Evening Star Newspaper, January 15, 1898, Page 23

MIMIC BATTLE SCENE Drilling the Troopers in the Knack of Fighting. THE MANEUVERS AT FORT RILEY Terrific Charge on a Belching Bat- tery. A SCHOOL FOR BRAVERY Frem the -w York Times. ‘There has been a scene of strife and war- fare in Kansas, during a period of almost three months, in which battle after battle has been fought and in which every condi- tion of actual warfare has prevailed, save one—the use of ball cartridges. Every fall the forces of cavalry and ar- tillery stationed at Fort Riley, constituting the artillery and cavalry schools of the army, recelve problems in warfare to solve in the field. ‘The maneuvers, as they are termed, have just ended and have proved not only the most perfect from a military standpoint of any yet held, but also the most hotly contested and exciting. thing theoretical enters into the cam- paign as it is mapped out at Fort Riley. No detail of knowledge which a soldier should know is omitted. The post com- mandant and officers in charge of the cav- an@ artillery schools, each of which, the way, constitutes a subpost, decide upon the plan of campaign. Subordinate officers from the garrison are placed in charge of certain bodies of troops and cer- tuin problems are given them to solve. The force defending the post-in all en- gagements wear the regular service uni- form of the United States army. The in- vading force, or “enemy,” wear uniforms of brown canvas, and are known in post parlance as “The Brown: When a certain maneuver has been de- termined on and is about to be exploited, an order is issued by the adjutant, by order of the commandant, copies of which are in turn celivered to those officers who are to command the “Browns,” Instructing them where to go and what to do. This force leaves the post at an early hour in and goes to some point upon It may be a mile or two, are conditions the to find out as best Into the Field. Maj. Wallace F. Randolph, who is in command of the artillery subpost, was one of the judges that morning. As we rode Gown the sloping hill toward the artillery post, explained to me many of the events that were scheduled to transpire that the Diue Far ahead, winding down t roud, was a long column of avalrymen, their sabers elank sides and every man in the pin of condition. Their horses, noble Is every one pmed to enter fully frit of the fun and were pranc- aS eager to as were their riders. Gropped from hills and th apparently nport ‘ormed mi in that ed the frst 1 1 the old stone mansion the read «(abruptly up the bluff and headed in ction of a ranch house, distant The and gat cover ror five miles from the post. had now thrown out a patro ding cautiously, not knot moment nemy might what them or h Scouts were in the timber on ravine, and land lay before which, it seemed to my untrained not even @ coyote could pass without . much | squadron of cayalr uk we will be in the major, of that hill over ¥ © over there somewhere am vken. That looks like Captain Sibley ® there towards the west. You can there on his horse, just rising swell, about a mile aw: Reconnoitering. I looked with all my eyes for I didn't. the officer, but certainly did not see him. I knew from hearsay that Captain Sibley and his troop of the second were off there Bomewhere, but for all I could see there wasn't a cavalryman within 100 miles. We rode slowly up the ridge to gain a better view. I had a handkerchief tied about my arm to indicate that I was a non-combatant hence was in no danger of being captured, as I “didn’t count.” My horse, evidently lighted with his unusual work, want- with his troop in action—and he a little later. I had no voice in of his going, but he went all the i took me with him. $ a battery off toward the north,” said the s he swept the fi his he ‘ou make it out down in one of the little valley: hidden by the stunted undergrowth, I s it. How diminutive the men and horses look. nd how insignificant the guns. They in marching order, but evident- ly not going into action just at that place. Suddenly a puff of smoke arose from the bushes several hundred yards up the hill above the battery. the sharp crack of a rifle rang out. hi of “Browns” had found a fire that followed instantly showed matters were getting warm down A cloud of dust arose, and th: tery was gone. I never saw anything Away it we kly in my life. side of the s the run. As soon point & - was reached, and it required but a ute to — the horse wung to the left, the pieces were un- battery was in position, and <ped from the muazles of those big ha storm of fire as would have -d any such force as the “Browns’ rtillerymen thrilled my every herve. Almost be t moke had left the muzzies of their pieces the breech blocks were opened. new cartridges were Inserted in the chambers, and mot inary shrapnel was sent hurling in ranks of the discom: “Browns here I learned the object of that forlorn attack the “Browns.” I also took part in some at was not down on the . troop, while this en- in progress, had ex- vement, and came dash- ne i immediately in our rear. y were upon us before elther the major «lf had time to think. it” Was the Word. major thought more quickly than I ty could, and embodied his thoughts word, “Git major “got,” and I tried to do like- horse had made up his mind » charging on his own account. The ized his troop, and, although I consulted in the matter, I went In fact, th no alternative. 1} an indistinet recollection of having geen ¢ y go by me like a shot cut of a gun. was a general mix-up of hors flashing sabers and cracking revolvers that made my brain whirl. Do that hill we went like a tornado. Up the other slope we fairly flew, and be- for battery could train its’ guns in our tion it was counted out of action. A idron of cavalry in brown un forms nad picked up a patrol ef the “Blues” and captured it entire. The main force of (he federals was coming up as fast &s troops could move. Field officers were Seen hurrying in every direction, and we ‘Were just about in the center of what prom- ised to be the scene of a very lively battle. We started toward the right, to take posi- tion on another hilltop, only to confront a €avalry force coming lke the wind from Over the hills; weturned back, and found @ battery wheeling into action behind us. ff toward the left a strong force of rowns” appeared just as we started that Yay, and when we finally headed toward fe ravine, in which I had just captured battery, we found Captain Sibley's ‘e plunging through