOURNAL *** - - - - -Produced by Susan Skinner and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - - - -[Illustration: - -CHAMBERS’S JOURNAL - -OF - -POPULAR - -LITERATURE, SCIENCE, AND ART. - -Fourth Series - -CONDUCTED BY WILLIAM AND ROBERT CHAMBERS. - -NO. 738. SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 1878. PRICE 1½_d._] - - - - -SOCIABLE AND UNSOCIABLE. - - -The pleasures of social intercourse are amongst the best and truest -enjoyments in which we can participate—the desire for the friendship -of others is more or less inherent in human nature. There are -nevertheless thousands upon thousands who are surrounded by every -opportunity for realising these pleasures, and who yet fail to benefit -by their influence, either for temporary and healthy pastime, or for -permanent good. Most people have doubtless many amongst their circle -of acquaintance who are easily distinguished from others by the term -‘unsociable.’ It would, however, be both unfair and incorrect to -estimate that a large proportion of a given number of people have a -decided objection to and shun all society. The habitually unsociable -people are frequently those who would readily confess to a liking for -society, but who do not enter into it on account of the various and -numerous obstacles which, they will tell you, are in the way. It is -not so much on account of an innate and acknowledged indisposition -for social intercourse that the saying, ‘Some folk are as unsociable -as milestones,’ is proverbially correct, as that many barriers have -been erected by the suspicious imaginations of those concerned. People -are often heard to complain of the unsociability of others; but it is -not unseldom that the very people who adopt this standpoint are those -who, at the least approach from others, retire almost entirely within -their insignificant individuality, and assume a reserve of manner and -constrained mode of conversation, that of itself forbids any attempt to -cultivate their acquaintance. Something like a hedgehog which, should -you happen to catch sight of it, instead of making friends, rolls -itself up into a ball, and shews off its bristles to the best advantage. - -Perhaps nothing constitutes so great a hindrance to what may be -termed natural and unadulterated social intercourse as the unnatural -appearance which many folk strive to put upon themselves and their -belongings for the benefit of the objects of their acquaintance. -For the entertainment of their visitors, some good folk will change, -as far as they possibly can, the entire face and features of their -houses and themselves—in short, for the time being they seem to be -somebody else—they go to great pains to make things unreal. On such -show-occasions a profusion of apologies is sometimes showered upon -the unhappy and disappointed guests; they are begged to excuse the -unceremonious and very ordinary preparation made for their reception -and entertainment; whilst it is apparent that every available resource -has been utilised to make an imposing appearance. It was, we think, -John Wesley, who having been invited out to dine, was asked, soon -after his arrival at the house of the host, to excuse the fact that no -preparation had been made. ‘Then,’ replied he rather sharply, ‘there -ought to have been;’ and without waiting to see whether there was -reason for such an apology, left the house forthwith. - -Feelings of rivalry and jealousy, and the existence of an ultra spirit -of caste, are responsible for much of the unsociability which prevails. -Mr and Mrs Jones do not fraternise with Mr and Mrs Smith, who may live -next door, because they, Mr and Mrs Jones, have concluded that they -have ascended two or three more rounds of the ladder of social status. -It is quite probable, moreover, that Mr and Mrs Smith may be duly -impressed with precisely the same sense of superiority. Mr Jenkins does -not wish to be patronised, and therefore cares not to cultivate the -acquaintance of Mr Jones. Mr Jones having a paramount consciousness -of his pre-eminence, would deem it undignified to be friendly with -Mr Jenkins. Thus people sit in judgment upon themselves and other -people, and form what they deem a sound opinion as to the disposition -of others without ever having had the smallest opportunity of arriving -at an accurate estimate. Imagination, hearsay, and the impressions -derived from mere appearance at first sight, are often the sole -materials employed in producing what is intended to pass as a detailed -character-photograph. The estimates thus formed are frequently -circulated as genuine and reliable in every particular; and yet there -may be as much difference between such estimates and the truth, as -between a genuine and a base coin of the realm. The estimate which may -be given you by one man of another is only reliable in so far as he is -capable and has had the opportunities of forming an _accurate_ judgment. - -As the tenor of a man’s life will to some extent be the reflection -of his associations, it is essential that some discrimination be -employed. But a man may be sociable and yet avoid careless promiscuous -friendships. By the same rule that you cannot touch pitch without being -defiled, neither can you have the friendship of sensible men and true, -without profit. Nor need a sociable man eschew the duties and comforts -of home-life. The association with friends, at home, may be made to -take the place of association with mere acquaintances, sometimes of a -questionable sort, abroad; and hence home may be made more homely. - -The plea is sometimes advanced, ‘Oh, we cannot afford to have company.’ -Here is where a great mistake is made. Surely we should not measure the -value of our friendships on the basis of a knife-and-fork calculation! -The friendship which is measured by the amount of money expended on -it is surely worth little. It is not so much the good dinner society -which we would advocate, as the propagation of simple and genuine -friendships. Formal parties and dinings-out are by reason of modern -usages acknowledged to be for the most part dreary affairs, both for -the givers and the guests. Dinners got up for display, arranged with an -object, invitations given for sundry reasons—to the man, for instance, -whose only qualification a guest may be his ability to be a source of -entertainment; or to the titled gentleman and lady whose style and -title shall grace the list in the newspaper columns. This amongst the -upper ten thousand may be perhaps regarded as a necessary evil. Such -state ceremonies have become fashionable amongst what has come to be -popularly designated the _élite_ of society. - -We especially refer, however, to the sociable traits of the great -middle class, amongst whom a large dinner-party scheme is neither -practicable nor desirable, but to whom the more frequent exchange -of civilities with their neighbours would be a boon. But the way is -frequently barred by the comparisons which are made. The ladies are -generally desirous that the furniture of their houses should not -compare unfavourably with that in the houses of those with whom they -may be intimate. A source of the greatest concern is it if they have -not Brussels carpet as good and as new as that of their neighbours. -Then their furniture it may be is in green rep, that of their friends -in crimson plush. Further anxieties are created as to plate, the size, -style, and number of servants, and a dozen other considerations of a -kindred sort. This everlasting contest to keep up appearances is at -once the bane of our tempers and our pockets. It is the main thing on -which the unreality of our time is fed, and upon which it thrives so -well. Whatever may be the real impediment to sociability, we ourselves, -while fostering the evil, uncharitably and inconsistently plead that -the unsociable tendency exists more in others than ourselves! - -Were there an utter absence of opportunity for benefiting by -the society of others, the fact would be deemed a hardship and a -misfortune; and yet there are plenty of individuals who live in crowded -cities but are the most lonely of beings. Not only are they never seen -to speak to others, but apparently never even see them; the social -faculties are thus rarely called into play, and are left to rust out. -What do such men lose as the result of this isolation? Their knowledge -of the best side of human nature is at a low ebb; while on the other -hand the association with and knowledge of those around us teach us -not only to misjudge others less, but to know ourselves better; and -hence there comes a development and expansion of our sympathies. More -freedom of intercourse must tend not only to increase our pleasures but -to alleviate our troubles, for as we see that others have their ‘ups’ -and ‘downs,’ we learn to look upon our own as less burdensome. The man -who neither sees, hears, nor participates in anything beyond his own -immediate surroundings, can know little or nothing beyond the narrow -boundary of his own individuality—a very circumscribed sphere to live -and work in, certainly. People often need friends who, under given -circumstances, will afford the benefit of their own experience. The -person whose only acquaintance is himself, complains of the hardness -of his lot, and whilst estimating what difference he imagines the -cultivation of friendships would make to his pockets, fails to estimate -what he would gain by the sympathy and good-will of others, and how his -dreary path would be brightened by less isolation. - -There is, however, an inborn craving in most people for society of some -kind, though occasionally it is sought for in directions which are -not beneficial in their tendency; and this, we fear, is the result of -the swarm of conventionalities which, for the most part, surround the -social life of our day, some healthy counteraction of which—especially -in the interests of the young—would be welcome. - -Happily the habits of isolation and unsociability are more prevalent -in some places than in others. Those who have travelled most will -readily admit that they have frequently found themselves amongst a -circle of individuals whose freedom from conventionalities, and whose -unconstrained and hearty mode of intercourse, made them forget for -the time being that they were in the company of strangers. It is -possible that some readers of these words may almost shudder at the -idea of such freedom, such a want of decorum on the part of people -who had never met before, and had not gone through the formality of -a proper introduction. And yet there may be decorum without painful -fastidiousness. Who has not met with unsociable railway travellers, -some in whose company he has been for many weary hours, and with whom -he may have succeeded, after supreme effort, in breaking the ice, only -to receive a solitary monosyllable in response! Such an experience is -certainly not the rule, for sometimes we meet with those, the incessant -wag of whose tongue may be such as to compel us to leave unread both -our newspaper and any favourite book that we may have promised ourself -to get through. And yet it is well on such occasions to go on the -principle of give and take. Anything rather than the company of an -individual who looks suspiciously at you should you be venturesome -enough to express to him an opinion on so commonplace a topic as the -state of the weather. - -As a valuable element in connection with our social life, music does -not occupy the position which it might and ought to do. The rapid -growth during recent years of a knowledge of this charming solace is -out of all proportion to the extent of its social enjoyment. It is -unfortunately too often treated as a mere accomplishment. The friendly -and informal musical parties such as were enjoyed years ago, do not -receive much encouragement. It is of course indisputable that as a -concert-giving power, rapid strides have been made in music; but what -we contend for is the propagation of home harmony; the social glee, the -favourite ballad, the instrumental quartette, with no objection to an -occasional sonata for the pianoforte. - -It is no less amusing than disagreeable to see so many otherwise worthy -people possessed of such a paramount sense of gentility and importance -as to make themselves and their surroundings uncomfortable, and often -miserable. The great desideratum is that people should appear more like -themselves than somebody else. We hear and read a good many sermons -on ‘Morality;’ but, excellent in their way as these are, a series of -lectures on ‘Reality’ are quite as necessary. - - - - -HELENA, LADY HARROGATE. - -CHAPTER IX.—SIR SYKES’S WARD. - - -There may be pleasanter positions in life than that of a dependant, -especially when the claim to make one of the household rests on -conditions which it is impossible to define. The governess, who is so -often held up by moralists as an object for our conventional pity, -needs not, surely, to forfeit her self-respect, inasmuch as she earns -her salary and its contingent benefits by honest labour. The companion -too gives valuable consideration in the shape of a perpetual offering -up of her own time, tastes, and wishes, for her pay and maintenance. -There are others sometimes however, kindred strangers within the rich -man’s gates, who have no ostensible tasks to perform, who cannot -give monthly or quarterly notice and go away, and yet whose bread is -sometimes made very bitter to them—white slaves who get no compassion -from the world at large. - -Miss Willis at Carbery Chase was oddly situated. An orphan, she found -herself domiciled amongst those who were allied to her neither by blood -nor by the still more tenacious tie of common and early associations. -She was exempt of course under that roof from many of the annoyances -which fall to the lot of the motherless elsewhere. There was no -domineering mistress of the house to resent every attention shewn to -the interloper as something deducted from the rightful due of her -own matchless girls; no niggard to grudge her every meal of which -she partook at the stinted family table; or tyrant to pile upon her -submissive shoulders the never-ending load of petty cares, which some -genteel drudges perform unthanked. - -At Carbery there was plenty and to spare. Sir Sykes was a gentleman -bland and courteous; the girls as kind good girls as could easily be -met with; and the servants sufficiently well trained to take their cue -from their employers, and to be civil to one who was smiled on by the -higher powers. Yet a sensitive young lady in the position which Sir -Sykes’s ward now occupied, might well have been excused if her heart -at times was somewhat heavy. All her old habits of life had been in a -moment uprooted. She had been suddenly transferred from familiar scenes -and people whose ways she understood, to a country every feature of -which must have been strange and new to her. Under the circumstances -and in spite of the good-nature of those around her, it is not -surprising if Ruth Willis at times looked sad and pensive. - -‘You cannot think how wonderful it seemed to me at first,’ she said -one day to the younger Miss Denzil, ‘not to hear the drums beat tattoo -at sundown, or how often I have started from my pillow in the early -morning, fancying that I heard again the bugles sounding for the -parade. Then the trumpeting of the elephants beside the tank, and the -shrill voices of the dusky children at play beneath the peepul trees, -and all the sights and sounds about my old home in India—I can’t forget -them yet.’ - -Blanche was sympathetic; but she felt rather than reasoned that the -grief for a father’s loss, the regrets for friends abruptly quitted -and a mode of life abandoned, could not be assuaged merely by a kiss -and a kind word. Yet it was evident that Ruth was by no means disposed -to play the part of a kill-joy in the house beneath whose roof she was -now established, or to enact the martyr. Her manner was very soft and -gentle, not obtrusively sad or unduly deferential, but that of one who -sincerely wishes to please. She had a way of bending her will as it -were to that of those with whom she now associated, which was really -very pretty and graceful, and harmonised well with the modest drooping -of her eyelids when she spoke. There were times (so her ill-wishers -said, the latter being some of those vigilant critics who take our wage -and wear our livery, or it may be caps and aprons and cotton prints -such as we sanction, but who are not always too lenient censors of -our conduct) when her whole face seemed to change its expression by -the mere opening of the fine dark eyes fraught with a singular look, -which the same critics averred to be that of ill-temper. But if Miss -Willis had not, as Lucy and Blanche Denzil believed her to have, the -temper of a lamb, it must be admitted that she was capable of very -great self-restraint, since in general conversation she was only too -ready to acquiesce with the opinions of others. Jasper had observed the -singular brightening of Ruth’s eyes sometimes, when she turned them on -Sir Sykes, but never towards himself; while his unsuspecting sisters -saw no peculiarity in the bearing of the stranger whom they had learned -to like. - -‘I could really believe,’ said Jasper to himself more than once, ‘that -my father is afraid of that girl—and no wonder after all!’ he added, -after a moment’s reflection. Certainly Sir Sykes did appear somewhat -over-anxious that his ward should be happy and comfortable at Carbery, -that her tastes should be studied, and her inclinations consulted. Yet -he never seemed at ease in her company, and always escaped from her -presence as early as politeness permitted; so that his own daughters -set down his behaviour as merely prompted by an over-strained sense of -hospitality. - -There was a fascination in the guest’s bearing and conversation, to -which even Jasper, with all his predisposition to dislike her, could -not but succumb. No great talker, Miss Willis had the power, somehow, -of making what she did say more effective than what fell from other -lips than hers. What this art or this gift might be, Jasper Denzil, who -was no stranger to women and their ways, could not divine. The girl’s -voice was rich though low, and admirably modulated, although of music, -as she frankly confessed, she knew nothing whatever. And her eyes—the -one redeeming feature of a plain pale face—could flash and glitter -with wondrously changing play of light; eyes and voice and words all -blending together to convey the expression which their owner desired -that they should impart. - -There was one person to whom the baronet’s ward appeared in the light -of an enigma, and this was Lord Harrogate, himself a frequent visitor -at the home of the Denzils, between whose family and his own there was -indeed some kind of connection. He had given up as preposterous the -idea that he had ever seen Miss Willis before. _That_ was of course -erroneous, and he must have been the dupe of a fancied resemblance. -But he was sufficiently quick-sighted to perceive, what was apparent -neither to his sisters nor to Jasper, nor to the Earl or Countess, -that a strong sharply marked character was concealed behind the gentle -half-bashful demeanour which it pleased Miss Willis to assume. - -‘I never saw the iron hand,’ he thought to himself, ‘so well hidden -before by the velvet glove; but it’s there for all that. Yonder girl -looks capable of turning the whole family round her finger.’ - -Meanwhile Jasper at anyrate had other subjects for contemplation than -were presented by a psychological study of the orphaned daughter of -the late Major Willis, of the Honourable East India Company’s Service. -Gentlemen who own and gentlemen who are going to ride horses intended -to win a race which had so suddenly swelled into importance as the -forthcoming one at Pebworth, have need of frequent communication -with one another. Jasper during the next ten days was often in his -principal’s company, sometimes at Pebworth, now and then at Exeter, -when the routine of military duty held the other captain to his post. - -In the interim, Captain Denzil could tell by the language of the -newspapers which were the accredited organs of the turf, how -considerable was the excitement evoked by the selection of Pebworth as -a place where might be matched against one another some of the finest -weight-carriers chronicled in the Stud Book. The wildest rumours were -afloat, and an April sky was not more changeable than were the odds, -as reported from the headquarters of gambling, London and Liverpool. -Sometimes the bookmakers were reported to be assured of triumph; -sometimes it was hinted that the great betting firms would be severely -hit, so unexpected would be the finish of the race. - -‘Why,’ indignantly demanded one influential paper, ‘should Pebworth be -dragged into the daylight?’ Nor were the other organs of the sporting -press slow to swell the chorus of complaint that a cramped and hitherto -unheard-of course, situated in an obscure nook of the far west, should -be the arena for a struggle such as was anticipated. And then followed -dark innuendos and vague suggestions as to the motives of the noble -lord who owned The Smasher, and the scarcely less illustrious commoner -to whom Brother to Highflyer appertained. During the period preceding -the race, the most contradictory rumours were incessantly published -with reference to the rival favourites. They were ill; they were well; -they had met with all the accidents slight or serious to which the -equine genus is liable. One of these important animals had a cough. -The other was not quite sound of limb. Both had been overtrained. No. -Their training was insufficient, and any nameless outsider could reach -the winning-post before them. Once again both horses were in the very -perfection of bloom and beauty, and would compete fairly for the prize. - -Strange faces, some of which were not calculated to inspire confidence -in those who had silver spoons in the pantry or linen drying on -garden-hedge, began to appear at Pebworth and the parts adjacent. -Lodgings were in such request that the meanest rooms were eagerly -disputed at fancy prices, while inn and beershop drove a brisker trade -than had been known since Pebworth had been disfranchised. - -‘Sad business, Denzil, this!’ exclaimed Jack Podgers as he dashed into -the private parlour of the _De Vere Arms_. ‘Here’s a private telegram, -and here a special edition of a sporting paper. Both agree as to the -facts.’ - -Jasper glanced at the telegram and at the paragraph. Yes. A most -unfortunate accident, due to the carelessness of a porter, had occurred -to Brother to Highflyer, just as that noble horse was being led from -his box to the platform. Mr Splint, the eminent veterinary surgeon, -summoned in hot haste, had examined the off fore-leg, and had expressed -a positive opinion; in deference to which Mr John Knavesmire the -trainer and Mr Wylie the owner had reluctantly decided to withdraw the -name of Brother to Highflyer from the list. - -‘The race naturally must be won by the other favourite, The Smasher,’ -said Captain Prodgers with a grim smile. - - -CHAPTER X.—WHAT HAPPENED AT PEBWORTH. - -From early morning the usually sleepy streets of quiet Pebworth had -been disturbed by the shouts of bawling hoarse-voiced vendors of -so-called ‘correct’ cards, purporting to furnish accurate information -as to the names, weights, and colours of the riders, the nomenclature -and ownership of the horses, and other particulars relating to the -forthcoming race. Some of these itinerants were in faded red jackets -that had felt the dust and the rain on every race-course in Great -Britain; others were in tattered fustian, stained by the wet grass of -the moorside, where the foot-sore wretches had been sleeping for a -few hours after their weary tramp across country. It might have been -opined that gold had been discovered in Dartmoor, and that diggers -were hurrying up like so many eagles to the prey, so many were the -uncouth groups that flocked in. Some of the pilgrims were the veriest -human vermin that cumber the earth. There was the thimble-rigger, whose -stock-in-trade consisted of the tiny board or slender table, which his -unacknowledged associate is carrying now, with the peas and the thimble -in his pocket. There were the proprietors of the roulette boards, and -the manipulators of the ‘three card trick,’ so dangerous to unwary -youth. There were gipsy fortune-tellers, dark-eyed, yellow-kerchiefed, -and long-haired gipsy men, laden with sticks to be pelted at cocoa-nuts -propped on an ash-wand, or at Aunt Sally with her time-honoured pipe. - -All the beggars, street-singers, and sellers of toys or gingerbread -in the west of England seemed to have been drawn to Pebworth as -steel filings are attracted to a magnet; and with them arrived many -a scowling ruffian in baggy slop-suit, or slinking fellow in greasy -garments of threadbare black, whose object could hardly have been the -wish to witness a contest of strength and speed between two or more -gallant horses. Probably the man in black was one of those miserable -beings who bet with chance customers, and if they lose, pay in person -if not in purse, braving kicks, ducking, and ill-usage, in hopes of -five or ten ill-got sovereigns. As for the sturdier brute in nailed -boots and velveteen, with the knotted bludgeon beneath his arm, it will -go hard with him if some half-tipsy owner of a watch be not lightened -of it before bedtime. - -In poured gigs and carts and carriages of every size and kind, some -full of honest holiday-makers, others of thoughtful devotees of the -Mammon that presides over the great green gaming-table that we know -by the name of a race-course. Among the last-mentioned, who in turf -phraseology are termed ‘bookmakers,’ were many, often of gentle birth -and nurture, whose feverish life for ten months of the year was one -of incessant locomotion, calculation, care, and toil. Some men, -sufficiently well educated to see themselves as others see them, yet -work harder at the dubious profession they have selected, than does -a prosperous doctor or barrister of many briefs—ever on the railroad -or in telegraph office, scrambling for make-shift lodgings, suing at -the doors of crowded hotels—chilled by the rain of Newmarket, broiled -by the sun of Chantilly—and incessantly on the wing to some new -race-meeting, goaded on by the _ignis-fatuus_ of Hope. - -The carriages were drawn up three deep around the judge’s chair and -the stand. Small as the race-course of Pebworth was, it presented -a gay and animated appearance. There were the well-appointed drags -of every regiment within reach of the little Devonshire town, while -the equipages of the county aristocracy were there in unusual -numbers. There were the Fulfords, the Carews, the Trelawneys, and -the Tresyllians, the Courtenays, and the Penruddocks, all the rural -dignitaries of the district. The Earl of Wolverhampton was there with -two of his daughters, accompanied by Blanche Denzil, who was confident -of her brother’s success. Lord Harrogate too was there on horseback. - -No carriage from Carbery was on the Pebworth course that day. Sir -Sykes had heard with displeasure that his son was about to take a -part in a steeplechase. Jasper’s promise, however, had been given. -His name was in print as the rider of Norah Creina, and the baronet -saw no help for it. He refused, however, to attend the race with the -ladies of his family, and gave but a reluctant consent to his younger -daughter’s petition to be allowed to accompany Lady Maud and Lady -Gladys to the festive scene. The course itself presented a lively and -not uncomely scene, the brilliant beauty of the day adding a witchery -to the homeliest objects. The dancing sunbeams gilded the tinker’s -squalid tent and the rags of the beggar-boys who ran, clamorous for -halfpence, after the horsemen cantering by. It was possible to forget -the gathering of bookmakers and betting-men, now hoarsely shouting out -their offers of a wager, possible to ignore the sordid greed that had -prompted the attendance of so many, and to imagine what the scene may -have been two hundred years ago, when races were a novelty, a mere -trial of merit between swift and strong horses, minus the thousand and -one degrading ingredients which now compose the saturnalia. - -Jasper, his gay silken jacket concealed by the loose white overcoat -which he wore, elbowed his way through the crowd towards the place -where, hard by the weighing-stand, the nineteen horses which were the -practical residuum of the sixty-seven entries were being led to and fro. - -‘Have a care there! Do mind his heels!’ exclaimed the reedy voice of -an attenuated being in drab gaiters and striped waistcoat, one of the -three body-servants in attendance on the magnificent Smasher, as that -superb animal began to lash out furiously amongst the mob. - -‘Grand horse that!’ said Captain Prodgers, as with impartial admiration -he surveyed the formidable favourite. ‘See! what muscles those are that -swell beneath a skin as bright and supple as a lady’s satin! Does “My -Lord” credit.’ - -‘My Lord,’ a vacuous young gentleman in a suit of black and white -checks and a soft hat, stood a little way off, sucking the gold head -of a short whipstock, and contemplating society in general, through -his eyeglass, with a serene stare. Nobody could ever be quite certain -whether this aristocratic patron of the turf was unfathomably deep -or absurdly shallow. His Lordship was a man of few words, and never -committed himself in public to an opinion wise or foolish. - -That ‘My Lord’s’ stud had a knack of winning was notorious. But then -the laurels, such as they were, may have been due to the florid, -well-shaven, middle-aged trainer, with a flower in his buttonhole, who -stood at his Lordship’s elbow. - -The Smasher was a splendid black horse, over sixteen hands high, and -very powerful. His glossy coat shone like a looking-glass; but that -his temper was none of the best was evident, not only by the frequent -scattering of the crowd, to avoid his iron-shod heels, but by the -sidelong glance of his wicked eye and the irritable lashing of his -silken tail. - -‘Shews the whites of them eyes of his, he do, this morning,’ remarked -one appreciative groom. - -‘Bless ye! the captain won’t care,’ was the phlegmatic reply. - -‘Rather the captain had the riding of him then nor me,’ returned the -other. - -The captain in question was not Jasper Denzil. It was Captain Hanger, -pale and unimpassioned as ever, who now pressed up to speak for a -moment with the owner and trainer of the horse he was to ride. As he -stood, tapping his bright boots with his heavy whip, his gaudy silk -jacket peeping from beneath the loose overcoat, he was the object -of an inquisitive admiration that might well have been spent upon a -worthier object. In certain circles, now, your gentleman steeplechase -rider receives an amount of adulation singularly disproportioned to his -utility to the commonweal. Of the well-known Captain Hanger, once in -the army, then beggared, and now living by the deliberate risk of neck -and bones, it was popularly believed that he would die in the exercise -of his profession. - -‘I don’t see the mare!’ said Jasper, looking around. - -‘We’re keeping her quiet till the last minute,’ whispered his friend. -‘No use in letting her chafe here, teased by sun and flies. There, -though, is the bell for saddling; and here she comes.’ - -And as Captain Prodgers spoke, a Homeric burst of laughter from the -mob, peal upon peal, announced that something had tickled the fancy -of the populace. That something was soon seen to be no other than -Norah Creina, looking even uglier, as she was led into the inclosure, -than she had done in the stable; a lengthy, clumsy, ungainly creature -to look upon, and wearing a bridle of a peculiar and cumbrous -construction, fitted with a muzzle and blinkers, and somewhat similar -to that employed in horse-taming by the late Professor Rarey. - -‘There’s a beauty for you!’ cried out, in the midst of ironical cheers -and merriment, a scoffer in drab gaiters. - -‘Take care of her, gentlemen—she bites!’ bawled another voice; and -there was tittering among the spectators in carriages and unrestrained -guffaws amidst the populace. - -‘Do you mean, seriously, that the mare is to run in that -hideous-looking contrivance?’ demanded Jasper sharply and with -displeasure in his face, of his ally. ‘I’m not a mountebank, I suppose, -that I should be made publicly ridiculous on the back of such a horse. -A man might as well stand in the pillory as’—— - -‘How many hundreds will be in your pocket, Denzil, and thousands in -mine, what with bets and stakes, if Norah Creina comes in first?’ -interrupted Prodgers earnestly. ‘Let those laugh that win. They are -waiting for us yonder in the weighing-stand.’ - -Of all the candidates for success who, seated in their saddles, took -one by one their turn at the scales, the only two who attracted much -attention were Jasper Denzil and Captain Hanger; the latter because -he was to ride the favourite, the former because he had consented to -exhibit himself on so very extraordinary an animal as Norah Creina. - -‘I’ve known a dark horse to win a race,’ remarked one veteran, as he -booked a trifling wager on the Irish mare. - -‘Not with a muzzle though, George!’ replied a contemporary, with -twinkling eyes. - -The riders were all mounted now, and taking, some of them, the -preliminary canter that is supposed to dissipate stiffness, and then -the glistening line of gaily attired horsemen marshalled itself for -the start. To the last moment Captain Prodgers, on foot, kept close to -Jasper’s stirrup. ‘There’s the bell!’ cried Norah Creina’s owner at -last. ‘Now bend your ear down, dear boy, and mark what I say.’ - -And as Jasper stooped his head to listen, the other captain whispered -to him cautiously but with emphasis. ‘Only if you’re hard pressed—but -she may win without that,’ added Prodgers more loudly. - -Jasper’s suddenly compressed lips, arching brows, and dilated eyes told -that the communication had taken even him by surprise. - -‘The curb-rein, eh?’ he said hoarsely. - -‘Yes; but only as a last expedient. Leave it slack as long as you -can, and use the snaffle only; it’s as strong as a cable,’ called out -Prodgers; and Jasper nodded, and cantered up to take his place among -the rest. - -A waving to and fro of the many-coloured line, the dropping of a flag, -a roar from the rabble, and they were off. It was like the effect -produced by some gigantic rocket bursting into a galaxy of variously -tinted spangles, pink, green, blue, and orange. Then most of these -colours seemed to gather themselves together in a group, while Jasper’s -yellow jacket and black cap, and Captain Hanger’s cherry colour and -white, crept clear of the crowd. - -‘The Smasher’s third!’ - -‘He’s second now. Green’s in front.’ - -‘Ah! the captain’s a deal too wise to be first, so long as Green will -make running for him.’ - -‘Yes, but look at the ugly long-backed Irish mare! The Smasher can’t -shake her off, straight as he goes.’ - -The leading horses had got by this time over two-thirds of the -course—the first round only—and already the competitors were reduced -to seven. Gallant Green was yet in front, riding hard, but his horse -was much distressed; and as the second circuit of the course began, The -Smasher, skilfully handled by Captain Hanger, shot past him with no -apparent effort, and was for the moment first. - -‘My Lord’s usual luck! The race is safe!’ - -‘Cherry and white wins!’ shouted hundreds. - -But then uprose another roar of, ‘Yellow, Yellow for ever!’ as the -Irish mare, which had hitherto kept the third place, taking fence, -wall, brook, and rail with lamb-like docility, suddenly quickened her -pace, racing neck to neck, head to head, with the redoubtable Smasher. - -‘A pretty race! A fine sight! A sheet would cover both of them!’ was -the general cry. The ladies in the carriages and on the stand waved -their handkerchiefs enthusiastically, and of the lookers-on there were -scores who forgot that their money was at stake, in genuine enjoyment -of the struggle. On the rivals went. Together they flew across the -brook, together they crashed through the hedges and fences in their -way. Then, thanks to his own skill or to the excellence of his horse, -Captain Hanger gained ground, and was in front as he prepared to ride -at a stiff line of rails, the last serious obstacle, save one, to be -encountered in the circuit. - -Then it was that Jasper tightened the curb-rein that he had hitherto -left untouched, and the disfiguring blinkers dropped as if by magic -from before Nora Creina’s eyes! The result was startling. With a snort -and a scream, the fierce mare caught sight of her opponent in the act -of gathering himself together for the leap; and with a bound such as -a tigress might have given, she hurled herself upon him, striving—but -owing to the muzzle, ineffectually—to tear the other horse with her -teeth. There was a crashing of splintered timber, an outcry, a heavy -fall, and both horses and both men were down amidst the wreck of the -fence. - -Jasper, bareheaded and dizzy, was the first to stagger to his feet and -regain his saddle. A hundred yards in front was the stone wall with its -double ditch, the so-called ‘sensation jump’ of the race, and which the -Committee had taken it upon themselves to heighten for this exceptional -contest. Beyond, there was the easy run home over smooth turf to the -winning-post. - -‘Yellow! yellow! Yellow wins!’ shouted the crowd, as Jasper approached -the wall; but then there was a quick thunder of hurrying hoofs upon -the green-sward, and Captain Hanger swept past at whirlwind speed, -while cries of ‘Cherry and white! The Smasher’s first!’ rent the air. -Till that instant, the Irish mare had been going steadily; but now, on -seeing her rival outstrip her rapid pace, her fiendish temper again -kindled into flame, and with a shrill scream she darted forward. But -Captain Hanger knew his art too well to be surprised for the second -time. He had his own horse, sobered by the late fall, well in hand; -whereas he saw that the savage animal which Jasper rode was completely -freed from the control of her rider. By a quick and masterly motion of -the rein, he wheeled off, eluding the shock that threatened him, and -with a rare courage and coolness put The Smasher’s head straight for -the wall. The gallant horse rose like a bird, topped the obstacle on -which his hind-feet clattered, and recovering himself with an effort, -galloped in, the winner, amid the deafening applause of thousands. - -Jasper was less fortunate. Panting, snorting with rage, in a lather -of heat and foam, the furious mare he rode rose at the wall, struck -it with her chest, breaking down the new masonry, and rolled over -upon the turf beyond, bearing down beneath her weight the unfortunate -rider. ‘A man killed!’ It needed but that cry to make the mob utterly -ungovernable; and in spite of the efforts of the police, gentle and -simple, and those who were neither the one nor the other, hurried -pell-mell to the spot where lay, beneath the broken wall, the hapless -form of Jasper Denzil. ‘He’s alive!’ cried fifty voices, with the -oddest mingling of gratification and disappointment. ‘The rider’s -living. It’s only the mare that’s dead,’ a verdict which turned out to -be correct. Then a doctor, one out of the half-dozen of doctors on the -course, jumped off the cob he rode and took possession of Jasper. - -‘He’ll get over it!’ cried the surgeon, feeling first the heart and -then the wrist of the sufferer. ‘If we had but a carriage now, to get -him quietly to the inn.’ - -Sir Gruntley Pigbury, whose barouche stood near, willingly lent it for -such a purpose; and in it Jasper Denzil, under the doctor’s escort, was -duly removed to the shelter of the _De Vere Arms_. - - - - -OUR PET RAT. - - -An obliging correspondent writes to us as follows: An article in the -September number of _Chambers’s Journal_ entitled ‘Poppet’s Pranks’ -having afforded much amusement to our young people, it has occurred -to me that a short account of one of our numerous pets might not be -unacceptable, especially as we have often said in our own circle, that -‘Billy’s doings ought to be immortalised in print.’ - -We have always considered it an important element in the education of -children that they should be taught to regard the brute creation with -kindly feelings, and in our own family we have fostered the love of -animals by encouraging them to keep pets; so at various periods, dogs, -cats, birds, rabbits, guinea-pigs, &c. have all in turn been domiciled -with us; and I believe we also harboured for a time a hedgehog and a -bat; but these last proving rather intractable, were soon restored to -their native freedom. - -Those who have had experience in it, best know how interesting any -living intelligence becomes, when one is brought closely in contact -with it; and we elders, as well as the more juvenile members of our -family, have found both pleasure and instruction in observing the -habits and dispositions of the little creatures to whom we gave a -kindly shelter. Among these, none ever excited more interest or stood -higher in the family regards, than Billy our tame _rat_. - -It was in the winter of 1874–5 that a friend who was coming to spend -Christmas with us, brought Billy as a new treasure for the children; -and for some months he afforded us great amusement. He arrived in -a cigar-box in which he usually slept, and on its being opened, he -sprang instantly inside our friend’s waistcoat, from which safe retreat -he ventured to peep out at the strange faces, which he seemed to -regard with terror; and this habit he retained, for although he soon -established friendly relations with us, he always darted behind the -piano or sideboard on the entrance of a stranger; yet his little head -with its bright bead-like eyes was sure to peep out presently, as if he -wanted to satisfy his own curiosity without being himself observed. - -But here let me say, no one must suppose for an instant that Billy -resembled the repulsive-looking rat of our farm-yards and ditches. -He was of a much smaller size, not larger than a kitten of a month -old, and very prettily spotted in brown and white; his eyes were very -prominent, standing out like large black beads, and he was particularly -nice in his toilet, washing just as a cat does, and keeping his coat -always scrupulously clean. - -Yet I confess it was some time before I could regard him with -equanimity: it was so hard to divest one’s self of the general -prejudice against his race; and his receding under jaw gave an -uncomfortable impression at first; so I used to shrink from him and -gather up my skirts at his approach, although my son declared that -if he had been introduced to me as a ‘rodent,’ I should have had no -objection to him, and that it was merely the name of ‘rat’ which -excited my aversion. - -However, be this as it may, Billy soon won his way to favour in spite -of prejudice, and by his intelligence and good temper made himself -a general favourite. He especially attached himself to my eldest -daughter, and would come at the call of ‘Billy, Billy!’ from any of -his hiding-places, except at night, when he seemed to be quite aware -that he was wanted to go to bed (in the cigar-box before mentioned); -and then it was often with great difficulty she could entice him from -his lurking-place. Sometimes she would tempt him with a biscuit, and he -would dart out, snatch it from her fingers, and dart again behind the -sideboard before she could get hold of him. - -We did not usually see much of him in the morning, as he liked to -conceal himself behind the heavy furniture. But at dinner-time he was -sure to appear, and generally placed himself on my knee, where from -time to time he was fed with small bits of bread and vegetables; and -if I was not sufficiently attentive to his wants, he would pass over -to one of the children’s plates, and watching his opportunity, would -make a seizure, and dart with the stolen morsel to his storing-place; -and this habit of storing was very curious, being evidently an instinct -belonging to very different surroundings. In a room appropriated -chiefly to the children there was an old sofa a good deal the worse -for wear, as what sofa would not be that had been carriage, omnibus, -or railway train to seven or eight youngsters successively? Under the -pillow, the haircloth had given way, so Billy found a hole conveniently -ready for him, and lost no time in appropriating it. Thither he carried -many of his stores; and it was most amusing to watch him nibble a -biscuit just like a squirrel, sitting back on his haunches and holding -it neatly between his fore-paws; and then when he had had enough for -immediate wants, he would spring with the remainder to this hole in the -old sofa. - -But it was not only food he stored; he had a decided fancy for bright -colours; and if bits of ribbon or coloured silk were left in his way, -he would drag them along the floor, and then leap to the sofa with such -celerity that it was almost impossible to deprive him of his booty. -Once I looked up in time to see and seize one end of a blue necktie as -Billy disappeared with the other behind the sofa pillow. He came up -directly to see what detained it, and was very unwilling to give it -up; so he pulled and I held, until finding that I was the stronger, he -relinquished it, but with such impatient little squeaks! Yet neither -then nor at any other time did he ever attempt to bite or shew any -ill-temper towards any of us; though, like most pets, he had to bear a -fair amount of well-meant teasing, which no kitten would have stood as -well. - -I recollect one day watching him with much interest. He had found on -the floor a large newspaper, which he seized by one corner and pulled -towards the sofa, up which he made several vain attempts to leap -with the paper in his mouth. He then dropped it, and jumped back and -forwards several times, as if he was measuring his distance, or making -calculations with an eye to future success. Then again catching hold of -the paper, he tried to leap with it, but again he failed; so at last I -took pity upon him, and tore one half of the paper away, when he was -able to manage the remainder, and carry it off in triumph to his den. - -During the winter evenings, when the children were engaged with -their lessons, Billy was usually to be found on the table rummaging -among their books and catching at their pens; which latter amusement -he enjoyed very much after the manner of a kitten running after a -knitting-needle drawn quickly up and down the table; but as these -amusements rather interfered with the studies, Billy would occasionally -be dismissed to the kitchen, to which he had a great dislike. He never -stayed there longer than he could help, but on the first chance would -rush up the stairs and scratch, or rather I should say _gnaw_ for -admittance. Speaking of this gnawing, leads me to observe that one -objection I had to receiving him, was the fear that he would be very -mischievous; but fortunately I never found him so. He had free access -to a pantry where a variety of eatables, usually considered dear to a -rat’s heart, were to be found; but I never knew him to injure anything -or even to cut the paper covering of any parcel, no matter what it -contained. No doubt it was partly owing to his being so well fed that -he was not driven to theft by hunger. I generally scattered for him on -the shelves some grains of rice or pickles of starch, and to these he -helped himself when inclined. From soap or candles he turned away in -disgust, being far too well-bred a rat to indulge in such low tastes; -but he dearly loved a bit of plum-cake; and, shall I confess it? he -was by no means a teetotaler. If ale was used at dinner, he would rush -eagerly about the glasses until he was supplied with some in a spoon. I -believe, before he came to us, he had been accustomed to even stronger -potations, in which, however, we did not indulge him. - -I have said he was not mischievous, neither was he, as mischief among -rats is generally understood; but there is no rule without exception, -and Billy had a decided penchant for kid gloves. If any were left -carelessly about, he was sure to get hold of them and have the fingers -eaten off in a few minutes. I cannot tell how many gloves he destroyed, -until repeated lessons of this sort enforced more tidy habits. - -I must not omit to mention his love of music; when he heard the piano, -he would rush to the drawing-room and spring to the performer’s knee, -where he would remain perfectly quiet, evidently listening with much -pleasure. When he first came he was very restless, seeming to live in -a state of perpetual motion; but he soon learned to come upon the knee -to be caressed and have his head rubbed, which operation afforded him -intense enjoyment. He would have lain in a state of supreme delight for -an hour if any one would have rubbed his head for so long. - -Very various were the opinions entertained of Billy by our friends. -Some of our young visitors would ask to see him when they called, and -with them he soon became familiar, and would run over their shoulders -and about their necks quite freely; but others had a perfect horror of -him; and I remember once, on going down to receive two ladies, I found -one of them standing on the piano-stool in dread of his attacking her; -and no declarations as to his perfect harmlessness were of any avail. -Another time an old lady and gentleman were spending the evening with -us, and knowing the latter to be of a very nervous temperament, I had -given strict orders that Billy should be kept down-stairs. But Billy -had no idea of losing his tea, and managing to escape from the servant -who had him in charge, in he rushed, as soon as the door was opened, -and made straight across the room, as usual for my knee. I gave him a -bit of cake to keep him quiet, and covered him up with my handkerchief. -‘What’s that, what’s that?’ exclaimed the old gentleman anxiously. I -replied as carelessly as I could: ‘Oh, it’s only a little pet of the -children’s;’ and hoped no more notice would be taken; but presently our -friend got up, and came round to where I sat just as Billy had finished -his cake and put up his head for more. Never shall I forget his look -of dismay as he exclaimed: ‘It’s a rat!’ while making hasty tracks for -the door. However, we succeeded in allaying his fears; and Billy was -allowed to run about freely, with only an occasional shudder from our -friend if he approached him too closely. - -During the spring we had a lady staying with us who could not be -reconciled to seeing a rat run about the house, and who repelled all -friendly overtures on the part of our pet; so one morning, out of -consideration for her, Billy was banished to another room whilst we -were at breakfast; and lo! on going into the room afterwards, I found -my friend’s ball of cotton cut into shreds, which were piled in a -little heap on the floor. It really seemed as if he had done it from -revenge, for though I had had knitting about repeatedly, he often -rolled the balls on the carpet, but never injured them. - -While enough has been said, I think, to shew that Billy was a very -interesting pet, candour compels me to admit that, like wiser and -better folk, he had his faults; and I am sorry to say his besetting -sin was jealousy. Although so thoroughly good-tempered with all the -members of our family, he would not tolerate another pet in the house. -He had not been long with us, when he killed a canary that had lighted -on his back. At first, there were threats of summary vengeance; but -on reflection, it was thought possible that he had been frightened by -its sudden descent upon him, and had killed the bird in an impulse -of self-defence; so it was decided to give him the benefit of this -supposition, and he was forgiven and restored to favour. - -But when the midsummer holidays arrived, one of our boys brought home -a handsome young retriever, whom it was evident from the first Billy -regarded with no friendly eye. The children of course were much taken -up with the fresh arrival; and I presume Billy felt himself neglected, -and therefore lost no opportunity of revenging himself upon the new -favourite. It was wonderful to see the courage of the little creature -in venturing to attack an animal so much larger than himself. If the -dog were lying quietly on the rug, he would spring on him, and then -retreat so quickly that at first we did not know whether he had bitten -him or not, as the dog would merely utter a low growl and retire. -But one day at dinner, when our canine friend was being supplied -with pieces which probably had formerly fallen to Billy’s share, our -little pet was so enraged, that he rushed across the table and bit -the dog on the mouth severely. From that time his doom was sealed; it -was felt that either he or the dog must be dismissed, and the verdict -was unanimous in favour of keeping the retriever; so Billy was tied -up in his box and sent back to his former owner. Since then, we have -occasionally heard of his welfare; and the last news concerning him -was, that he had been taken into a garden, ‘but was evidently too much -awed by the immensity of the universe to enjoy it.’ - - - - -THE HIGHLAND KEEPER. - -IN TWO PARTS. - - -PART I.—INCHGARRY’S NARRATIVE. - -Some years ago, while upon a professional visit at the mansion of a -well-known Highland gentleman, I was invited one morning by my host to -inspect his famous kennel of staghounds. On that occasion, I remember -well, my interest was curiously divided between the princely animals -themselves and the magnificent specimen of humanity who acted as -their custodian. Standing at least six feet, his finely proportioned, -athletic figure was displayed to advantage by a well-made knickerbocker -deer-stalking suit. His face was fair, full-bearded, and strikingly -regular in its features. In the quick blue eyes gleamed the rapidly -succeeding emotions of an intelligent, proud, sensitive nature. I -observed that he usually addressed the chief by the name of the estate -(a practice by no means uncommon in some parts of Scotland), and that -the word ‘sir’ was somewhat infrequent in his speech. There was nothing -decidedly disrespectful or assumptive in his manner, yet it was quite -unlike that of modern inferiors towards superiors generally. I had been -so struck during our inspection of the kennels with his appearance and -bearing, that on our return to Inchgarry Hall, I put several questions -to my worthy host respecting him. The result of these was, that after -informing me that the young fellow’s name was Donald Stewart, and that -he was a native of Badenoch, he entered upon the following curious and -instructive narrative of his first settlement at Inchgarry, and of -the tragedy in which it eventuated; pointing out as he did so, with -great frankness, the evils a landlord may create among his people by -delegating too largely to an inferior the personal supervision of his -interests. - -James Forbes, the son of one of the chief’s humblest dependants, had -been reared upon the estate. Industry, a certain versatility of talent, -and above all, an uncompromising yet judicious sycophancy, had together -stood him in such good stead that, beginning his career as stable-boy, -he had passed rapidly to assistant-gardener, head-gardener, and manager -of the home-farm; until, at the time the events we are about to record -took place, he was his master’s factotum, holding the position and -title of sub-factor to the property. Residing for three parts of the -year in London or abroad, Inchgarry necessarily gave him large powers -in matters affecting his tenantry and servants; so that—the factorship -proper being then in the hands of an estimable but old and infirm -lawyer, with whom the wily Forbes had ingratiated himself—the authority -of the latter was almost boundless. Like all sycophants, he was also -a tyrant. The tenantry, who held their farms on long leases, and were -practically part and parcel of the soil, escaped the oppression to -which, under other circumstances, they might have been subjected. -Nevertheless, Forbes contrived in many ways to harass and annoy all who -in any way offended him. As for the immediate servants of the Hall and -home-farm, the foresters and keepers, the labourers and handicraftsmen -on the estate, his was to them strictly a reign of terror. None but -those who chose to do so by abject flattery and toadyism dared hope to -escape molestation. - -Among those trucklers to whom Forbes extended his patronage, was one -John Sutherland—or Ian Dhu, as he was invariably styled—the idlest -and most worthless character in the district. It would be difficult -to conceive what bond could exist between this semi-pariah, poacher, -and vagabond, and the chief’s confidential agent, did we not remember -that men of the sub-factor’s stamp invariably make a henchman of some -unscrupulous master of their own weapon—sycophancy. Ian Dhu had not -only the skill to step into the good-will of Forbes by his fawning, -but to establish himself therein by acting as spy and reporter upon -all that was said and done upon the estate. Following no recognised -employment, though ostensibly odd-man about his patron’s private -grounds, he perverted his leisure by haunting the garden, workshops, -bothies, the keepers’ houses, and the kitchen of the Hall itself, -picking up scraps of information for the jealous ear of the sub-factor. -He was, in fact, a necessity of the pernicious system of control which -reigned; and he was, at the time our story commences, in the full light -of favouritism. - -Inchgarry, my host, was a just, large-hearted, and clear-headed man; -of rather an indolent disposition no doubt, but, when roused to -interest, both prompt and strong-willed, brooking neither argument nor -persuasion. His brief occasional visits to the Hall were always marked -by some change in, or reversal of, his agent’s arrangements, as well -as by some considerate extension of privileges to his ‘people.’ In -one instance his wrath had been awakened by the neglected condition -of his garden and kennels; the latter perhaps his dearest subject -of pride. He spoke sharply and conclusively about these matters to -Forbes, whose minions both the head-gardener and chief-keeper were. -Ten days thereafter he announced that he had engaged a man from the -Lothians to superintend his garden-grounds, and a gamekeeper from -Badenoch to supplant the inefficient favourite; adding, however, with -characteristic kindness, that the superseded men might remain, if they -chose, as second-hands until they could better themselves. Forbes -received the news of these innovations with outward deference and -submission, but inward chagrin and rage. It was the beginning of the -end, as it proved. - -Archie Guthrie, the new gardener, arrived first on the scene to form a -nine days’ subject of comment to the simple population of Inchgarry; -and a few weeks later Donald Stewart took possession of the roomy and -comfortable keeper’s cottage so picturesquely situated by the loch -side. He was accompanied by his sister, a few years his junior, who -undertook to act as his housekeeper, and by a powerful-looking young -serving-lass. Effie was as unlike her brother as well could be. She -was _petite_, of slight frame, with small delicate features. Lithe, -active, elfish, her dark hair and pale face, together with the general -grace and rapidity of her movements, soon acquired for her the pretty -sobriquet of _sheach_ or fairy. Cheerful, even volatile, this singular -creature had yet a depth of tenderness and sympathy so easily stirred, -so sensitive and all-pervading, that nothing animate appeared to -escape its influence. In character, then, as well as in appearance, -she presented a marked contrast to her handsome, really good-hearted, -but choleric and somewhat imperious brother. Yet never perhaps, the -chief informed me, was brotherly and sisterly affection more complete -and perfect than between these two. In a short time they had finished -their new domestic arrangements, and passed through the usual ordeal of -rustic criticism. Effie glided at once into the respect and confidence -of every woman on the estate—a feat which the student of womankind will -consider an all but impossible one. Her kind-heartedness and tact, -doubtless, were the means towards such a result, aided as they were by -the incessant and impartial distribution of favours, which her deft -fingers and clever little head enabled her to do with an expenditure -of nothing more than her redundant good-will and energy. The other sex -became her slaves to a man. Every one within a radius of ten miles in -that sparsely peopled district came under the spell of the _sheach_, -and loved or admired her secretly or openly, platonically or otherwise, -according to temperament or position. Inchgarry gave some most amusing -instances of her sway: of stalwart Highlanders seized by the ear and -marched off to perform some menial duty, or commanded to execute some -commission for herself or neighbours. It was said that even Forbes -himself, surly as he was, and imbittered from the first against her -brother, could never disguise the pleasure which Effie’s presence gave -him: probably the most harmless and respectable sentiment he ever -entertained. He refused nothing _she_ asked for herself or others, and -did not hesitate to proclaim his high opinion of her disposition and -character. I record this with pleasure as the one bright spot redeeming -a dark and contemptible nature. - -Forbes and Stewart instinctively regarded each other as enemies from -the first. Frank and open to a fault, the new keeper chafed under the -reticence and duplicity of the sub-factor; and to every unreasonable -command he returned a hot and indignant refusal; to every malicious -word an angry, contemptuous retort. Thoroughly acquainted with his -own duties, he would brook no interference; and to Forbes’s utter -confusion, on one occasion, when that worthy had attempted to meddle -in some matter affecting the dogs, he boldly threatened, in presence -of several underlings, to report him to Inchgarry for obstructing his -work. Before two months had passed, it was war to the knife between -them. As was natural, the majority of the natives secretly rejoiced -to find that the young stranger meant to beard the tyrant; while the -great man’s favourites and the constitutionally envious nursed a bitter -enmity against him as an interloper. The despotism was now broken up -into two struggling factions; and the contest was a protracted and -unhappy one. - -But more fierce and implacable even than Forbes’s hatred of the keeper -was that conceived by his henchman, Ian Dhu. To the keenness of -partisanship he added a violent personal animosity, which only ended -with the tragic event hereafter detailed. Ian had long been suspected -of deer-poaching; but hitherto the friendship of the sub-factor had -screened him from conviction if not from detection. At last Stewart -caught him red-handed in the act of ‘gralloching’ a stag in one of -the favourite ‘passes’ of the forest. He reported the fact at once to -Inchgarry, who, if not exactly claiming his ancestral power of ‘pit -and gallows,’ reserved to himself the right of deciding whether or not -any of his ‘people’ should be handed over to the civil authorities. -His decision was a most merciful one—merely requiring Sutherland to -surrender his gun to the keeper. The sentence nevertheless rankled with -deadly purpose in his heart; and but for one singular circumstance, -would doubtless have earlier taken the form of the terrible revenge he -ultimately sought. - -That circumstance was his love for Effie Stewart. He too had been -smitten by the _sheach’s_ bewitching face and smile—smitten as only -such dark, troublous natures can be smitten. His love was to him a -terrible torture. The better thoughts which this new and powerful -passion awakened, only goaded and stabbed, being too intermittent to -subdue the darker passions which they illumined. From the moment he -first saw Effie, a marked change came over him, or, more properly -speaking, his idiosyncrasies became intensified. Always taciturn, -he was now morose and brooding; his surliness became vehement -irascibility, and his roving stealthy movements were now erratic and -purposeless. He would hang for hours around the kennels, pass and -repass the keeper’s cottage a dozen times a day, inventing trifling -excuses for calling there, that he might look upon the girl whose -unconscious influence had so strongly affected him. In her presence -his misery was complete. He would crouch on a settle by the fireside, -silent and burning with the unquenchable fire within him, his furtive -impassioned glances following her every movement, as Effie flitted -about the house. Whenever the little woman paused from her work, and -with piquant, gracious vivacity addressed some pleasant remark to -him, the heavy brows would unbend, and the dark eyes lift themselves -to her face with a transient gleam of supreme pleasure, only to be -averted again in increased gloom and depression. On those occasions -when the young neighbours extemporised a merry-making at one or other -of their houses, or, as was oftener the case, in the roomy cottage of -the keeper, Ian Dhu’s torture was beyond description. There he was -compelled to witness the object of his infatuation surrounded by a -number of youths, many of whom he instinctively knew were fascinated -by her. He listened entranced when she sung—but, then, other ears also -drank in the sweet sounds; he watched the slight elfish figure move in -the merry dance, but was she not observed with admiration by every one? -First one and then another of the strapping young Highlanders became -her partner, would hold her hands, clasp her waist, and whirl with her -in the freedom of the old-fashioned reels; every incident adding a -fresh torment to the jealous heart of Ian Dhu. - -Time went on, and Ian Dhu was thus fain to curb the rebellious desire -for revenge upon Donald Stewart. The gratification of looking upon -Effie was only possible under conditions which his revenge would -entirely destroy. Like a hungry spaniel, he crouched and fawned when -he would otherwise have snapped. He submitted to obey many overbearing -behests of the haughty young keeper, to assist him about the croft or -go on messages; and acted generally so as to gain Stewart’s tolerance, -if not his confidence. These tactics were not unobserved by Forbes, -who, however, satisfied of the genuineness of the hatred with which his -henchman viewed Donald, for a time attributed them to crafty zeal in -his own service. - -As for the sub-factor himself, time only increased his detestation of -the keeper. Inchgarry was in London attending to his parliamentary -duties; and Forbes did not neglect the opportunity of wreaking his -malice in every possible way upon his proud-spirited subordinate. In -his letters to the chief, the sub-factor conveyed many hints derogatory -to Stewart, and succeeded to some extent in his unworthy purpose. - -The young man, who was not only conscious of his abilities, but -enthusiastic in his desire to acquit himself creditably in all that -concerned his craft, one morning received a cold sharp letter from -Inchgarry, recounting a charge of permitting poaching in the forest, -and commenting severely upon his negligence. The chief circumstantially -stated that the interior portions of a deer had been found in a -‘pass’ through a certain hill, where it had been ‘gralloched.’ The -astonishment of Stewart was for the moment fully equal to his chagrin. -He had had that very pass carefully watched by the under-keepers, and -especially by his favourite and friend, a young sandy-haired blue-eyed -lad from Lochaber, whose surname of Grant had been familiarised, in -Highland fashion, into ‘Grantoch’ on account of his popularity. After -the first burst of angry surprise, Stewart sought Grantoch, who in -his laconic way repudiated the possibility of the thing, and after a -deliberate study of the subject, as he leant upon his gun, quietly -delivered himself of his opinion. About ten days previous, he said, -while cutting open a hind, which in accordance with orders he had shot -for the dogs, Ian Dhu had been present. Chancing to return to the same -place about half an hour later in search of the knife which he had -dropped, he was not a little surprised to find the refuse portions -removed; and was completely puzzled when he observed, by the traces of -blood amongst the heather, that they had evidently been carried up the -forest. He was certain now that Sutherland had, with the connivance -of Forbes, taken this method of throwing suspicion of negligence upon -Stewart. The head-keeper’s quick intelligence grasped the whole affair -before Grantoch had finished. He directed his assistant to state the -facts as they were, in a letter to the chief; and wrote himself a -respectful but firm repudiation of the charge. The effect was this: -Forbes received a freezing order from Inchgarry to turn Ian Dhu out of -his service. Nothing further was said; no reflection made as to his -possible complicity in a design to injure the keeper’s character. - -But the incident had rendered the sub-factor’s desire for revenge -incontrollable. He goaded on his discharged henchman to be the -instrument of wreaking their common hatred on the keeper. To his -surprise, Ian Dhu was sullenly intractable. Forbes was at first -furious, but incidentally learning the obstacle which existed in -Sutherland’s passion for Effie Stewart, he resolved to use this as -the very means of bringing him round to his purpose. He had heard, -amongst other gossip, that Archie Guthrie’s attentions to the girl -were received with favour. Ian was now completely under his control, -and accident unfortunately favoured the factor in working upon his -jealousy. Returning home from a visit to the post-town one evening in -his dog-cart, Forbes observed, on a part of the road near Stewart’s -cottage, the lovers standing together arm-in-arm, in the moonlight, -evidently transacting a lengthened and agreeable parting for the night. -Ian, whom he still sheltered, was waiting his arrival and assisted -him to alight. With a malignance worthy of the worst part of his evil -nature, he immediately despatched the unsuspecting Sutherland upon a -message which should take him past the spot where Archie and Effie -were standing. The effect was terrible. Ian Dhu on reaching the place -discovered the pair in the act of embracing; staggering for a moment -as if shot, he fled from the spot and disappeared, to return, after -several weeks, to consummate the tragedy which forms the sequel of the -tale. - - -PART II.—INCHGARRY’S NARRATIVE CONTINUED. - -Three weeks elapsed, during which no one in Inchgarry had set eyes on -Ian Dhu. The story of his love for the _sheach_ was commonly known, -and speculation was rife as to his proceedings since the night of -his disappearance. This was set at rest one evening by his sudden -appearance in the kitchen of the sub-factor’s house, lean and gaunt as -a famished hound. His face was haggard and hunger-pinched, and a gleam -very like insanity lit up the dark scowling eyes. His hair and beard -were matted and tangled, and his clothes were soiled and rent. It was -conjectured that he had spent the interval since his flight, in the -fastnesses of the mountains—a prey to the throes of that passion which -his powerful nature had conceived. What a picture might not imagination -draw of the terrible human struggle enacted in those solitudes! Perhaps -some such thought occurred to the frightened women-servants as Ian -stood before them. At anyrate, they received him with silent sympathy, -and invited him to take refreshment. It does seem strange that the -revenge which succeeded his paroxysm of disappointed love should not -first have been directed against the young gardener and his sweetheart. -Various theories exist to account for this; one being that it really -was his purpose to include them among his victims. My informant, -however, held the very plausible opinion that Ian Dhu’s reason had -given way under the great strain on his feelings, that his love was -thereafter mercifully a blank to him, while the old grudge against -Stewart had assumed unnatural proportions. - -Forbes had an interview that night in his own parlour with his quondam -henchman as the investigation which afterwards took place proved; and -it was late when Ian Dhu slunk from the house by the private door, -carrying with him a gun, and was seen to disappear in the belt of -firs that skirts the loch. It is mentioned, with that morbid zest for -details which a tragedy never fails to excite, that only a few minutes -previous to Ian’s plunging into the wood, Archie Guthrie and Effie -Stewart (now formally betrothed) had passed the sub-factor’s house -arm-in-arm. What would have been the consequences of a _rencontre_ -between the lovers and Black Sutherland is a favourite topic for -surmise amongst the people of Inchgarry to this day. - -On the following morning, Grantoch, who had returned from his rounds, -took his spy-glass from its case and directed it towards Bhein à -B’huachaill. A fire in the heather on this hill had been reported -earlier, and Stewart had gone to investigate the cause, telling -Grantoch to follow him when his other duties should leave him at -liberty. The burning of the heather in the month of July, and in the -centre of the ‘forest’ ground, was a serious matter in the eyes of the -keepers, driving the