Tis said that down the dimly-lighted aisle Of some old world cathedral strunger borne, Ogguivcring‘wings that gr 9 len the while, Vi é'u, icieï¬t'éoxii; of dedication morn Still weirdly lingers in the stately pile. Boiirn tlie iymost: chamber of_ my soul During those years Ernest seemed to bear a charmed existence. There was a Well-known thoroughbred horse in the Transvaal which had killed two men in re. id succession, Ernest bought it and r0 2 it, audit never hurt him. Disturb. ances broke out in Sikukini’s country, and one of the chief’s strongholds was ordered nu “- uA‘v “Hug... The shadowy f if fzicés dwell, Which, whenthe shades of darkness gain control, Brgak through the slumbmus dream and them alspol. The face of one I loveâ€"that perfect fucefl Bo wondrous in its strength of purity; Those eyes of blue, that gentle stately grace, W'hloh one might hope in angel forms to see; 0 than whose name too sacred is to voice, Whose face thus lingers near a shadow star, 1 watch thy gentle radiance from afar, And make thine upward way my nobler choice. And now, amid the shadow and the gloom, My wayward fancy paints n tender fat-c, \Vhose soft brown eyes from out my soul would chase Each other thoung than those that are of home; And o'er that gentle face there seems to play, ' As from some world unseen, [L holy light, That out the deeper density of night Would weave the glory of st Sabbath day. He no longer prayed, he no longer rever~ enced woman, but he was not the happier for having freed his soul from these burdens. He despised himself. Occasion- ally he would take stock of his mental con- dition, and at each stock-taking he would notice that he had receded, not progressed. He was growing coarser, his ï¬ner sense was being blunted ; he was no longer the same Ernest who had written that queer letter to his betrothed before disaster over- whelmed him. Slowly and surely he was sinking. He knew it, but he did not try to save himself. Why should he? He had no object in life. But at lLimes a great depression and \veariness of existence would take possession of him. It has been said he never prayed ; that is not strictly true. Once or twice he did throw himself upon his knees and pray with all his strength that he might die. He did more, he persistently courted death, and. as is usual in such cases, it persistently avoided him. About taking his own life he had scruples, or he perhaps would have taken it. In those dark days he hated life, and in his calmer and more reflective moments he loathed the pleasures and excitements by means of which he strove to make it pala- table. His was a ï¬ne-strung mind, and, in spite of himself, he shuddered when it was set to play such coarse music. O thou that wan the source of life in me, More sweet, and hallowed fur than (my other Is thy pure life, and thus must reverenfly I whisper low the sacred name of mother. Again night wavers, morn eternal breaks And out. the shattorud gloum u halocd head Comes forth; the flesh that wraps my Spirit quakes, And I a. captive heuvenward mu led. The joyous chant of angels ï¬lls the air, That in an early day spoke “ peace on earth.“ I see their faces radiant and rare, I hear the story of a. wondrous birth. The sun is dead, the trembling stars. die out; A world rolls through the gloom a mighty hearse, '1‘ a solemn whisper that a God is dead ow echoes through a startled universe. Earth disappears, in’lmorml music falls Upon my cars from clmiringthrongs that mum Expoctantly to welcome from afar A mighty conqueror returning hmms. But Ernest’s face did not grow the brighter; on the contrary, his eyes acquired a peculiar sadness which was almost pathetic in one so young. He could not forget. For a few days or a few months he might stifle thought, but it always re- arose. Eva, pale queen of women, was ever there to haunt his sleep, and, though in his waking hours he might curse her memory, when night drew the veil from truth the words he murmured were words of love eternal. O glorious vision of n. vondrous life, Thou hast my soul almost to heaven vuticvd I fool no wonder when the angels say, The face is that of him that is the Christ. 0 Illutcllless face, my guiding; star to bu ; 0 face that now my guiding star 1mm been; 0 huloed face, mom wondrous of the three, That bid me seek a brighter goal to Win. 0 shadow faces linger in my soul; ( Stay with me through tho wasting of the years And when death's solemn wntvrs round we roll Let full thy gentle radiance on my fears. Now these are more or less principles of human nature. They may not be universally true, probably nothing isfthat is, as we deï¬ne and understand truth. But they apply to the majority of those cases which fall strictly within their limits. Among others they applied rather strikineg to Ernest Kershaw. Eva’s desertion struck his belief in Womanhood to the ground, and soon his religion lay in the dust beside it. Of this his life for some years after that gave considerable evidence. He took to evil ways, he forgot his better self. He raced horses, he went in with great success for love~affairs that he would have done better to leave alone. Sometimes, to his shame be it said, he drankâ€" for the excitement of drinking, not for the love of it. In short, he gave himself and all his fund of energy up to any and every excitement and dissi- pation he could command, and he managed to command a good many. Travelling rapidly from place to place in South Africa he was well known and well liked in all. Now he was at Kimberley, now at King William’s Town, now at Durban. In each of these places he kept raceâ€"horses ; in each there was some fair woman’s face that grew the brighter for his coming. THE CHOICE OF THREE: Hamilton, January, 1887 The Sunday Fisherman. (From Tid Bits.) This man above, on ï¬shing DH“, 0110. Sabbath morning left his tvnt He took his cm), and very quick He dug his ï¬sh-worms with {L pick In case some ï¬sh of 5 Le he'd gm He took along his landing not, As ï¬shermen get hungry, too, 01' pretzels he procured a few Some lines he tnuk along on spools ’l'oteuclltl1cxll to 11m ï¬lmy schools. He had some (mturmining books of highly tempered Limerick hook And thus prepared, he got a. boat, And out upon the Stream did flout The Boat, :3 Some bites he straight began to get, It was the gallinippers hit One of his lines spun off the reel He landed in the boat an eel Then quickly it began to ( 111 But his umbrella. was in vain. Above his hand the thunder crashed And all around the lightning flaslwd And as he sank the bubbles rose. Smaller and smaller toward the close The storm blow, and the boat upset That man went down into the wet. The Tour, A The Landing Net, 1) The Spools,bâ€"< tâ€"4 tâ€" The Hooks, J J J The Gullinippers g g g g The Umbrella, T The, Upturnod Boat, Q The Pretzels, 7R '7? 