the bushes there. Our white handkerchiefs served to save us from capture, and we eventually found a way out between the opposing lines. A Grand Sight. It must not be understood from this de- scription that the contending forces were so close together as to be visible to each other. The rolling nature of the ground was such as to prevent this, but each sep- arate force had its scouts out, and upon their information acted. When they acted at all they acted like lightning, and, while we rode over a good deal of ground trying to get out, we found it difficult in the ex- treme to get away from the line of fire that at any instant might break forth. And there are pleasanter things than riding up in front of a battery that suddenly bursts ae action, even if nothing but powder is We gained the top of another swell and from there I saw the grandest military sight I ever witnessed. Every move was plain; all the troops could be seen by us, but not by each other. We could see the moves, and, with the trained eye of an ex- pert, the major described to me what would be sure to occur, as fast as each move was made. It was like a game of chess, played with living men, upon a gigantic board. A false move meant severe loss, a brilliant Move, a glorious gain. And every officer, every man, every horse, performed deeds of valor upon that field that day, which, pene tied time comes, can be and will be ed in Counter: the defense of our glorious e judges, who had witnesse frem various portions of the acid, pase ard conferred together. Their final report was made and copies of it were sent to each officer who had been concerned in the day's engagement. Possible Carnage. Had the contest been in earnest, and had ball cartridges been used, the fight would have been the hottest in the history of our army. The list of casualties would have been total, so far as the captured battery was concerned, and the patrol of the “Browns” that attacked the battery at the outset would have been obliterated and ex. terminated at the first round of shrapnel. Officers and men alike learned much by this day’s work. Those who had met de- feat were shown wherein their calculations had been wrong, and it is a foregone con- clusion that none of them will get caught in the same sort of trap again. The men who were victorious knew all the move- ments that had been necessary to their success and they remembered them. The horses, too, learned much in equine tactics, and became so perfect in their work that they were almost a part of the rider, com- prising with them, a veritable army of cen- taurs, armed with the most deadly weapons known to moderns, and equipped with a Knowledge of actual field service that could be gleaned in no other school on earth. All in all, Fort Riley is one of the most interesting posts in the army. Its garrison consists of two troops of the Ist Cavalry, Six troops of the 2d Cavalry and three bat- teries of artillery. It is headquarters for the 1st Cavalry. —————_+e+______ INFLUENCE OF BOOKS. How a Single Phrase Has Shaped Some Lives. Dean Farrar in the Independent. There is one piece of advice which I would give with intense earnestness to all; it is: Never be tempted by curiosity to read what you know to be a bad book or what a very little reading shows you to be a bad book, Bad books—by which I do not mean merely ignorant and mislead- ing books, but those which are prurient and corrupt—are the most fatal emissaries of the devil. They pollute with plague the moral atmosphere of the world. Many and many a time a good book, read by a boy, has b the direct source of all his future success; has inspired him to attain and to deserve eminenc: as sent him on the paths of discovery; has been as a sheet anchor to all that was noblest in ‘acter; has contributed the predom- to the usefulness and happl- whole life. Benjamin Fraak- lin testified that a little tattered volume eful citizen “the vubiic ntages of it to that lit- Bentham said that the sirgle phrase “the greatest good of the greatest number,” caught at a glance in a pamphlet, directed the current of his ow tie book thoughts and studies for life. The entire career of Charles Darwin was influenced by a book of travels which ne read in early years. On the other hand, it is fatal- ly possible for any one—esp2zially for any youth—to read himself to death in a bad book in five minutes. The well-known minister, John Angell James, narrated that when he was at school a boy tent him an impure book. He only read it for a few minutes, but even during those few min- utes the poison flowed fatally into his soul, and became to him a source of bit- terness and anguish for all his after years. The thoughts, images and pictures thus glanced at haunted him all through Ife like foul specters. Let no one indulge his evil curiosity under the notion that he is safe. “He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool “©, who can hold a fire in bis hand By thinking on the fresty Caucasus?’ Were we not warned two thousand years ago that “he who toucheth pitch shall be defiled?” and three millenniums ago the question was sked, n a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burn- ed, or can one walk upon not coals, and his feet not be scorched Se Cr ee The Lion of Lucerne. From the London Times. Our Zurich correspondent writes: “Very unfavorable reports were in circulation some years ago about the condition ot ‘Thorwaldsen’s famous monument, the Lion of Lucerne. A corimission of ex- perts was appointed to make a full re- port as to the damage which the grotto and monument had already suffered from frost, rain and natural decay, and certain measures of repair and protection were then adopted. It is now unfortunately the case that, owing to the excessive rains of the past year, the monument has been much injured, and shows serious signs of cracking and crumbling away in many parts of its structure. The injury is chiet- ly due to the action of water trickling through the living rock out of which the lion i» carved, and the experts have de- cided that the figure and its backgrouna must be completely isolated from the main bod: of sandstone cliff, and that an exten- ining and drying of the rocky sur- must also be carried out, so that the progressive decay of the mounment may be reduced to a minimum. These works are already in progress. Thorwaldsen’s me- morial to the memory of the Swiss guards jain in defense of the Tuileries on Au- gust 10, 2, was modeled in Rome, and the execution