Evening Star Newspaper, March 9, 1895, Page 17

THE EVENING STAR. SATURDAY, MARCH 9, 1895—-TWENTY PAGES. - IN PEKING: RUSSIA AND CHINA The Mongols and the Manchoos and Their Curious Customs. TARTAR CARAVANS AND QUEER CAMELS Something About the Dirtiest Race on the Globe. NATION OF BUDDHISTS (Copyrighted, 1895, by Frank G. Carpenter.) HE SETTLEMENT of the war between at China and Japan is likely to result in a S lad decided change in the > geography of Asia. ‘ So fer neither Eng- ({t land nor Russia has ~~ made any open claims 9) as to what they want ,of China, but the ports of Asia are full of all sorts of rumors. > It is well known that - See the Russians are making their surveys of the harbors on the east coast of Corea, with an idea of making ene of them the terminus of the Trans- Siberian road, and the latest inside news is that the English have offered the Chi- nese a large sum of money in exchange for the Island of Formosa. China can hardly hope to raise money from her own people without a revolution and the consequent establishment of a new government. The empire, in fact, is tottering; and the people neither care for the war nor for the gov- ernment. In the words of a leading busi- ress man of Shanghai, in a letter which I have received during the past week, they consider the trouble with the Japanese the emperor’s “pigeon” or business. He has gotten into it, they say, now let him get out of it. There is no land in the world where taxes are so low, nor, strange as it May seem to say so, where the people have so much power, and where the government is to such a large extent republican. The Chines2 will not be able to pay the indem- nity demanded by Japan except by giving up or mortgaging some of their territory. ‘The result is, the outlying provinces of China will be in the market. ’ Few people have any idea of the immense extent of territory which China has out- side of the empire proper. It is larger than the whole United States, and it is more than all Europe. Manchuria, which lies to the northeast of China, and on the edge of which the Japanese troops have been fight- ing, ts equal to ten states the size of Ohio, or eight the size of New York. Mongolia, further to the westward, is about half as big as the whole United States, and the im- mense province of Ili is about as large as one-third of our whole territory. Thibet practically belongs to China, and it is about twelve times as big as New York state. The Japanese got into Manchuria when they fought at the mouth of the Yaloo river, and they have been marching through the country and pushing their way up to the A Mongol Princess. capital—the city of Moukden. It is by no means an impossibility that the Japanese may ask for a slice of Manchuria, and if so some wonders in the way of mineral wealth may be expected through its development. The gold mines of Russia undoubtedly run down to the mountains of Manchuria and Mongolia. There was quite a gold excite- ment in the Manchurian mountains about four years ago, and both gold and silver have been found. The country is fertile, and it surprised me to find that opium could profitably be raised so far north. It was introduced about thirty years ago, and the country now produces more than a million of pounds of opium a year. It also produces good tobacco, and it has vast areas of fine forests. Japaa has practically no timber left, and the country would be of reat value to her. It would act as a bul- wark between China and Corea, and the mikado would no longer need to fear that the emperor might form an alliance with the King of Corea. Among the Mongols. The inhabitants of both Manchuria and Mongolia care but little for China. They are of a different race, and they would ac- cept the government of the Japanese quite as readily as that of Peking. I met many of these men during my stay in Asia. I first came in contact with them in the Chinese capital. I traveled with them on my way to the great wall, and I saw hun- dreds of them in my journeys through Siberia. The Mongols have a market in Peking. It is just back of the English lega- tion, and the houses surrounding # great square here are owned by them, and the court is filled with camels and greasy Manchurians. All of the trade of Man- churia and Mongolia is carried on camels, They bring coal, skins and bean cake from the north down through the great wall into China, and carry brick tea and all kinds of merchandise back. I have seen 500 camels in a single caravan slowly mov- ing along in single file over the country. I have traveled for miles side by side with these camels, talking through an inter- preter with the copperfaced men and wo- men who rode them, and I kave again and again been threatened by the fiercer of the leaders as I passed them on my way through the country. I was surprised at the size of the Tartars. They are big men, meny of them six feet in height, and their features are for all the world like those of our American Indiars. Their complexion is about the same, and their eyes are less almond in shape than those of the Chinese. They have fierce eves, which look out at you over high cheekbones and under thick