7E The Eel, {/1 The Bubbles, O 0 O 0 The Lightning. A NOVEL. Shadow Faces. f- Thu \Ym‘ms U; (I) WSTUAR'I‘ L1H ‘ TON to be stormed. Ernest rode down from Pretoria with Jeremy to see the fun, and, reaching the fort the day before the attack, got leave to join the storming party. Accordingly, next day at dawn they attacked in the teeth of a furious fusillade, and in time took the place, though with very heavy loss to themselves. Jeremy got his hat shot off with one bullet and his hand out by another ; Ernest, as usual, came off scatheless; the man next to him was killed, but he was not touched. After that he insisted upon going buffalorshooting toward Delagoa. Buy in the height of the fever-season, having got rid of Jeremy by getting him to go to New Scotland to see about a tract of land they had bought. He started with a dozen bearers and Mazooku. Six weeks later he, Mazooku, and three bearers returnedâ€"all the rest were dead of fever. On another occasion, Alston, Jeremy, and himself were sent on n. political mis- sion to a hostile chief, Whose stronghold lay in the heart of almost inaccessible mountains. The “indsba†(palaver) took all day, and was purposely prolonged in order to enable the intelligent native to set an ambush in the pass through which the white chiefs must go back, with strict instructions to murder all three of them. When they left the stronghold the moon was rising, and, as they neared the pass, up she came behind the mountains in all her splendor, flooding the wide valley on every stone and tree. On they rode steadily through the moonlight and the silence, little guessing how near death was to them. The weird beauty of the seene sunk deep into Ernest's heart, and presently, when they came to a spot where a track ran out loopwise from the main pass, returning to it a couple of miles further on, he half insisted on their taking it, because it passed over yet higher ground, and would give them a better View of the moon-bathed valley. Mr. Alston grumbled at “ his nonsense" and complied, and meanwhile the party of murderers half a mile farther on played with their assegais, and wondered why they did not hear the sound of the white men’s feet. But the white men had already passed along the higher path three quarters of a mile to their right. Ernest’s love of moonlight effects had saved them all from a certain and perhaps from a lingering death. “ Married ! get married 1 I E No, thank you, my boy, look you, Ernest, in the words of the prophet, ‘ When a wise man openeth his eye and seeth a. thing, verily he shutteth it not up again.’ Now, I opened my eye and saw one or two things in the course of our joint little affairâ€"Eva. you know.†Ernest winced at the name. “ I beg your pardon,†said Jeremy, noticing it; “I don’t want to allude to painful subjects, but I must to make my meaning clear. I was very hard hit, you know, over that lady, but I stopped in time, and, not having any imagination to speak of, did not give it rein. What is the consequence? I have got over it; sleep well at night, have a capital appetite, and don't think of her twice a week. But with place I will write to him to-night. What hotel is be staying at in Maritzburg ? the RoyalY isn‘t it ‘2 And then I vote we clear in the spring.††Right you are, my hearty.†“But I say, Jeremy, 1 really should advise you to think twice before you come. A ï¬ne upstanding young man like you should not waste his sweetness on the desert air of Mexico, or any such place. You should go home and be admired of the young womcnï¬they like a. great big chap like youâ€"and make a good marriage, and rear up a large family in a virtuous, res- pectable, and Jones-like fashion. I am a sort of wanderng comet without the shine ; but I repeat 1 see no reason Why you should play mil to a secondâ€"class comet.†It was shortly after this incident that Ernest and Jeremy were seated together on the veranda of the same house at Pretoria where they had been living before they went on the elephant-hunt, and which they had now purchased. Ernest had been in the garden watering a cucumber-plant he was trying to develop from a very sickly seedling. Even if he only stopped a month in a place he would start a little garden ; it was a. habit of his. Presently he came back to the veranda, where Jeremy was as usual watching the battle of the red and black ants, which after several years’ encounter was not yet ï¬nally decided. “ Bravo, Jeremy I My uncle was right, after all, you ought to have been a lawyer ; you are ï¬rst class at ï¬gures. I ,con. gratulatc you on your management of the estates.†“ My system is simple,†answered Jeremy. “ Whenever there is any money to spare I buy something with it, then you are not likely to spend it. Then, when I have things enoughâ€"waggons, oxen, horses, what notâ€"J sell them and buy some land; that can’t run away. If you only do that sort of thing long enough you willgrow rich at last.†“ Sweetly simple, certainly. Well, ï¬ve thousand will go a long way toward stock- ing 21 farm or something in South America, or wherever we make up our minds to go, and then I don‘t think that we need draw on my uncle any more. It is hardly fair to drain him so. Old Alston will come with us, I think, and will put in another ï¬ve thousand. He told me some time ago that he was getting tired of South Africa, with its Boers and blacks, in his old age, and had a fancy to make a start in some other Now of this we have actually saved and invested about twenty-ï¬ve hundred, the rest we have made or it has accumulated. Now, I ask you, where could we have done better than that as things go ‘2 So don’t talk to me about Wasting my time,†“ For goodness’ sake, Ernest, let us have a little rest; you do rattle one about so in those confounded postâ€"carts, †replied Jeremy, yawning. Jeremy went on: “Rncqhorses and winnings. Sundnesâ€"cnsh, balance, etc Total “ Curse that cucumber-plant !