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PARSOV LEE. To irownj country Tillf Cme a Certain I'areoa Ad a nut to qaaiiitly UinVrent Krora all other tan rm Cain to chum hlm ,,ry J. And to note tbrf" ' "red By this Miarrd of Ux day. Wa tro1 and fooaif placr, And thonly thing they wanted M a W mon- or Hmvr' p-ce; And he aonfht to ahow Ihe people How to think and work anyl live, 80 I1t each aboutd h l the other A1 unto la needy give; ITow the door that Imdi to Hraren Waa most amply hmad and wide. And bow each iv.uld turn the handle And (to easily ineiile; That the erv pntl-t nitttirrii In the world may yt le stroni; And how trtitli i alwava wisiloiu, And all wickednuM u wrong. He explaine4 how true reliplun Was day-wrrkinpt nothing niore; That this "world wa n"l an ik cud, Nor we peMdra on the aliore; But that thinking men and women hhould find lieiicr tliingx lodo That in twistinp (;,m1'h rommandmenU Or quite breaking them in two. for arting like onr neiirlilmm,' W by, we nmeor ua are lnU You cannot lie madeat hriMiu I'ndi r ever) body 'n rul.-a. If vour DeiKiilMir'a not a g-ood aa flf or you would hve Imn Im, .1 111.1 you n mIinmJ and best him!" Said Uiia candid I'araon Lee. Kext, lie told them how complaining H'aa a nnxiomi, cliokinir weed; That the floWim scarcely liloMOIluttl Kre they ntupgi-il to boiuely aeed; How thai seed mcain sprang upward And iKire many flow retx more; And that life wits ever lading And renewing, o'er and o'er. 60, this inan, by hnneat tall ing. Worked bia wotidera in the town ; ' But he never cared lr pnuM, And bf iMtcitmt at hlvo renown. Yet the peopile ftoferi hluj dearly And tuey tdeswd Utxi for the sight. Till at l-t tlie Master lelt them, Uu a cold. ckr:i winter's night. Thus he went, they knew not whither; Have you ever met turn, pray t You wouid know him by his smiling, And the sunkhine.on bis wy. M e have hunted o'er Creation, Over land aud oversea, lint no traces can discover. Of our iniHsing i'arsou Lee Weekly Graphic. MY WIFE'S MAID. The scries of burglaries which startled the public in the autumn and early winter of 1 80-was of a description to alarm any household. The general features of each robliery was the wine. In every case a gang of seven to eleven men had broken into an isolated dwelling containing an un usual amount of silver or jewels; had in timidated the inmates by threatening them with lire-arms; mastered theiu, secured them, gagged them, then quietly proceed ed methodically to strip the house of all the valuables it contained. Their intelli gence of the premises M as never at fault. Secret drawers and sliding panels, suppos ed to be known only to the family, were sought and opened at once, anil safes, whether built into the walls or ex posed in closets, were equally at their mercy, and easily forced by nicunsof drills or gunpow der. The police seemed indefatigable in in vestigation and pursuit, yet live of these audacious and astounding robberies had succeeded each other without a single arrest biking place. Plenty of rumors, were abroad that the gang'werc in the hands of the authorities, but such state ments contained not a grain of truth, for the detectives Mere absolutely in the dark. My own position tilled me with anxiety. My house is six miles from town, set in wide grounds, remote from any habitation but the gardener's cottage, at the irate. Both my wife and nivsclt had inherited a large amount of bulky plate, aud besides 1 m useless metal, wiiich never came out of the safe, I had several costly services presented on the occasion of our marriage. three salvers, etc., testimonials from so cieties of which I had liecn an active nieiu- lier, to say nothing of a complete and va ried assortment of small articles in silver and gold. Thru my wife's possessions were those of a princess, tor she had been a dauliiaT of a milllotinire, aud all her life a spoiled child of fortune. Besides plate ami jewels, our houe contained a valuable collection of statuary, paintings, and bronzes, and I was only too conscious of having cxciidcd a fortune upon the surroundings of our daily lite, and was in spired with grave doubts as to its safety. Brooding over such thoughts, and reading the newspapers, tilled with scculatious eonccrning these mysterious burglaries. I soon became the victim of an exaggerate! disquietude. Had my own wishes lieeu carried out, every ounce of silver and eve ry jewel w owned would have Im'cii sent into town to n.y tmnkvrs. but my wife ob jected, laughed at my apprehensions, and begged rue. not to worry. . ...... Hut I continued to worry, and perplex ed myself with conflicting plans for safety, and one day while in town I went to the headquarters of the police, and Inquired for Hctts, the detective engaged on this csise. He admitted ine into his private room. I asked for the latest news. Had anybody been arrested ? Xo. Was anybody 'to be arrested? He shrugged his shoulders. Wa any body suspected ? He chuckle softly to himself. "My dear sir,"' said lie, "we susjicet ev eryliody." "Then," cried I. "arrest everybody on suspicion! Goodtiod' I cannot sleep in my lied, for something assures me my turn will come next. I caii'tdcoidc what to do, Hctts. My wile won't let the silver and the diamonds go out of the house, and this very night 1 may !e awakened to find inakcd men standing over me, with load ed pistols, m ho w ill rob my house- under my very eyes I" IMts shook his head : musel a little with his legs crossed and his left forefinger pressed into his check. "By-the-hye." said he, presently, "how many servants have you. Mr. Power Please tell me about them individually. I went over their names, anil the detec tive checked them otl in his inemoranrtiim ltook as I gave the tacts connected with them. Saunders, the butler, lutd lie'ii wiih us seventeen years ; the 'cook, live years : coachman and groom, seven ; and the chambermaid, three nil fixtures in the household but Marie), my m he's lunM, who had come within the last fotir veeks. "Ah !' exclaimed Hctts. "where Jul you get Marie? Was she well recommended?' " Oh ye ; she is French, and has just come to this country M'ith a laniily by the fume of Ie Sturges. the vs "nurse to a child M ho died on the passage, and Mas thus thrown out of emplornicnt ; she ad vertised, and my M ile saw" her, liked her, luid engaged her." " You contiuue to like her?" "Capitally: she's a perfect genius, with effective magic in Iht lingers. ' " Did you see her former employers ? " . "Yes; both De St urges and his" wife chatty, agreeable iK-oplc, of some means, apparentlv, and are going to settle in New Orleans." " lVsernc her. it you please," said Hefls, with a ke'U interest, w hie It surprised me. " Oh." he added, as I stared at him, give me leave to be curious." " With :dl my heart. Marie is small, black-eyed, blaek-haired, eompaetlr built, with remarkablv neat hands and lV-et. She hM a saucy, laughing face, and her hair is short, crisp andcurlv." "How about her voice?" 44 Very clear ud ringing. She does not speak English fluently, but understand? everv word that is said to her." " Xow about her little muvs." " A thorough Frenchwoman, with a knack of pleasing everybody. I don't! know when ire sexai suen an artless, good, happy little girl. Iietts laughed uneasily, thca leiit his head ou his liaud, his elbow resting ou his kne'. .- - - , - - f , " Mr. Powers. iaid he at lii, lookinjr up with a peculiar tliisli in bis eyes, " I am going to take you into luy coutidence, but you must be discre-t. or you will ruin ine. I've sworn to si-e, this thing through, or re.-ign my josition. I'm sick of this in fernal foolerv of calling myself a detective and letting Satan reign nigbt and day all over the city. The newspapers drive me niad ! They know nothing about tlie 00 ttacleg we contend with, and goat! us into premature steps, which cost us our reputa tion, and end in failure. I've been work ing in the ark t!.e nine wveks, but, by Ilraveus. I believe you've sliown me a glimmer of light." His inaniier bblieated intense excite ment, ins words came spasmodically, his lace worked, and he had to draw his'hand " ... I PUXGEXT riBAiiKAFHS. . 