Evening Star Newspaper, August 15, 1896, Page 17

THE EVENING STAR, SATURDAY, AUGUST 15, 1896>-TWENTY-FOUR PAGES. 17 Avis eee Patrons of the Great “Mont-de- Piete.” —E HOW THE GOVERNMENT LOANS MOREY An Indirect Aid to the Rapacious Private Pawnbrokers. PARIS, July 39, 1896. N PARIS THERE are no private paw: shops. One great concern, whose ad- ministration is watched over by the government and whose profits gO largely to public charities, has had for more than a hun- dred years the monopoly of loaning money on pledged objects. The head othcers of this corporation are appointed by the government and the civil service system reigns over the appointment of its clerks and their promotion. Its capi- tal is not government money, but 1s rep- resented by stockholders willing to take an Interest rate of from 2 to 3 per cen| and of all these stockholders the Comedi Francaise, the state subventioned theater, fs the heaviest, having about of its funds thus Invested. The money thus obtained by the corporation of the Mont-de-Piete 1s, of course, loened out by ft at a higher rate of ingerest to people who are fortunat enough to have something to put in pawn. The ticket which the clerk will hand you for your watch bears in large typ at the top, “The French Republic—Lib- erty, Equality, Fraternity.” And the words beneath {t, in larger letters stil are even more consoling, “Mountain of Piety.” This is an old name in the Latin larguages for pawn shops run by gov- ernment, a poetic phrase coined by that pope who first had the idea of freeing people from the grip of usurers. The at is not religious piety, of conrse, but piety in the sense of natural duty and compassion, as when we say maternal or filial pfety. In Itallan the name is Mon‘e- have put up h now Lonx-Continue There are peo; row living who have had thetr watch or er heirloom soaking on the mountain forty years. They keep the interest up and hope for better days. Supposing sv @ watch to have been ortginaily worth $19. 3 te aterest, B per for ste T per WX, making 7 per cent man who has not seen his watch foe forty years would therefore have paid out in Paris someth! $44. If tt is true that the inter rage of New York pawn shops run into 75 per ¢ he would have paid out ea iz Had it been mattresses, bed clothes, tcoi or any such article of prime necessits nese Paris record holders weuld have had hree opportunities of getting them out free in the past forty years. From. the first days of the first republic to the present date it has been customary every now and then to make a kind of general jail deliv- ery of useful objects held in pawn, the mon- ey for the purpose coming either from a par- Hamentary decree or being raised by popu- lar subscription. The last three c of the kind were in 1850, 1871 and 1 1871 the money came from the English As- sociation, which, under Sir Richard Wal- lace, did such great work in relieving the miseries of the slege. In 1879, a winter of great cold and destitution, a sum of money Yoted by the Paris municipality was more than tripled by a popular subscription or- ganized by the popular one-cent daily news- Paper, the Petit Journal. The fact that since the winter of 1879 there has been no more of this setting free of pawned goods depends on a@ curious twist of modern com- mercial activity. It is asserted that nowa- days few of the actual pledgers of the freed goods would get the benefit of such a good work. This is owing to the pernicious industry of speculation In pawn tickets, which had already grown up in 1879, and which is in full flourish at the present day. It is a notable example of the fact that FRANCS O8 PARISIAN PAWN SHOPS | HER BLOOMER necessity and folly go hand in hand, and that greed and cunning are always dog- ging at their heels. wwnr Their Tickets. It is a fact that all the careful planning of the French government is very much thwarted by the Improvidence of men who, after having pawned their goods, will go and pawn the tickets. The authorities of the Mort-de-Piete de- practice, which nullifies their kes their position almost use- that their regulations, print- ket, indicate a much better way of realizing the last penny or an ar- praise an object low. If they «stimate it too high, and a loss results to the ad- ministration, the appraisers would have to make up the sum out of their private pockets. This, which seems to be a neces- sary rule, is at the bottom of the ticket speculation. ‘The lady who has changed her clock worth fifty france against ten francs and a ticket 1s confronted on the street by several estab- lishments immediately beside the Mort-de- Piete, not only by the establishments them- selves, but by their agents and runners. These establishments look exactly