of the work was intrusted in 1821 to a Swiss artist, M. Lucas Ahorn ot Constance.” Old Men and Young Wives. Roswell M. Field in Chicago Post. Ovr good friend, Ignatius Donnelly, aged sixty-six, writes to the Tribune that he is very proud of the fact that, having passed middle life, ‘a young lady (aged twenty- ene) of prominent goodness and many ac- complishments, could see enough in me to induce her to link her destiny with mine.” We do not wish to cloud Mr. Don- elly’s horizon with pessimistic forebod- ings, and yet we regard it our duty to call the attention of our old friend to the burn- ing words of Lord Bacon, as found in the incomparable lines of ‘The Passionate Pil- grim,” and often willfully and erroneously attributed to the fellow Shakespeare: “Crabbed age and youth cannot li ct with Is full of pleasance, age Io full of care: h lke summer morn, age like winter weather; uth like summer brave, age like winter bare. suth is full of sport, age’s breath 1s short;. youth ix uimble, age is lame; i outh is hot und bold, age i Kk $ Youth ts wild <nd age is tame St CdS it may be that there is a reservation in these lines in the way of a cryptogram that encourages Mr. Donnelly to pursue his headlong matrimonial career, but we e submitted them to the authors and poets at Mr. Morris’ packing house, who are making an earnest study of Bacon, and they assure us that the lines convey a dis- tinet warning to Mr. Donnelly and vener- able gentlemen tortured by similar emo- tiuns. We h8pe Mr. Donnelly will study ris Bacon again before it is too late. —_-+e+—___ An electric locomotive in a Canadian coal mine shows a saving over mules of $2,528 in 200 days, and an electric pump in the same mine shows a saving over steam pumps of $1,573 in 970 days. THE EVENING STAR, SATURDAY, JANUARY 15, 1898-24. PAGES. A TEMPERANCE COMPARISON The Statistics Show That the United States is Really Abstemious. The Thirsty English Make and Drink Not Quite Thirty Gallons Per Capita of Deer Ani ally. From the London Times. Apparently the Englishman continues to drink in a steady fashion, without vacilla- tion, the drink of his fathers. About thirty gallons of beer a head are made in Eng- land every year, and mest of that is drunk here. In regard to the corsumption of epirits there is no sign of any expansion, such as is noticeable in other countries. The quantity drunk hes increased little dur- ing the last ten years. In 1806 it was 1.015 gallons a head, * * * The Dutch, akin to us in race, on the whole resemble us in their tastes, though they drink more spirits than our countrymen—in fact, the average eensumption is twice as much. Belgium shows @ remarkable all-round capacity for absorbing alcoholic beverages. It drinks twice as much wine per head and twice as much spirits, chiefly gin, as,England, and it also consumes more beer—not very strong, it is true—than any other country in the world, except Bavaria, the consump- tion being about forty-two gallons a head, as compared with five in France and about thirty in England. Indeed, the average con- eumption of beer in the whole of Germany is much jess than in Belgium, the only country with a still larger consumption be- ing Bavaria, where fifty gallons a head are drunk. Probably no one ever drank so much of any fluid as a modern, well-sea- scned “child of Munich.” One hears much of the growth of the habit of drinking beer in the United States, but Mr. Bateman’s figures go to show that the Americans drink less than half as much beer as is consumed here. In fact, that country seems to be, for a time, at all events, steadily treading the path of temperance. * * * Fiscal authorities in America, who attribute this falling off to depression of trade, are hopeful that people will drink more when they make more money. But the moralist may be pardoned for believing that a taste for Bourbon whisky is not a necessary concomitant-of better times. In America, and, indeed, almost everywhere, the interest of the financier and the aspira- ticns of the moralist in this matter do not exactly harmonize; chancellors of the ex- chequer being always tempted to hold with Mandeville that private vices are public benefits. In almost every civilized state an in- creasing proportion of the revenue is drawn from taxation of alcoholic bever- ages. Everywhere temperance comes in conflict with favorite and facile systems of taxation. It is not altogether satisfactory in this connection to find that, while the United States obtain from this source 30 per cent of their revenue, Germany 17% per cent and France 19, the proportion for the united kingdom is 35 per cent. We are a little too dependent on thirsty souls, and might be sadly puzzled to know what to do if they became sober. France is in normal years by far the largest wine producer and the chief con- sumer. Only very imperfect figures exist as to the home consumption of wine in that country, but there Is no reason to think that it is increasing. Nor do the French, except in towns, drink much more beer than they used to do. On the other hand, there is well-founded alarm at the pro- Gigious increase in the consumption of spirits, often, it may be added, in most deleterious forms, for many of the vari- eties of alcool d’industrie are highly active poisons. The average strength of spirit sold in France is known to be high; and, mak- ing allowance for women and children, who rarely drink spirits, and assuming the accuracy of the evidence of several wit- nesses before a recent commission as to the limited proportion of drinkers of spirits, it follows, we are told, that each of the consumers “drinks 97 ‘litres 28 centilitres at degrees of strength, or 3,791 glasses (petits verres), in the year, or 10% in the day.” Another calculation brings out the result that each elector drinks on an aver- age five petits verres a day, exclusively of spirits surreptitiously made by smalt pro- ducers. This consumption 1s not spread equally over France; jt is concentrated in the north and northwest departments. ———— THE QUEEN'S CHRISTMAS DINNER. A Boar's Head and a Peacock Pie Figure Prominently. From London Sketch. In nothing does the conservatism of her majesty show itself more clearly than im the preparation of her Christmas dinner. At that stately repast are served all the principal dishes, and in similar guises, which appeared on the table of her prede- cessor, Henry VIII. The wines are usu- ally supplied from the famous cellars of the Emperor of Austria, and, with sundry