5E VOLUME I. tM-o or three times across his mouth before lie could go on. Then producing a note book. he oix ned It at well-worn leaves. " There have been," he began. looking at me with, a sort of smile, "live great rob beries within the last six months, and each one has these special features, characteriz ing it as the M'ork of the same hands as the other four : " First, the combination of seven to eleven masked men, all adroit burglars ; second, an isolab-d house is attacked, sure to emtain ample provision for a successful robliery;. thin!, the thieves know the premises ; fourth, the leader of the gang is a small man. of active habits, M'ith a clear, shrill voice." He stopped end looked at me. " I did not knoM- there was a recognized leader," I remarked. He drew a large book from the desk. l: Here," said he, " is the full testimony in all five cases. Knn vour eyes over it, and vou M ill -e that the. general facts all coin cide. This small man gives directions and lea is every Dotty." . . .. . "Pniliablv some lAiidon cracksman." Iietu notldel. winked, tlu-u leaned for- Mraru, antf M tiispereu in my ear, "I suspect it's a woman." " Impossible! no woman has the nerve." " J sne-uevu, men something in a woman's form at all events. Now for the facts on which I base my lK-licf. The rest of the gang are as free and easy M'ith each other as you pleas;, yet no one ever lays a linger oji this little one, but all draw hack to let him pass. He gives orders, exerts himself when Ingenuity is required, but when strength is needed he looks on while the others fall to M'ork. Besides, young Stewart, who Mas brought down stairs in his night-shirt the night of their robliery, told me jokingly that he believed there m:is a woman among the thieves,loronc of them took offense at his bare legs, and ordered them covered up Midi the piano-spread." "Still a very airy hypothesis his about the woman.7 " You have to jump at conclusions some times, and tind tacts to suit. As soon as 1 had mastered these details, 1 was im pressed by the conviction that one of the thieves had lieen on the premises before. At. Mr. Stewart's, for instance, the safe is built into the wall, and a false panel in the wainscot is the only opening to it; yd the first nlaee the buralars anrrroached wax thai panel, which the little fellow slid anide at once. So I set to work looking lor a sus picious character in t c house, and found all satisfactory till I came to a French gov erness Miio stayed with them six weeks last spring. N'ow, sir, in each house en tered by these masked devils there has been during the past tM'elvc months some similar transient inmate. AtWardwcll's it was a French cook, in a white cap and apron ; at the Lewises, the young ladies' page, a clever Buttons; at the Pratts', a protege of the children, a handsome va grant Italian boy, M'ith a violin. And now. Mr. PoM'ers," continued Hctts, bringing his hand heavily doM'n upon my knee, "I am ready to swear that you have this dan derous inmate under your own roof in the character of your v?ife' tnaid.'''' I starteil as if I had been sliot. " Impossible !" I gasped ; "impossible .'' "Hut why, sir, impossible?" "The idea is monstrous. Marie is a sweet little girl, playful as a kitten." " But, M r. Power, you are a man 01 the world, and know that a woman is not proved honest because she bewitches you." " Bur. Betts, admit that though 1 am an old fool, my Mile is a thorough m oman.and. as a rule, suspects all her own sex, yet site is positively fond or Marie." " Marie is a clever little puss. Wherever she bits lived as man or woman, the Mhole laniily have adored her. I have always thought," he M'ent on, with a sort "of chuckle, "that no fact aliout women is more damtiing than that the god ones are, as a rule, the dull ones. Put spirit, sparkle, intellect, into any one of them, and she is certain to play the devil. Has Marie shown any interest in these burg laries?'' There could be no doubt of her having questioned me concerning them with in tense eagerness, and if 1 spoke to my M ire about niv apprehensions Mhile she Mas present, larie never lost a word. " Does she know about your silver? Has she' any charge of your wife's dia monds.' ' I Martel. That very morning I had shown her my safes behind a false book case in my study, and asked her opinion whether any one could mistrust those innocent-looking cncvclopedias, or suspect tho existence of a closet six feet square be- tMeen my room and the library. I Mas asliamcd of my owu greenness, but made a clean breast of it to Hctts, M ho wits good enough to refrain from expression of his opinion of my discretion. "My word for it," lie cried, "she has been waiting to find out that setrret, and now she will leave your house within forty-eight hours, ner pretext will be a rea sonable one, and she will promise to re turn, but when she does return she Mill bring her gang at her heels to rob your houe for you." , The idea of connecting our pretty Mario M'ith such outrages tilled me M'ith horror. I rejected It strenuously, "Believe oriot as you like,' lie return el. with a shrug, " so long as you only follow my advice. Just out of curiosity, take home a little dog with you, and see'if Marie doe not set to Moric to bew itch it at otiec. Then the moment she spe.-tks of leaving your house telegraph to me."' . Our interview Iastrd another hour.' When I left him I went to a dog-fa'iieier'&, and bought a little) veiling blaek-and-tnn spaniel, and carried linn home M'ith me.' It M-as approaching dinner-time when 1 arrived, and my Mile was in her room sit ting before the mirror'with Marie braiding her hiur. 1 entered' as Avas my habit, and sat down by the tire, and let the girl draw off my boots and bring ray slippers hi Iht usual way. It seemediiu unuianly treason to suspect her as she moved about mev iiU her bright, smile and - easy grae1. She rarelv spokf, unless actually addressed, but her intuitions of any one s Mihes :unouiUd absolutely to genius. " Whom did you seeln townj" inquired my Mite. '""Don't siK'ak of it," said I, looking fearfully about, as if the walls had ears, " but I Mas with Betts, the detective. Y ou must not reptjat wliat I say, Marie-." 1 ' " Never, monsieur ! " cried Marie. " The fact is," I proceeded, sinking my voice into a sepulchral whisper,"that gang of masked burglars have been, traced lio New Orleans, and may be arrested bysUus time." " Then I liojie, dear," said iny wife, laughing, ''that you will again sleep sound ly in your lied. 'After you got ip-last night" for tiie fourth time to promenade about, pistols in hand, I decided it might be better to eat off pewter and wear French.giltjeM'elry than to- lead such a life." - - : ; -i -J ' I too laughed, and stretched my legs com fortably. " Yes, I meaw to sleep like a Christian hereafter ; besides, I have brought home a dog." " ' J . .... " A dog : " exclaimed Marie, startled. " Y'es." I turned and looked at her at tentively. Don't you like dogs V She protested vehemently that she loved dog9 better than anvthing in tlie world ; and M-hen Jingle, the spaniel. Mas pro duced it M as sw pretty a sight to see her playing with htm that 1 was rreshlv-in-censed with Btts for putting his ciirseJ suspicions into my head. She took the little beast to bed m ith her. I believe, and next morning he Mould obey her lifted tinsvr. That very day she received a letter from Madame De Sturges, her former mistress, asking her to come in and pas a few hours with her ibre she left for Xew Orb-ana. Marie carried the letter to Jlrs. Powers. Ma la rue wishes to talk to me abHit M lie. Hclene." pleaded the girl.Mith tears in her eyes. " To-morrow M ill be the birth-day of the pauvre angev who lies at the bottom of tlie cruel sea. v , " Poor Madame De Sturges," exclaimed MILAN, I my wife, touched at the thought of thesor- roMing mother : " you must spend to-mor-j row