fur caps. They dress in sheepskin, and both women and men wear pantaloons, and the women ride astride. I remember one girl who passed me on a camel. Her di- vided skirt was made of sheepskin with the fur turned inward, and her fur cap was pulled well down over her eyes. I said “Good-day” to her as we passed, and her old Tartar husband whipped up his camel and put his hand on his knife as I came up. I looked him in the eye and said, “How do you do?" He answered by mock- ing me and giving me to understand that I had better keep away. Had I not had a good party of men around me I doubt not that he would have assaulted me. . Queer Camels. There are no camels in the world. like these Mongclian beasts. The camels of Africa and India have short hair like that of a fairly well. groomed horse. The climate is warm, and they need little pro- tection. These camels of Mongolia are ecvered with wool which hangs in great lecks down from all parts of their bodies. In some places it is from eight to ten i.ches long, and it gives them so warm a cxat that they can stand the rigors of a Siberian winter. For centuries this wool has gone to waste. It was allowed to drop off of the camels during the summer, and it rotted by the wayside. Within the past few years, however, it has become an article of commerce, and great bales of it are shipped to London. I saw some overcoats in China which were made from it. They looked like Chinchilla coats, but _~_ = My Pet Camel. they were wonderfully Hght and very warm. The natural color of this wool is a rich dark brown. It is now being used by the Chinese in making rugs, and beau- tiful carpets so soft that you seem to be walking on velvety moss when you pass over them are made from it. The rugs are wonderfully cheap, and I am surprised that they are not shipped to the United States. These camels have, as a rule, two humps, which are said to be pure fat, and are delicious, if properly cooked. Their feet are soft and spongy, and they be- come worn out in traveling over the rough roads of north China. In going through the Nankow pass, about a hun- dred miles north of Peking, I passed over the road which has formed the leading highway between Manchuria and Mon- gclia for centuries. It is filled with ragged granite rock, and is terribly hard on the tender-footed camels. Some of the beasts I saw had their feet worn to shreds, and some of them limped ter- ribly. The Mongols let them go as long as they can, and when their feet become raw, they will patch them. They do this by throwing the animal on its side and tying its feet together. They next bind his head back to nis hump and then clean out the wound and take a piece of raw cowhide from a freshly killed beef and sew it to the skin of the foot. Whether the skin grows on or not, I do not know, but the camel soon recovers and builds up a new foot under the hide. These cam- els are fastened together in a caravan in a curious way. A stick is run through their noses, and one end of this has a knob so large that it cannot be pulled through. To the other end of the stick a repe is tied, and this rope is tied to the saddle or pack of the camel in front, and thus a whole caravan is fastened to- gether, as it were, with clothes pins and clothes lines. It is impossible to estimate the number of these camels that are in use. They are continually marching through Peking. At certain times of the year they fill the roads leading into Mon- wolia like fences, and you see them every- where on their low, measured trot, mov- ing across the country. A Dirty Race. ‘The Mongols are perhaps as dirty as any other people in the world. Those whom I saw were greasy and filthy, both as to their clothes and their persons. I am told they never wash their bodies, and seldom their faces and hands. The poorer classes dress in rags, but the richer wear costly garments lined with the finest lambskin. I have a picture of a Mongolian princess who was at Peking a year or so ago. Her head was framed in silver beads, and she had long tassels of silver hanging down from her black fur cap. Her hair was done up in two long braids, which were pulled arotind over the ears and hung down over the breast. These braids are often smeared with glue, which makes the hair shine and keeps it in place. The girl was very beautiful, and some of the younger girls are by no means bad look- ing. They fade soon, however, and the older women whom I saw made me think of our Indian squaws. They have no night clothes, and they sleep in the same garments which they use during the day. They have no such things as stoves. A fire is built inside their tent, and the smoke goes out at the roof. The tents are made of skin and sometimes of cloth. They are circular in shape, and the people huddle up in them and elt and sleep where they can. The chief business of the Tartars is cat- tle breeding, and they have large flocks of sheep. These sheep have fat tails, and I saw some tails which weighed, I was told, from thirty to forty pounds. When a sheep is very fat it is sometimes necessary to tie a little sled under his tail in order that it may not impede him in traveling over the ground. This