†said Ernest emphatically, “ it won’t grow. I tell you what it is, Jeremy, I mu sick of this place ; I vote we go away.†"I méan, go away from South Africa altogether.†“ 011,†said Jeremy, dragging his great frame into an upright position, “ the deuce you do! And where do you want to , '0 to England ‘2†“ Yes, but you ought to be doing some- thing with your life. It is all very well for me, who am a poor devil of a waif and stray, to go on with this sort of existence, but I don’t see why you should; you should be making your way in the world." “ Wait a bit, my hearty,†said Jeremy, \‘ï¬â€˜tll his: slow smile ; “ I am going to read you a statement of our ï¬nancial affairs which I drew up last night. Considering that we have been doing nothing all this time except enjoy ourselves, and that all our investments have been made out of income, which no doubt your respected uncle fancies we have dissipated, I do not think that the total is so bad,†and Jeremy rend : “ Landed propertyin Natal and the 'I‘rans- AAAAAA vual, Estiumted value This House.. . ‘ Stockâ€"wagg011s,e c.,_ny.. Race ~110rses“ I have left that blank." “ Put them at £800,†said Ernest, after thinking. “ You know I won £500 with ‘ Lady Mary’ on the Cape Town plate last week.†“England ! no, I have had enough of England. South America, I think. But perhaps you want to go home. Itis not fair to keep dragging you all over the world.†“ My dear follow, I like it, I assure you. I have no wish to return to Mr. Cardus’ stool. For goodness’ sake don’t suggest such a thing ; I should be wretched.†£5,2% £2,500 940 £1,300 you it is different. Hard hit, too, large amount of imagination galloping about loose, so to speakâ€"4a.pturous joy, dreams of true love and perfect union of souls, which no doubt would be well enough if the woman could put in her whack of soul, which she can’t, not having it to spare, but in a general way is gammon. Results, when the burst-up cornea : Want of sleep, want of appetite, a desire to go buffalo- hunting in the fever-season, and to be potted by Basutus from behind rocks. In short, a general weariness and disgust of lifeâ€"oh, yes, you needn’t deny it, I have watched youâ€"most unwholesome state of mind. Further results : Horse-racing, a. disposition to stop away from' church, and nip Cape Sherry ; and, worst sign of all, a leaning to ladies7 society. Being a reason- ing creature, I notice this, and draw my own deductions, which amount to the conclusion that you are in a. fair way to go to the deuce, owing to trusting your life to a women. And the moral of all this, which I lay to heart for my own guidance, is, never speak to a woman if you can avoid it, and when you can’t, let your speech he yea, yea and say, nay. Then you stand a good chance of keeping your appetite and peace of mind. and of makingy your way in the world. Marriage indeed! never talk to me of marriage again,†and Jeremy shivered at , the thought. s ..-....u n A long line of Chicago horse cars was stopped the other day because some needles blocked the way. There were, however, a good many of themâ€"6,183,000, weighing 2,500 pounds. The box which contained them was on a. truck and for some time re- sisted the efforts of a dozen men with crow- bars to move it. The needles had just arrived from the establishment of William Clarke & Sons, in Redditch, England, which was founded in 1679. It is said that 500,000,000 needles are annually imported to the United States, the Chicago agents of this single house handling more than a. third of them. r ï¬rm at Tulare, 0,941., deeded a. piece of property to his Wife in consideration of “ love and affection in hand paid.†"iliflxr‘hésflaruglled out loud at his lengthy disguisition. ____ .. . . .1 an H1 “ And I’ll tell you what, old fellow,†he went on, drawing himself up to his full height, and standing right over Ernest, so that the latter’s six feet looked very insigâ€" niï¬cant beside him, “never you speak to me about leavmg you again, unless you want to put me clean out of temper, because, look here, I don’t like it. We have lived together since we were twelve or thereabout, and, so far as I am con- cerned, I mean to go on living together to the 0nd of the chapter, or till I see 1 am not wanted. You can go to Mexico, or the North Pole, or Acapulto, or wherever you like, but I shall go too, and so that is all about it.†fl 7‘7‘ Thank you, old fellow,†said Ernest, simply; and at that moment their con- versation was interrupted 1}}: the arrival of a Kaï¬r messenger with a telegram addressed to Ernest. He opened it and read it. “ Hullo,†he said, “ here is some- thing better than Mexico; listen : 7v 1 “ ‘Alston, Pieter Maritzburg, to Kcrslmw, Pretoria. High Commissioner has declared war against Cetywn-yo. Local cavalry urgently required for service in Zululand. Have offered to raise small corps of about seventy mounted men. Offer has been accepted. Will you accept post of second in command? you would hold the Queen’s commission. If so, set about picking suit- able recruits :‘terms, ten shillings a. day, all found. ‘Am coming up Pretoria by this post-cart. Ask Jones if he will accept sergeant-nmjorship." “ Hurrah I†sang out Ernest with flash- ing eyes. “ Here is some real service at last. Of course you will accept.†“ No, I don’t keer much. I kin allus tell by touching my tongue to the axe whether it’s last summer or this winterPâ€"vlmtmit ch Frcsx. Just as Good. “ Must be pretty cold out your way,“ he observed to a farmer who had just come into market with his whiskers full of frost. “ Yes, tolerable.†“ What did your thermometer register?†“ I hadn’t: got none.†5‘ , _.-â€".‘ “ I should think you would want to know how cold it was.†“Of course,†said Jeremy‘ quietly; “ but don’t indulge in rejoicings yet ; this is going to be a big business, unless I am mis~ taken.