Mith her. Marie. Go in at nine o'clock ; and come bark at live." J Marie was grateful, and told melting I stories about the pauvre align her beauty. i her pietv, her intelligence and nothing could equal mv Mile's sympathy, and when the girl M'ent to town the next morn ing she actually carried a note to Madame 1 e Sturges, written in my wife's very best French. MeaiiMhile 1 had telegraphed Marie's proposed movements to Betts, and now, willi some nervousness, aMiiited events. The detective had warned me that she Mould win tlie dog's affections that she Mould leave the- house, promising to re turn, but M ould not return. Two of these predictions M'ere already verified : but it Slarieeame back I could laugh at his sus picious, and regard them as futile. Hut Marie did not return at five o'clock; a telegram arrived in her stead from Mad ame lie Sturges, saying that she had kept the girl and would write at length and ex plain. Next morning a letter wasreceived from that lady. Slie mid my .wife she was ill, yet obligitl to travel; homesick in a strange land, without a familiar woman's face near her, and that she had persuaded, almost forced. Marie to remain and set out w ith her and her husband for Xew Orleans that very evening. An incoherent, tear blotted note from Marie accompanied this, tilled M ith protestations of sorrow at the necessity ol thus deserting us. .She was torn bv conflicting feelings of love toward Mrs. Powers and her sacred duty to the mother of little Hclene, the angel child whom she had so dearly loved, and M'hose voice she now heard calling to her from the spirit' world, bidding her remain and comfort the lonely mother. While inyM'ffe read this to me M ith tear's, I stooil aghast at Betts's predictions. Theories are fascinating, but when spec ulations turn inte threatening certainties, aud there stares you in the face conclusive proof that your house is about to be robbed, you experience small pleasure in the acci irate forek noMiedge of a ny prophet. I instantly telegraphed to Betts that I would meet him at my son-in-law's office at twelve o'clock, then proposed to my Mife that she should go to town and spend a couple of days Mith our daughter, and offered to drive her in myself. AVe set oil within an hour, and after leaving her up tOM ii I hurried doM'n, eager to see the de tective. It Mas on the stroke of tM'elve when I entered the office, and I thought at first that Betts had failed me, for no one M as there but a jionderous old gentleman with gold glasses and M hite sid whiskers. I am not used to intrigues and masquer ades, and when I recognized Betts in this disguise I could hardly refrain from ex claiming at his cleverness ; but his own coolness kept me. M'ithin bounds, and I sat doM'n becide Jiini, and began reading my paper. Presently, M'ith his eyes still fas tened on his Herald, lie edged toM-ard me. and dropped these sentences into my ear : "It's all going beautifully I followed the girl in yesterday W'ent to ho tel...... The De Sturgeses booked there all straight. Whole party left Jersey City ut nine o'clock last night, ticketed and lug gage chwked to Washington Slipi'd out of the cars at XeM'ark, all three in men's dress, and M ere . back here before midnight Met eight fellows I know at a saloon in street, and I can spot all eleven of Van this very minute They're at a tlen in street getting ready to play their little game somewhere to-night." "At my house?7' 1 cried. He shook his head. "Dunno," said he, looking straight into the tire. "Look here, Betts," I m hispered, "this niav lie fun to you, but, though I'm no coward, it's death to me. Why not arrest "cm now ?" "Yes, just so," he returned, irritably "why not? Where's 3'our evidence? Xow, Mr. Powers, just look at this matter sensi bly. Y'ou knoM" as M'ell as I do th; hall the tliievcs we eateh get otl because no one will swear to their identity at their exami nation.' X w I'm Anxious to make a sure thing of it for once, and take my oath that I caught them in the act." " lou mean to arrest thein M'hile they are robbing me?" "1 do." , . .- " All right only "I should" prefer to have the row in another man's house." I saw at once that Betts's opinion of me had gone down to zero ; but he disguised his contempt, and M'ent on to tell me that he had disjmtched one of his men, John son byname, to my place to make a re connaissance, under pretense of trimming my evergreens. Upon this man's report, am! upon two or three other open ques tions which he tlid not 'think it -worth M'hile toexplain. depended his programme for to-night. If by any possibility there wn a likelihood of my house beingentered at once. I was to know it by diuuer-time, tliat 1 might be. prepared for tlie burglars. I was meantime to go home quietly, and spend my time in my usual manner, so as to excite no comment among the servants. and, receiving no word from Betts, I was to resU.satistietL.aud consider my house safe for nnother twenty-four hours. I wont home " according to directions. and set about spending mv day in my usual way, but the house was so still, and seemed so deserted, I found it impossible to read, even to sit quietly m a chair, lor more than live minutes at a time. So I called the little dog, Jingle, and set out for a Malk about the grounds, feeling some curioaityto get a glimpse of the detective, Johnson. It Mas a black December after noon, a shivering wind in the tree-tops, anil leaden clouds promising snow before midnight. The bare ground was frozen hard, and a few dead leaves eddied about In gusts that rose ami fell at uncertain inter vals. I heard the sound of an axe through the sombre stillness, and Jingle frisked forward and barked at a man hacking at the firs hi the' shrubbery. I addressed him regarding bis work, anil he winked back his appreciation of onr mutual sharpness ; then I M'ent on. reconnoitred a few min utes longer, and again turned in. The day seemed endless, and I was glad when Saunders- tis the -gas, and shut -out the shivering landscaiie and funeral clouds with the heavy curtains. I )inner-tiine came, artti orougnc MiiB it a soniDiance oi occupa- tion.aiui M heu 1 was hall throuirh mv meal 1 suddenly remembered Jingle, and sent for him to keep me company. He M'as not in the house. It flashed upon me that I had not seen him after passing Johnson inrthe thicket, and I tlis latched tlie -coachman to call him in"; but 6nly echoes answered the cry. He had evidently remained out in the grounds with the policeman, and I dis missed the subject from mv mind, finished my dessert, and went back to my library fire. No M-ord had come from Betts, hence I Mas safe for to-uisrbt. at all events, aud I breathed freer, and stretched my legs and dozed until ten o'clock in comparative comfort. Then, rousing myself, I lit a lantern and went out the door and along the - ide-: piazzas to neak a word Mith Johnson, who, Betts had arranged, was in any case 16 keep a M atch under the covered carriage-M ay. . He was not there. I did not understand it. Had he got drunk, or. had .Beers taken him way? Pwhape. however. b was still loitering at the edge of tlie grounds ; accorduigiy, . I ' walked out 'oa? the lawn, and swung my lantern two or three times. 