Mongolian mutton is as good as any you will find in the world, and these fat tails are especially delicious. The Mongols _use the fat in making brick-tea soup. They mash up little bricks of tea, A Tartar Family. and when the water is boiling they put in some of this mutton fat and milk and eat the whole as a soup. The bricks in which the tea is made are about ten inches square, seven inches wide and three inches thick. They look like chocolate and are sometimes made in smaller sizes. In ad- dition to this, they eat buttermilk, curds and whey. They are very fond of intoxi- cating liquors, and they have a beer made of mare’s milk upon which they keep them- selves about half drunk. Their mutton is frozen at the beginning of winter, and the weather is so cold that it will keep until spring. It is said in Thibet that mutton can be kept for years. The air is very dry and very cold, and after a few days the flesh becomes so dry that it can be powder- ed with the hand and be stored away like flour. The Thibetans use this mutton with- out cooking, and it is satd not to need salt. A Nation of Buddhists. ‘The Mongols are more religious than the Chinese. They may be called almost a na- tion of Buddhists, though there are a few Mohammedans among them. They have a number of temples inside of Peking and there are about 1,500 of these people who live in the Chinese capital. The biggest monastery in Peking is owned by the Mon- gols and the Thibetans. It has hundreds of priests, and they are the most intolerant and superstitious of their kind. Foreigners are by no means safe in going through it. They are liable to be mobbed, and it is only by bribing and fighting that one can get his way out. There are three living Bud- dhas in the world. One of these is in Lhas- sa, another is somewhere in Mongolia and the other is in Peking. I became indirectly acquainted with the brother of the living Buddha in Peking, and I was told that this Buddha was fond of cigars and liquors, and that he now and then went about incog., like Haroun Alraschid. There are numer- ous temples scattered over Mongolia and Thibet is said to be a country of temples. I was within ninety miles of Thibet dur- ing my stay in Darjiling, in the Hima- laya mountains, and the Thibetans whom I saw both here and in Peking-were about the same as the Mongols. I am told that the people of both countries do little but swing prayer wheels, drink whisky and Keep themselves dirty. I heard great stories about their monasteries and temples. Some of the Thibetan towns are a mere collec- tion of temples, and some of their monas- teries have copper roofs plated with gold. Lhassa, the Thibetan capital, has about 15,000 people, and the most of these are priests. The Chinese bulldoze the Thibetans and the Mongolians, and they bluff them into a scrt of a dependence upon them. The Thibetans and Mongolian priests whom I saw in Thibet were dressed in bright yel- low gowns. They were, as a rule, broad- Shouldered, thick-nosed, high-cheek-boned fellows, with small, twinkling, black eyes. They are shrouded in ignorance and super- stition and they are intolerant in the ex- treme. There are a number of Buddhist book stores in Peking, and the Chinese capital has one street which is devoted to nothing else but book stores. There are publishing houses there which are devoted to the pub- Ushing of Buddhist books. The books are cut out on blocks, and are not set up from type. Some of the editions are costly, and some of the richer priests prefer to have their books written out by hand. 2 One Wife, Four Husbands. The Mongols have but one wife, though the richer of them often have concubines. It is far different in Thibet, as I learned from the famous traveler, Mrs. Isabella Bird Bishop. Mrs, Bishop went out to Asia cn the same ship with me last year, She ex- Pected to travel in Corea, and she had just returned from a trip among the Thibetans. I talked with her for some time about the custom of polyandry. It seems that there is a scarcity of women, and the average female has from four to six husbands. If @ man marries, his wife becomes the com- mon property of his brothers, and, though he is the chief husband, she is the wife of the whole lot. The woman rules the fam- ily. She takes charge of the money, and she is practically the governor of the es- tablishment. It is only a very rich man who is able to have a wife to himself, and fathers sell their daughters to’ the highest bidders. The children are regard- ed as belonging to the woman, and the fathers can lay no claim to them. Mrs. Bishop said that the women seem to be satisfied with the situation, and that they rather pity their sisters in other parts of the world who can have only one husband. How Mongolia is Governed. ‘The Mongolians are divided up into tribes, and they are governed from Peking. The emperor appoints governors general, and all of the tributary provinces of China have military governors, and there are Chinese soldiers to enforge their edicts. As a rule, however, the pedple are oppressed in every Possible way. The gcvernment is corrupt, and the man who can pay the most can do as he pleases. Manchuria