bottles from minor German potentates who own historic vineyards, are sent as Christ- mas presents to the sister sovereign at Windsor. The entry of the boar’s head is always a moment of intense excitement for the little princes and princesses grouped round the royal table. With polished tusks, glittering eyes, ruddy jaws and sprig ot well-berried holly springing from between the ears, it forms a very imposing dish. It has appeared as regularly on the table of the present reigning house during the past century as in the days of the Tudors, and the late Duke of Cumberland, uncle of her majesty, when a boy prince at home, used to make a point of marking out a special boar and personally superintending its decoration for the Noel board of George Ill. From the time he succeeded to the throne of Hanover, in 1837, until 1850 the duke sent as a Christmas gift to each of his more favored English friends a fine boar's head from his private Schweingar- ten. That which graces her majesty’s ta- ble at the present time is usually present- ed by the Emperor of Germany. The queen has, however, a herd of her own, confin- ed in a section of the Home Park at Wind- sor, and this was first established by George IV, who was ford of roast wild boar, and the dish was placed regularly on his ta- ble twice a week dpring the winter. Prince Albert, who shared his taste, improved the Windsor breed and considerably en- larged the inclosure. A peacock pie, adorned with the feath- ers of the royal bird, 1s another of the Christmas show dishes, and It is placea on the handsome sideboard as a pvendani to the boar's head, while the noble baron of beef commands attention In the center. The word show dishes is used advisedly, as none of the royal party partake of the above, which eventually find thelr way tc those who are fcrtunate enough to have their names on the retainers’ list, for whom such things are reserved. The Christmas pudding is, of course, well to the fore, and is one of many cooked in the mighty ranges of the Windsor kitchens, those of Osborne being inadequate for the requirement, as her majesty supplies most of the puddings placed on the royal and imperial tables ot Europe on Christmas day. Among the minor dainties, the marzipan cakes, so popular in the imperial nurseries at Ber- lin, play an important part, and occasion- ally a box of them arrives from the kitch- ens of the New Palace which were made by the hands of the Empress Augusta her- self, who was an excellent cook in her girlhood’s days and who can still turn out delicate dishes on occasion for the eating of her consort, who is very proua of her accomplishment. ——__ + e+ —____ Pickpockets at Daudet’s Funeral. Paris Letter to the London Telegraph. Pickpockets were abnormally busy at the funeral of M. Alphonse Daudet. They be- gan operations in the church of Sainte- Clotilde, during the service, and stole purses, watches and chains from half a dozen persons, chiefly ladies. At the ceme- tery of Pere Lachaise, during the address of M. Zola, twenty men and women had their pockets adroitly picked while they were listening attentively to the- author's words. All those who were robbed sent statements on the subject to the police, but no arrests have ensued. The pickpock- ets evidently made the most of the +e soa tunities offered to them, especially at E Lachaise, where the crowding was so ex- cessive that it is a wonder ho serious - dents occurred among the tombs. As usual at the funerals of people were allowed to rush into the pell mell after the hearse and the riag2s entared. < RANDOM VERSE. _ re x mn ik Prophet, Speak Out! Perry Marshall in the Hipringneta Republican, 28 Ty ‘The prophets and the ‘The silent ight pauseti And praises spring you 3S _ at More truth and beauty avait! now to reveal,— Truth waits a man to. speak it from the cross; Apd waits 2 form which tombs cannot conceal, Nor counta the shroud left in the tomb as loss, Bets Let trath and beauty break the silent seal “And roll the rock of Srror-tar away? May carly light their re seeker by the tomb at @reak of day! Speak thon for generatjons yet unborn, ‘And mold the minds’ mi to love thy thought; lumphant morn ‘Wait thou the ear of that ‘Whose eyes shall spe what thou hast blindly sought! Snow Son; Does the snow fall at sea? Yes, when the north winds blow, ‘When the wild clouds fly low, Out of each gicomy wing, ‘Hissing and murmuring, Into the stormy sea. Falleth the snow. Does the snow hide- the sea? On all its tossing plains Never a flake remains; Drift never resteth there; Vanishing everywhere, « Into the hungry sea. Falleth the snow. What means the snow at sea? : ‘Whirled in the veering blast, ‘Thickly the flakes drive past; Each like a childish ghost ‘Wavers, and then is lost, ‘Type of life's mystery, In the forgetful sea Fadeth the snow. —HENRY VAN DYKE. ———__+e+_____ A Windy Rain Qn a Sea Marsh. By Eliza Woodworth, id the Independent, ‘The rushes’ tawny heads’ are tossing high, While sworded tags cross blades by millet dim; And from his eovert coméa the loon’s shrill cry, ‘As sunset wanes around the stormy rim, ‘The curlew speeds her tender young between ‘The shrubby salt-wort, leating thick and low; And grasses beud toward land, and stiff réeds an, While sings the sea-wihd, deepening, zuvurntul, low. ‘The generous marsb, with bush and sturdy whin, ‘And wide-leated Water plants, and ranks of sedge, And tussocked cl ‘Crowded and w ps of bent, is ike an inn— ing @t the tempest’s edge! ‘The panting, twittering birds in pairs alight Beside the silent, unbefriended waif; And glad, where wattled vines like tents Invite, ‘The gray harcs gather, sheltered dim and safe ‘The salt wind keens across the cattle lanes, ‘The darkness seems to shudder and expand; We heur above, the viewless, clanging crane: ‘As swift the mighty sea-rain drives to laud. ‘The night is whirled ashore; the storm-wind stoops; : It skims along the salty herbage harsh; When lightning tears the clouds with zigzag loops An instant shows the bowed and yivid marsh. It_bows, but shields the Mves that shelter there; ‘The slanted rain is poured; its leaden sheets Yeigh cold and heavy on the leafy lair ‘That holds intact and warm its low retreats, ‘The mallards, hazel-eyed, peer forth but walt With tiny beasts, and while the roofing heaves All hold, perchance, some friendly, slow debate, From arches dim, below the laden leaves, ‘The rain has ceased; the thunder rolls afar; ‘The rushes lift thefy-heady; the harvest moon With eplendor floods