1 hen, as it Mas bitter cold, and was De- ginning to snow, I turned in. and finding that it was almost eleven o'clock, I or dered Saunders to close the . house and send the servants to bed, and to bed I went mvsell. But as soon as the light mUs out. and my head touched the pillow, 1 was fcesldy im pressed by the mystery of Johiuon's dis appearance, and accordingly I got up, opened my pistol-case, took out two revolv ers, and putting theiu and a sword-cane within easy reach, I returned to bed. " ueuee take this suspense sanf l. as 1 again lay down. I sha'n't sleep a wink." But after tossing a few times, and assuring myself I could not close my eyes, I fell asleep at least, after a time, I was aM ak- GIBSON COUNTY, ! ened by a bright light shining full in my iface. " , "Good God!" I cried out loud, " they've come to-night." For three meu. ' Mith black cambric masks concealing their I faces, stood over me, each iouiting a pistol tit mv liciiil. .. ' " Plea.se to get up, Mr. roM ers, Rtid one of them. In a cool, civil way ; " please to put on that dressing-gown and those slippers. ' You shall not be harmed in the least if you m ill only be quiet and obey directions." With three pistols almost square in his eyes, any man M ill lc docile, I suppose ; at least I got up and put on dressing-gown and slippers. Then one of the men caught my arms, drew them be hind and manacled tlieiu ; another gagged ine Mith one of my OM"n silk handkerchiefs; anil thus rendered harmless, I was led tloM n stairs, where my household, in va rious stages of ; night attire, gagged and tied back to back, M ere awaiting me in the dining-room. I M as put in an arm-chair and listened to it by feet and hands, then was left alone to star about me. Mad dened, desperate though I was, M'hen I tltscovcred that the sixth of tho prUcr.er; was Johnson, the detective, I recognized him with a keen sense of the ridiculous, and only wished thatOietto whom I was mentally anathematizing with curses not loud but deep w ere in his place, and tast ing some of our humiliations. Besides the three masked men wlrt) had mastered me and brought me doM-n. there M'ere five others in tliediuing-room. Two were left as sentinels over us, and the rest at once fell to work in a way that meant business. A small, active man (was it onr Marie ?) motioned toward the sideboard. It M'as wheeled aside, and stopping forward he pressed the sliding panel, and disclosed the closet where the silver in daily use Mfas kept, am! the shelves were at once stripped, and the contents piled upon the table. The bedrooms ujvstairs were next visit ed, tlie locks of draM-ers and wardrobes wrenched apart, and the contents thrown pell-mell on the floor tor the chief expert to decide on what should be carried off. The upper rooms gutted, they came down with their spoils, which they piled high before our eyes on tlie table, and then leaving us again alone with our sentinels, they went through tho entry into my li brary. It was a dark hour. I leaned back my head and closed my eves, and felt that late M'as cruel to me. Only one consolation il lumined the blackness of my despair my M ife had c irricd her jew els to town M'ith her, anil I M'as spared the humiliation of telling her I had lost them for her through my iitiotic fiiith in Beits. There M as a long silence now, M hicli I understood but too well : it M'as folloM cd by three mutlled ex plosions that shook the houe like an earthquake, and almost simultaneously M'as heard the noise of ascullle,and I open ed my eyes to see the room tilled with po licemen," ami hear pistol-shots exchanged, M'hile onr tMO sentinels were thrown doM ii, disarmed, and pinioned before our eyes. I looked aud listened, mentally stunned, Million t. clear comprehension of the mean ing of the uproar, for, Mith the noise of tire-arms, the clang of manacles, and the beat of heavy feet, the tumult Mas some what terrifying. ; in less time than it takes me to deserilie it, the situation bad lieen reversed, and now Betts, the detective, appeared in the door at the head of his posse of men, M ho brought in eight of the captured burglars, two of them wounded and bleeding pro fusely, while the rest shoMed signs of hav ing maint;tined a stout resistance ; all had lost their masks in the melee, anil disclosed sullen and brutal visages. "How are you, Mr. Powers?" inquired Betts, coming forward and releasing me. "I hope you'r i not hurt. I beg your par don for taking possession of yonr house in this way." "Why did you make me think I M'as stife for to-night, Betts?" "Because," he replied. Mith a shrug. "I discovered you Mere just a little upset at the prospect, and 1 felt afraid of you." He ran his eye over the group iK'side me, anil M heu he'saw Johnson, he grinned, and go ing up to him. knocked his manacles off. "You're a pretty detective, you are," said he, "to be caught and tied up by the ver' fellows you M'ere in waiting for !" Still, Betts M'as in too high good humor to be angry even with the humiliated Johnson. MeauMhlle I was peering into the faces of the thieves, fearing to find Ma rie among them. " Betts," I gasped, suddenly, "you have n't got the little one." He gave a tigerish cry, and glared from one to tlx other of his prisoners. . " You are sure there M'as another? " " No doubt of it," I returned : " any one of these tell om'S is four inches taller than the loader of the gang." In another moment he had six picked men at Mork searching both house and grounds; but he never succeeded in find ing even a trace of the eleventh of the par ty of burglars. Nor even after the con viction and heavy sentence of the oilier ten. would any one of them confess the secret of their leadership. 1 hail easily identified M. and Madame De Sturges both swarthy and robust Frenchmen among them," but in spite of all my efforts, neither one could be induced even to ac knoMiedge they had ever heard of such a person as Marie, or that they had ever masqueraded under the respectable dis guise of her employers. w But M'hen the snows melted off in the spring, one little silent witness came to light, and told his pitiful storv against her; it M'as the dog Jingle, found" dead in the shrubbery, his throat cut, and his frozen eyes still upturned in reproachful agony. Different Kinds of Eyes. . No branch of science has been more thoroughly mastered than optics. . Tlie principle of vision must be, essentially the same in all eyes, but they differ remarka bly, according to the habits of the animal. Birds of lofty flight, as the condor, eagles, vultures, and carrion-seeking proM'lers of the feathered race, have telescopic visions, and thus they are enabled to look down aud discover their unsuspecting victims. As they approach noiselessly from above, the axis of vision changes shortening, so that they can see as distinctly within one foot of the ground as when at an elevation of one mile in the air. This fact explains t lie balancing of a lish hawk on its pinions, half a mile above a still pond watching for llsh. When one is selected. doM-n the savage hunter plunges, the focal axis varying always to the square view of bis intended prey. "As tliey ascend, the axis is elongated by a curions muscu lar arrangement, so as "to see far off again. Snails have their keen eyes at- the ex tremity of flexible horns, which they can protrude or draw in at pleasure. By wind ing tlie instrument round the edge of a leaf or stalk,' they can see how matters stand on the opposite side. . , The hammer-headed shark has its wicked-looking eyes nearly two feet apart. By Mill effort they can bend the thin edges of the head, on which the organs are located, so as to examine the two sides of an object the size of a full-sized codtish... ... " Flies have immovable eves. They stand out from tlie head like half ail apple, ex ceedingly prominent. -Instead of. smooth hemispheres, they have an immense num ber of facets, resembling old-fashioned light directly to the opti retina. That ex- ptiuns why tney cannot tie approached in any direction Mitliout seeing w hat is eom Ing. . - - "It is a very remarkable fact "that tlie three men, Christopher Columbus, Sebas tian Cabot, and Ameriens Vespncii (the nrst discoverer of the v estern vt orld, the Second the shore line of the United States, and the third giving his name to the Conti nent), should all have been Italians. The ; Italians are very proud of this, and they have a right to be. Whex is a young lady like a whale? , Wheu she's iouting. Exchange TENNESSEE, MARCH The Boston Colleclorshlp. From The Xation, Feb. 26.1 We must confess that wc do not quite understand the burst of surprise, indigna tion, and dismay which has greeted the ai pointmcnt of Simmons as Collector of Bos ton. There is, to be sure, very little to be said in favor of his selection. He is a voiing man of about the age of thirty-five, M'hose circumstances rendered it impossi ble for him to continue his education be yond the age of twelve (though it is stated by his friends that he afterM ards read laMr Ix'tM'een the hours of 4 and 8 a. m.'