†CHAPTER XXXHI. nus mornnsms EVIL. Ernest and Jeremy did not let the grass grow under their feet. They guessed that there soon would be a great deal of recruit- ing for various corps, and so set to work at once to secure the best men. The stamp of man they aimed at gettingr was the coloniaLborn Englishman, both because such men have more self-respect, independ- ence of character, and “ gumption,†than the ordinary drifting sediment from the ï¬elds and seaports, and also because they were practically ready-made soldiers. They could ride as well as they could walk, they were splendid rifle-shots, and they had, too, from childhood, been trained in the art of travelling without baggage, and very rapidly. Ernest did not ï¬nd much difï¬culty in the task. Mr. Alston was well known, and had seen a great deal of service as a young man in the Basutu wars, and stories were still told of his nerve and pluck. He was known, too, to he a wary man, not rash or over con- ï¬dent, but of it determined mind; and, what is more, to possess a perfect knowledge of Zulu warfare and tactics. This Went a long way with intending recruits, for the ï¬rst thing a would-be colonial volunteer inquires into is the character of his officers. He will not trust his life to men in whom he puts no reliance. He is willing to lose it in the way of duty, but he has a great objection to having it blundered away. Indeed, in many South African volunteer corps it is a fundamental principle that the ofï¬cers should be elected by the men themselves. Once elected, however, they cannot be deposed except by competent authority. Ernest, toci, was by this time well known in the Transvaal, and universally believed in. Mr. Alston could not have chosen a better lieutenant. He was known to have pluck and dash, and to be readyavitted in emergency ; but it was not that which made him acceptable to the individuals whose continued existence would very possibly depend upon his courage and discretion. Indeed, it would be difï¬cult to say What it was: but there are some men who are by nature born leaders of their fellows, and who inspireconï¬denco magnetically. Ernest had this great gift. At ï¬rst sight he was much like any other young man, rather careless-looking than otherwise in appear- ance, and giving the observer the impres- sion that he was thinking of something else ; but old hands at native warfare, looking into his dark eyes, saw something there which told them that this young fellow, boy as he was, comparatively speak- ing, would not show himself wanting in the moment of emergency, either in couragebr discretion. Jeremy’s nomination, too, as sergeant-major, a very important post in such a corps, was popular enough. People had not forgotten his victory over the Boer giant, and besides, a sergeantanajor with such a physique would have been a credit to any corps. Allvthese things helped to make recruitâ€" ing an easy task, and when Alston and his son Roger, weary and bruised, stepped out of the Natal post-cart four days later, it was to be met by Ernest and Jeremy with the intelligence that his telegram had been received, the appointments neceptee‘l, and thirtyi‘ive men provisionally enrolled subject to his approval. H"My Word, ybimg gentleman,†he said, highly pleased, “ you are lieutenants worth having.†(To be continued.) Latest Fashion Notes. Entire dresses of English crape are made for widows. The tournure is neither greater nor less â€"â€"it remains stationary. Skirts are short for the street, demi- trained for evening and full trained for dinners and receptions. The black-und-white striped silks are used for basques and demi~trained skirts, and make striking toilets. They are combined with black satin, velvet, jet or lace. The shape of wrappings changes little and innovations would be difï¬cult, since all shapes are being worn now, the sling sleeve being seen on most of them, whether long or short. Pointed gimp above a band of astrakhan or of the long-waved Russian lamb skin is a fashionable trimming for cheviot dresses. White cheViot dresses are worn in the house. The square-meshed Russian net, point d’esprit and tulle are now made up in mauve and heliotrope shades for those about laying aside mourning. Mauve and purple velvet dresses, with trimmings of black lace, are worn by older ladies. Corsages are extremely varied, as well for day as for evening dresses. Corselets are much worn, the Waist below the shoulders being plain and tight, and Shirred on the front with soft pufï¬ngs or folds over the bust; these, however, are best adapted to slim ï¬gures. “'lmt “7e Are Coming To. Scene in hotel twenty-ï¬ve years hence. Guest to porter-Cun you tell me what time it is ? Porter-«Yes, sir. It’s half-past 12. That’ll cost you 50 cents, pleaseâ€"Merchant Traveler. The fashion of low inner bodices, with the outec waist of transparent material, high in the neck and with half-easy sleeves, is returning and promises to be popular. This is worn at informal dinners and those occasions in the evening where (‘eco‘lete would seem more than the occasion re- quiz-ed. The fancy for wearing ribbons in the neck and sleeves instead of linen ï¬nds a prompt response in the shops where ruch- ings are shown on the edge of which is sewn narrow ribbons of all colors. The taste for colored ruching grows and it is shown in all shades, to contrast with or exactly match the costume. The dresses get more and more voluminous, and these full skirts, unless draped by the hand of an experienced modiste, are apt to have a bunchy and awkward effect. Almost all the smart, short frocks, not only ball gowns, are fulled right around the waist, and when they are of very rich material the effect is beautiful. Lemon Riceâ€"Pick and wash one cup- ful of rice, put it into a. deep earthen dish with one quart of water and a. little salt ; cover tightly and place on the back .of the range or stove, where it may gradually cook without danger of burning. If the water should be consumed before the rice is done, add enough to swell it out tender. Care has to be taken that the grains remain whole. When the rice has become tender put in a colander and pour cold water over it until the grains appear to sepa. rate; drain it well and replace in the dish. Then add white sugar to tasteMit needs to be very sweetâ€"the grated rind of one and the juice of two lemons ; set back on the stove and let it simmer ten or twelve minutes; then pour it into a wet mould, and when cooled off