the marsh, and past the bar ‘The mallards swim cbeside the silent loon. eas hee eee A Tale ofin \ Typewriter. From the Chicago News. They thought to playi a Joke upon the fair type- writer maid, 7 A And changed the letters alf about upon the little keys; 1 oy The A was’ pasted oncwhere: erst the K had been displayed, And they sadly Jumbled up: the F's, the B’s and C’s and D's! ov y But she calmly went/to thumping, all unwitting of the trick. me 16 The result was not Just what they'd led each other to expect; t For when they gathered ‘sound her as she gave the final click, a It was found she'd teit wstory in the chol dialect. i The Sileat Ruler. William Hamilton Hayne, in Yonth’s Companion, We only know he walks with nofseless tread, Unresting ever—volceless as the dead. nek? We only know he brings us loss or gain, The rose of pleasure, or the rue of pali— All changes manifold of life or death, From a leaf’s promise to a dying breath, ‘We only know when this old earth and sky Pass into nothingness, he can not die— The silent ruler with his scythe and glass, Our Father Time, who sees the nations pass— Yet gives no token over land or sea Of bis new relgn—the veiled eternity. —— —_—_+e-____ Pictures in the Fire. E, Blair Oliphant in Chambers’ Journal. We watch together; but in shade and shine You gee the golden future of your ways, And I the light that shone on vanished days; No; though together eyes and hearts combine T cannot see your pleture, nor you mine. Yet as the fire burns low, and sinks the blaze, From the cold hearth I turn—a moment gaze, And read our unfon in those looks of thine. When on the hearth of Life the fire burns low Wherein our lonely dreams and visions shone, When the last picture sinks with all the re Dear, may we turn as trustfully as now, May we as gladly quit the cold hearthstone, And know that Love's Reality is best. ————__+ e- —____. To the Hospital Nurse. From the Chicago Kvening Post. She wears a dainty snow white cap, Which crowns her nut brown tresses, Her tiny feet go pit-a-pat Beneath her striped dresses. Her eyes are soft with unshed tears, Her lips seem full of grieving, As if her heart held untold fears ‘With hope for unbelieving. She walks the dismal wards at night, ‘Where gtewson adows tarry, And underneath the filckering light Seems like some gentle fairy. She holds sin-stained and world-worn hands, Until they cease from clinging, And join the beckoning ones from lands ‘Where angel choirs are singing. Strong in her sweet and tender creed, Her young linked with sorrow, In delicate to those in need ‘Without thought of tomorrow, : Moses P. Handy. Frank L. Stanton in the Atlanta Constitution, x For bim this ‘wreath of song, while honors high Are pews ene Se Re tan sky, asleep benea “Georg! . Ale in atght of hbtke. ‘With laurels gathered 4m theibattle-lines, And peaceful victories” blest, ‘To the sweet shadowsof the southland pines He came at last for tust. 70. Wi 2 X1L__ For the last rest! After: the((toil—the strife— ‘The triumph and the trast, He laid the gracious gartanés of his life Upon her daisied dusts; “0 ‘True-hearted—brave—a jbrothtr to mankind; Honor’s ideal knight, iy “she Facing God's day, or iy; rkness blind ; Gieaving # path to B isa Z for 0 aWs 1 What shall bis meed ‘¥é? this: His work well He feared not to depart; Fi For Love's sake were his worthfest victories won— “For be was great of ‘heart!"" “The Riddle of Things That Are.” ‘William Hamilton Hayne in Harper's Weekly. We walk fn. a world where no "The riddie-ot things ‘thet are— = fern In the valley's heart DWARF LIFE IN AFRICA The Natives Are Noted Trappers and Hunters, Their Women Intermarry With Other Tribes—Their Peculiar Customs and Thrifty Ways. Oscar Roberts in the Independent. Most of these people are smaller than their Bakoko and Mabeya neighbors, but not all, as the dwarf women are sometimes married into these tribes. They deserve the name dwarf more from the similarity of their habits to the true dwarfs further in- land. They dive a wandering, Indian-like life, hunting. They have nets 120 feet long and three or four feet high, a number of which they stretch across the bush, and the men, women and children drive the game into these nets. They are experts in trap- ping, too. They do not stay in one place long enough to plant, so they trade their game to their agricultural neighbors for vegetable food. These Mabeya head men have a certain kind of ownership over them, sometimes furnishing them with powder and guns, and nets and a very little cloth for their game during the time they are in that community. When not success- ful in the hunt, they must depend upon the wild plants, nuts, honey, which they know so well how to find. They often have a feast and more often a famine. Their sheds are from fifteen to fifty feet long, the leaf roof touching the ground on one side and being about four feet and a half high on the other side. Where there are large trees the roofs are made of the bark of a tree four or five feet in diameter, which often does not have time to crack and leak before the dwarfs want to move. Under these sheds are the pole beds, sup- ported by forked sticks four or five inches from the ground. There is a space lel for a fire between every two beds. If they have any boxes or small tin trunks, they keep them hid in the bush; there is noth- ing to be seen unless they have a pot, or bowl, or basket, a net or gun, or a native ax; and no one man is rich enough to pos- sess all of these. They can move all their possessions on fifteen minutes’ notice; may be living here today and twenty miles away tomorrow. Three moves do not equal one fire with them. For amusement a man goes through vio- lent form of exercise, trying to move as many of the muscles of his body a. one time as possible, the spectators clapping their hands and calling, beating on sticks and their drums during the performance. They seem to believe in one supreme being who is good and kind, but, of course, have no definite knowledge of him. They fear the spirits of the departed, and are said to move at once from a place where one of thelr number died. They fear and try to appease many evil spirits, one of which takes a dreadful form for his punishment. Among the Mabeyas near here I know of but one blind man; yet it is the rule to find one blind man in a community of from fif- teen to fifty dwarfs, and sometimes as many as three blind ones, made blind some night by the agent of this evil spirit as a punishment for some offense. Miss MacClean, a lady of Glasgow, has given the funds for the work for these peo- ple. It is the purpose to establish a siauion about ninety miles from the beach, doing regular station work with the Mabeya- speaking people there, and at the same time doing everything possible for the speedy evangelization of these wandering people. But the workers are needed, men with good constitutions and a real love for itinerating bush travel. If a man has a love for plants and insects and birds, so much the better. These people might be able to show him a medical property of some of the plants they know that would be helpful to all. The power to shoot a parrot out of a high tree with a Winchester ought not to be lightly overlooked in a country where everything is eaten, from a snake to a monkey. eR THE CORONATION CHAIR. Curious Legends About England's Venerable Relic. From the Clieaga Recerd. 