Evening Star Newspaper, August 31, 1895, Page 17

THE EVENING STAR, SATURDAY, AUGUST 81, 1895-TWENTY PAGES, NOTES OF VIENNA The Many Picturesque Scenes of the Austrian Capital. ON WEEK DAYS AND SUNDAYS —_+. How the Viennese Reverse the Order of Things. EVERYBODY FOR PLEASURE WWritter. Exclusively for The Evening Star. FTEN WHILE seated in the cafes of Vienna or the restau- rants of the Prater I have listened to the popular local song— “Es gibt blos el Kaiser Stadt” (There is but one imperial city." Often Iike- wise I have mused over the truth of the words in the topical y y lL the sentiment of 40,- 000,000 of Austrians. There is indeed no lace like Vienna, and there are no people Tice the Viennese. Situated upon the banks $f the Danube in a valley surrounded by accessible hills and mountains, and having within its limits numerous and spacious parks, the capital, with much right, enjoys the reputation of being the Ideal metropolis f Europe. As the spokes of a wheel ‘adiate <rom the hub, so do the macad- @mized roads diverge in every direction from Vienna. They penetrate the inner- most recesses of the Wiener Wald, a {vorthy rival of the Black Forest of Ger- Pisny. They go to the, foothills, to. the higher mountains beyond, to the estuaries of the “Donau,” to the fertile valleys of Hungary and the heavily timbered re- ions of Bohemia. ‘They lead through elds of grain, through meadows and glades and limitless tracts of flowers, over bridges and trestles, past magnificent ruins to the most beautiful suburbs In the world. Life of Ease and Pleasure. . These beautiful surroundings, the ever constant icusic of the Austrian and Hun- garian military bands, together with an aesthetic taste, have made the Viennese children of nature, with romantic and Poetic souls. Encouraged for generations by the reigning Hapsburg to seek enjoy- ment while disregarding worldly cares and anxiety, the people of the gay city have acquired a disposition which causes them to live from day to day unmindful of the ast, unconcerned about the future. A so- journ of nearly four years in Vienna has familiarized the writer with the character- * Hungarian Peasant. tics of the people and their mode of Ute. me particular respect does the Austrian er greatly from his other Europea brethren. He is not at all mercenary. By ature a contented individual, he never omplains as long as he has health and fficlent to cat. His one thought is enjoy- ment, which, by reason of the diversified forpi of amusement to be found In Vienna, ig always capable of gratification. Never- theless, as the Austrian Is light-hearted, ling enjoyment where others seek it in vain, £0 likewise does he become despond- ent at the slightest reversal of fortung. Proeperity he enjoys, but misfortune he is unable to endure. Thousands of Suicides. The slightest provocation 1s often suffi- elent excuse for him to resort to the depri- yation of his life. There !s probably not another place in Europe where suicide ts #9 prevalent and the causes for the satne so trivial as in Vienna. Several thousand eople kill themselves annually in the cap- tal. Not a day passes but four or five deaths by suicide are reported. If the three bridges which span the canal—the Angarten, the Elizabeth and Stephani were to offer up the bodies of those who have killed themselves by leaping from their sides into the water below, the spec- tacle would be as horrible as ‘that of a battlefield strewn with its dead. Week Days and Sundays. On a week day, notwithstanding that Vienna is a great commercial center, the Wheels of the clty appear to move along slowly. There is no jostling upon the pave- fments, no evidence of haste or activity. Whether it be in the stores, factoriss or the departments of the government, life Conforms to a slow pace, following a sivan foutine maintained for years. The mer- oe opens his shop late in the morning, locks his doors to suit his convenience for wo hours at noon and closes early in the yyening. The laborer works slowly and de- Uberately, interrupting his work six or seven times during the day to eat, to drink, to rest. The freighter, walking by "he side of his wagon, drawn by clumsy beasts of mrden, caltaly smokes his pipe, while his ly, sauntering at every corner and gazin, in every window along his route, is hé slowest of them all. But on a Sunday ir a holiday there is a wonderful trans- formation upon the streets. Every one is out of doors. The apartmeats are de- serted and there fs a rush for the theaters, the concert halls, the operas, the suburbs, the mountains. The street on thesa days ig the throbbing pulse of the capital. It indicates the life going on within and with- out. Its overcrowded tramways and omni- buses show the direction in which the masses are moving. Soldiers Everywhere. What impresses the stranger perhaps more than anyt ing else is the great num- ber of soldiers met with upon the thor- Qughfare. As there are never less than twenty-five thousand men garrisoned at the seat of the empire, and as elghty thou- gand is no unusvally large number, the sol- dler is to befound In every part of the city, This vast army, with its complement of officers, has a great moral and social 1 fluence upon the mode of life of the Vien- nese. It is both good and bad. Through its maintenance milllons of florins reach the merchant which otherwise would remain in channels remote from the imperial seat. The soldier fs fed and clothed—the officer salary; the money so expended is tg the gain of Vienna. This is the financial view about the army assembled at the cap- ftal. The moral question is something far different. Suffice It to say that the misery Wrought in the families of the middle and laboring classes by this degraded set of i would make a sad and mournful chap- er, Variety in Uniforms. Jt 1s not only the number of soldiers which enliven the streets of Vienna, but glso the variety of uniforms, with their ac- companying accouterments. Unlike France er Germany, there is no characteristic of the color from which the wearing apparel f the army is made. As a result there are scores of different uniformg as varied in hue as the tints of the rainbow. When to the soldiers are added the innumerable offi- clals of the different departments of the goverment who are clad in a special ress characteristic