put on ice until wanted. Turn out like ablanc mange. A beautiful new plush is jug: out for car- riage wraps that is exactly the shade of the blue fox fur which is so much worn this winter. Ruby and heliotrope plush are much worn and the blue fox looks very well on ruby. A very handsome and new little mantle, just importec'l from England, is made of heliotrope velvet, trimmed richly with gold and green Egyptian passe< mentorie. China ompe without lustre is made up into handsome dinner dresses for ladies in mourning, which are trimmed with passe» menterie and pendants of (lull jet, and if lace is admissible the point d’esprit is used with ï¬ne dots and feather'edges like those on ribbons, or else with scollops; entire dresses are made of the piece lace with these ï¬ne dots, which is preferred by many to the headed nets. For wear with black lace skirts are 001'- sages of black velvet veiled by another corsage, almost high, which consists of a- trollis of very narrow gold gulloon. Some- times this corsage covers only the shoulders and neck and the upper part of the arm, and terminates in pmnpilles which drape on the upper edge of thelow corsage. Some- times the network veiling the skin is of jet instead of gold. Madelins.â€"Crenm one cup of butter with one cup and three-quarters of sugar; add three eggs, two cups of sugar, oneJmlf cup of corn starch, three teaspoonfuls of baking-pmvd01~,and one teaspoonfulof ex- tract of vanilla. Bake in patty pans in a quick oven. Celery CroquetteaiMince the white part of the celery and mix well with an equal quantity of bread crumbs ; to a quart of the mixture add the yolks of two eggs, 9. heaping saltspoonful of salt and a pinch of cayenne; moisten with a little milk if the moisture from the celery is not sufficient. Shape in cones, dip in eggs and crumbs and fry in a liberal quantity of fat. Marble (lakeâ€"For white part : Ono cup of butter, three cups of sugar, ï¬ve cups of flour, one~half cup of sweet milk, ()neAlmlf teaspoonful of soda, whites of eight eggs ; flavor with lemon. Dark part : One-half cup of butter, two cups of brown sugar, one cup of molasses, one cup of sour milk, four Cups of flour, one teaspoonful of soda, yelks of eight eggs, one whole egg, spices of all kinds, put in a pan ï¬rst n layer of dark, then a layer of light, and ï¬nish with a dark layer. . .. .i ~ N. .- . Rich Coffee (Jake iTwo cups of butter, three of sugar, one of molasses, one of very strong coffee, one of cream of rich milk, the yelks of eight eggs, one pound each of mis- ins and currants, oneâ€"half pound of Citron, the same. of ï¬gs, and ï¬ve cups of brown flour after it is stirred. Put the flour in the oven until a rich brown, being careful not to burn it. \Vhen cold sift with it three tablespoonfuls of good baking powder and a little salt. Cut the ï¬gs in long strips, dredge all the fruit with flour, beat the cake well up, and bake in moderate oven from four to ï¬ve hours. Blacklace dresses continue to ï¬ll their useful function in the toilet, being as they are at once elegant, capable of being worn on the most diverse occasions and suitable for all ages. Only for evening receptions they are a little sombre, and to remedy this defect the outlines of the 18 c0 are run with gold thread, which is charming in effect, very rich and yet quite in good taste. Black lace dresses are not worn over black only, but over an llndGl‘dl’CSS of [my color, ('icl blue, old rose, tilleulgreen and red of all shades. Snow Cake.~-â€"-Three~fourths of a cup of butter, two cups of sugar, one cup of milk, one cup of corn starch, two cups of flour, one and one-half teaspoonfuls of baking powder ; mix corn starch, flour and baking powder together -, add the butter and sugar alternately with the milk ; lastly add the whites of seven eggs ; flavor to taste. THE LADIES’ COLUMN. Useful Recipe How some Girls in New York Develop the Biceps and Grow Beautiful. There is near Central Parka gymnasium for girls. The young women wear blouses, short skirts and trousers, and go through all the performances that men do. Their proï¬ciency becomes very great. One case will illustrate what a young woman can learn to do. A girl was promised a seal- skin sacque by an admirer if she would learn to turn a back somersault. She set diligently at it, and practiced until she was able to perform the feat. The gymna- sium is liberally patronized and is in every way a success. Alook inside of it is enough to convince anybody that there is “ room†for the gymnasium. The hall is ï¬lled during the sessions. Some girls are swing- ing on the trapeze, others are climbing ropes, others are vaulting, turning cartâ€" whcels and the like, and others are pound- ing sandbags to work up their muscles. The exercise often converts delicate girls into strong and healthy ones, it is claimed. Boxing has become almost a craze among the fashionable girls. One thing said in 1 commendation of it is that it imparts self» possession and conï¬dence. The idea is rather novel, but, after all, it is not unâ€" ‘ reasonable. Fencing has long been prac- ‘ ticed by society girls, and ought to accom- plish as much as boxing is improving their bearing. Nearly all, or at any rate a good share, of the belles play billiards, which are declared to be healthful and also to improve the judgment. The claims for the different things may seem rather absurd, but they nevertheless have many believers. There are dozens of riding schools, but they are not new like some of the other things. They are very popular, though.»â€" Ncu: York Notes in Brooklyn Union. The Pink 01' Propriety. A 5-year old friend of ours, starting out for a children's party the other afternoon, remarks to the maid who is taking him to the place of entertainment .1 “AWell, I’ve made up my mind to be a perfect gentleman to-du-y , I don’t mean to kick a Single girl.