5 The most precious relic in all England end to the English in all Europe is an old Gothic chair which stands in the chapel of St. Edward in Westminster Abbey, be- side the sword and shield of Edward III. It is made of black oak, in the Gothic style, and the back is covered with carved inscriptions, including the initials of many famous men. The feet are four lions, that look like pcodle dogs with their tails curl- ed up over their backs. The seat is a large stone, about thirty inches long by eighteen inches wide and twelve inches thick, and all the sovereigns of England for the last 800 years have sat upon ft when they were crowned. The chair is known as the core- nation chair, and the stone is claimed to be the same which Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, used as a pillow when he lay down to sleep on the starlit plains of Judah that memorable night as he was on his way from Beersheba to Haran in search of a wife. It was then that he hac a dream, and saw angels and archangels ascending and descending a ladder that reached to heaven, and Jehovah came to him and made the great promise which is being fulfilled to the Jews this very day. And Jacob took the stone and set it uv for a pillar and poured oil upon it, and vowed a vow and called the name of the Place Bethel. The kings of Israel were crowned upon this stone from the time that they ruled a nation—David and Saul and Solomon, and all the rest. The story goes that 580 years before Christ, at the time of the Babylonian captivity, Circa daughter of Zedekiah, the last king of Judea, arrived in Ireland, and was married at Tara to Heremon, a prince of the Tuatha de Danan—which is said to be the Celtic name of the tribe of Dan. The traditions relate that this princess went originally to Egypt in charge of the prophet, Jeremiah, her guardian, and the palace Taphanes, in which they resided there, was discovered in 1886 by Dr. Petrie, the archaeologist. After some years they went hence to Ireland, and from Circa and Heremon Queen Victoria traces her de- scent through James I, who placed _ the lion of the tribe of Judah upon the Brit- ish standard. Jeremiah is said to have concealed this sacred stone at the time of the destruction of Jerusalem and the captivity of the Jews, and to have brought it, “the stone of the testimony,” Bethel, the only witness ot the compact between Jehovah and Israel, to Ireland, where it was known as the lia_phail (stone wonderful). It was car- ried to Scotland by Fergus I, and thence to London in the year 1200, and has been used at the coronation of every king and queen of England from Edward I down tc Victoria. It is thus the most priceless historical object in the British empire, as it was the Palladium of Israel. It is d curious fact that the altars of Ireland were called Bothel—houses of God. In the same chapel surrounding the cor- onation chair in Westminster Abbey ara ‘the graves of six kings, five queens, four princesses, a duke and a bishop. ——_—_-o+_____ A GOLDEN HONEYCOMB. Mining Shafts in Private Gardens and Public Streets. From the London Mail. By the close of the present year the colony of Victoria will have yiclded over £245,000,000 worth of virgin gold to the world’s wealth. To secure this immense treasure for over forty-six years the diggers and miners have scarified thé surface or burrowed deep in the bowels of the earth of the Austra- lan province. ie ravages of the former, who content themselves with seeking for 5% 23 four miles southwest of Bendigo, that the quartz and alluvial goldseeker has literal- ly tunneled the town in his pursuit of leads snd wash dirt holding the precious metal. The back gardens of private residences have been intruded upon—of course with the permission of the owners—and there, with the family washing floating ve them, the diggers ply the pick and spade, always hoping to find a second “welcome stranger” nugget, and realize £5,000 in one lump. The Anglican Church at Maldon was deeply in debt when a digger found pay- able dirt which increased in value until hi burrowings brought him beneath the foun- dations. Under certain conditions he was allowed to continue his labors, steps being taken to prevent the building’s collapse, and today the chufch is well out of debt, with a reserve fund, and the digger only mines in the share market. Few of the dwelling houses in Maldon have cellars, one very good reason being that the earth has been so honeycombed in the past as to make any inquiry into its solidity nat quite devoid of risk. On one occasion a Maldon publican sent his hostler into the cellar for some stock, and hearing a cry descended to discover the cause. But the man had dis- appeared, a gap in the earthen floor show- ing where he had gone through into a dis- ‘used “working.” Nowadays people tread gingerly in the few cellars in Maldon. see NO LIFE ON JUPITER. Bones of a Man Would Snap Beneath His Weight. From the Popular Science Monthly. Judged by our terrestrial experience, which is all we have to go by, the magni- tude of the planet, if it is to bear life re- sembling that of the earth, is limited by other considerations. Even Jupiter, which, as far as our knowledge extends, repre- sents the extreme limit of great planetary size, may be too large ever to become the abode of living beings of a high organiza- tion. The force of gravitation on the sur- face of Jupiter exceeds that on the earth’s surface as 264 to 1. Considering the effects of this on the weight and motion of bodies, the density of the atmosphere, the laws of pneumatics, &c., it is evident that Jupiter would, to