of their office, and who carry swords and decorations in the form ef medallions and ribbons, it is ho idle ven- ure to state that there are as many pe- destrians upon the streets with as without uniforms. The Se Jaeger wearing loosely fit- ting suits of gray with stiff felt hats, sur- mounted with bushy poems of dark green feathers—the Hungarian his lower extrem- ities Incased in tight like fitting cloth, with @ braided scroll above the knee—the Bos- nian zouave in light blue—his Turkish fez saucily perched upon the back of his head—the dragoon with glittering helmet and rattling spurs—the huzzar in a fur- lined jacket, loosely thrown over the right shoulder, the formidable guard of the de- partment of justice in somber black, with his deadly carbine, the artillerymen con- spicuous by reason of the broad double stripes of red on the outer side of his trousers, the pioneer In bottle green car- rying a heavy short sword, the north and south Austrian in uniform resembling ours, are but a few of the picturesque types of soldiers met with in Vienna. The Peasants. + Next to the soldiers come the peasants In their colored sectional costume, among which may be mentioned the Styrian and Hungarian nurses, whose feet are not covered by sandals or shoes, but by boots, which, Hke the buskin of the Phrygean maiden, reach high above the knee. To de- scribe their fluffy plaited skirts, so su gestive of the ballet on account of their shortness, would require an experienced modiste and not an individual unfamiliar with the terms of the dressmaker. How- ever, it is not starch or hoops which make the dresses appear stiff and stand away from the body, but a series of fifteen to twenty skirts of ‘Iifferent lengths, the shortest coming first and the longest last. The dirty Slavonian in rough gray home- spyp, with moccasins bound to his ankles and calves by means of the most primitive thongs of cowhide—the smooth-faced farm- er wearing a coat of buckskin embellished with coarse woolen embroidery, the long bearded and mournful looking Polish Jew with unkempt locks, rebed in the blackest frock reaching to his heels, the baker in a linen cap and trousers, and the dreaded socialist with his broad brimmed slo and red necktie still more heighten the panoramic picture of the streets. Other Novel Sights. But this is not all that appears novel in the metropolls. The low one-horse vehicle drawn by a pole instead of shafts, the wo- man hooked by the side of a dog to a cart, the floors of which seem to scrape the ground, the huge barrel on heavy trucks which is used to sprinkle the streets, and from which the water is drained by means of a long leather hose, resembling the trunk of an elephant, as It is swung to and fro by an attached rope in the hands of an attendant, must be mentioned as things which are wont to awaken the curiosity. The woman hod-carrier, with a bucket of mortar deftly balanced upon her head, can be seen ascending flight after flight of scaffolding. Sunday Amusements, On a Sunday the populace, clad in their best, may be seen moving in all directions. They frequent the race track at the Freud- enau, the rack and pinion railway of the Kahlenberg, the steamboats which ply up- on the canal and the Danube, the great South railway, which In an hour conveys them to the higher mountains; the Franz Joseph road, the two Praters and the ex- tersive “Wiener Wald,” one of the largest forests of Austria. The “Wurstel Prater” is a popular resort with the poorer classes, where they enjoy themselves in the dance houses, in the shooting galleries, menag- eries, side shows, with the carousels, of which there are scores. Sometimes the crowd here is so dense that it Is with the greatest difficulty that a way is made to the fashionable Haupt Allee of the Prater, which is a broad driveway three miles long, flanked on one side with a tan bark track and parallel with wide sidewalks for its entire, uninterrupted Iength. Magnifi- cent cafes, with thousands of white tables and myriads of lights, are to be found along the entire driveway. Military bands may be heard here every afternoon when the weather {is propitious. There are no end of uniforms and costumes which may be studied while quafing the native wines and drinking the celebrated coffee. Beaux and belles, merchants and bankers, boys and girls, officers and soldiers of every rank and file seat themselves at the dif- ferent tables to Isten to the music, to laugh, to hum the airs as they are played, and make merry, while others less for- tur.ate either earn their bread by the sweat of their brow or accumulate shekels at the expense of their health and enjoyment. JOHN H. METZEROTT. e__.—___- A NEW RACE IN EGYPT. Prof. Petrie’s Interesting Discoveries in the Nile Valley. From the London Mlustrated News. There was a time when picnics took place in the “‘Kuds’ at Simla; on these occasions When there chanced to be a deficiency in the number of plates or cups and saucers a communication came from Hoot Koomi, the Mahatma of Tibet, giving directions where to dig, and there the necessary pot- tery was discovered. Prof. Flinders Petrie must either be Hoot Koomt himself, or he must be in very close communication with that mysterious personage, for he appears to know always the exact spot at which to dig when pottery is wanted. Most certain- ly his last season's excavations were in the right place, for he has discovered the ex- istence of a race of people that lived in the Nile valley about 8,000 years B. C., that have never been heard of before; and by means of their remains, which he has dug up, and which have been on exhibition for a short time in the University College, Gower street, he has so materialized these people that we already seem to see them in the flesh and know everything about them. The ground where the explorations were carried on is between Ballas and Nagada, about thirty miles below Thebes. The bor- der of the desert at the spot is on the west side, about three miles from the Nile. Here is a plateau about 1,400 feet above the river, up to which, at a far past date, the waters reached, when its volume must have been fifty times more than that which now flows north to the sea. On this ancient river margin, among gravel exactly the same as the river gravels of England and France, were