is ruled by mil- itary boards. Some parts of Mongolia have their own officials, under the government at Peking. The province of Ili is ruled by a military governor, and in outer Mongolia there is a great llama, much like the one fat Thibet, who is a sort of a living Bud- dha, and who rules the country. He :s said to b> very rich. His capital is known as Urga, and it is the bigest city in Mon- golia. It contains about thirty thousand People, and the most of these are priests. the big Nama or living Buddha is said to have a nundred and fifty thousand slaves, and he has quite an imposing palace. The People reverence him, and the Chinese rule this part of the country through him. It is much the same in Thibet, and the gov- ernment is a combination of religious cor- ruption and Chinese despotism. Inner Mon- golia has a different government, and, in fact, the whole of these tributary prov- inces of China are managed in a way which is practically unknown to the world. The settlement of the present trouble will prob- ably lead to their exploration, and the world will, for the first time in its history, have the whole of Asia open to scientific investigation. FRANK G. CARPE: LEAVES THAT CRAWL, One of the Strange Stories of the Wonders of Australia. From the New Orleans Picayune. Among the strange stories told about the wonderful things to be found in Australia there is one of crawling leaves. English sailors first brought an account of this phenomenon. They were roaming along the coast when a sudden breeze shook down a number of leaves, which floated gently to the ground. The sailors were surprised at this shower, because it was not the fall of the year, but midsummer, and the falling leaves looked fresh and green. But this was nothing to what fol- lowed. After a short rest these leaves be- gan crawling along the ground toward the tree from which they came. The sailors were too much frightened to stop end in- vestigate, and one of the men said, in relating the adventure, that he expected every minute to see the trees step out and dance a hornpipe. Fortunately other tray- elers were not too much frightened to stop and examine the matter. It was d'scovered that these queer leaves are really insects which live upon the trees, and are of the same color as the foliage. They have very thin, flat bodies, and wings shaped like large leaves. When disturbed by a breeze they fold their legs under their bodies, and then the leaf-like shape, with stem and all, is complete. Not only 2re they bright green in summer, like the foliage of the trees at that time, but they actually change like the leaves do to the dull brown produced by frost. Another peculiarity of these insects is that when’ shaken to the ground they seldom use their wings. After lying there a few minutes, as though they were really leaves, they crawl to tree and ascend the trunk, without seenitag to know that they have the power to get heck to their quarters in a much easier ayd quicker way. at ——+e+______ THEIR FIRST GARMENTS, Natives in the New Hebrides and Eu- ropean Clothes. From the Missionary Herald. An incident related by Mrs. Paton, the wife of Dr. J. G. Paton, the well-known missionary to the New Hebrides, illustrates the entire absorption of her husband, the missi, as the natives call him, in the great purpose he had in view, so that he entirely overlooked the comicality of the scene which so impressed his good wife. Here is Mrs. Paton’s story: “The trial to my risi- bles I found it hardest to bear was that which befell me especially on Sabbaths. ‘The first of these days in particular pre- sented a ludicrous scene in the way of dress, and it was only by a most desperate effort that I could manage to keep a long face while watching the natives coming into the church. We had arrived on a Tuesday; a number of garments had been distributed among the people, and from twenty to thirty turned out to worship. One man, I remember, came prancing in, looking so delighted with himself in a snow white vest—absolutely nothing else! An- other came stalking majestically with a woman’s skirt pinned round his throat and the tips of his fingers appearing at the bottom of it. A third had a native bag done up so as to represent a hat, which he took off withqquite the air of a gentleman as he entered the door. One man had on a nice little jacket I had presented to his wife; and, indeed, everyone who wore any elcthing at all did so in the absurdest fash- ion. The effort at self-control was fast be- coming unendurable when the worthy missi unintentionally proved ‘the last straw.’ His face was a picture of adoring thankfulness, and his prophetic soul—un- conscious of anything grotesque—saw them already on the way to glory. He whisper- ed: ‘O Maggie, shouldn’t we be grateful to God to see them all coming out of church so nicely dressed? He was adding some- thing about ‘jewels’ and ‘trophies,’ but I was already half-way out of the church under cover of a convenient fit of violent coughing, and just managed to slip round a corner before going into prolonged con- vulsions. Pray forgive me; I loved them none the less; but that phrase—so nicely dressed—was rather more than my woman’s soul could withstand.” MEXICAN RAILROADS] AUTHOR QF “A MODERN Some Curiosities in Their Relations With the Traveling Public, AMERICAN LABDR APPRECIATED 9 ise Train Employes Held. Responsible for Accidents by the People. 