â€Â»â€"-11urpm"s Bamr. The length of the year is strictly 365 days, 5 hours 48 minutes, 49 seconds, and seven-tenths of a secondâ€"the time required for the 1evolution of the earth round the sun. About 45 B. 0., Julius Czesar, by the help of Sosigines, an Alexandrian philoso- pher, came to a. tolerably clear understandâ€" ing of the length of a year, and decreed that every fourth year should be held to consist of 366 days for the purpose of absorbing the odd hours. By this rather clumsy arrangement the natural time fell behind the reckoning, as, in reality, a day every fourth year is too much by 11 minutes, 10 seconds, three-tenths of a second, so it inevitably followed that the beginning of the year moved onward ahead of the point at which it was in the days of Caesar. From the time of the Council of Nice, in 325 A. 1)., when the vernal equinox fell correctly on the Qist of March, Pope Gregory found in 1582 A. 1). that there had been an ovenreckoning to the extent of ten days and that the vernal equinox fell on the 11th of March. To correct the past error he decreed that the 5th of October of that year should be reckoned as the 15th, and, to keep the year right in futureâ€"the overplus being 18 hours, 37 minutes and 10 seconds in a century he ordered that every centennial year that could not be divided by four (1700, 1800, 1900, 2100, 2200) should not be bissextile, as it otherwise would be, thus, in short, dropping the extra day three times every four hundred years. While in Catholic countries the Gregorian style was readily adopted, it was not so in Protest ant nations. In Britain it was not adopted until 1752, by which time the discrepancy between the Jillian and Gregorian periods amounted to eleven days. An Act of Parliament was passed dictating that the 3rd of September of that year should be reckoned the 14th, and that three of every four centennial years ‘ should be leap years. The year 1800 not 3 being a leap year, the new and old styles new differ twelve days, our lst of January being equivalent to the 13th old style. In Russia alone of Christian countries is the old style retained. The old style is still re- tained in the treasury accounts of Great Britain. In Old times the year was held to begin on the 25th of March, and this usage or piece of antiquity is also still ob‘ served in the computations of the Chancel- lor of the British Exchequer. So the first day of the financial year is the 5th of April, “ Old Lady Day.†A Specimen of Australian Reporting. The followng is a cutting from a Queens- land paper _: “ Matthews started on foot, alone, to walk over the range to Thorn» borough, but, overcome with grief and whiskey, lay down on the banks of the Barron River to sleep. Now, thealligntors of the Barron River are both numerous and ferocious. They assimilated Muttl1mvs,with the exception of one leg, which was recognized by the boot on it. This, after having been identiï¬ed, was afforded Chris- tian burial in the Cairns Cemetery, the funeral being largely attended. There it still reposos, while the balance of Matthews is wandC-"ing about the Barron River as an alligator.†Mr. and Mrs. Joshua Niekerson, of Shag Harbor, N. S., aged respectively 87 and 83, live with their only son, Mr. Theodore Niekerson, and across the street directly opposite lives his only son, Mr. Charles Nickel-son, who has an only son named Adelberti This lad takes a meal daily with his grandfather and grm‘idinother, great- grandfather and two greatgrandmothers, as Mr}. Theodore Nickerson’s mother is living with tlvm, aged 84. AS the six sit around the table their united ages are 3577, and the lad is only 12 years. Only a. few yards from their door is his great-great- nnele7 Mr. Nehemiah Niekerson, aged 83 years, living with his only son, who has an only daughter, and only childâ€"(701m Sabin Adrcrtism'. From lengthened observations, Rev. W. F. Clarke, of Guelph, has come to the con- clusion that the most important function of the bee’s sting is not stinging, but its use by that wonderful creature as a. tool. Mr. Clarke says he is convinced that the most important oflice of the bee’s sting is that which is performed in doing the artistic cell work, cappii’xg the comb, and infusing the formic acid hymeztns of which honey receives its keeping qualities. The sting is really a skilfully contrived little trowelnvith which the bee ï¬nishes off and caps the cells when they are filled briinful of honey. This explains why honey extracted before it is capped over does not keep well. The formic acid has not been injected into it. This is done in the very act of putting the last touches on the cell work. As the little pliant trowel is worked to and fro with such dexterity, the darts, of which there are two, pierce the plastic cell surface, and leave the nectar beneath its tiny drops of the fluid which makes it keep well. This is the “ art preservative 7’ of honey. Herein we see, says Mr. Clarke, that the sting and the poison bag, with which so many of us would like to dispense, are essential to the storage of the luscious product, and that without them the beautiful comb honey of commerce would be {t thingr unknown. This is certainly anlost wonderful provision of nature.â€"â€"-1rm1. The I‘Ieasurement of the Year. AMAZONS OF THE HOUR. The Bee‘s Sting u Useful T001. A Remarkable Family. The New Uniform for the French Infantry. Gen. Boulanger, just now the idol of the French ï¬re eaters, is making many changes in the French army designed to increase its effectiveness. He proposes to change the dress of the soldier. For one thing, he has recom- mended the wearing of a. beard~a full beardâ€"close cropped. He has set the ex. ample by cultivating One upon his own chin and cheeks. Since Napoleon III. the Frenchman has worn a moustache and imperial in the fashion set by the late Emperor. But Gen. Boulanger knows the weakness of his fellow countrymen, which is their vanity. A Frenchmen would pre- fer to go without his bath rather then to leave his moustache without being waxed till its two ends stuck out like steel pens. But this operation takestime, far too much time; so does the elaborate shaving and trimming around the moustache. There- fore, says Boulanger, let the soldier wear a ‘ full beard and save all this time. The long iron bridge at Bismarck, D. T. contracts and expands eleven inches by the heat and cold. Contingent Prospects. Young mamâ€"I love your daughter, sir, and would like to make her my Wife. Futher~What are your prospects? Young 1mm ~I think they’ll be pretty good if you’ll say yes.