found, as in them, the same palaeolithie remains, of which a valuable collection has been secured, and forms part of the professor's exhibition. These, of course, are the leavings of man as he ex- {sted before the “new race” appeared on the scene, or even before the ancient Egyp- tlan had begun his career. It was along this line, on the edge of the desert, that the remains of the new race were found. The time of their occupation can be deter- mined within certain limits. The date of somewhere about B. C. 3,000, which Prof. Flinders Petrie assumes, would place them between the seventh and nineteenth dy- nasties. It is known that Egypt was for a long period in a troubled state about that time, and the new race may be supposed to ha been some of the@pvaders that led to this condition of things. The guess is that they were Libyans, but as yet nothing can be settled exactly as to who they were, —__-. A Judicial Temperament. From Puck. Parker—“Jones takes a charitable view of everything; never condemns any one ex- cept on the clearest evidence.” Barker—“Is that so?” Parker—“Yes; I think Jones could lose an umbrella without concluding that it had been stolen.” Gum drops.—Life, DE LOME ON CUBA Spanish Minister Ridicules the Cuban Rebellion. CONFLICT T0 END 800N Why the Mother Country Cares for an Expensive Child. AMERICANS MISINFORMED Written for The Evening Star. ENOR E. DUPUY de Lome, Spain’s minister to the United States, has spent a great many years of his life in this country, and he has many friends here in both social and diplomatic circles. He ts now summer- ing at Swampscott, but is vigorously . prosecuting the af- fairs of Spain, particularly in relation to the Cuban revolution. He is in conference constantly with the Secretary of State or his representatives, and with the leaders of the Spanish forces 1n Cuba, He is purchas- ing supplies for the Spanish forces when they are needed urgently, and he is mak- ing a futile effort to prevent the carrying of supplies to the insurgents. When I asked Senor de Lome to tell me something about the Cuban revolution for the benefit of the readers of The Star, he replied: “The American is made to believe that there is in Cuba a nation fighting for lib- erty, instead of a few thousand adventur- ers taking for the moment advantage of the rainy season. Maceo is a mulatto; Max{- mo Gomez, a Dominican; Miro, a Spanisi bandit (from Spain in Europe), and the only white Cubans of any social importance are Masso and Santa Lucia, this last an old crank. Is that a people? “The trouble with your people is that they always stick to one thing. They in- form themselves on that one thing, and that alone. Perhaps it is better so. “When I came.to America, I spoke free- ly to the newspapers about the condition of affairs in Cuba. They printed what I told them, and the next day they sald something else in their editorial columns. Never mind. They will see. Your people will know in a few months the whole truth about this Cuban matter—when the rebellion is crushed. They talk about Con- gress recognizing the rebels as belligerents. There will not be anything left to recognize when Congress meets in December.” The Spanish minister speaks with re- markable rapidity and in very pure En- glish. He raises his vofce at the end of almost every sentence. He talks in a high key, and with a slight lisp. Now and then the torrent of his words is interrupted as he feels about in his mind for a phrase which exactly fits his thoughts; but, as a rule, he finds few impediments to rapid speech. Spain Has Money Enough. “Spain is not hampered by lack of money in carrying on her campaign?” I said. “To show you how absurd that story is,” said Senor de Lome, “let me call your at- tention to the fact that 40,000 soldiers were brought to Cuba in Spanish ships. That cost some money. Then 30,000 more will be landed there by the 15th of September. All of them wil} be brought in Spanish bot- toms. All of this Spain has done, and is doing, at great expense. No, there will be no trouble about the payment of the Mora claim. The day agreed the money will be paid. No, I cannot talk of the matter. I never will of anything connected with my official duties. The proper channels of in- formation are only the State Department here, the office of foreign affairs in Madrid.” “And the loan Spain has failed to nego- tiate?"" “She has not attempted to negotiate any loan. Financiers are anxious to have her do so, because money is idle in Eu- rcpe. The Spanish debt is a 4 per cent Ican. Interest on it is payable quarterly at the Bank of Spain. Our officers—what you would call here your collectors of revenue—take the money they receive to the Bank of Spain, where it is deposited; and the first use made of it Is the pay- ment of interest on the national debt. Usually the bank keeps the interest in hand for two or three months in advance so as to make a little profit on it, and any one who wishes to do so may go there and obtain his interest in advance subject to a small discount made by the bank, not by the government. The re- sult of this system is that financiers are all anxious to have Spain put out a new loan, and if she needs money she would have no difficulty in getting it. Besides, Spain’s financial condition is improving every year. Last year her deficiency was culy five million; this year it may be only two million. Spain's Duty. “Would it not be a good thing commer- cially for Spain to abandon Cuba?" I asked. “Why does the mother country cling to this expensive child?” “Spain is bound to keep faith with the merchants and planters who have in- vested their wealth in Cuba, relying on the Spanish government for protection. These are the representative Cuban peo- ple. They are not in sympathy with the insurgents. They want Cuba to remain a Spanish colony. So do the American cap- italists who have Cuban investments, and the Americans who have gone there to live. Ten per cent of the capital invested in sugar plants in Cuba belongs to Ameri- cars. If Cuba came under the protection of the United States, your government wovld soon have to send %,000 soldiers there to protect the property of Ameri- cans. The Cuban people, though, do not want annexation to the United States. The conditions of race are very different. They want to continue as they