deer as it would, from a favourite haunt. Grantoch -now desired to make out, if possible, in what direction Stewart had -gone, that he might be able to join him by the shortest route. He -brought the glass to bear on every part of the mountain, its wood-clad -base, purple sides, gray scaurs, and shimmering water-courses—but -without result; and was just about to close it, when his glance -rested upon a human figure shewing on the near shoulder of Bhein à -B’huachaill. His practised eye told him at once it was not Donald -Stewart. He carefully scrutinised it for some minutes, until with -startled surprise he recognised Ian Dhu creeping over the watershed, -bearing a gun on his shoulder. - -Grantoch quietly shut his glass, returned it to its case, examined -with professional caution the lock of his double-barrel to see that -it was at half-cock, and started at a swinging trot for the foot of -the hill. Its nearest point was only a mile and a half distant; but, -convinced that Ian was on another poaching expedition, he resolved -to get the assistance of a keeper whose cottage stood about a mile -farther up the loch. Here he was agreeably surprised to find Stewart -engaged in issuing some orders. The latter explained that he had come -direct to the cottage to learn whether the under-keeper knew anything -of the fire; and that he found he had visited the spot. It was merely -a patch which had soon burned out of itself, and Stewart had therefore -waited leisurely for his comrade’s appearance. He pricked up his -ears, however, when Grantoch told him of Ian Dhu’s movements, at once -suspecting him of having intentionally fired the heather. The thought -brought his hasty temper to such a heat that he resolved at once to -clear up the matter by giving chase to Ian Dhu. - -The trio took the route which Grantoch had seen Sutherland take, and -their keen eyes kept them close on his track after it quitted the -watershed. At length they came in full view of him as he now strode -rapidly along the side of the hill. Their object was to detect him -in the act of poaching, confident that Inchgarry would this time -prosecute, and hopeful that the incendiarism would also be brought -home to him. To avoid being observed in their turn, they now crouched -along amongst the tall heather, till within a few hundred yards of -where they had seen Ian Dhu last halt. Stewart then proposed to advance -alone on all-fours to reconnoitre. As he thus cautiously approached -the poacher, he observed that he had leapt into the dry channel of -what is termed a winter stream, and was looking along the barrel of -his weapon—a rifle—which he held resting on the bank at the opposite -side of the channel to that on which Stewart now lay. Ian Dhu’s face -was if possible more haggard and wild than ever, while the hand which -grasped the rifle shook as if with ague or palsy. His glance was -directed towards a spot some hundred yards distant, where the heather -shewed blackened as if by recent fire. Now and again the maniac—for he -had every appearance of being bereft of reason—would start up with an -impatient cry and gesture, as though disappointed by the non-appearance -of some object for which he waited. At last, in view of the puzzled and -somewhat terrified keeper, he brought the rifle to his shoulder, and -with steady deliberate aim, fired at an object unseen by the keeper. -The echoes which the sharp report awakened were mingled with a piercing -cry! - -Ian Dhu had not time to complete his attempted spring from the channel -of the stream before his shoulder was seized in the strong grasp of -Donald Stewart. He turned to face his captor; then with a scream of -terror, which for the moment paralysed the stout-hearted keeper, tore -himself free and dashed down the mountain like a hunted stag. Donald, -with the two under-keepers, who had rapidly approached, watched -him in silence as he sped from rock to rock. Pursuit was useless. -Following him with their eyes as he disappeared and reappeared among -the inequalities of the ground, they at last observed, with a thrill -of horror, that he did not turn aside in his descent from a well-known -point at which the hill sloped almost precipitously for several hundred -feet. With blanched faces and upraised hands they saw Ian Dhu pause for -a moment on the dangerous verge, and take the awful leap. - -The three keepers resolved at once to make a detour to the spot where -he must have fallen, and for this purpose hastened down the shoulder of -the hill. They had not proceeded far when Grantoch called the attention -of the others to a groaning sound proceeding from some spot near them. -Stewart believing it to be the dying moans of a wounded stag, answered -his faithful comrade rather rudely and hurried on. His course happily -took him to the very spot where the man, whom Ian Dhu’s last bullet -had reached, lay bleeding and apparently dying. To the horror and -amazement of all, it proved to be Forbes the sub-factor. Stewart, with -a sensitiveness that did him credit, left the wounded man in the charge -of Grantoch and their companion, and hurried off himself to procure -assistance. With as much speed as the task would admit, he returned -to the spot, leading a sure-footed pony, and on this, supported -alternately by the keepers, Forbes was conveyed by easy stages to his -own house. - -The wound proved mortal; but before his death he made a statement which -threw light upon the mysterious events of that fatal morning. Along -with Ian Dhu he had concocted a scheme for Stewart’s destruction. He -it was who had instructed Sutherland to fire the heather, calculating -shrewdly that the circumstance would unfailingly call the keeper to -the spot, in all likelihood alone, his trusty assistant being fully -employed at that early hour. Ian, lying in wait with Forbes’s rifle, -was to have shot the head-keeper whenever he appeared on the scene. -The explanation of his own unfortunate presence was extremely simple. -When he believed the dark deed accomplished, he had become anxious to -recover the rifle from Ian Dhu, seeing that, in the event of capture, -its possession would open up a suspicious inquiry respecting his own -share in the dastardly business. This motive sealed his own fate. The -impatient and vengeful Ian had not paused to reckon the chances of a -mistake, but had pressed the trigger the moment he saw a human figure -moving through the high heather towards the scene of the fire. Stewart, -so happily deterred from his first purpose of visiting the burning -hill, thus escaped the doom intended for him. - -‘And what were the fortunes of the other characters in your sad story?’ -I asked of the chief. - -‘Oh! You see that cottage over there with the sweet bit of garden in -front, ornamented with rockeries and ferns? That is the home of Archie -Guthrie and his wife, _née_ Effie Stewart. The fairy scarcely deserves -the name now, having lost much of her elfish slenderness and activity, -but is after all, perhaps, a prettier heroine as the gardener’s wife, -and less dangerous to my young male subjects. A coquette she certainly -never was; but discreet and prudent to a rare degree. I am at a loss to -divine _what_ the source of her strange power was, but am thankful she -is now Mrs Guthrie.’ - -I laughed at the naïve remark. - -‘As for Stewart,’ continued Inchgarry, ‘he has married well—the -daughter of one of my wealthiest tenants. Grantoch has got a chief -charge on an estate in the West Highlands, taking with him the buxom -servant whom Stewart brought from Badenoch. So you see they are all -doing well. And for my own part, the revelations which were made at the -time of the tragedy fully awakened me to the duty of weighing carefully -the complaints of my “people,” and of charily guarding against too -free an investiture of power over them to an ignorant, malicious, -or interested servant. I spend more time here than formerly, and am -gratified by the increased contentment and prosperity of those under my -care. The story, you will now perceive, though sad, is not without its -moral.’ - - - - -BALLOON-TRAVELLING. - - -Aërial navigation, the faculty of locomotion through the air, the power -of soaring bird-like into the azure fields of space, has always been -tantalisingly seductive to the human imagination. So engrossing is the -theme, that although the subject has already been discussed from a -scientific point of view in these pages, a few additional words about -its more popular aspects may not be found uninteresting to our readers. - -Great, and, as it has proved, baseless anticipations were evoked by the -advent of the first balloon. Aërostation was to disclose the secrets -of the atmospheric world, and by enabling men to predict rains and -droughts, secure by the proper cultivation of the soil abundant and -excellent harvests. The unmanageable nature of the new invention was -not taken into account at all, nor the fact, that although you might -ascend into the air from any point you chose, no one could predict -where or how you would descend. This charming uncertainty still attends -aërial voyages; no means have yet been discovered of guiding the -balloon in a horizontal direction; and it is always so much at the -mercy of currents of air, that the course it will follow is a matter of -chance, and not an affair of the aëronaut’s will or choice. - -Attempts have been made to press this unmanageable machine into the -service of science, and with some success, although what has yet been -done is little more than a suggestion of discoveries which may at some -future time be practicable by its aid. - -In 1862 Mr Glaisher, author of a history of _Travels in the Air_, made -a series of ascents from Wolverhampton, in order to verify a number -of scientific observations; the results of which are contained in the -annals of the British Association. A new balloon was provided for him, -which was not made of silk, but of American cloth, a stronger and more -serviceable material, and in this aërial machine he encountered sundry -mishaps and misadventures, on two occasions narrowly escaping with his -life. - -Its very danger lends to balloon-travelling a sense of conscious -adventure, of thrilling excitement, peculiarly its own. Added to -this, the cloud-scenery through which the aëronaut glides is not only -novel, but is often, especially at sunrise and sunset, most gorgeously -beautiful; while the earth beneath, which seems to have motion -transferred to it, presents as it hurries past, a charming and varied -panorama. Woods and rivers, hamlets and towns, hills and valleys, and -wide-spreading downs, succeed each other in rapid succession. From the -immense height, all idea of the comparative altitude of objects is -lost; great cities appear like small models of towns, and the biggest -man-of-war looks like a boy’s toy ship. Morning up in cloudland is a -gloriously radiant spectacle. The balloon floats out of darkness into -a world of shadowy mountain ranges, colourless and unsubstantial at -first, but borrowing from the rising sun the softest, tenderest hues of -roseate pink and warmest crimson, glowing and blending and fading away -at last into a mellow flood of amber gold. - -In France, for some time after their invention, balloons were quite the -rage, the first made for scientific purposes being that of July 1803, -and which was followed by several others having for their object the -solution of many physical problems, not a few of which remain problems -still. In 1850 two ascents were made for the purpose of investigating -certain atmospheric phenomena. One especially of these aërial voyages -was in the last degree unfortunate. Scarcely had the two philosophers -MM. Barral and Bixio taken their seats, than they made the unpleasant -discovery that their balloon was not in good working order; and while -they were hesitating about what should be done in the circumstances, a -violent gust of wind settled the question for them, and the balloon, -blown from the earth, shot into the air with the velocity of an arrow. -Becoming rapidly inflated, the machine then bulged out at top and -bottom, covering the car like a hood, and enveloping the unfortunate -aëronauts in total darkness. ‘Their position was most critical; and -when one of them endeavoured to secure the valve-rope, a rent was made -in the lower part of the balloon, and the hydrogen gas with which -it was inflated escaping close to their faces suffocated both of -them, causing a momentary exhaustion, followed by nausea and violent -vomiting.’ - -In this helpless condition they discovered that they were descending -rapidly; and on groping about for the cause they found that the balloon -was split open in the middle, and that there was a rent in it two -yards long. This was a cruel predicament in which to find themselves -thirty thousand feet up in the air, and very naturally they abandoned -all hope of life, although, like wise men, they did all in their power -to preserve it. To lessen the downward velocity of the balloon they -threw overboard all their ballast, then article after article of their -raiment even to their fur coats, preserving only their instruments, -with which they at last descended in safety in a vineyard near Lagny. - -The motion in a balloon is scarcely perceptible. You are not conscious -of rising; but the earth appears to recede from you, and to advance -to meet you during a descent. In the higher regions of the air, -the intense solitude of the cloud-scape has something in it awful -and oppressive, as if the world were left behind for ever, and the -aëronaut were about to launch chance-driven into the vast infinitude of -shadowland. Amid these altitudes, if any sound is made by the aëronaut, -it is echoed back in ghostly tones by the vast envelope of the balloon, -which as it floats casts a shadow sometimes black and sometimes white; -but which is usually surrounded by an aureole or halo more or less -distinctly marked. - -In throwing out ballast or any small article from a balloon, a certain -degree of caution is requisite, as a bottle or any similar object falls -with such velocity that if it were to strike the roof of a cottage it -would go right through it. We are told that Gay-Lussac, in an ascent -in 1804, threw out a common deal chair from the height of 23,000 feet. -It fell beside a country girl who was tending some sheep in a field, -and as the balloon was invisible, she concluded—and so did wiser heads -than hers—that the chair had fallen straight down from heaven, a gift -of the Virgin to her faithful followers. No one was sceptical enough to -deny it, for there was the chair, or rather its remains. The most the -incredulous could venture to do was to criticise the coarse workmanship -of the miraculous seat, and they were busy carping and fault-finding -with the celestial upholstery, when an account of M. Gay-Lussac’s -aërial voyage was published, and extinguished at once the discussion -and the miracle. - -In 1868 M. Tissandier and a professional aëronaut made a voyage over -the North Sea in a balloon called the Neptune. The machine made a -splendid ascent, and was soon floating in mid air buoyant as a feather -at the height of four thousand feet, bound, as the aëronauts fondly -hoped, for the coast of England. But in this they soon found that they -had counted without their host; the Neptune, impelled by the wind, -was soaring away in the direction of the middle of the German Ocean. -This most inauspicious goal struck terror for a few moments into their -ardent souls; but they were soon reassured by observing that the wind -in the atmospheric regions below them was setting towards the shore, -and that by sinking into this lower current of air they could return -whenever they chose. Thus yielding to the current of their fate, they -allowed themselves to be carried out to sea, floating like gossamer -into the very heart of cloudland. Gorgeous scenes, more splendid, -more airy, more delicate than the most glowing visions of the Arabian -Nights, rose around them. It was like the enchantment of a vivid -dream. They took no note of time; every sense was absorbed in that -of vision; they even forgot to be hungry, but gazed, and gazed, and -gazed again upon the wide waste of waters that spread beneath them, -glowing like one vast molten emerald; its glories half seen, half hid -by the multitude of cloud mountains and valleys that rose fluctuating -and fantastic on every side, fair with luminous half-lights, -delicately lovely with pearly iridescence shading into silvery gray. -Thus hovering miles above the world and its commonplace cares, they -enjoyed an interval of transcendent delight, rudely broken in upon -by the professional aëronaut, a creature of appetite, who pulled the -valve-rope unbidden, thus causing them to descend from their cloudy -paradise into the grosser atmosphere that immediately surrounds the -earth, where they at length bethought themselves—of lunch. In spite of -thick thronging poetic fancies and transcendental raptures, they made a -very tolerable repast, M. Tissandier finishing his portion of the fowl -by tossing a well-picked drumstick overboard. For this imprudence the -professional was down upon him immediately. ‘Do you not know,’ quoth -he, ‘that to throw out ballast without orders is a very serious crime -in a balloon?’ M. Tissandier was at first inclined to argue the point; -but on consulting the sensitive barometer he was fain to admit that -in consequence of the disappearance of the chicken-bone, the Neptune -had made an upward bound of between twenty and thirty yards. Very fine -calculation—if true. - -Luncheon satisfactorily over, they again soared upward out of sight and -sound of earth, and soon found themselves once more in their cloudy -Elysium, but with a change; mist and fog hemmed them round instead -of the breeze and sunshine, but did not make them less happy. The -Neptune was to them a little Goshen, a lonely floating temple of peace, -dedicated to contentment and ease. The serenity of their souls was -depicted in their faces. Tranquil and easy, they took no thought of the -morrow, no, nor of the next hour, when suddenly there broke upon their -ears, like a faint far-distant murmur, a sound subdued, monotonous, -and yet terrible. Was it the voices of the spheres? No, gentle reader; -it was a strain more awful still—it was the voice of the sea. In a -moment the listless ease, the sweet do-nothingness of those idlers in -cloudland was gone, clean washed away by the swish and swell of that -intrusive ocean, which stretched beneath them, painted by the sunset -with a thousand glowing tints of beauty, which they had neither leisure -nor tranquillity to admire. Fortunately the wind was setting inshore; -and amid the fast falling shades of night, the anxious aëronauts were -fortunate enough to descry a cape crowned with a lighthouse. Every -nerve was strained to reach it; and after a few moments of intense -anxiety and effort, the anchor was let go. It caught in a sandhill, and -the Neptune once more moored to earth, rolled over on its side, and was -after some difficulty secured. - -The spot where they landed was curiously enough only a few yards from -the reef of rocks where the first aëronaut, Pilatre de Rosier, was -dashed to pieces in 1785. - -Sometimes, like other bubbles, the balloon bursts; and when this -little accident happens, say four thousand feet up in the air, it is -of course attended with unpleasant and inconvenient consequences, as -was the experience of MM. Fonvielle and Tissandier, who with a party -of nine made an ascent in a veteran balloon called ‘the Giant.’ Merry -as larks they soared into the air, keenly enjoying the beauty of the -day, the novelty of the pastime, the sense of liberty, of entire -freedom from all wonted conventionalisms or accustomed restraints. -Then with what a keen school-boy edge of appetite they fell upon their -chicken, which seems the appropriate food for balloons, eaten from -newspapers, which served as plates, and washed down with soda-water -and Bordeaux. Champagne was inadmissible; an unruly cork might have -popped unawares through the silken tissues of the envelope, and thus -hastened a catastrophe. But let us not anticipate. The banquet was -over, the board, that is to say the newspapers were cleared, and -‘the feast of reason and the flow of soul’ had begun. All was bright -airy genial cordiality and mirth, when suddenly the attention of the -travellers was attracted to a white smoke issuing from the sides of -the balloon. Whence came this ominous mist, this preternatural cloud, -that began to enshroud them? One reckless youth said: ‘It is the Giant -smoking his pipe.’ And so it was with a vengeance! Then followed a few -terrible moments, in which each after his own fashion bade the world -farewell, and found it marvellous hard to do so. The clouds, the sky, -the pleasant sunlight, was that their last look at each? It seemed so; -but while they were still shivering dizzy and aghast upon that awful -threshold, the balloon fell, and strange to relate, fell safely, and -they were saved. - -A few days afterwards Monsieur Tissandier made another ascent in the -Neptune with Monsieur de Fonvielle, and they were busily engaged -conducting some scientific experiments when a sharp crack like a -sudden quick peal of thunder fell upon their astounded ears, and the -professional aëronaut exclaimed in a loud startled voice: ‘The balloon -has burst!’ What followed, we give in Monsieur Tissandier’s own words: -‘It was too true; the Neptune’s side was torn open and transformed -suddenly into a bundle of shreds, flattening down upon the opposite -half. Its appearance was now that of a disc surrounded with a fringe! -We came to the ground immediately. The shock was awful. The aëronaut -disappeared. I leaped into the hoop, which at that instant fell upon -me, together with the remains of the balloon and all the contents of -the car. All was darkness. I felt myself rolled along the ground, and -wondered if I had lost my sight, or if we were buried in some hole or -cavern. An instant of quiet ensued, and then the loud voice of the -aëronaut was heard exclaiming: “Now come all of you from under there.”’ -And one after another they emerged unhurt into the sunshine, in time to -bid farewell to a few fragments of the balloon which were floating away -upon the rising wind. - -Such experiences must as a rule be trying to the nerves of most people, -and we must be so plain as say that travelling by balloon is at best an -act of extreme danger and temerity. In order to utilise balloons, it is -evident that some sure means of guiding them must be invented; and this -discovery or anything approaching to it has yet to be made. In fact, -a balloon is still, after about a hundred years’ experience, little -better than a toy. - - - - -LIGHTNING-CONDUCTORS. - - -Many of our readers may have wondered why tall buildings such as church -steeples and factory chimneys are provided with thin rods of iron -running down their sides; and may have been at a loss to understand -their meaning. Their use is to conduct lightning harmlessly to the -ground during thunder-storms. We have, however, had warnings enough -that a bad lightning-conductor is worse, as regards the security of -the building it is supposed to protect, than none at all. Unless the -electrical connection with the earth be perfect, the conductor may -invite the very danger which it ought to turn aside. Rusted chains, -imperfect fittings, and the absence of a sufficient thickness of -untarnished metal, are responsible for much mischief. Lightning, -properly dealt with, is robbed of much of its terrific power; but -when its natural path is blocked, and its swift circuit interrupted, -it inevitably rends and tears and burns, scathing and scattering all -substances before its resistless might. - -Franklin meant the lightning-conductors which he invented to consist -of iron alone. Iron, however, has too strong an affinity for oxygen to -allow of this. All moisture, and all heat, corrode it more or less; -and thus grew up the custom of pointing the conductors with copper, -and in some cases with costly platinum, soldered to the iron rod. But -exposure to weather, and the weak galvanic currents which unavoidably -set in where metal of one sort is in contact with metal of another -sort, cause rapid decomposition at the joint, and encourage the rust to -eat into the substance of the rod. A heavy flash will melt or cripple -a conductor thus imperfect, and then woe to the structure! This defect -can now be cured by coating the iron rod completely with nickel, a -metal which defies rust, and which conducts electricity better than the -pure iron does. Bars and rods of this nickelised iron have been kept -under water for several days without tarnishing, and resist the effects -of the most powerful battery of Leyden jars. - -It had been believed, until lately, that platinum was a metal with -which no rogue, however dexterous, could tamper. The platinum coinage -of the Russia of thirty years since was considered un-imitable by the -manufacturers of false money; while the capsules, crucibles, and -other apparatus required by scientific men were sold according to the -high market value of what is really a precious metal. Unluckily, fraud -has been found possible even in this case. The Director of the Royal -Italian Observatory on Vesuvius, M. de Luca, surprised at finding first -one and then another of the platinum points of his conductors melted by -the effect of lightning, made a careful investigation, and discovered -that the platinum had been adulterated with from ten to twelve per -cent. of lead, and thus rendered fusible. Platinum thus mixed with an -inferior metal can be identified by its lesser density, or more easily -by the blowpipe, before which a tell-tale green flame will reveal -the presence of the lead. Such a mixture would render the hitherto -resisting platinum absolutely worthless in the laboratory. - - - - -A SPRING BOUQUET. - - - Rails the rude Wind-king through the surging sea - Of swaying boughs, that bending to the blast - Their countless arms, with murmurous rustling wave, - In wood and forest; and the hedgerows burst - Into the tender greenery of Spring. - - Now shew the clumps of golden crocuses - Their crowns above the freshly scented mould; - And quavering bells of snowdrops glimmer white, - In roadside garden; purple violets - Lurk mid their green leaves, heavy-eyed with dew, - Their fragrant perfume scattering on the Dawn. - - The polyanthus in her velvet robe— - Yellow and russet—nestles by the side - Of proud auricula; the splendid stars - Of periwinkle—palest lavender— - Gleam from the ivied bank; ranunculus - All-stately queens it o’er her satellites, - The yellow daffodils; Narcissus scents, - With his frankincense sweet, the keen March air, - A flower of peerless beauty. - - Wall-flowers shew - From bed and border, their brown-orange blooms; - And under them lingereth a vestal pure, - The last pale primrose. All the pear-trees bend - Beneath their flower-snow; the almonds blush - With roseate bloom; the young year’s minstrel sweet— - The mellow thrush—his liquid carol pours - From the old blackthorn. - - Nature is astir; - She wakes rejoicing from her Winter sleep, - And with a thousand voices welcomes Spring! - - * * * * * - -The Conductors of CHAMBERS’S JOURNAL beg to direct the attention of -CONTRIBUTORS to the following notice: - -_1st._ All communications should be addressed to the ‘Editor, 339 High - Street, Edinburgh.’ - -_2d._ To insure the return of papers that may prove ineligible, - postage-stamps should in every case accompany them. - -_3d._ MANUSCRIPTS should bear the author’s full _Christian_ name, - surname, and address, legibly written. - -_4th._ MS. should be written on one side of the leaf only. - -_5th._ Poetical offerings should be accompanied by an envelope, stamped - and directed. - -_Unless Contributors comply with the above rules, the Editor cannot -undertake to return ineligible papers._ - - -Printed and Published by W. & R. CHAMBERS, 47 Paternoster Row, LONDON, -and 339 High Street, EDINBURGH. - - * * * * * - -_All Rights Reserved._ - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Chambers's Journal of Popular -Literature, Science, and Art,, by Various - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CHAMBERS'S JOURNAL *** - -***** This file should be named 62125-0.txt or 62125-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/2/1/2/62125/ - -Produced by Susan Skinner and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions 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. Special rules, -set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to -copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to -protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project -Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you -charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you -do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the -rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose -such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and -research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do -practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is -subject to the trademark license, especially commercial -redistribution. - - - -*** START: FULL LICENSE *** - -THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE -PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK - -To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free -distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work -(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project -Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project -Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at -http://gutenberg.org/license). - - -Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works - -1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to -and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property -(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all -the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy -all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession. -If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the -terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or -entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. - -1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be -used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who -agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few -things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works -even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See -paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement -and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic -works. See paragraph 1.E below. - -1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation" -or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the -collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an -individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are -located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from -copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative -works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg -are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project -Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by -freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of -this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with -the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by -keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project -Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others. - -1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern -what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in -a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check -the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement -before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or -creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project -Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning -the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United -States. - -1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: - -1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate -access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently -whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the -phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project -Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, -copied or distributed: - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere 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/license - -1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived -from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is -posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied -and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees -or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work -with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the -work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 -through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the -Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or -1.E.9. - -1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted -with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution -must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional -terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked -to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the -permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work. - -1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm -License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this -work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. - -1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this -electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without -prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with -active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project -Gutenberg-tm License. - -1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, -compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any -word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or -distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than -"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version -posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org), -you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a -copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon -request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other -form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm -License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. - -1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, -performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works -unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. - -1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing -access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided -that - -- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from - the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method - you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is - owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he - has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the - Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments - must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you - prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax - returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and - sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the - address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to - the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation." - -- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies - you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he - does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm - License. You must require such a user to return or - destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium - and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of - Project Gutenberg-tm works. - -- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any - money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the - electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days - of receipt of the work. - -- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free - distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. - -1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set -forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from -both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael -Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the -Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. - -1.F. - -1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable -effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread -public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm -collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic -works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain -"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or -corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual -property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a -computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by -your equipment. - -1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right -of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project -Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all -liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal -fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT -LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE -PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE -TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE -LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR -INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH -DAMAGE. - -1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a -defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can -receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a -written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you -received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with -your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with -the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a -refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity -providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to -receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy -is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further -opportunities to fix the problem. - -1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth -in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER -WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO -WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. - -1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied -warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. -If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the -law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be -interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by -the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any -provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. - -1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the -trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone -providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance -with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, -promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, -harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, -that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do -or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm -work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any -Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause. - - -Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm - -Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of -electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers -including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists -because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from -people in all walks of life. - -Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the -assistance they need, are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's -goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will -remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure -and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations. -To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation -and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 -and the Foundation web page at http://www.pglaf.org. - - -Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive -Foundation - -The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit -501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the -state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal -Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification -number is 64-6221541. Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at -http://pglaf.org/fundraising. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg -Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent -permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. - -The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S. -Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered -throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at -809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email -business@pglaf.org. Email contact links and up to date contact -information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official -page at http://pglaf.org - -For additional contact information: - Dr. Gregory B. Newby - Chief Executive and Director - gbnewby@pglaf.org - - -Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg -Literary Archive Foundation - -Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide -spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of -increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be -freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest -array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations -($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt -status with the IRS. - -The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating -charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United -States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a -considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up -with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations -where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To -SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any -particular state visit http://pglaf.org - -While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we -have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition -against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who -approach us with offers to donate. - -International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make -any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from -outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. - -Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation -methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other -ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. -To donate, please visit: http://pglaf.org/donate - - -Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic -works. - -Professor Michael S. Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm -concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared -with anyone. For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project -Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. - - -Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed -editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S. -unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily -keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. - - -Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: - - http://www.gutenberg.org - -This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, -including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to -subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. |