ke the pawn shops of America and England. They have the same dirty show windows, in which lie exposed a mass of miscellaneous Jewelry, opera glasses, bric-a-brac, re- volvers, knives, fans and such strayed valuables. These things are all for sale. All have been pawned some time or an- other at the Mont-de-Piete, all have come here from the official French loan office. Money has been loaned on their tickets here it was forbidden to loan money on the original articles. The poor woman of the glided clock either knows this or it Will soon be told her by one of the rival runners. Of course, she wants more than ten franes on her clock. She had expected to get twenty. The Mont-de-Plete has given her only ten. This pawn shop in the Second degree will lend her three or four francs more on the ticket, or they will buy her ticket from her outright for a slightly larger sum. They prefer to lend a few francs, hoping she will never come back. Cause and Effect. The system of the Mont-de-Plete is ad- mirable, complete and perfect; yet tt could scarcely hit off better the convenience of these rapacious speculators had ig been designed specially to please them. It seems to be the fact that human greed and neces- sity, combined with human laziness and unfaithfulness, can injure every philan- thropic plan which human judgment can build up. The appraisers of the Mont-de- Plete can scarcely be blamed for being what they are—unenthus‘astic and lazy government clerks. The poor man who has not rece!ved as much on his article as he expected can scarcely be blamed for yield- ing to the temptation of the ticket specu- lator. And the latter naturally brings to his business more painsiaking and acute- ness than can be expected in the daily routine of the Mont-de-Piete. Thus the appraisers sit all day beside their tables, hendling dirty mattresses and second-hand garments, not to speak of dia: is, jewelry, crockery, household furniture, musical instruments and all the rest. They lend money on pension papers, en stocks and bonds and on insurance po!- icles. Their spokesman is calling out to the waiting 2 . 158. Five francs! Accepted?” 139. Four hun- dred franes. Accepte Small and Large Loans. No. 128 takes his five francs and his tick- et. They do not even ask your name when it is under five francs. But when No. 130 is called—460 franes on a diamond ring—he is put through an Inquisiticn. Suppose it be an actor from New York, caught short on his summer European trip. As he does not speak much French the conversation 1s all Argues With the Appraiser. ticle already pawned. Their oritics answer that they do—in time; but that the poor men, pressed for money, cannot imme- diately get as large loan from these con- servative, hide-bound, uninterested civil service clerks of the Mont-de-Piete as a private pawnbroker would willingly risk advancing. And the proof of this, they say, Is that It is a profitable business to buy up tickets. The Paris Mont-de-Piete has one great centre] office building and storehouse com- bined, and nineteen branches in the differ- ent seciions of the city. Entering any one | of these, the sights and sounds and smells | will be the same. There ts the regulation | central hall with seldom less than twenty | people sitting patiently. Hard luck’s free | masonry makes strangers strike up confi- jenttal chats to while away the time. Meanwhile the civil service functionaries | | smoke their cigarettes, dream of their girls and their promotion, and move about | thelr business with a deliberation that would cause the discharge of any clerk in private employment. ~ Mingled here and | there with honest working people are men | who pawn their hcusehold furniture to go ! {on drinking. The sad-faced women, clutch- | | ing nervously at their bundles, have the | | same look throughout the world. Here all | sit or stand in full view of each other. | Everything fs open to the day. Fach sit- ter knows exactly what his neighbor gets on his article. “Next!” A wicket opeas. An official face appears | and an cfficial voice cries out the French equivalent of “Next!” It ts a lady with an eight-day clock, all gilded with recoco scrolls and a coquettish shepherdess in silt on top. The clock has disappeared, and | the poor pledger has a round brass ticket given her to represent it. “Next!” A man hands In a meerschaum pipe, ac- cepts his ticket, and shuffles back. He 1s sn absinthe fiend and appears to be un- easy. He does not like to wait the ap- pralsers’ pleasure. “Next! A smart young servant girl comes trip- ping, and hands in, with a saucy gibe, some railway bond or share in one of those joint stock companies in which the French, even to domestic servants, love to invest their savings. She