are. And by this I mean the real Cubans—the good citizens who own and work. Many“of these men are of Spanish birth, but they have lived in Cuba many years; their interests are all in Cuba. If these men lived in the United States they would be called in time Americans, whatever their native coun- try. These men have identified themselves with Cuba; many of them heve Cuban wives and Cuban children. They are Cu- bans now, not Spaniards. They represent 1,400,000 people in Cuba, against whom a few thousand adventurers are making war. Most of these adventurers are ne- grces or mulattoes. Many of them are the slaves who were freed in 1582. Freeing the Slaves. “The movement to free the Cuban slaves began soon after the end of your war—in 1866. In 1868 the revolution in- terrupted the movement, and it was not resumed until the end of the revolution in 1878, Then the business of freeing the slaves was undertaken, and In 1882 it was completed. Under the terms of his release a man had to serve his old master, a new one or the state for five years (for pay), so that he could learn the lesson that liberty is not idleness. In 1882 all were free. But many negroes of Cuba, like those in the south, do not want to work. Give the southern negro a watermelon and he is perfectly contented. Instead of remaining bn the plantations, the Cuban negroes went to the east eud of Cuba and settled down to live on bananas and maize. You will find white men working on the plantatio; —~not negroes. You will find white cooks and white boatmen in Havana, The white people kvow that soon as Cuba is free from Spain, a black republic will be es- tablished at the east end of the island which will be a constant menace to them. That is one of the many reasons the whit men—the real Cubans--prefer Spanish rule to independence.” Cuba Not a Refuge for Thriftless Spaniards, I asked tho minister if it was true that Cuba is used as a place of refuge for the indigent sons of Spanish families. In re- ply he sald: ‘‘Those things are said of.every country, As to Cuba, there are Spaniards in office there, but there are also Cubans holding office in. Spain. I have in my le gation in Washington two secretaries who gre Cubans. There are more officers born jn Cuba fighti 1@ rebellion than Cuban leaders in the army. The last minister of Spain In Mexico was a Cuban. Spanish offices are oper freely to Cubans. In fac! for a people cald to be dewn-trodden ai oppressed, they are ran ty fortunate. ‘uba sends deputies to id—enough old the balance of power if they could only agree. Caba and Porto Rico have phity-two deputies, and elve senators That is the ‘imperial representation’ for which the English col- onies have been clamoring. Last March, too, a law wag passed (which has not yet gone into effect) giving the Cuban people control of their educational system, the improvement of the roads, the budget and many other féatures of local government without interference from Spain. The home-rulers in Cuba were not satisfied with this, but they were glad to accept it as a step in the direction of home rule, and their deputies voted the law. The agitators believed that this law would not be passed, and they relled on the dissatisfaction which would follow to make friends for them. They were disappointed. The conservative people remain satisfied with Spanish rule. ‘They know that the withdrawal of Spain's protection means anarchy.” Filibusters and Blockades. I asked him if the fillbustering parties from the United States were causing him any great anxiety. “All that they succeed in doing,” he said, “is to smuggle in a few arms. I know where all of these are, and if I were in any other country I would have them seized. But in this country a man may have a3 many guns in his possession as he pleases, and no one has a right to question. It is the law. The State Department has done all that it could do within the law.” I suggested that this law conserved one of the liberties of the American people. “It may be liberty and it may not,” sald Senor de Lome. “Some day, if the social- ists rise in this country, with arms in their hands, and try to destroy the government, it will not seem so much Nke liberty.” “Will Spain be able to blockade the Cuban coast?” I asked. “She will have soon forty light-draught boats with which to patrol the shallow water near the shore. Then we will have a triple line around Cuba. Our largest war vessels will be at sea; those of lighter draught nearer the shore, and the small boats will patrol the shallow water. Of course, we cannot watch every square foot of sea, but we will have the insurgents pretty well cut off from outside help. All the help they have received thus far has been in the shape of arms and ammunition. Only two parties have landed, and the larger of these contained only twenty-three men. You will see continuous reports of expeditions, but the faith of the believers must be sustained.” Trade With Cuba. I referred to the reciprocity treaty, about which Senor de Lome had had some con- ferences with John W. Foster, the Amer- ican commissioner at the time of its nego- tiation. “Cuba,” said the Spanish minister, “wants free trade. But the reciprocity agreement will never be renewed, because, through no fault of your government, it was made unfair to the Cuban people. With ps duty taken cff sugar, the Cubans found hat the sugar trust in the United States fixed the price at what it pleased, and that the flour trust and all the other trade com> binations fixed the prices of the goods which the Cuban people bought at any- thing they liked. The Cubans saw their revenue reduced from, say, $20,000,000 to $15,000,000, and that they were paying the old prices for goods which they imported. There was né #dvantage in that. They asked to have!the treaty abolished, and it was abolishes: by. the action of Congress taxing sugar., ‘The fault Is not that of your government, but of some of your people. “Your people doe not realize what trade with Cuba fs, worth. You buy $75,000,000 worth of sugar from us every year, but it would go to England if you did not take it. The Cuban people buy from the United States $24,000,000 worth of goods, which, if they were not sold to those people, would not be sold at all. You sell to Cuba more than to all the South American countries put