2 " RACE WITH ‘A MANIAC ee Written Exclusively for The Evening Star. a2 HE RECENT TER- rible railroad acci- dent near the City of Mexico, in which nearly “a hundred people. were killed and as many more injured, “ récalls “the fact that that coun- try has been the scene of a railroad catastrophe, _ which | exceeded all others os of:-any country in = : loss of life. It also has the reputation among railroad officials of being one of the most backward couii- tries in the matter of railroad development, all things considered, on the face of the globe.’ Perhaps, however, China and Africa outrank her in this respect. To the American reader the most mysti- fying portion of the press dispatches tell- ing of the recent accident was the last sen- tence, which read: = “The engineer and conductor .of the wrecked train have taken to the woods.” Imagine men occupying like positions in this country running away from people they had been instrumental in maiming or killing, whether accidentally or through carelessness. “Jerry” Sweeny, one of the most intelli- gent engineers empioyed by the Pennsyl- vania railroad, served five years on one of the roads down in Mexico, and has a fund of information about .practical railroading in that country. It was after the strike of 1877 that “Jerry” drifted down into Mexico, with a dozen others of like occupations, and, after doing penance for five years, thankfully cam? back to his first love. Americans Preferred. In the courre of an extended talk with the writer h> said: “About the best thing connected with Mexican railroads is American labor. The officials dovyn there have recognized from the first that it takes something besides strength to run an engine. Americans are given the preference in the positions of en- gineefs and conductors. “ft am thoroughly familiar with the spot where this last accident occurred, and I'll risk my reputation as an engineer on the assertion that the engineer was not to blame. I see that he.is an American, and this gives additional emphasis to my as- sertion. The officials of the road may escape censure through political con- nivance, but a thorough investigation will back up my assertion. “En the first place, the engineer had his;own life to look after, and I take it that he a man _of nerve, or he wouldn’t be in that country, as timid people dor’t work ‘on Mexican Tatlroads. Secondly, the spot where the accident oc- curred is one of the worst on the Inter- Oceanic road, and a trajn has to literally pick its way around the sharp curves in that vicinity. : “That road, and infact all the Mexican lines,, have: been laid out as economically as possible, and only, enough of the moun- tain has been chopped away to permit-a foothold for the trick, so to speak. On one side the train rubs against the moun- tain and on the other the passengers look down into a deep gully. ‘Now, take a train running at moderate or careful speed. A defect, unknown to all the train hands, has developed in one of the trie¢ks under the tender. The train strikes the curve only moderately hard, but it suffices to jar from the track the wheels of the tender and the remainder of the train follows suit. On the outer side of the rails there is hardly a foot of room. and the next instant there is a jumble of wood, iron and human beings in the gully below. They Take to the Woods, “In this country a defect in the tender— and the first reports from the accident gave that as the cause—would have been discovered by an intelligent car inspector. Then the curve would have been protected by a double rail, which will, nine times out of ten, keep a car upright and hoid it to the rails. Both these requisites are neglected down there, or were when I was in Mexico recently on a visit, and as a rophe is apt to rollow. The employes know the custom of the country thoroughly, and instead of hasten- ing to the rescue of the passengers, as in this coyntry, they fly for their lives. If they fall into the hands of the people they would be shot or hung to the nearest tree. The Mexicans have no time to look after real causes. The apparent ones,in the shape of engineers and conductors, will do, and in their blind rage they kill first and in- vestigate afterward. “One thing in connection with railroad- ing in Mexico that takes on the tinge of civilization is that the government stands by the corpurations to the last ditch. Sin against the railroads and you are doomed. This state of things has brought about almost a continual warfare between the lower or ignorant classes and the rail- roads. The confiscation of valuable land and the accidental killing of human beings and cattle contribute to the feeling of hostility. “Mexicans dislike being hurried, and I have had my hair raise on ends on account of the leisurely way they have crossed the track in front of my engine, notwithstand- ing the frantic shrieks of the whistle and the gesticulations