knows exactly what she ought to get on the share. She will not sell the ticket afterward. Oh, no! She might go for the money to a bank or agent de change: but they would charge her as high for the accommodation, and she knows that the Mont-de-Piete is sure. She wents a loan on this bond or piece of stock In order to get the money to be- gin buying another. It Is a specimen of feminine Mnanciering, and a favorite de- to force oneself to new economies. A man across the hall calls out the num- bers. Those who have their brass num- bers step up to him. “No. St—ten francs!” it is for the clock. “Accepted?” “Accept- ed." The man who handed in the pipe is offered four francs on it. He accepts, but still must wait. He grows more nervous, and mumbles against bureaucracy And | every one accepts, and every one must | wait on longer. A Quiet Routine. All goes by routine, and very quiet and decent. ‘The official at the window spends his days in simply taking in the offered | articles and giving out the numbered brass s for them. Behind the scenes sit isible appraisers, handling each Pawning His Bed. article In turn. The rule established for the appraising of silverware or jewelry in gold and silver is four-fifths of their weight value; for all other articles two- thirds of thelr estimated value at an auo- tion sale. As may be readily guessed, the “official” value of a pawned object scarce- ly corresponds at the Mont-de-Piete with the hopes of its owner. Yet there is no appeal, no haggling. Now and then a hu- morous person wants to argue, but his time is lost. You take what is offered or leave It. These offictal, sworn and bond praisers have a special temptation ap- ap- | the longer. To be brief, the rule is that for every sum above five francs the pledger 13 required to give substantial evidence of his identity. Sometimes a passport fg sufficient for a forelgner. Old letters are hardly evi- ence in the case of a large sum. The French themselves are regularly required to hend in one or the other of their “papers” stry of birth, certificate of mil- service, marriage certificate, or, at a pinch, a rent receipt or other stamped doc- ument which has passed through the hands of third parties. ‘There is another differ- ence between small loans and large loans. On pledges of two, three and four francs, if they he redeemed before the expiration of two months, no interest or other charges whatsoever are demanded by the Mont-de- Piete. This is a great boon te petiy bor- rowers who are always taking things in and cut. ‘onditions of the Transaction. Examining a ticket of the Mont-de-Piete, the follov:ing conditions appear, which show the workings of the institution on its best side, namely, when people use it properly: 1. The length of the engagement is for one year. 2. The administration takes 8 per cent in- terest and 3 per cent for expenses per year, the charges to be proportional to the num- ber of fortnights which pass. Each fort- night onee begun mvst be paid for entire. Pledges of less (han five francs, not staying more than two rnonths in pawn, pay no in- | terest or expenses. 3. There is a fixed state tax of 1 per cent cn the amount of all loans. 4. Every pawned object which is not re- newea or withdrawn within a year is Mable to be sold in the couree of the thirteenth morth. However, it is permitted the pledger to demand the sale cf his article at the official auction within three months of the date of pawning. The benus realized at such sale, cf course, goes to the pledger. 6. If the sale of a pledged article brings The Scalper: “Tickets Bought.” an amount greater than the sum loaned, even though it has been forfeited, the ex- cess (called “‘boni’) remains at the disposti- tion of the pledger. But every bon! which is not claimed within three years belongs to the public charities fund of the Mont-de- Piete. Does not everything seem well arranged for the poor people who are obliged to fre- quent their “uncle” in France? Take what is offered to you and walt for the rest three months. tion, and after deducting interest and ex- penses at the low rate of 7 per cent a year the whole balance will be given to you. It is very just end reasonable. But the ap- praisers are conservative and only wish to shield themselves and their establishment from loss. And the runners of the ticket speculators’ shops are just outside the door. And so here, as in other lands where pawn shops are for private profit, the unthrifty lcse their valuable objects and no one — ald them. STERLING HEILIG. =e No More Midnight Falls. From the Chicago Evening Post. She watched him put the package away carefully, and, womanlike, she was curious. “What is it?” she asked. “Phosphorus,” he replied. “What do