tcgether., Ftye millions more than to Mexico, three times more than to British West Indies. Your trade with Cuba cannot be improved; bya change of conditions there, and it may. ;be injured very seriously. Mistaken Sentiment. “Yet there scems to be a mistaken senti- ment among the, people of this country In sympathy with the insurgents. However, as I said, it is a question of only a little time when they will know the truth—when they will understand that the ‘towns’ which the insurgents are burning every day are the little villages built of grass whose poor people are only made a little pocrer by the acts of the insurgents. They will know that these adventurers have not now a fown even in whith they can declare themselves established, but that they gave out thetr proclamation of government in the woods; that many of them are bandits who ought to be shot, and that all the Washingtons and Hamiltons and Adamses of this revolution are adventurers, chiefly negroes. “All of these things the people living in this country Who have interests in Cuba could tell you. One of them was here with me a few days ago, and he told me what I am telling you. But he is afraid to go even to the State Department with it, because he knows that if he showed any sympathy With the Spanish government his property would be destroyed by the insurgents. The merchants of Havana who subscribed the money to buy gunboats to present to the Spanish government and pay a volunteer cavalry regiment in the fleld cdn tell you what sort of people these rebels are. The pecple of the United States, when they know the truth, will take a different view of the attitude of Spain toward Cuba.” GEORGE GRANTHAM BAIN. — Mosquitoes. From Harper's Bazar, Willie Yardstick and Charlie Ribboncoun- ter were proceeding from the station to the place where they had engaged summer Loard. Said Willie to the stage driver: “Driver, ah you evah troubled by—er— mesquitoes in this wegion?” ‘The stage driver looked at him scornfully for a moment (it was in Jersey), and then answered: “Not much, young man. We're too small game for 'em.- They come up out of Jones’ swamp and put their heads on one side and lock at us like a turkey gobbler examining @ grasshopper, but they seldom peck at us.” Willie and Charlie smiled feebly. “They're a nuisance, though," went en the ariver—‘standing ‘round in the way, and tramping down fences and the like o” that, One night just after dark they picked the wheels off’n this here stage.” “Wha—what did you do?’ asked Charlle. “Rut them hosses on a keen run, and come into town with that stage flying out behind like the iinen duster of a man run- ning to catch a p nger train.” A Too Late for Her. From the India Journal. “TI think E iH get a pair of them,” said Mrs. Watts, Mr. Watts 3 tion he could assumes whef hs “My dear, when bloom of youth it is to the uprightest post- , and with the air a man uts his foot down, sald: woman has passed the no time for bloomers.” ——— From Life. 22 | y - “So ye is back, and yez a posey to look at. Now, look here, Oi am goin’ down to dthe village, and if Of find that wan less than a dozen naygurs and Oitalian dagoes is not dthree-quarters chewed up, be dthe saints Ol'll come back here and burn ye up in @the shtove!” SOME DAINTY ROOMS As an Expression of Individual Tastes, Not Mere Fashion. WHAT THE MODERN GIRL ENJOYS Harmony Should Regulate the Se- lection of House Furnishings. + EFFEOTS IN COLOR Written Exclusively for The Evening Star. oT ERY MANY years ago the main idea in furnishing Sf, houses was that all Ij should be as nearly alike as possible, the sole variation lying in the expense and magnificence. And so it was with the apartment equipped for a young girl when she first was given one entirely her own;white,peace- ful simplicjty was considered the only requisite. But a better, more independent taste has spread of late years among all classes of society. Aléng with the strides of artistic ideas has marched an inclination to ex- ercise individual fancies instead of thought- lessly accepting a prevailing fashion, and girls are allowed—indeed encouraged—to stamp their rooms with their own original- ity, to turn into them a tide of beauty for which they may claim the sole responsi- bility. Consequently cut-and-dried styles of furniture are no longer prevalent, as in those days of a recent past, when the most splendid bedroom was merely an edition de luxe of the humbler specimens; when “suites” of highly polished furniture eclipsed merely in price, and not in grace or beauty of design, the equally square, utilitarian svite of the less .pretending house; and when the same staring pattern tidgeted over a velvet or an ingrain carpet: Now, the clever girl brings to bear upon her personal surroundings her most culti- vated intelligence. If she is very wealthy, she may collect antique Spanish furniture, carved with curious heals, grotesque ani- mais and scrolls, and supported by twisted columns. Or, she may copy from Chippen- dal2, Sheraton and Hepplewhite, and fill nooks and corners with chairs, tables and cupheards that rival the originals in per- fection of workmanship. Or, she may pre- fer the elaborate marqueterie of old French extravagant styles, harg her walls with panels of tapestry, and cover her chairs with richly wrought brocades. For Moderate Purses. But if she has not wealth, she may have quite as happy a result with simpler mears, provided she does not forget to pre- serve symmetry. For instance if, tempted by the cheapness of bamboo furniture, she Gecides upon a Japanese room, she should cover the floor with matting, adorn the windows with bead curtains and place a folding screen somewhere, though very few chairs and tables. To be quite in character with a Japanese room, there should be low divans, covered, not piled, with thin silks, covered cushions, as sitting upon these would be the next thing to sitting on the floor. An effect of immaculate neatness, free from superfluities, must be the prin- cipal aim; it would be quite inappropriate to mingle carpets, heavy hangings and un- limited bric-a-brac in an apartment of Jap- ahese purport. A very fancifu] novelty, a “shell” room, has been recently completed for a “sea- scape” enthuslast. The wallpaper is a soft sea green, but the frieze is of cloth fixed to the