.andto whom a naturally energetic disposition early pointed out the field of predatory politics as one in which he was most likely to shine. He has since spent some of his time as a revenue detective, some of it as a Supervisor of Internal Revenue, the duties of the post being chiefly to arrange ward meetings; and as he is quite illiterate, ami in appearance a good specimen of the street rowdy, Mr. Simmons Is not exactly the person we should ourselves select to suc ceedMr. Russell as Collector of Customs in one -cf the chief porta of tlie United States. Still, we do not knoM- that there is much more reason to consider him fit for the post of Supervisor of Internal than Collector of External Beveiiue. Indeed, according to the Boston Advert Licr, Mr. Simmons M'as, as Supervisor, "so grossly negligent or incompetent that John D. Sanborn, following around in his tracks, almost without effort discovered several hundred thousand dollars' worth of taxes due the United States that bad escaped no tice," these large amounts being "chiefly such as the most ordinary efficiency might have secured namely, legacy and" succes sion taxes.and taxes on railroad dividends;" and the Adrertiser says that as it M'as the duty of Mr. Simmons to collect these taxes, and as the Government employed Sanborn on a contract giving him half the proceeds, the United States lost a hundred thousand dollars by the manner in which Mr. Sim mons performed the duties of his office. The appointment, however, was one of a kind which was oil the Butler cards six months ago quite as plainly as it is now that it has been played. Butler has been endeavoring for soino ten years, not, as some people seem to imagine, to persuade the people of Massachusetts that he is a noble and virtuous citizen, deserving their suffrages for high office, but to get control of the political machinery' of the State through the loeil machinery of the United States ; and he has not worked in a very underhand manner either. It M'as announced atabout the time of his defeat three years ago that the next movements to take plat in Wash ington and Massachusetts politics were the resignation of Boutwell as Secretary of the Treasury, and the installation in bis place of Butler's friend Richardson ; tlie election of Boutwell to the Senate as the Butler candidate, and the reapearaiie.e of Butler himself a a candidate for the nomi nation of the Massachusetts Republican Convention. These things till happened. Boutwell did resignfRiehardson did ac cept, and Boutwell Mas elected to the Senate, notwithstanding the opposition of Mr DaM'cs. Butler reappeared as candi date for Governor, and having been nar rowly defeated, he naturally enough began again. Ine of the tilings made evident by the contest Mas that Simmons M'as Butler's right-hand man ; indeed, this Mas made so evident that the Republican Convention passed a resolution directed at him, and virtually calling upon the President to re inovehi'ni from office. Obviously, under these circumstances the thing for Butler to do Mas to place Simmons in some secure posiriouof honor and profit, from Miiieh, Mith the United States authority behind him. it would le difficult to oust hini. ami M'here he would have great political power. The position of Collector was clearly the position. It M'as still less a secret thai the politics of Mr. Thomas 1,'ussell Mere of that uncertain stripe which would naturally lead him to adopt any arrangement which might seem to be for the best intere-ts of the party of Human Bights; it Mas his influence of which both the Butler and the anti-Butler party had lieeu most afraid througkt the campaign; and it had been for a long time well understood among the politicians that Butler and Russell M-ere not irreconcilable foes. That Butler should go quietly to M'ork and elect his local legislature' and make his arrange ments with Mr. Russell and his friends at Washington (M ho, it must be remembered, are no others than the President of the United States and the Secretary of the Treasury of the United Stitcs, to say nothing of Mr. Boutwell, ex-Sceretery of the Treasury and active Senator from Massachusetts, anil about half of the Massa chusetts delegation), M'as not unnatural cither. The curtain rises on the vacant eollectorship and the appointment of Mr. Simmons. There is nothing so very strange or unnatural in this. It is said to lie an insult to the people of Massa chusetts, but why should the peo ple of Massachusetts not Imj insulted? When "Tom" .Murphy M'as ap pointed some years ago Collector of the port of New York, that was generally considered an insult to Xew York ; aud if Murphy was good enough here, we cannot see why Simmons is not good enough there. " Insulting the people" is in fact the May in which the machinery of the Government is carried on by Conkling in New York, by Casey in Xew Orleans, by Butler in Massachusetts. IfJllJ. inhal) k'ants of Massachusetts hart .iwoke from a sleep of half a century, fWwere all newly arrived from some foreign country, thct "might indeed bo surprised at a good many things they heal' and see ; but why should it surprise or dismay any one of the present day to see the ins and outs of the little game we all know so well? The population of Massachu.-ctts is not, as the good people of that State seem to suppose, the quiet, orderly, religious, ho mogeneous agricultural community, com posed of church-members ami governed by deacons and descendants of the first settlers that it was a hundred veal's ago, but a thriving, energetic, populous mod ern manufacturing Suite w ilh highly di versified industries, large and continually growing cities ; each man bent on making money, and relying for good government much" more on "the traditions of the State than ou his own exertions ; the gulf be tween the very rich and the very poor con tinually widening, and, in all the thriving cities, a large and continually Increasing number of operatives and other sorts of laborers Mho look with jealousy on tlie people of wealth and position who used to administer the affairs of the State, and who wish to be led by some plain, straight forward, blunt man who " has no non sense about him" who will give them what they want money without work, profits without capital, good republican government without their taking too much trouble -themselves to be good republi cans. , The general apathy of the people of Massachusetts M'hile Butler is working and making the strategic arrangements which are the necessary preliminary to the deci sive battles of bis campaigns, compared with the dismay m Inch they exhibit w hen he actually makes his coups, is something curious. Thev certainly cannot expect him to remain idle, and. as the Republican, organization in such State as Massachu setts is that which wise and prudent poli ticians make use of to further their de signs, of that' he naturally makes ue. It is harcily probable indeed that he will ever organize a Corruptionist party by that name, holding meetings to which none but corrupt mcii are admitted, issuing platforms pronouncing in favor of robbery, fraud and embezzlement, and electing representatives who pledge them selves in writing to advocate- none but schemes of spoliation, and recommending appointees on tlie ground of their service in the way of theft and imposition and their conspicuous sacrifice ot public duty to Iheir private interests. The people of Massachusetts seem always to to be M'ait ing for the organization of some siK-h party as this, and nothing seems to surpriso 19, 1871. these good, honest, confiding people more than to discover, as they do now every few months, that the thieves and despoilers make use of the very organization to which thev themselves belong. The part played by the President