of bystanders. Some Roadside Experiences. “I have seen an ignorant Mexican stood up against a water tank and shot full of holes by soldiers for simply throwing a tie across the track. His child had been killed by the train just ahead of mine and he wanted to throw our train in the ditch out of revenge. The tie would have done no damage, but an excited Mexican official wanted justice, and in spite of my argu- ments he got it, of a Mexican sort. “Then, again, the average Mexican liv- ing out in the country is an expert with the rifle or pistol, and doesn’t like to be disturbed while sleeping. That little nick in my right ear was given me by one cf this class. It happened in this way: The Mexican was sleeping about a hundred yards from the track, his little pony being also stretched out on the ground. My at- tention was called to the couple by my fireman, and thinking tohave some fun, I grabbed the whistle rope and let go several screeches that would have almost awaken- ed the dead. The horse caught the noise first and in a fright endeavored to regain its feet. In doing so it kicked the poor Mexican in the shoulder. The lattter jumped to his feet, black with rage. See- ing our laughing faces as we slowly glided by he snatched up his repeating rifle and fired directly at us. I dodged, but not in time to altogether ayoid the bullet, though my quickness saved’ my life, and I didn’t grumble much over the little bit of, lost flesh. i “The funny part of the adventure was that the Mexican wasn’t satisfied with shooting at us, but wanted our lives, and having plenty of time on his hands, started to follow us up. He learned our names from the next statfon.agent and gave it out that he was going to have revenge. This bit of news was telegraphed to me by a friendly telegraph operator, and fear- ing he would carry out his threats I turn- ed the case over to a railroad policeman, He arrested the bloodthirsty Mexican and the judge was very lenient with him, giy- ing him only three years in jail to regain his normal condition of mind. I left the country before he was released from prison. A Maniac at the Throttle. “As a rule native Mexicans do not make good engineers. Their nervous temperament is against them. They run an engine for about a year or until some incident occurs that calls for nerve and then they go to pieces. The officials know this and for The Famous Southern 17 ~ HEATHEN.” Novelist, Mrs. E. Burke Collins, Tells of Her Complete Recovery From Nervous Debility by the Use of Paine’s Celery Compound. The London Graphic, in its recent summing up of the half dozen successful novels of the year, includes Da Manrier’s ‘*Trilby,"” Hall Catne’s anxman,’* Conan Doyle's “Sherlock Holmes,” .¢ Heavenly Twins,"* and “Ships that Pass in ight,” Mrs. E. Burke Collins’ “A Modern the Heathen.”” eaking of this last work of our distinguished hern author, the Graphic says: “What Geo. W. Cable's writings are to the Ceeoles of New Orleans, Miss Murfree to the rough strata of humanity among the Tennessce mountains, and Gertrude Atherton to California, Mrs. &. Burke Collins’ are to the Acadiang of the Louisiana Pine Lands. In her latest work Mrs. Collins has struck a new veln in literature, opening to the novel reading world a vision of the real life of the Acadians of the backwoods, among the wild, searcely known region of the bayous and swamps of Louisiana.” Besides her novels she contributes each week short stories, sketches, ete., to the prominent magazines and to a great variety of other publica- tons. Although her writing has always been a labor of love, yet such incessant mental exertion, con- stantly harvesting the ideas of her brain without a single idle season or fallow time for rest and refreshment, could not fail to have its effect on the Tecuperative power of her nervous system. At one time she fourd herself tired out and weak from such uninterrupted work; she became nervous and incapable of work; she even saw nervous prostra- tion staring her in the face. The general toning up that her system needed so badly she found in |" Paine's celery compound. Today she is perfectly well ard strong again, busy as ever with her brain and pen, and grateful to Paine’s celery compound for the timely help when failure and trouble and despair seemed about to close around her and shut her off from everything that was dear to her. She says: NEW ORLEANS, La., Nov. 21, 1894. I wish to add my mite to the thousands of tes- timonials which you have received in regard to the efficacy of this wonderful compound. In my profession of author, such a strengthening medicine is invaluable. I have just completed my 95th novel, and constant work at the desk had weak- ened my constitution, injured my nerves, and I suffered from g-neral debility. When a person in that condition writes continually, living in the realm of fiction and romance, the effect upon the nervous system is lamentable. I was weak and debilitated, suffered from insomnia, and was ir- ritable and nervous. Four bottles of Paine’s cel- ery compound gave me strength, quieted my nerves, and brought sleep to my pillow. I owe lasting Sratitude to this wonderful medicine, and I take pleasure in addiag mire to the long list of testi- monials. Yours gratefully, Mrs, Z. BURKE COLLINS. 