wall, making a _ perfectly smooth surface. Upon this is painted a bluish green sea shading off to the sky, a bold dash of curling waves throwing the spray high into the air, and a few sea Bulis flying here and there. There is go carpet on the floor, but the boards are stained a deep brown, and rugs of white fur are thrown about. The wood of the furniture is enameled white, with a raised design of dolphins and shells in gold. The curtains at the windows are of pink muslin, keld back by ropes of shells, and the chairs are cushioned in the shape of shells, which form very comfortable curves. The panels of the screen are filled with Pieces of old Japanese embroidery on a greenish ground, representing swirls of water and very fat fish darting about; also some tall, spiky flowering reeds. The tlles around the fireplace have a roughened sur- face, resembling the pearly indescence of a shel, causing them to take beautiful col- ors in the flickering fireiight, and the great pink-tinted sea shells, beloved of children, which bring to their ears the dis- tant murmur of waves, have been brought from their rubbish closet banishment to find a place on the mantel. Even the soft pink silk lampshade smacks of the sea in its fringe of sea weed. A Golden Room. In tke homes of personal friends I have found some choice examples of girlish taste which differ widely in expense, but are very nearly equal in grace and charm. The room of a millionaire girl, who has lately finished school and been promoied to the dignity of large quarters, seems flooded with sunshine,even In gray, dismal weather. “I have always had a fondness for yel- low,” said the young occupant. “It keeps my spirits up to what I call a ‘buttercup’ height. I mean that it gives me a sort of beatified sensation of perpetual spring time. So when mother placed upon my shoulders the responsibility of furnishing my own retreat, I decided at a bound that I would have an absolutely golden room, without a tinge of the colors that usually go with yellow.” The result is captivating, but.the bills, too, must have been “golden.”* ‘The walls have panels of white wood, filled with a daffodil shade of brocade. The carpet of plain velvet, without a vestige of pattern upon it, is in a tint of deep, orangy gold that is almost brown. This ground- werk leads up to window draperies of paler yellow velvet, with inner ones of ivory- White net; to the couch and chairs uphol- stered in amber brocade; even to such smal- ler things as gilt candlesticks and clock, and some bits of white and gold china. The adjoining bath room has a white marble flocr, warmed with a huge tiger skin, and an electric light shines softly through an amber bulb held in the meshes of a golden net. The bath is reached by three descend- ing steps, and the faucets are large, bur- nished lions’ heads, A Similar Effect. For those who cannot afford anything costly, but who long for pretty surround- ings, the charm of this yellow room can be captured with small expense by cover- ing the walls with yellow iris paper; drap- ing the windows with the gold-fiecked mus- lin, which can be found in all colors, znd is as artistic as it ts Inexpensive; using ivory-white wicker chairs, cushioned with amber-color denim, embroidered with brown flax floss, and covering the white-legged table with a bit of yellow brocade. A little room for a rosebud girl is equally springlike wita apple blossom paper, cur- tains of wild rose dimity—beauty ought to be surrounded with roses—and cottage niture,enameled primroses. The bed is cov- ered with a counterpane of plain white linen, hemstitched all round with drawn work, and embroidered with merry groups of old-fashioned flowers in natural colors, pink, columbines, snap-dragons, gilly- flowers, and the cushions on the couch are embroidered and filled with rose leaves. ‘A girl's green summer bed room is a gem in its way. The furniture is cane seat- ed, with frames of pale green wood deco- rated with a medallion of delicate wreaths and figures carved In white, exactly resem- bling those on Wedgewood china bowls and pitchers. The curtains are pale green, lined with roses, and the bed a dream of filmy drapery, with one large electric star in the corner, as if holding up the lace can- opy. The effect is so simple that when I first visited the room, in my heart I com- mended so wealthy a girl for her modest outlay. Later, however, when I called upon the firm that supplied the cane-seated furnt- ture to inquire the price for the benefit of a “bachelor maid,” who was fitting up a quiet Kttle apartment on her self-made income and might wish to order a similar set In Wedgewood blue, I learned that those artless chairs, tables and couches were carved by the most skilled hands, and the price was $100 each! My mental commen- dation had been entirely misplaced. A Holland Room. “I know how interested you are in unique bed rooms,” said a bright girl to me in the Newport Casino one morning. “It will give me pleasure to show you my Holland recm. Will you come now?” I accepted the suggestion very gladly, but I fancied that, without moving, I could almest see the blue Delft platters, and jugs and mugs, the old Dutch oak and other trite !mportations. But it was alto- gether a different glimpse of Holland that she gave me, and the quaint impression of that delightful upper chamber lingers with me still. The chairs and settee were rush-seated and of wood enameled white. All the “sticks” were painted with cheerful little red and yellow flowers and green vines, but across each of the broad board slats that formed the backs were Holland scenes in shades of blue—windmills, sails and all these well-known views of the dykes and carals. There was also a combination of bureau and china closet, painted in the same fashion, and behind the small dia- mcrd panes of the wide glass doors were plates, bowls and jars of the rarest of all Delfts, which has the borders only of blue, while the figures and flowers are in soft reds and yellows. There were chubby, waddling men in red waistcoats and yel- low trousers, and other remarkable cos- tume represertations. The effect of this most up-to-date maiden in a setting of stch very ancient though blithe homeliness was surprising, but it was delectable. However, the girls are few that can realize all