in the appointment of Simmons seems to have excited as much hostility and display of astonishment as that of "Butler himself. But we may observe that this is not the first appointment of this kind he has made. After sending Sickles to Spain, ami reap pointing Casey in Xew Orleans, and Mitb rtrawing the name of Benedict, and letting Mr. Curtis be driven out of the Civil-Serv-iee Commission, there seems to be no par ticular reason why Simmons should not lie put over the Boston merchants, the "brood of importers" as Jayne c:dls them. Indeed, the President's amusing offer to nominate some one else if the Masaehussctts dele gation can agree on any other nominee, he knowing very well . they cannot, and if they could the 'principles of civil-service reform " demand imperatively that their wishes should In- .no more regarded than those of any other M ell-ineaning citizens this offer seems, here in Xew York, where we understand tlie system of administration at Washington pretty well, to lie a very natural and obvious way of arranging things. The attempt to organize au honest man's party ws3 made in earnest some three year's ago, and, had the plans of those who had the matter really at heart been carried out, we should now have either a lYcsident of undoubted character and intelligence, and got rid of the Butleritesat one blow, or, the attempt failing, the nucleus of a reform party would have been left with which to liegin another campaign. There were plenty of Simmonses to lie seen in various offices of trust anil profit, all over the United States, even in 1jj2; and Grant hart the same sort of belief in reform that he has now. If it was only necessary then to have confidence In Grant, antl a few well-known principles which were settled antl enacted into law some ten years since, it is equally unnecessary now to take any active step's. If, ou the contrary, it U necessary to be very active now, and make a stand in such cases as that of Simmons, those people seem to be in the right who have always maintained that the creation of an active and earnest and persistent op position is tlie crying need of the eouutry. How a Lobster Dines, Frank Buckland, the English naturalist, writes as follows: A lobster is a much more particular fellow in his food. I have iiecii watching one in my large marine aquarium at Rectdvcrs. If a portion ol food be thrown down to him, he immedi ately sets his long horns at work to ascer tain' the whereabouts of his dinner. If he does not liku it, he at once pushes it a way from him with the attitude of an epicure who bids the waiter take away a plate of meat he does not fancy. If the food is agreeable to him, he munches it up, mov ing his jaws in a peculiar way, like a weav er making a blanket. He tears his food into large pieces, leaving the actual pound ing work to lie done by the very peculiar internal teeth, w hich are to be found in the lining of the stomach, and w hich my reader can etisilv ex-miine. if he will take the trouble. When the lobster goes out for a "constitutional." and is not in a par ticular burn-, he carries bis great claws in front of him. well away from the ground, like the big flags we sometimes see head ing street processions. III! "WU'.'ii lipOU the little legs which are underneath his body while he keeps his horns moving in front of his nose, like a blind man tap ping the flags with his stick as be plods along, led by his tlog; hence i conclude the lob.-tcri's short-sighted. If the least thing alarms him he scuttles backward on his hind legs, which move with the rapid ity of the legs of a centipede. If he does not go fast enough in this May. he surt tlenly snaps his tail toward him like a man suddenly closing his hand, and flies back ward with a jerk like an India-rubber band snap' in half. He always goes into his cave tail foremost, and he takes the most wonderfully good shots at the entrance. It has hecn'said by a friend of mine that a lly fisherman will never lie perfect until he has got an eye at tho back of the heart so as to prevent his drop-tly from getting hitched up in the tree behind him. I real ly think the lobster must have 'an eye in his tail somewhere. Our pet lobster is not willing that the secrets of her toilet should be exposed to vulgar gaze, so the first night she was in the tank she artfully collected cockle and ovster shells and made a trench round herself after the fashion of the Romans when they took possession ot a hill-top. A branch of sea weed forms a canopy overheat!, and there she is at this minute, in a house of her own making, a regular 'compound house holder," w ith no taxes to pay. What Carpet-Bag Rule Costs. The Charleston AVtra and Courier pul lislies a brief table which shows very ef fectively one of the results of carpet-bag aud negro rule hi South Carolina, namely, the increased expenses of the State Gov ernment since it has been in the hands "of the Grantites. Here arc the figures from the official records of the cost of the State Government in lSti5 and in 1S7:I respect ively: . i.s tsTr Salaries .' 7i, 1-l.t::! J:i i,7:i7..1Ji I'tililic printing 17 4iti.i- Ml LetricliiUYe expenses. . rl,;t!7.to i!ll,S.W.4; School;) 11,579 45 il,lnl.37 Public asylums av.SW.im. 1,4.U 11 Contingent fuiuls li, .. V9 7."), !.7."( Sundries s-t,41.!.31 Kw.WW.SS $'.";o,24S.()4 $1,717.. IIS. Wl SI0.b2tJ.0l) Difliiiercies... Total $J 0,2s.(i '.7,6I6.60 And thi3 vast increase in the public ex penses has been made in States where ow ing to niisgovernmeut and excessive taxa tion property has depreciated enormously in value, anti in which a public debt of millions and millions of dollars has been fraudulently contracted by ignorant and venal legislators, black antl white, who sold their votes to the highest bidder for the promotion of all sorts of rascalities. It was to keep those thieves in office and thereby secure the electoral vote of the State for Grant that several counties, pre vious to the last 11-esidential election, du ring a period of complete quiet, were put under material law anrt-harried by United States troops. "- How to m.kr Toast Warm your bread well, by changing the sides of the sli-e when heated through, brown as is desired ; there should be rather little than much browning, and the slices should be quite thin, say a quarter or three-eights of an inch no more. But do not scorch ; avoid that in all cases. The philosophy ot browning i to take your time until you are done. Where the toast accumulates, keep a hot dish, but use as soon as possible. What is desirable in totist. is the rich color and fla vor formed by dunging the starch into dextrine, or gum. Heat evaporates mois ture in bread 'as well a elsewhere. The moisture that escapes from toast leaves the bread light, soft ami porous insuie. Xo maher how great the esteem iu wiiich he is held by his townsmen, no matter how many -nor how exalteu have been the positions of honor and trust which he has tilled with credit, we cannot but dis trust that man wlo keeps his toKicco cut up into chews hi his pocket and jog gles it into his mouth under the pretence of stroking his chin., Brooklyn Argus. TnznE are now over one hundred opera- hmisAc tnjulWI rhrniiThmir. fbe eoillitrv. in which an opera was never heard. In some of the towns where they exist the in habitants think an opera m a strawberry festival for the benefit of a chnrch, and hugging the girls oil the sly. Oraphie. On a woman with red hair who wtouj poetry Unfortunate woman ! how sad Is your lot ! Your ringjets are red, but your poems are not, NUMBEIMJ. Secret Writing. Terhans one of the most extraordinaty deceit. ever know n in crvptography was. aiiopreti ry nistia-tis in ins mc-sagy ArisUigom's. advising him to revolt. This Histi.cus. then, chose one of his most faith ful slaves, and having shaved his heart tat tooed it with his advices, anil alter ke ing him till his hair had grown again, dis patched him to Arisffl!rtns with this mes sage only " Shave my head ami, look there on." Two objections might be urged against this method : first, if the commun ication was of an urgent nature (w hich in deed it was), the grow ing of the hair in volved some little delay ; ami secondly. It Is difficult to see why, if his slave w as most faithful. Hislheus tlid not intrust the mes sage to the slave's mind instead of .his skull, especially as the slave must have known, from the pain of the operation, that son mvstprv lav there, anil, in his time of trial bv threats and promises, would probably liave said so. Ilie account we have given is. that otlered oy uerouoius, who lias leou irreverently calld "the father of lies." 