313 Valence street. Paine’s celery compound 1s found to best supply, the great need of studious, sedentary people, Its extensive use by brain workers, both men and officials, men whose daily outlay of vitality, be- cause of hard, trying, anxious work,. is excessive, find renewed strength, not only of nerves, but, through their healthy action, of the entire body, in Paine's celery compound. Its use shortly dispels headaches, rheumatic pain, dyspepsia, heart trou- ble, general debility and langucr, and all other out- ward signs of grave mischief that comes from dis ordered nerves and impure blood. : ee that reason an American engineer need never want for work in that country. The mystery to me is-that the officials, hav- ing foresight enough to see the advantage of American engineers, do not adopt more American ideas in the management of the road or the running of train: “I had an experience with a Mexican en- gineer the last summer I spent in Mexico which will always occupy the foremost place in my memory. The poor fellow was apparently a first-class engineer, but it seems he had run down a drunken Mexi- can lying asleep on the track, and the in- cident had turned his brain. I had pulled in on the side track at a small junction station, having received orders to await the arrival of a special, which was coming up behind me and was due in about fif- teen minutes. Suddenly the telegraph op- erator rushed from the station and clam- bered into the cab wild with fright. His face was white as the driven snow, while he trembled in every limb. At length he managed to control himself sufficiently to gasp out the following startling informa- tion: “Engineer coming north gone mad; un- coupled from train five miles below and coming toward us at a terrible rate.’ “Scarcely had he ceased speaking when the rumbling of the wild locomotive was heard approaching, and, upon looking down the track, I saw the black monster scarce- ly a mile distant tearing toward us. What was I to do? In the twinkling of an eye the engine would sweep by, and then no power on earth could stop it until it crash- ed into the special excursion coming up from the south, which had already left the telegraph station to which orders could be sent to warn it. A Race for Life. “That was at a time when I was young and quick witted. I did not pause to think, but in the briefest possible time I told my fireman to uncouple the engine, and before another word could be spoken I was rushing down the track under a full pressure of steam closely followed by the ircn monster, whose crazy driver could be seen leaning out of the cab window ges- ticulating wildly with, demoniacal glee, as if rejoicing in the wild race. “The good Lord above only knew how it would end. Just why I started in the van of that wild engine I could never tell. I acted on one of those sudden impulses that sometimes come ta men in our business and without one thought of the conse- quences. Speeding along with that maniac in my wake, I found time to collect my scattered senses, and the terrible position I was in became more apparent. Behind me an iron monster with a crazy engineer at the throttle and before me the excursion train filled with hundreds of souls, and each approaching the other every second. “Upon glancing down at my watch I saw we would meet the excursion train in less than half an hour. I shivered in con- templating the consequences. I must do something immediately. “Slowly I began to shut off steam; the terrible speed slackened; the distance be- tween the two engines decreased gradually, diminishing until a dull thud, followed by a slight jar, told me we had-come together. It was but the work of a moment to clam- ber from my engine into the cab where the crazy man was, Tussle With a Madman. “There a sight met my gaze that I shall never forget. Standing with his hands on the throttle, his eyes glaring like hot coals and his whole form writhing in fury, the maniac presented a frightful appearance. Before I could say a word or lay a hand on him, he grasped a coal pick and made a terrible lunge at my head. Fortunate for me, a sudden bend in the road gave me a lurch, and the blow fell harmless against the boiler head. “Then we came together in a regular catch-as-catch-can wrestle, such as we see on the stage sometimes in a melo- drama. I was unarmed, while the madman seemed to be pos: of superhuman strength. The battle waged flercely, and my fireman, being a Mexican, left me to my fate. I felt myself growing weaker every moment. A lull in the contest gave me an opportunity to disengage one arm, and I quickly shut off steam. This slight advantage gave me renewed energy. Gathering all my remaining strength, I forced the madman against the boiler in such a position that I could hold him with one hand while I sought some weapon of defense. “A small bar of iron lying on the fire- man’s seat was all I could procure, but it proved my salvation. The maniac was struggling fiercely to liberate himself from athe position I had forced him into, when