their delicate decorative whims, but every one, no matter how slender her purse, can keep within the bounds of sym- metry and harmony. The temptation to acquire furniture and ornaments simply be- catse they strike the fancy of the mo- ment is very strong, but it should not be forgotten that a correct rendering of an icea or plan is the first essential to a rest- ful effect. By this is meant the completely new furnishing of a room, Of course, the cosmopolitan room, hold- ing the treasures and memories of years, without respect to any era or any fashion, with no attempt at decoration, except as it accumulates in the form of gifts from friendly hands—this may be the most love- able room in the house, But when one is starting quite afresh, it would be well to observe a few géneral rules. Some Useful Hinta, Remember, that the proper mission of floor coverings is to serve as a background for the furniture, therefore, carpets should never obtrude themselves into notice. Color is an important point of all home decora- tion, especially from an economical point of view; for to those who cannot afford cost~ ly fabrics or furniture, color is as acces- sible as to their wealthier sisters. The tendency of today is toward pure color in- stead of half tones—olive green, pa'e terra~ cotta and light buff have “gone out.” Now blues must be sapphire or turquoise, reds must be deep or vivid; yellows must be giowing, because they are not only a figting background for furniture, but also a grati- fication to color-loving eyes. If you are the posszssor of bits of the sincere old English cabinet work, weave around them a “real old” scheme. Con- sider that their maker advocated scarlet leather for upholstery, and so add comfort with the aid of that warm color. Let the window curtains of heavy red velvet hang in full straight folds to the Turkey carpet; let the fenders and fire irons be of burnish- ed copper and iron, and be careful of your flowers! Don’t disturb the shade of Chip- pendale by orchids or green carnations rising from modern glass vases; but keep the furniture in countenance by massing rae or Chinese pinks in antique bowls and jars. An oriental room permits the most mis- cellaneous collection. In this day of travel- trotting there is hardly a girl that does not possess some foreign treasure collected by herself or presented by friends, and she should study the art of disposing of them to advantage—always duly regarding the fitress of things. For such a room the wells might be hung with lotus paper, the chairs be of comfortable Moorish rush or Hongkong wicker; indeed, almost anything “far away” and natural may find a place. But to associate or make mountings and Watteau brocades with eastern curios would be as incongruous as to hang North American Indian trephies or a group of Canadian snow shoes in a Lee's Quinze drawing room. —_—.—__ OUR COUNTRY HOSTS. What They Think of Us, Our Ways and Our Ambitions. From the Philadelphia Times, A young friend of mine overheard this conversation between the proprietress of a country farm house and her help the other morning: “Manda, have you rung that second bell?” “Yes, indeed; but I never see such peo- ple! Eight o'clock breakfast! Who ever heered o’ such a thing! Why, I'm pretty rear ready for ditrer now.” “Oh, them foiks durno anything "bout time. I can't see how they do tt. Six o'clock breakfast is late enough for any one.” “There’s that Mr. Craig, goes in his room an’ writes three hours a day, an’ calls that work. “Why, Eben'd saw a cord o° wood in that time!” Eben would probably get 50 cents for his labor, while Mr. Craig, who is a well-known magazine contributor, earns $25. But let that pass. “Manda, if that Miss Clarke asks for any more stale bread, you just tell her there ain’t any. I want what I've got for the flapjacks.”” “My gracious, if nice hot biscuit ain’t good enough for ‘em, then I'd like to know! “An’ that flimsy Mrs. Hall askin’ if I mixed up my biscuit with a spoon! “Well, if her conscience is as clean as my hands are, then it's a mighty good thing for her. “Here they come! Look out for that porksteak, Manda, an’ see that it don’t burn.” ———+e-+____ Not That Kind. ¥rom the Midland Monthly. An English writer would abolish the hon- eymoon, insisting that it spoils many a premising marriage by wearying the young couple one of the other. There are not a few old couples left who would suggest an ir definite extersion of the honeymoon rath- er than its abolition, having found that elceer acquiintance opens up depths of af- fection undreamt of on a wedding journey. The subject recalls the reply of a homesick soldicr to Gen. Thomas. The general met the man’s request for his second furlough in a single year with the remark that he himself hadn’t been home in a year and a half. “That's all right for you, general,” retorted the homesick man, “but me an’ my wife ain’t that kind.” ————_+e+____ What Sort of an Angel? From Happenchance. Brevvy Smith is three years oli. and as mischievous as three-year-old boys are made, He had been a very good child all day, and as bis mamma kissed him goodnight, she said with feeling: “This is mamma's little angel boy. He has been so good to- day I think I can feel his little wings sprouting.” “Yes, mamma,” answered the baby, in- geniously, “and me tinks me feel itty tail sproutin’. too!” pa SLATIN PASHA’S EXPERIENCE, When He Was a Prisoner of the Savage Mahdi. From the Saturday Review. I was kept for eight months in chains by the mahdi. The chains were of the thick- ness of my wrist, one round my neck and two about my arms and legs. In addition to this, I was tied to a pole like a dog or @ bear. This treatment did not begin im- mediately upon my capture. The mahdists never, of course, treated me very cordially, but considering their fanaticism toward all unbelievers, I had really not very much to complain of before I was cast into chains. To the mahdists, all non-mahdists are in- fidels, whether Mohammedan, Christian, Jew, or anything else, and all infidels are deemed worthy only to be slain. I was taken in the mahdi’s suite to Khartum, and when we arrived at the walls, the mahdi asked me to write a letter to Gen. Gordon calling upon him to surrender. Ac- cordingly I wrote a letter in German, which no one in the mahdi’s camp could control in any