*»Tirl Bits. The changes in uniform proposed by the Minister of War have been carefullylooked into by a military board, and recommended. They were ordered to be submitted to the French Assembly for approval. “ NOW, my dear,†said mamma to little Helen, “ baby is going to sleep. ‘yfou must keep just as still as a. littlemouse.†“ Well, but mamma,†objected Helen, “ mice squeak sometimes, don’t they ‘2" The recommendetiohb were that the round jacket be abolished altogether, and the tunic serve for all occasions. The new tunic is large and loose, rendering movements and respiration easy. It will be roomy enough to permit a woolen waist- coat to be worn underneath. It has pockets interior and exterior. The belt is of black leather, as it has been heretofore. The infantry are to wear epaulottes. Curtriclges are to be carried in an outside pocket of the tunic, thus doing away with the cartridge box. The First Lesson ofLifp. “ \Vell, how do you like school, Tom?†“ I don‘t like it. They make you do things you don’t want to do." ' l)mxghte1>~ch, papa ; buthc isn’t nearly as old as I \Vlsh he wussâ€"New York Sun. Father (to dangl1t0r)â€"--Ha\'0 you accepted the addresses of Mr. Monoybags T’ Daughtcrmch, papa. FatheerVoll, isn’t he very old, my dear James Gordon, the Dundee porter, who l undertook to wheel a. barrow from his native city to London and back in 60 days, reached the Royal Aquarium, London, on Nov. 29th, and thus completed the ï¬rst half of his journey. He left Dundee on Nov. 2nd, and travelled along the GreatNorthern Road, taking care to let the course of his journey be known beforehand, which had the effect of bringing crowds into the streets of all the towns and villages through which he passed, and everywhere, he says, he was well greeted by the people. So far as the money result of the journey is con- cerned, Gordon does not seem to have been particularly fortunate. 1n walking through Scotland by Stirling, Falkirk, Edinburgh, Alnwick and Newcastle, to Darlington, he got on very well, was lodged and fed well, and gathered sufï¬cient money to send his wife weekly remittances, but between Darlington and London he does not seem to have fared so well ; though he anticipates that his engagement at the Aquarium and the sale of a pamphlet about his adventures may put in his pockets :1 good round sum. Questioned as to the manner of his recepv tion he stated that men and women every where encouraged him to go on, but in Newcastle he was rather roughly treated. The streets through which he passed were deusely crowded, and he was kicked acei» dentally, of course, several times, but a rotten egg or two were thrown at him, and that, he judged, could not have been acci- dental, but he bears no malice to the lusty men of Newcastle, and hopes upon his re- turn that he will haw a different greeting. In all the big towns of England he “ got a good clearance, and the people were pleased to see me walk so clean. I was never in the least out of ‘ joint.’ †From Darling- ton his route lay through York, Hunting- ton, Royston, to \Valtha‘m Cross. In due time he had reached Dalton, and from that point through Ball’s Pond, along Essex Road, by the Angel, over Pentonvrlle Hill, through Euston, along Oxford street, and Regent street by Charing Cross. He was greeted with immense cheering by great crowds of people, many hundreds of whom followed him until he reached the Aquarium. The dis- tance traversed he calculates was 507 miles, and besides that he went about 30 miles altogether out of his way by being mis- directed in the villages through which he passed. He never began his work before halï¬past 8 in the morning, and always ï¬nished about 5 o’clock. He ate moderately during the day, and drankâ€"~no spirits, but at night, after the day’s work was done, he confessed to having bathed his joints in “ pure whiskey, and then taken a wee drap in the inside of me.†People about the streets of London called out, “Well done, old Scotty,†and“ l3ravo,oldman.’7 Some times in the villages the people shouted, “ Here comes General Gordon,†which he mentioned with very great pride (loran was introduced to a crowded house at the Aquarium soon after his arrival, and ex, hibith his light cart or wheelbarrow. A gentleman went home :1 few evenings ago and casually remarked as he hung up his hat : “ I see women are sold at actual vulue in Indianapolis. A wife was bought there this week for live cents.†“ “'ell, I know a woman, about the time I was married, who was sold fornothing,†replied his wife. Then the. man put onhiï¬ hat and came down town. Last Christmas morning Mrs. l’eter Beudrezm, of Saulnierville. Digby County, went to the barn as usual and got :L mess of oats which she gave to her fmvls. Later in the forenoen she noticed very strange actions amongst them, and the rooster was stretched on the ground apparently (lead. Mrs. 15., to make the best- of it, plucked him slick and clean, with the exception of a few tail and wing feathers and consigned his remains to the manure heap, feeling convinced that he had been poisoned. Towards noon to the great surprise of the whole family he was up again, strutting about as guy as ever, though deprived of his costly and necessary apparel. But our goodlndy, being,' equal to the emergency, took him in the house and fitted him with a. ï¬ne suit of overalls, and at last accounts he was doing as well as could be expected under the distressing circumstances. Mrs. 13., determined to ï¬nd out the cause of this strange phenomenon, went to her oat- berrel and found that 21 bottle of liquor had been placed in the barrel and the liquor had leaked out in the grain which explained the whole mystery. The rooster was drunk, us many other hipcds in bigger commumties were on Christmas day. PREPARING FOR THE FIELD. The “'llcclburrow I’edes A Hen Stm'. row the Eélï¬t. Ltmking‘ to the F11! 