say the very least, be an exceed- ing uncomfortable place of abode for beings resembling ourselves. But Jupiter, if it is ever to become a solid rocky globe like ours, must shrink enormously in volume, since its density is only 0.24 as compared with the earth. Now, the surface gravity of a planet depends on its mass and its radius, being directly as the former and inversely as the square of the latter. But in shrinkage Jupiter will lose none of its mass, although its radius will become much smaller. The force of gravity will conse- quently increase on its surface as the planet gets smaller and more dense. The present mean diameter of Jupiter is 86,500 miles, while its mass exceeds that of the earth in the ratio of 316 to 1. Suppose Jupiter shrunk to three-quarters of its pres- ent diameter, or 64,800 miles, then its sur- face gravity would exceed the earth's nearly five time With one-half of its present diameter the surface gravity would become more than ten times that of the earth. On such a planet a man’s bones would snap beneath his weight, even grant- ing that he could remain upright at ail! It would seem, then, that unless we are apt to abandon terrestrial analogies altogether and “go it blind” we must set an upper limit to the magnitude of a habitable planet, and that Jupiter represents such upper limit, if, indeed, he does not tran- scend it. The Triremes of Tiberius. From Invention. The recent recovery of some remains cf the famous triremes of the Emperor Tiber- ius, which lie at the bottom of Lake Nemi, is of great interest both to artists and an- tiquaries. The lake of Nemi, which is situ- ated about seventeen miles southeast of Rome, is formed by the crater of an ex- tinct voleano. Upon its broad bosom once floated the mzgnificent pleasure-house of the luxurious and Hcentious emperor, Ti- berius Claudius Nero, who, leaving duties at Rome in the year A. D. 26, re- tired the following r to the Island of Capreae, where he indulged in the greatest sensuality His love of luxury and dis- play was exhibited in the two famous pleasure triremes which r his name, and the remains of which now lie buried in the lake of Nemi. The diseovery referred to consists of the finding of several mas- sive metal mooring rings and tops of stakes by which the vessel could be moored to the quay. The rings are fixed in the mouths and bronze heads of lions, wolves and Me- dusae, by the teeth of which they are retain- ed in their proper places. These bronze heads are marvelously modeled, and the faces are characterized by a lifelike simi- larity to the animals represented. Despite their long immersion in the mud of Lake Nemi, they are all perfectly preserved, and the massiveness of their build and the beauty of their outline enable the spectator to judge of the magniflcence of the struc- ture of which they once formed but a sec- ondary and almost insignificant part. ——_+e2 Common Mistakes. From the London Family Doctor. It is a mistake to work when you are not in a fit condition to do so; to take off heavy underclothing because you have become overheated; to think that the more @ person eats the healthier and stronger he will become; to believe that children can do as much work as grown people, and that the more they study the more they learn; to go to bed late at night and rise at daybreak and imagine that every hour taken from sleep is an hour gained; to imagine that if a little work or exercise is good, violent or prolonged exercise is better; to conclude that the smallest room in the house is large enough to sleep in; to sleep exposed to a direct draught at any season; to imagine that whatever remedy causes one to fee! immediately bet- ter, as alcoholic stimulants for example is good for the tem without regard to eat as if you had only a minute in which to finish the meal, or to eat without an appetite, or to con- tinue after it has been satisfied to gratif the taste; to give unnecessary time to certain established routine of housekeep- ing when it could be much more profitably spent in rest or recreation. We trust that these little mistakes, which are so apt to be made, will in future be avoided. ——_-+0+___. Ingenious Boat Captain. From Harper's Round Table. It was a vexed question in -890 whether the Pilcomayo river, which flows for hun- dreds of miles from the Bolivian Andes to the Paraguay, might be used as ea com- mercial highway from Bolivia to the ocean. Our countryman, Captain Page, settled this question so conclusively that no further effort to utilize the Pilcomayo is likely to be made; and in this work, that cost him his life, for he died of his privations, after being hemmed in for months by hostile Indians, he devised a plan for steaming upriver when the water was so low that his vessel was stuck in the mud. He was determined to go still farther, though his little steamer, which drew only 18 inches, rested on the river bottom; so, behind the boat he threw up an embankment of earth clear across the chanrel, backed it with palm trunks and brushwood, and before long the water had risen a couple of feet, and the little Bolivia was able to go on her way four miles before she stuck again. ‘Then another dam was built, and this pro- cess was repeated seven times, and with the aid of the dams the vessel advanced about thirty-five miles above the highest point she could reach at the natural low- water stage. x —___+ e+-—___ The King’s Bounty. From London Sketch. King Humbert recently visited an Ital- jan hospital and left a sum of money with the directors, so that the patients might each have some additional delicacy in honor of the event. One of the sick men, hearing of this, complained that his din- ner had been no better than usual. The nurse explained to him: “My good fellow, the state of your health doesn’t permit ot THE HORSE THIEF Fine Art of Getting Of With Porta-. ble Property. ——— THEY USED 10 HANG FOR It a Cee The Way Good Animals Tempt, the Evilly Inclined. GOOD STORIES OF STEALING Frem the London Spectator. Among the crop cf law court stories rea vived in conrection with the cases in which the Jate Sir Frank Lockwood was engaged was one of horse-stealing, in which the judge and prisoner discussed the social aspects of this offense. “Fifty years ago.” remarked the judge, “you would have been hanged for ibis. “Then perhaps fifty years later it won't be a crime at all,” was" the prisoner's rejoinder. It 1s just possible that this suggestion, may come true, though not on the lines of evolution