way, and it was duly dis- patched. however, it, as well as from indications, the mahdi concluded that I had not carried out his wishes. Therefore he cast me into chains. For the next eight months I was very badly treated. The chains were so heavy that I could scarcely rise up at all. When we moved from place to place, I was put on to a donkey, and two men walked by the side to prop me up. The object of this was to prevent my escaping into Khartum, which they suspected I intended to do. When Khartum fell, the mahdists found certain documents which they considered incriminating, so they increased my irons and their severity toward me. Within an hour of Gordon’s death his head was brought to me in my prison, wrapped up in a cloth which they unfolded before me. I had no difficulty in recognizing it at once. For sume reason or other they had taken it into their heads that I was Gor- don’s nephew, and no amount of arguing could disabuse them of that notion. They thought they recognized a likeness, and they kept repeating that we both had fair hair and blue eyes, as if that were conclusive. After all, one European seems very like another to them, just as one ne- gro seems like another to us. I heard full details of Gordon’s death afterward, and shall publish them in my book next Oc- tober. Gordon defended Khartum as well as it was possible for him to do under the circumstances. I think Gordon might have escaped from Khartum, had he wished to do so, at the last moment. He was killed on the top of the steps of the palace dur- ing the first rush of the invaders. One of the foremost men plunged a spear into his body; he was dragged down the steps in a wild tumult, and pierced through and through by countless spears. For three months my diet consisted only of various kinds of corn, chiefly dourra, not ground, but in its hard indigestible state. Afterward I was given beans and a kind of polenia. They would no doubt have killed me but that they considered me too valuable a prisoner. I had been gov~ ernor general of the province of Darfur, and it added to their prestige to take me about with them and exhibit me as their prisoner. Besides, they thought it might be possible for them to make use of the influence I possessed in the district. I suf- feted a good deal in health during my confinement, being attacked by fever and dysentery. No one made any attempt at nursing me, or provided me with any reme- dies. I had to Jie on the bare ground with a stone for my pillow, and was afforded no comfort or relaxation of any kind. I was released a couple of months or so be- tore the mahdi died, but the strictest watch was kept over me. On the death of the mahdi I was made one of the khahfa’s body guard, which meant that I was practically always under his eye. I used generally to be stationed outside his door, and liable to be called in to do his bidding at any moment. Of the two, I preferred the mahdi to the khalifa. Until he threw me into chaing the mahdi was comparatively amiable to me. He was @ man of some education, knew how to read and write, and possessed an intimate acquaintance with the Mohammedan re- ligion. The khalifa has not the religious prestige of his predecessor, and Is alienat- ing many of his supporters by an attempt to found a dynasty. This he has no earth- ly right to do either by law or tradition. Before his son could succeed him, other khalifas appointed by the mahdi would have a prior claim. Very strict rules are in force against either drinking spirituous hquors or smoking tobacco. Nor do the mahdists use opium or hashish—for one reason, because they are not procurable. Any one caught smoking tobacco is Hable to a punishment of a hundred lashes and the confiscation of all his property. In spite of that, there are still a many persons who venture to do it secretly. All these regulations are simply a cloak for the most monstrous immorality. The khal- ifa has a harem of four or five hundred women, and devotes a large part of his time to its amenities. The khalifa maintains his influence by tyranny and despotism, and the inhabit- ants—other than his own tribe—look for- ward anxiously to the time when Egypt will once again claim her lost provinces. But that is not a project to be undertaken too lightly, and when we do set about it we must be sure that we are able to carry it out to a successful issue. ——_—— e+ ____ BACTER! IN CLOTHES. A German Selentist Has Discovered ‘Them in a Worsted Stocking. From the British Medical Journal. Carlyle gave us the philosophy of clothes, Now, Dr. Seitz of Munich gives us their bacteriology. On examining a worsted stocking he found 956 thriving colonies, while on a cotton sock there were 712. Both these articles had been worn, but no information is vouchsafed as to the per- sonal habits of the wearer. Thirty-three colonies were found on a glove, twenty on a piece of woolen stuff and nine op a piece of cloth. None of these articles had been worn. On a piece of cloth from a garment which had been worn a week there were twenty-three colonies. Of the micro-organ- isms found on articles of clothing relatively few were capable of causing disease, The pathogenic species were almost without ex- ception staphylococci. In one case, however, Dr. Seitz found the typhoid bacillus in articles of clothing from twenty-one to twenty-seven days, and the staphylococcus pyogenes albus nineteen days after they had been worn. The an- thrax bacillus found in clothes was stlil virulent after a year. The microbe of ery- sipelas, on the other hand, could not be found after eighteen hours, nor the cholera vibrio after three days. Dr. Seitz studied with especial care the question whether in tuberculous subjects who sweated profuse- ly the bacillus was conveyed by the per- spiration of a piece of linen worn for some time next the skin of the chest. The In- oculation of two guinea pigs, however, gave negative resuits. The Irrespressible Conflict. From the Boston Transcript. He—“Please shut down that window; I have a cold.” She—"I have a headache.” He—"How selfish of you to prefer your headache to my cold. From Puck. Miss Elder—“I will bet you like that. I never marry. Mr. Easy—"I'll take you. Miss Elder (rapturously)—“WIUll you, real- ly? Then I won't bet, after all. you anything ON EGYPT'S From Life. CONEY ISLAND.