you intend to do with it?” she persisted. “Last night,” he explained, with delib- eration, in the tone of a man who felt that he had a grievance, “I came home late.” “As usual.” He pald no attention to the insinuation, but continued his explanation. “You may recall,” he said, “that I fel) over two chairs and a doll carriage and Stepped on a wooden ball that threw me on the back of my neck. “T recall it,” she admitted. atyeeee up all the neighbors as well as myself. What of it?” enotning: Oh, nothing at all,” he replied, castically. “It M4 & small matter, but it annoyed me, and I made up my mind that if you couldn't teach the children t put their things away where they belo: would at least make arrangements so that I would know where they are when I come home efter lodge meeting tonight. The Dhosphorus’’— Pooh!” she retorted, coneempluoust “you'd have stepped on ight electric it had been in your way Yat tare Your article will be sold at auc-j GULF OF SORROWS mag Beauties of Lake Matacaitio and Its Vicinity: VENEZUELA'S GREAT SEAPORT ————_——_— An Ideal Home for Those Who Love Idleness. ———— LIFE IN THE GREAT LAGOON ———_>—_—_. HE GULF OF MAR- acaibo was named by Columbus El Golfo Triste (the Gulf of Sorrow, or Disaster), because his little fleet was nearly destroyed there by a hurricane during his third voy- age of discovery. Ojeda also visited that inland sea,which has the peninsula of Paraguana,now Coro, for its eastern bound- ary and that of Goajira for its western, and went through the narrow passage at present defended by the castle of San Carlos and a swarm of alligators, into the great and beautiful fresh water lake bearing still the Indian name Maracaibo, but called by Amerigo Vespucci, who accompanied Ojeda, Venicia, or in the Spanish language Ven- ezuela, meaning Little Venice. This name, now applied to the whole country, was sug- gested by the fact that the Indian villages were built in the lake, upon piles, as {s the city of Venice in its laguna. One of those veritable lake villages still remains, in pre- historic simplicity, situated about four miles below the city of Maracaibo, and bearing the Spanish name of Santa Rosa (Holy Rose). Lake Maracaibo {s 137 miles long and 75 miles wide, and receives tribute from sev- eral hundred rivers and smailer streams, principally of Andean origin. Many of these @re navigable, as the Zulia, Catatumba, Bravo, eic., the former extending into Co- lombia and furnishing a route for the trans- State House, Maracaibo. portation of an increasing amount of excel- lent coffee, of both Venezuelan and Colom- bilan growth, but classed as Maracaibo. The shores of the lake are usually rather low, except toward the south the maun- tains, and this is true also of the long neck of brackish water congecting the lake body with the gulf. Along these bordering plains are extensive groves of coco palms, the source of easy wealth to their owners, giv- ing also to the landscape by their stately grace a distinct and pleasing aspect. The palm is the characteristic tree of the trop- ics, as varied in its usefulness as it is sin- gular In its beauty. Besides these frequent peta groves one notes groups ef the grace- ‘ul date palm, and sometimes in the dream- ing lake villages, the pueblos, rows of the noble “palma real,” or royal palm, sugges- tive of the perfection and the forms of Corinthian architecture, and wonders that the English language could give so insuffi- cient and poor a name as “cabbage palm” to the most finished tree in the world. The lakeside homes are all embowered in trees, usually bearing fruit, such as the orange, tamarind, sapodilia, mango, custard apple (anona squamosa), soursop (anona muricata), pomegranate, almond and fig, bread fruit (artocarpus Incisa), the red and the white guava, the cashew, and the cala- bash and “lechosa” ¢carica papaya), the first bearing ummer squash” and the.last @ nectarous fruit of the size and appear- ance of a better cantaloupe than you ever ate. And among the coast fruit trees the “uva de playa,” or grape tree (cocoloba uvifera), should be specially noted. It most resembles a beech tree, and bears separate berries of the size, shape and flavor of grapes, which fall when ripe, and are much heq., And less than a tree, but giving tropical character to the coast scenery, 1s the prevalent and useful banana, furnishing almost without cost more nutriment acre than is derived from twenty acres of wheat. A Fertile Land. When it is considered that this lake has over 400 miles of such shore line, with elongations up the principal streams, and that the fertile soil is invigorated by trop- {cal heat and a degree of constant humid- } ity, it becomes apparent that this portion of Venezuela is