suggested by the Yorkshire horse thief. Already the bicycle offers the same temptations which induce one particulat and well-known form of horse-stealing, in which the thief is seized with a sudden and irresistible desire to possess himself of Property which is “one better” than port- able property, inasmuch as it will carry him far from the scene of his crime. But apart from this paroxysmal form, pro- fessional ani organized horse-stealing is as common now as seventy years ago, when the stage coachmen used fo aid the Row street runners by looking out for stolen horses, which they passed when driving s. On the whole it is more com- non than dog-stealing, because there is a greater demand for the class of horses My stolen, and the: e purchased by vers not nice in inquiring how they were” come by. A Life Work. Sul], it fs rather a surprise to near of a man of sixty-one who has spent thirty-one years of his life in gaol for horse-stealing only. This of a man con- victed four years "1 sentenced three years’ He usually stole valuable he ed to have means of disposing of them at a good price. The animal which led to his last conviction was valued at #40, and was stolen trom a field near Stanmore. When recovered it was well disguised, with tail clipped and mane “hogged,” so it was unlikely to be recognized. It is mo: wise to le: t night in a’ within a_shc nce of London h of the class whica can be put into carts and gigs, unless the gates fastened and the fences wired. The foliow- ing is a typical case: A stableman und @ laborer were indicted for having stolen a horse, the property of a baker. The baker used to turn his horse out in a field at! Tottenham, nc morning found that tt had disaprey rhe baker went to cattle market next ¢ possibly to nother horse, but probably thinking t own might be on sale th He saw tt ing driven there, was introduced to the soi-disant owner, bought it for tf took a receipt for it, and then ha the horse and its vendor to the poli result was the man who sold it, stable 1 who had only been requested to “fetch”. the horse, were found gui ‘The froquercy of this kind of t ing round London 10 ne who will real the “lost, stolen, or strayed police staticns. For a Frolic. {an ownerle: ‘The cart to s ly when the animal is standing invitingly in the street, apparently only driv This explains the occasional Fearance of suilors under the rathe tional charge of “stealing a hors tra But the story told by a 5 not @ men-o'-war’s man—who ed at the Preston sessions paints th in the lignt of tempter, and himself us th victim. “The prisoner's account of th transaction was couched in even better narrative form than the report which we transcribe, which ran as follows night was fine, and the dew falling. Pass- ing through ‘siang I came across the mare, and as it seemed to be going the same way with myself we jogged al together. I called at the farm house asked if they knew the owner, but they did not, and I borrowed a plece of sacking and a bucket of water and bathed its back, which was scre, and proceeded, after bv ing advised to turn the animal adrift. When I came to two lane ends I tried to drive the animal away, but it knew who had treated it well, and followed me. Had I wanted to steal a horse I could have stolen a horse, gig and a splendid set of harness two miles lower down the road.” Yorkshire has al- ways been noted for the interest of its population in horses. A Quick Recovery. The following paragraph, which appe red in a London paper, is somewhat remark- able: “The mystery of the disappearance . Craig’s mare ‘Noiseless’ was solved aturday by her recovery from livery able in Lee: The missing stable lad has not been caught. Saturday morning a person, believed to be him, oflered the mare for sole for &&. The po: r- e 8 chaser, having viewed her, promised to bu if the Seller would call again for the m but the latter appears to have jous and was not seen again. ‘Thy being informed, telegraphed to the traine who at once sent over his head lad, and the mare was identified. The theft was of- fected on Wedn ay night after 10 o'clock, and within twenty-four hours the animal Ww in Leeds, fifty miles off. She is none the worse, however, except that she has been underfed. The fascination which horse-stealing ex- ercises oa the imaginations of small boys might be illustrated by numbers of recent ; but judging by the ages of the prisoners In some cases, they do not seem to grow out of the habit when they ap- proach years of discretion. The juvenile first offender generaily, though not always, takes a cart as well. At one London police court a litile boy, aged ten, whose only just reached the dock rati,was c with stealirg a pony and a set of pi harness. He had taken it from a field and ridden it about the street: a cream- colored pony, Another “cream-colored pony’ mare were stolen by two schoolboys a field near East Ham. They made sad- dles of their coats, and reins of shoelaces, and were duly taken up by the police. On a Lark. But this kind uf a thing often becomes se- rious, as in the case of four lads whe stole a horse and cart from outside a public house, and drove about London for three days, feeding the animal on food which they stole. When they had worn its shoes out they left it on Plaistow Marshes, took an- other horse, and were arrested when har- sing this to a cart! These are only “larks” on an unpleasant scale. But the business side of professional horse-stealing tends to development, largely because of the facilities which the great importation of cheap Canadian, Russian and Oregon horses offers for mixing stolen animals with genuine forelga importations and sell- ing them in droves. Not lcng ago, a regular stolen-horse exchange was discovered in Essex. ‘The hors> stealers are, however, a good Geal handicapped by a change in popular feclirg. The government used to hang them; but the well-known stery of Mar- garet Catchpele shcws that the populace were by no means horrified by the crime. We recollect, too, 4 less well-known story told us in boyhood which indicates consid- erable former leniency in popular thought. A horse coper “took” a horse, was discoy- ered and convicted, but ewing to some as- sistance he had given the police, received a light senterce. He settled in a Norfolk village, a ae eee and prospered greatly, but there was always a rumor that he had been convicted of some sort of stealing. A farmer's daughter, how- ever, fell in love with him, and he ter from her father. “No,” said