'The story is better told by Aulns Gellins, who says Histkeus cliw-e for Ids purpose a slave who hart an infirm ity fn his eves, and shaved bis hair under pretense of healing his diseased vision, and after, w hen his hair was grown, sent turn to Aristagoras, bidding the slave tell the ruler to repeat the operation, by this ver sion the slave's suspicion was less likely to le aroused, but the difficulty of the delay 1 still remains. Anlus Gellius denominates the Mhole undertaking as ' an uuexpectetl and profound wile excogitated by barbaric cralt." Most iconic have tried their baud at that so-called secret writing which is cflcctert by various vegetable juices, and brought to lkdit bv fire on M ater here the use of sal ammoniac and juice of onions, of solution of galls, and id copperas, is Men known. From the time of Ovid, who advises a you ug huly in his Art of Love as if. forsooth, young ladies required instruction, at least on that subject to deceive all prying eyes by a letter written with raw milk, till the present day recipes have been prescriled of various values to this end. ne of the most curious is that which recommends an ink to be used made under certain condi tions, w ith the ichor of glow-worms. The writing, says the author, may be well read in light of moon or star. This is a sure receipc. The story of Ilistiieus may be compared witli that of Ilarpagus, who sent a letter to Cyrus in a hare ; or with that of a cer tain "surgeon, who, Mishing to disclose a matter of great importance to a brother of his craft, sent him alive hull-rtog to be dis sected, to whom he hail previously admin istered a bolus containing the letter he wished kept secret. So his friend was guided bv that dumb. dead, dissected beast, as the wise men were guided by a star. Another applied a MS. to a son- leg in stead of. or under, the bandage. The sewing of a letter in a shoe is recommend ed by Ovid, and rolling thin leaves of met al containing the secret into ear-ring by another ancient author: a third directs the communication to be w ritten ou a blow n bladder, the bladder to licatterward placed in a flask and tilled with wine. Letters may be also written on the inside of the sheath of a sword, on an arrow, on a bullet, in an egg. or rolled up in a hol low stick which last proceeding calls to mind the story of that unfaithful th' positnry, who" hid the trnst-moiiry in this manner, aud when called before the judge for b: each of trust by the depositor, asking the plaintilf to bold his slick while he kissed the l'.ible wilh fervent devotion, swore he had re turned the money, and it was tit that very time in the plaintiff's possession. 'Another method, explained at large by learned Dutchman, which consisted in first writing tlie letter in lillipiitian character and in closing it in alia.el-nuf, cannot, for other reasons that want of space. Ik- more than alluded to here. Among i hundred other devices suggested by affection or by fear, letter weii' hidden in women's hair, which would now, we suppose, lie represented by their chignons. lint we can not rcfrain from adding one more method w hich has boon proposed for secret transmission of sonml. Jiot a man, says ine ingenious au thor, breathe his words slowly, in a long hollow cane hermetically sealed at the farthest end, and then let him suddenly and closely seal the end into which ho breathed. The voice will continue in the tube till it has some vent. When the seal is removed ;it the end which was first sealed, the words will come out distinctly antl iu order, but if the seal at the other enrt lie removed, their inverted series Mill create confusion. This happy conception, M'hich seems to have been proposed in all good faith by its author, reminds us of the famous one of U)ttlel sentences, and may be compared Mith .Joseph's grunt, to M'hich he gave vent In the execution of hi trade, and which is preserved, it is said, iu crys tal among other equally valuable ami sacred relics in a celebrated church in Madrid. - - - A secret message ought, like a telegram, to lie composed in as few word as possi ble, nav, in as few letters, like short-hand, since this will save trouble to the writer and to the reader, and will, moreover, ren tier less likely the danger of detection. Railway Travel in Japan. A correspondent says : ' The depot at Yokohama is a substantial stone structure, and the waiting-room superior in comfort to many of those in our own cities at home. " The railroad was finished three years ago, and cost the Japanese Govern ment twenty million dollars, or a million dollars a mile. The engineers, firemen and conductors are all Japanese. We had for so long a time been out of sight and hearing of the cars that the senalion was novel when we heard the whistle and went rolling off' through the rice fields. We saw a miniature temple in a grove, a ceme tery with palm trees around it, low thatch ed houses, and rice fields with raised paths winding in and out among them, highly cultivated field with wheat, onions. rab ishes, turnips, carrots and eas growing hi abundance. XoW and then we 'had a beautiful view of Yertdo bay. and glimpses of far-away mountains w ith the sun shin ing on them. A Brooklyn woman has made a ma chine bv which mixed hair can be separa ted and' tamed so that the root- will all lie one way. The machine also makes it oay to smooth ami arrange and cloane the hair that is found in hair stores. What is t be tho restilt.of this inveution, it is not diffi cult to predict. So much hair will lie made available that all sorts of hirsute ex travagance w ill follow. Ih ad-dreses tluit look like chnrch stx-eple w ill tower on all hands, absorbing the floating tobacco smoke, and making a sort of little bar room for every woman to take home with If, lie r.iiilinr if there is such a thin" 111.1. . ., . j,..,...., .- .... r, among the fair sex, will loe half its at tractions. In case ot ingrtr on rn street there will be no turning of tlie liair to white or gray. There will at all times he a plenty of "hair. In fact, hair will be within the reach of everybody. Thema- io -!!! Kt. ntl,.nmnt. Tri f.lf-t. It Plight to have been Invented long ago. All tliat She neIS nOW tO insure urr a iui iuuc ;.- a contract w ith some tribe of wild Indians operating on the frontier. Thk Saturday R-vifno thinks that the old proverb, that obeying i? the test school for commaurthig. U merely a pleasant platitude. "People act rather from im pulse than princple, and therefore a man of strong will is apt to be insubordinate ia youth and imperious when he is grown up. in spue oi an souna reasoning. we suspect tliat the best commanders have often been nnrulv school boys. Whatever may be the case fn matters of practice, this is certainly true in matters of opinion. The young man who most reai lily receives the teachings of bis masters is not des tined to originality in later life." " Wit regret to notice," says tV Brook lyn .