destined to sustain a dense end thriving population. It is also a healthy region, and one peculiarly attract- ive, especially as one approaches the foot- bilis of the Andes, south and east from the lake, and aimost feels the magnificent snow- peaked mountain masses tower above him, and inhsles from them a purer breath. The state of Zulia, which contains the great lake, contains also portions of the great mountains, upon one of which stands the ancient city of Merida, 5,408 feet above the lake—a city of 12,000 inhabitants, which be- fore its destruction by earthquake in 1812 was the largest city in Venezuela, and Is now renewing its prosperity, and antici- pating railway communication 106 miles with a t of river and Jake navigation. Near the foot of this lake, on its western shore, is the city of Maracaibo, the market for the products of the surrounding region and a considerable portion of Colombia. It is impossible to state accurately its popula- tion, but it probably exceeds 30,000. The city is only a few feet above the level of the lake, and stands upon sandy soil. Its mean annual temperature is a little over | 80 degrees Fahrenheit, yet it is, with its constant heat, considered healthy. Foreign- Jesuit College, Maraéaibo. ers who brave the midday heat, and retain a habit of inbibing brandy, can, easily make the acquaintance of a cémetety, however. Within sight of the city are “beautiful is- lands, far out in the lake to the east, hav- ing the painful interest, nevertheless, of containing a colony of lepers., A Magnificent, Harkor. The harbor is perhaps the best in the country. The difficulty which’ needs to be surmounted is that thé! entfance to the lake, at the castle of San Carlos, is 80 shal- low as not to admit vessels drawing over about twelve feet of water. There is prob- ably a fine chance for some enterprising Yankee to obtain a valuable concession in connection with deepening and keeping this entrance open, which entrance appears to @ more shallow than formerly, when Brit- h_men-of-war made hostile visits to the ike, as also did other vessels known as buccaneers. And it is worth remembering that two British war vessels were captured in Mara- calbo harbor, where they lay at anchor, by Venezuelan cavalry, a third one escaping. e feat was accomplished nearly a cen- tury ago by the gallant cavalry leader, Gen. Paez. He having hastily organized a troop of horse, and under cover of darkness swam out upon his horses to the vessels, abandoned them and scrambled aboard, surprising the sentries and securing the ore vessels nearest the shore. The other ipped its cable and ed. This unique per } | | CROWNED WITH HONOR. The Great Preshyterian, Rev. Charles L. Thompson, D. D., of New York, What Paine’s From oo one class of inen has Paine’s celery com- peund received more unstinted pralse for ite won- | derful powers of making the elck to be well again than from iniuisters of the Gospel in every denow iration. Rev. Father Ouellet, Dr. Meek, the editor of the “Central Methodist ;"" Rev. Dr. Baird, Rev W. J. White, D.D., of the Georgia Baptist, are among the hosts of clergymen who have gratefully published, that thelr experience might be of bene- fit to othere, the ever true story of how this great- est of all remedics makes people well, building up the shattered nerves, enriching the thin blood and rooting out diseaee. Rev. Charles L. ‘Thompson, D.D., pastor of the Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church in New York city, {8 a man crowned with honor. Before going to the celebrated church where he now preaches in Néw York he served in prominent pulptts in Cin- cipnat!, Chicago, Pittsburg and Kansas City. He has written much and well on themes of public in- presided over the continental general as- terest, action saved the city from a forced con- tribution cr from pillage. Maracaibo, like most tropical cities, has rarrow and therefore more easily shaded streets; its houses have thick walls and high rooms, usually with an inner court, and tiled roofs. They are commodious and airy, as required for comfort in such a Maracaibo. Government Buildings, climate, and need little repair. The princi- pal business and public buildings are near the lake side, for convenience, and present a stately and substantial appearance. Be- sides the shipments of coffee, skins, dye- wood, etc., there is considerable manufac- turing, and a large and increasing impor- tation for the city and the region around and beyond the lake. Small steamers ply between the city and distant lake ports, and there are constant movements of smaller sail vessels, bringing and carrying goods, many of which are the customary hemes of families. But all business is done in such a leisurely