1111-. ' 3:11)in and M hm-ry H 9 spoke The Way the Winged Creatures “Slide Down Hill " in Air. I see in a. back number of “ St.Nicholas’ that one of our young correspondents appeals partly to me in regard to birds, flying down. But all who have written seem so well posted that I doubt if I can add anything to their knowledge. How- ever, I have seen a California quail, :1 wood dove and it humming-bird flying downward; but in slow flyers, with large wings and heavy bodies, the wings are used more or less as parachutes in going down : in other words, the birds spread their wings and rely upon gravity. This I have noticed in the sand-hill cranes in their migrations along the Sierra, Madres. A {look of say 100 will mount upward in a beautiful spiral flashing in the sunlight, all the while uttering loud, discordant nolcs, until they attain an altitude of nearly r. mile above the sea. level. Then they form in regular lines and soar away at an angle that in ï¬ve miles or so will bring than within 1,000 feet of the earth. Then they will stop and begin the spiral upmml movement again until a high elevation is reached, when away they go again sliding down hill in the air toward their wintu' home. It is very evident that a not amount of muscular exertion is saved in this way. In some of these slides thatl have watched through in glass birds would pass from three to four miles, I should judge, without flapping their wings.â€"" Hf. Nicholas †for February. THE COOK’SBEST mam [haven pm.th lvmvdy fm- tlw nllovedlseane ; In its an umusanda urn-Mus (H Um: “'m'u-‘t kind an-l ol‘long smudan have bven cur-ml. [um-J}, an strung is my mm!" In shimmy, “mt I \vi 1 sum! '1'\VH BOTTLES FREE, together will) a VALUAIXLH 'I'REA'X'ISE on this (118085610 any aunbrvr. th Aexpv’vflf 11m P. 0 address. = ‘ DIL ".JiLOCUM, i Branch 05355; 37'Y5ï¬Ã©â€˜58t†Eggpqnta Two pairs of sparrows were watched by an observant naturalist feeding their ymmgz in their nests in only one half hour with tlu larvae of the bluebottle fly .from a (19m? cat. They fetched these in all 104 timz ~=. and one of the birds also caught 14 flies t n the wing. Now the common house fly Is computed to produce in one season, so 1m:- liï¬c is its progeny after progeny, no 11:9 than 20,000,000, say, in round minibus, 21,000,000, and thus were prevented l y those two pairs of birds no fewer Um): 280,000,000 by the capture of 14 flies 2:141 2,800,000 by the destruction of the 104 larvm. Again, there ï¬gured in the pail; h accounts of one parish in Gloucester: , ._ charge for 17 dozen of (so-called) tmms' 7:7 heads; in another parish, Melbourne, in Derbyshire,a sparrow club destroyed in my year 4,577 small birds, and in yet anoth- r 3,500. Take the smaller of these two 3: ‘ ' numbers, and multiply it by the hunt: of flies just calculated as preventh by the: two pairs of sparrows, and it gives Wl-ut we may very well call a. grand tom} of 7,280,000,000,000.-»â€"Landon Times. A family in Norwich, (301111., ix: named SkCOSUCiiS. “Look here,†said :1 man this morn- inggoing into his girmor’s, “111059 eggs you sold me New Year’s WHO bud.†“W'eli,t]mt wasn‘t my fault.†“ Whose was it, then ‘2" “ Blamed if I know. How shouldltell what was inside of Hum? I’m a grocm'yman; I’m 110 mind i'mflel'.†\Vincx not complicated with 011101" dis. eases, sciatica, hlmlmgo and rhvmnaiism are promptly cured by taking McCalIom’s Rheumatic Repellant. Sold by “linlcsnlo druggists of Toronto, Hmnilton, London, \Vinnipcg, and by retail drugwists gLL nci'nily. “ I don‘t care !"’ exclaimed Hw young woman behind the counter, when she heard of the marriage of an old acquaininnce to a rich wager old enough to be hcr father ; “ they sneer at me because I am a salcsludy, but I’d rather be a Saloslady 111m {1 Indy thati 21M." Wholly unlike Artiï¬cial Systemsture of Mind Wan- (Ieringï¬Any hook burned in one reading. Heavy 1'0,- ductioni for posml classes. Prospectus. wh-h opin- inmof Mr. Pmmron, the Astronomer, Hons. W. W. As’rox, Jumn 1’. B1; AMIN, Dra. MINOR, Wow: and others, scuigmt Fm: ' y 1% 30F. IZOISETTE, Aâ€... myr.‘ 2:37 Mitzi Kvéihlc; Sï¬ggï¬ï¬wmï¬o If suffering from pain, but go at once to the nearest drug store and buy a sample bottle of l’olson’s NERVILINE, the g1( at pain euro. Never fails to give immediate relief. Nervilino is endorng by mefliml 1m 5; (everywhere. Don’t wait a sirfln 110.111: Withm†trying i Orviline. The LU," mud?- oine in the work! to keep in the hm ‘ , mm Tm and ‘25 cents a 1 (H.110, exist in thousands of forms, but are £«m‘lrnrn‘d by the marvels of ixlvomyion‘ 'l‘lmse “1:1: gm» 3‘ need of proï¬table work that (can be (1mm w living at home should at once 0111111191} to Ilallott & (10., Portland. Maine, (12 . , free, full informa ion lmw uithor sox‘ u] v] ug- , can earn from to a day and “mm "m; whvravur thy IJVU. You are started fn 1'. (Kiwi m1 not required. Some have nmdv r (I Rn a single day at Lhis work. All succeed. Cit‘ixencs of Monrovia (7:: ., “Lo \x'islu'd to hear Patti but could not stnm‘. 11:0 “,5 admission. Offcrcd 1101‘ the use. of 9 1m†fray entertainnlcnt at the 110101 file. {ads 10 two town lots, and $100 in (as): if she would sing there. She refusal. ï¬arvgï¬Ã©gï¬mï¬gmory n A telegraph operator in Milwaukee was one day trying to call up an oï¬icoin ummil town in the interior of the State, Whn‘o 111m instruman was presided OVCI‘ by a woman. He was about giving up in despair when the operatar in another small town a few miles distant from the ï¬rst ticked out me query : “ \Vllat in heaven’s name (loyou \mm “ I want Miss Brown at IZIIIgJ‘lllC,†replied the Milwaukee man. “ I lmw‘ lwu n trying to get her for the last half hour." V“ That Wis not-hing,†cu‘me the reply. “ There is a young fellow Clorking in 21 dry- ‘oods store there who has been in in ' to {a . h Vet her for the last three ‘cars and he 1mg 5 é . ~ . not succeeded yet. Do not get (11$(’(1Ul':“1_'( <1. ’ â€"Thp Rambler. A French physician contends that man ing and crying are two operations by whirl) nature alleys anguish, and that those patients who give way to their wit-:11 feelings more speedily recover then those who suppose it unworthy to hem.) HNll symptoms of feeling. He tells of :2 mm who reduced his pulse from 126 to (it) in the course of u few hours by giving full vent to his emotion. If people are nm; .3 {IV about anything let them go 31.10 thtir rooms and comfort themselves with u ln‘xd booâ€"1100 aml they will feel 100 yer («Lt better afterwardiztmerican IIOIIIH‘le/flC. There were 32 business failuresin Canada and 229 in the United States durng the past week. DO BIRDS FLY DOWN? What Four Sparrows Can Do. “011’! do H. Do Not “'uit QESQOVERY. The Value of C ' ing. Deep Sea “’ondcrs Trying to Get Her. N L. ’7. 87. N’L‘ \v Y 0 rk .