I raised the iron bar and dealt him a blow on the head which completely stunned him. The struggle was over, but it had cost many precious moments. The sharp, pierc- ing blast of a whistle in the distance arous- ed me. Weak and exhausted, I managed to make my way back to my own engine, and slowly we began to move backward. Hardly had I got under full headway when the excursion train dashed into view a short distance behind me. “I called for brakes, and the engineer of the excursion train immediately shut down, and a minute later we were all at a standstill, Out came the passengers with a rush to ascertain the cause of the stop, and when they were given particulars by the excited fireman, such a shouting you never heard. One passenger poured a stiff drink down my throat, and I pulled myself together and took the engines to the nearest siding. A week later this watch I now wear came to me with kind words from the company and over a hun- dred passengers, and I treasure it very highly. That was the closest shave of my life.” —_— The Small Boy Didn’t Care. From the Boston Home Journal. Mrs. Mary A. Livermore is a woman re- vered alike in her family and neighborhood, yet her greatness does not always appeal to a certain small boy who belongs to a family residing in the vicinity. He was one day found by his sister swinging on the gate. When she reprimanded him for doing what had been forbidden, the irreverent youth remarked: “I don’t care for ma, nor pa, nor you, nor ee ox, or the ass, or anything that’s any- y’s.”” “Oh, Willy!” exclaimed the shocked little girl, io you know who wrote those words you us@ so?” ‘ “Don’t care,” was his reply. “Mrs, Liv- ermore, I s’pese.”” Caught in the Act! HETEROPHEMY, Use of Wrong Words 4 Misplaced Syllables. From the Atlantic Monthly. Heterophemy, the curious disease which consists in using one word when meaning to use an entirely different one, gives rise to many amusing combinations. An old lady living in a town on the Hudson river is thus afflicted. She is tall and stately in appearance, courtly and gracious in man- ner, and this makes her incongruous sen- tences all the more ridiculous. Strange to say, she herself is totally unconscious of her infirmity, for the family, friends, and even the servants endeavor-to save her from the mortification she would feel. Not long ago, when she was recovering from a scrious illness, the bishop of the diocese chanced to be making his annual visitation, and at the suggestion of the rector they went together to call upon Mrs. Drew. She was delighted to see them, and en- tertained them with her usual grace and cordiality. The conversation naturally touched upon her illness, and her thank- fulness at her recovery, which for a time had been despaired of. Presently she turned to the bishop, say- ing earnestly, “My dear bishop, let us have a little drop.’ The startled prelate glanced at the res- tor. He, knowing his old friend’s infirm- ity, cast about in his mind for her prob- able meaning. “Bishop,” repeated the old lady seriously, t's have a little drop.” ‘Certainly, Mrs. Drew,” interposed the rector, waiting for her to make some move which might disclose her meaning. But Mrs. Drew waited expectantly, also. “If you have not your Vade Mecum with you, there is a prayer book,” she said, after @ moment. The rector, with a sigh of relief, turned to the bishop. “Mrs. Drew will be glad to have you read prayers with her,” he said quietly. Prayers were read, and then the gentle- men prepared to take leave. “Your visit. has been a pleasure,” Mrs, Drew said warmly. “Now, Mr. Belknap, won't you take this little boy home to your dear wife, with my best love?” For a moment Mr. Belknap wondered if she could mean the bishop, but she relieved his mind by lifting a magnificent bunch of roses from a vase on the table. Allied to this is another form of mis- speech, to which most of us are occasion- ally subject—the exchange of syllables. A certain young lady, who, to her intense mortification, often reverses her vowels thus, says she is entirely unconscious of it, even after speaking. One summer evening she was sauntering with a friend toward the village post oftice of the little town where they were staying. On the way they encountered an acquaint- ance, with a handful of letters. “Ah, good evening,” she said, in her pe- culiarly gracious, suave manner. “Are you strailing out for your mole?” The mystified young woman made some inarticulate reply and passed on. As soon as the friend could recover her gravity, she gasped, “I suppose you intended to ask Miss May if she was strolling out for her mail?” The same young lady was relating a sad story of various misfortunes which had averwhelmed a dear friend. “Think,” she concluded pathetically, “of losing husband, children, property, and home at one swell foop!” And a howl of laughter rent the roof. His Doubt. From the Chicago Tribune. “{ wonder,” said uhe burglar, slipping the contents of a safe into a sack, “if I oughtn’t honestly to pay an income tax on this?” FOR DYSPEPSIA Use Horsford’s Acid Phosphate, Dr. 0, I. Halbert, Waco, Texas, sayss “ used it in dyspepsia with good effect. :