way that there is sel- dcm any bustle, fret or impatience, except in the rapid loading of the steamer with ecffee. At 11 o'clock all work ceases until 1, for meals and the inevitable siesta, and workmen may be seen lying in the shade of the plaza trees, often with their heads pil- lowed on the laps of their wives. Sunstroke is unknoxn in the tropics, and in spite of the prevalent heat, the death rate of the state of Zulia, including Maracaibo city, is as low as in most of our states; while the number of persons in Venezuela of 100 to 125 years old averages in its total popula- tion about 20 per cent higher than in ours. A Supply of Fine Fruits. Perhaps one of the most interesting fea- tures presented to us by the Maracaibo basin, together with the almost adjoining but slightly nearer area drained by the Magdalena river, is that relating to their capacity to furnish our increasing demand for the best tropical fruits, such as ban- anas, pine appies, oranges and others of which we see little at present. From Mo- bile and New Orleans, points through which the north and west will some time be better supplied, to the great possible fruit region of the Magdalena is only about 1,500 nautical miles, and io that of the Maracaibo little more than 1,600; in either instance less than the distance from New York city to Cheyenne, Wyo., or to the nearest point of the Rocky mountains. Already we receive excellent supplies of coffee through und from these regions, but by remote routes or foreign conveyance. Lines of steamers to carry our flour, pork, kerosene, canned goods, and in time our articles representing more skilled labor value, and to bring back to us coffee, ca- cao, hides and skins, etc., would soon find abundant freight also in fruit of kinds and qualities superior to any now import- ed. For instance, no bananas now reach Washington, nor often New York, except of varieties solely used for cooking where they are grown. Not one in a thousand of cur pecple ever ate the right banana for Taw use—one delicious and pleasant, and having no strong taste, plump even to bursting often; small and buttery in the mouth as a pear. The banana usually sold here is used for frying (sliced in butter or sweet oil) in the aeoriasy and for export to us. The oranges of Veriezuela surpass any we import from the Mediterranean, Celery Compound Has Done Preacher. sembly in Philadelphia, and has been often a com, missiouer and chairman of I an exceptiounily fore! courts. ing committees and le debater in all the church Mis large charity has made him a welcome repre- sentative of his church to ot s and to his brethren of other lands. Dr. Thompson 1s a prodigious worker. of the many thonsards who Paine’s celery compound does for those who 3 worn cut by labor, who are suffering fro stage of nervous exhaustion and who req bealth-giving remedy that will speedily replenish the system with proper nutrient. ng from New York on June 23, Dr. Thomp- son said: “I think to the use of Paine's celery compor is due the fact that after a winter of exhaust work I have been able to carry my duties throu the enervating springtime with unusual ease ard ccmfort.” To the multitude who suffer from the enervating er chure He Is 0 ¢ discovered what some end are juicier than much of the famed seeds. And with steam by sea and land our people might enjoy at tim varieties of delicate and strangely delicious fruits, such as the soursop, the sapodilla and the mango. Perhaps these things will come to delight and benefit us when southern North America and northern South Amer- ica, so near cach other, shake hands com mercially. Other Valuable Products. Meanwhile there are rare woods, like the mahogany, rosewood, valuable bitter cedar and twenty other as choice varieties for those which bear stores of vegetable wax, Soap, etc., which will make the lake region and name better known to us in time. erything along the shores will slowly change, while the general features, dom- inated by the perpetual Andes, will remain as they have been since the first Indians And as the Indians are not there pater- nalized by government, nor scrambled over fer their spiritual scalps, they will still farm the placid waters for excellent fish, gather wild bananas and other abundant fruit, raise pigs and fowls on extemporized j almost effortless life in cabins ten feet | Bbove the water, with palm-thatched roofs, | Teed-woven sides and reed-carpeted floors, with a notched log for a ladder up from the softly lapping waves and their rocking canoes; free from wild beasts, snakes, in- sects and cares of all kinds, relieved by abundant nature from want, and happy good-sized sunflowers. ALMONT BARN ——_—+ A Study in Dialects. From the Cleveland Post. “If you want to study dialect shadings take a half dozen trips on one of the bir consolidated cars,” said a prominent law- yer who lives on the Cedar avenue branch of the line referred to. “You'll hear some of the queerest attempts at pronunciation you ever listened to. Yes, from the con- ductors. I've got so schooled in the differ- ent accents that I can tell In a moment when a new conductor is aboard. I under- stand a good many of these fare takers ar Canadians. If that is so, Canada must be as full of dialects as the Austrian empire. My favorite test is on the word ‘transfer.’ In six trips I heard it pronounced six dif- ferent wa. Let me try and reproduce them: Ss. “Trunsfurs.' “‘Trawnsfers.’ ‘Trinsfars. “‘Drunsver: he last example emanates, I am in- clined to think, from an official of German Gescent. All the other conductors were un- mistakably from some portion of the Brit- ish possessions. Listen the next time you go aboard a motor and see if you can con- rect the dialect artist with his original na- tionality. —_—_+e- Almest Beyond Belief. From the Cleveland Leader. “Do you see that worran there?” “Yes, what about her?” “Most remarkable case I ever heard of. She got on a street car yesterday, and, see- ing a vacant seat near the center, went and took it without standing In the door and waiting for the other passengers to shove along.” ee Forcible, Not Clever. From the Caicago Record. “That young dentist seems to be a clever fellow.” . “Not much, he isn't. I went in his office to get a tooth pulled, and he treated me as if I had signed @ contract to have him mur- der me.’ Florida fruit and have thin rinds and few | furniture and interior adornment, besides | built their lake dwellings within the scene. | islands in shallow waters, and enjoy an | effects of the warm weather in this | plain, straightforward sta nt f | and fearless a clergyman should be heeded | Patne’s celery compound bas put ap end to an enormous amount of stckness It began at the very to cure men and women complain: and lasting cures of all th ut a of Its splendid career Kidney troubles, mis proxtration, mitse liver speedy and nerve 41 and bled disorders were not slow in spr ein ti ° Bre most skillful m vigorating th Thouss ¢ 1x reputation through Physic t remedy as the most « ans every Bree ans that ru of wholly disint be down” system, ested men and women saw thelr n Mand townspecple made well by Patne's nd. y comp making al . Ane thoroughness and zen) of the ‘This epor th ry in medi to patience, tmouth Cy tioned as the greatest brain and nerve strong? | and restorer the w great ce sclentist, stands today umnes 1d poswesses. A CUCKOO §$' ON UNAWARES. In the Pre ence of Danger Comically hong Recomen and Slim, | | Frm | May 1 give you one of my own notes of | bird study as a fair pattern to go by? It was a yellow-billed cuckoo's “kKuk-kuk- kuk, kauk, kau-uk!” tall hedge near my raiued forth from a house that called me forth glass In hand. The bird's voice was strong enough, there could be no doubt as to the part of the hedge whence it issued: | | but the bird itself; 1 looked and looked for jit before 1 saw it. For this cuckoo has somewhat of the conjurer’s cleverness in rendering itself invisible while yet unhid- den by any physical barrier to vision. It is | a slender and disproportionately elongated | bird, having a protracted tail and a far- | reaching lightly arched bill, Something in the blending of its xmoky plumag. jits unts of gray olive, brown and | white, will not s it from leaf and | twig ‘and bark and lichen, IT knew. its ways, and so waited for it to move, which it presently did by erecting head and tail at a sharp V-like angle. he atti broke the epeil of my vision, and reve j the bird sitting crosswise on a bots-d'arc | branch. Here the gl came quickly into play. For thirty-five minutes I slyly followed | that cuckoo, noting its every move. It was | evidently quite unaware of me, and I was | very careful not to attract its attention | Here are some notes made imm=diately after my observations The cuckoo has a y of letting its wings siighily droop while 1. sits quite SUM. It is then that it turns fts head slow- ly in every direction, looking for worms. moths and like amid the foliage. It has a drowsy expression; one might think jit a stupid bird, and {ts movements are | generally spiritiess. But the moment it sees a worm on a leaf all is changed. Like a flash comes the stroke. Andy herve je no rush nor noise. The thi “ with an ea facility am to absolute promptaess of moion. Al th stion of 4. cuckoo feathers nu hen it is almos long and s look apressed” and stiff, of # very smail hole. but slowly f bird approa | but oftener sh sth hows fig ar ke Loafer—“Want a gard’ner,