-fry, "a growing animosity toward life insurance among niiddJc-agiil hus bands w ith young ives." In nrxa a recent treeOiet in .Connecticut an editor telegraphed another at the seem? of action, 'Send me full particulars of the flood." Tho answer came, "Yon will find them iu Genesis." -A STROMo-frvPEtttmale,who wss argu ing the other day that the condition of a married, wouiau wasiUvioh, was ttlectpal ly silenced by her opponent, who said, " It is not slavish, bnt high-menial. ' The only, merit possessed by some con tributions Ve receive is that they were never U fore in print. The merit is so slight that we never have the lieart to rob them of it. Danbury. " Matrimony." saM a modem Bene dict, the other i lav, prrHluci-sremarVable revolutions. Here am I, for instance- in ten short months, changed from a sighing lover to a loving sir. "Thk shuttle of the years, flyiug back and forth through the warp ot time, ha woven a fabric of 'Tieaut'ful results about this institution." i the way the Milwaukee Ssntinel is affi eted by the leinahe college ot that city. . . Smm.Y now every l.-vly ha a right to wear .ulifepreervcr on her head if she pleases. A short time ago the soprano of a Boston church MI down a long flight ot stairs. She struck on lu r head, and her life was saved in consequence of a thick braid of false hair which she wore. A fkw da j sago a very handsome lady entered a drv-goort house and inquired for a "Ivan.'' Tho polite clerk threw himself hack ami retwnrked that he M as at her service. " Yes. but I want a butt, not a green one," was the reply. The yung man went on moasnruig goon mm"- diately. . ' A Kii-vTi-i-EY n:iixr. in telling how a lit tle boy pant drowned while in swimming. ays that alter wailing aoout tor some um- he " stopjied off over his henuY' w uiai m-ms n cureless thing to do. Little boys should be very careful not t step over their heads, tor even it they no noi gciiiiowuc", they may break a leg. Short poem by Watterson : u.woman. iu our hours of cae, you know we 11 u M hate'er you please ; we'll premise to re nounce the siu of Bourbon, brandy, mm ami gin, and so tar as to retrain (except vhon tempted) from champagne ; out nave some mercy, do, mv dear, and leave, oh, leave us lager beer ! " A Phobia naturalist, in attempting to warm the ears of a frozen wasp over a gas jet, discovered that the tail of the insect thawed out first, and M'orked m ith a rapid ity that wa as astonishing as the hideous profanity of the naturalist, who held the insect by the tail while thus experiment ing. "Ik vou don't see what vou want, ask for it," is postert tip in a conspicuous place in a I,oganport grocery. A native steppcil into the establishment, bust week. He saw the card and remarked: " I want ... . ... a 1 2- . a ten-tionar mil, aim i tion i set- u. "Neither do 1," wa tlie laconic reply. The native " looked further, but tie ad vised the grocer to "take down that sign." Origin of Familiar Things. Few ni-rsmis .ire aware that manv oCtho most popular nursery rhymes and stories have an origin quite different from wluit is usually suposl. . Thus, it is generally thought that the story oi .aiiucrciia tm-nTitixi hr enme one iii ti hfinpv fit of im agination ; but it Is said to be founded on facts. The Greek historian and geogra pher Strabo savs that one dav as a lady, named Khoilopis, was paining in me the w ind carried away one ot her sandal ..... ... . - r . i - C l' . ami laid it at me leer, ot ine rtingru r.j y, w ho was then holding a court of justice in id., on.m -lir not l'-ir oil". I lis curiosity was excited by the singularity of the event, and bv tile elegance of the sandal, and he offered a reward for the discovery of the owner of it. The lady claimed it, and it was lounu to nt nor exactly, one was t-r.v iK-autiful, and the King married her. Shu is remembered in history a the 'rosy cheeked queen of Kgypt, and she lived 2.1X10 year before the Christian era. The storv of Blue Beard ha al0 been traci-i I to a'hi'torical basis. Giles tic I .aval. Marshal of France, in 142!. wa distin guished for hi military abilities, but ho rendered himself infamous by bis extraor dinary impiety and debaucheries, and by murdering his' wives, tie had a long beard of a blue-black color,w hence ho M as called Blue Beard. He employed those w ho pre tended to be sorcerers to discover hidden treasures, and he corrupted young person of both sexes to attach them to him, alter which 1k killed them for the sake of their blood, which he used for his incantations. By order of the I nke of Brittany he M as burned alive in a field near Nantes, in the year 14-10. Jack the Giant Killer has been supposed to be derived from the wars of King Ar thur with his rebellious Cornish vassals, who figure a ogres and giants, while the King appear as Jack. Many more cases may b cited. "'The House, that Jack Built" had inter esting antecedent. This famous jingling legend, Uiievert to lie an imitation of a medieval Hebrew parable in the form of a liyinu, was commemorative of the princi pal event in the history of the Jewish peo ple. Tho original is to be found in tho Jewish collection called the Sepher Aag gahah, volume 1, antl an interpretation of it was given to the world so far back a 1T !I K,- l V f ohnwtit nl I.einsic There are ten" verse.. The first consists of two lines and a short retrain, thus : A kul. a kid my father bought for two piece ot iLnnev " IRetwiiiA. "A kid. a kul." This refrain is repeated at the end of each verse. 1 he second verse commences witn me words : "Then came the cat and ate the Li.l tteit mv f.ither bought for two pieces of money." The third verse runs : -Then came the dog, and Oil tne cii, mat aie ine kid," etc. The fourth is: "Then came tha t-itr o!l he:il the !. that bit the cat." etc. The fifth is : "Then came the tire, and Diirnetl tne suck, mat oeai ine dog.' etc. The sixth is : "Then came tho ,v-.,t..r nml iinenehed the tiro, that burned the staff'," etc. The seventh is : "Then came the ox, and drank the water, that quenched the tire. " etc. 1 he eight U is : 'Then Kline the butcher, anil slew the ox. that drank the water," etc. The ninth is : "Then came the angel ot Heath, anu kuieti the. hotelier, that slew the OX." etc. The t until nml lust, runs : "Then came tlie Holy One, blessed bo He, and killed the angel of death, that killed the Dutoner, mat slew the ox, that drank the water, that quench ed the lire, tliat burned the stall', tliat beat the tlog, that Dit ine car, mai ate ine iu, tbat'mv father bought for two pieces- of money ; a kid, a kid.' It i evident that lins is mo moitei in "The House that Jack Built." Philadel phia Ledger. A Peculiar Fish. The Fish "of Paradise's one of the most pi-citliar of Chinese fresh-water fish. It is small in size, a pale gray in color, ami, at first sight, having but little about it to at tract attention. As soon as the animal be comes excitf.il, however, the long tin on the back and belly straighten out and as sume a rich purple hue tinted with green ; the long aiirttbrk-Khaped. tail spread into a kind of fai. and the stripes npon the sides of the fish become yellow, red ami blue, eoutantly changing in color. The scales seem to become opalescent, and' re flect the light with the greatest brilliancy, while the eyes appear illuminated with a bluish-green fire. Tho habits of the ani mal are as odd as its appearance. - The malt's take charge of the young and build the nest. The latter is simply a clot of foam floating upon the water, and is made by the fi.-h rising to the surface and alter nately absorbing and "xpelling air, until a little cluster of fine bubbles, hardl V three tenthi of an inch square, is formed. The female then deposit i hf r eggs, which are at once seized upon bv the "male, who car ries theiu in his mouth, to the nest. Then he was hes their incubation, carefully guarding and dl-tribirtingthem with won derful sagacity e -'y thrtfrgbooc the m;iss of foam. Wheu they clot, together, he pushes them apart with his nose, ami besides, keeps up a continual manufacture of bubbles nntil the eggare lifted np above the water and rest only npon their soil couch. A soon as the embryo appear, his cure is doubled. He watches that none esoapo ; and in ease some become separa ted, he chases them, catches them rn his mouth, and replaces them carefully la the ne.-t If one becomes injured he. removes it from the - othirs, and gjve it a separate bubble by itself, antl ap parently nurses It. until it regain its strength.