The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Unquestionably it was a. stirring time, and the engrossing public interest had been raised to such a degree of excitement that would be, in our modern prosaic time, hard to understand, not withstanding a Fenian raid and North-West rebellicn. THE [NSCRGENTS AT NAVY ISLAND. The year was drawing to a. close. Men in authority had said that rebellion was stamped out at Upper Canada. Yet times were still stirring and ominous. Rumor asserted that several thousand rebels and American hrigands, organized on American soil and led by an American general, had assembled on the Niagara frontier, had seized upon Navy Island, where they issued grandiloquent proclamations ; and also with twelve cannon and other arms, stolen from the conveniently open Batavia arsenal, had erected batteries and declar- ed war on Great Britain, and Governor Sir Francis Bond Head gave a certain signi- ficance to the same by firing a few shot and shell, whereby three or four loyal Cana- dians were killed. This time rumor was more than surmise, it was nearly correct. The urgency of the occasion gave loyal men little time to consider that an avowed- ly friendly nation could permit a band of brigands and pirates to use its border as a base of supply and line of retreat while they made war on a friendly neighbor. To remonstrate would have been futile. It wssa time for active measures. There might be alarm the most paignant and intense felt all over the province. but there was no uncertainty. The ink on the Governor’s call and proclamation was scarce dry, when nigh three thousand men, under the command of Allan N. McNab, colonel of the 3rd regiment of Gore militia, were gathered on the Niagara front, near Chippewa creek. BURNING [IF THE CAROLINE Tm- Brave Deed M the “on of hill?! “Either Victory or a ‘J‘Inclln: Sheet Beneath the l‘alls"â€"-Tlm Falw (‘lmrflf‘ or Flclion â€"(7anndlau~4 NN-d an “lusl With Shame for Thai Little, Band of Heroes. There were stirring times in the Province of Upper Canada in the year 1837. There W38 no rapid postal service, no Grand Trunk railway, nor telegraph wires strung all over the country at that time :0 keep people in touch with their distant interests. While the men of strong arm and loyal heart were away at Toronto and other places, supposed to be exposed to internal and external disturbance. the timid and helpless left behind were in a state of con- tinual terror and suspense, not only be- cause of the uncertain danger surrounding their friends at the front, but also because they believed they had reason to be con-' cerned about their own personal safety says a writer in The Empire. Every day some new rumor found & lodgment among the outlying rural secâ€" tions, sbarbling the quiet inclined people with some new phase of an impending danger, and ofteu it was hard to tell friend from foe, for in the older and best settled districts the low murmuring often heard among the disafiected gave a seeming cer_ tainty to surmise. They heard of “ Hunter Lodges" being formed in the towns and villages. where secrecr plans were nightly concocted and daily made public. At this time the steamboat Caroline, owned by William Wells, of Buffalo, was cut out. of the ice in the ship canal. fitted out in the interest of the gang on Navy Island, loaded at. Buffalo and Black Rock with men and war material. and on the morning of the 29th December run down to Schlosser, a small town distant about two miles from the Falls on the American side of the river. During the time 01 the early French and English settlements Schlosser was considered a very important place. But now, except for its local historical associations, it is scarcely referred to. During the day (the 29th) the Caroline made two or more trips to the island from Schloaser. and in the evening was tied up at the wharf. Meanwhile, Colonel (after- wards Sir Allan) McNab had not been idle. By his orders about sixty gallant volunâ€" teers met at the mouth of Chippewa. creek, ready to hazard their lives at the call of duty. There were seven boats drawn up on the beach, every man knew his place, and though very few of them knew precisely the nature 01' the expedition,they know it was full of danger, and the cur- rent at their feet, dashing past at the rate of six knots an hour, said plainly in the words of their gallant colonel, “It was either victory or a. Winding sheet beneath the falls." In 1837 it boomed for a short time, and the half rotten old storehouse that toppled on piles over the river bank, the old shed in rear of the wooden wharf, the little tavern and the half dozen shanties beyond the railway crossing and station, they all became dignified with the name of “Fort Schlosser," and engrossed for a timea space in the annals of diplomatic ingenuity that has seldom been, in any other case, of so formidable and intricatea character. After tracking the boats some distance up the river, at 10 o’clock, they embarked, and each man being informed as to the orders “ to destroy the Caroline wherever they could find her,” they started. Five 01 the boats only reached the Caroline. The other two 1056 their way (the night being A THRII‘I‘NG EPISODE IN CANADIAN ‘ HISTORY. They were commanded by Captain An- drew Drew, an officer in the Royal navy. Each boat had an experienced officer in charge. Their names, worthy of being remembered were ; Shepherd McCormack, also of the Royal navy,second in command; Christopher Beer commanded the third ; John Gordon the fourth : John Emaley the fifth ; Thomas Hector and John Battershy the sixth and seventh. \VHO COMMANDED THE EXPEDITIO)’. THE CAROLINE ON THE very dark) one of them grounding on Buck- horn Island. Quite a. number of men (most. of them asleep) were on board the Caroline when the [10an reached and boarded her. In the scramble and scuffle that ensued a number were wounded on both sides. Shep- herd McCormack and Richard Arnold were the only ones considered serious on the side of the raiders. After the American party had been driven from the steamer. one of them, named Amos Durfee, was The steamer being new in the hands of the invaders, it was towed out from the wharf, set on fire and sent. blazing over the falls. There was nothing removed from her, except some mattresses for the wound- ' ed to lie on and her colors. It was about '2 o’clock in the morning when the seven boats returned to Chippawa Creek,but they were not altogether. In the report of the transaction made by Colonel McNab at the time, it was stated that "no living person remained on the Caroline after the Canadians left her.” At the Alexander McLeod trial, above mentioned, this state- ment was fully corroborated and accepted. through the back of his head. As he fell Where he had stood on the wharf, in the line of fire from the tavern and warehouse where the late oc0upants of the Caroline were sheltered, and reinforced by friends, and as at the trial of Alexander McLeod in Union, in October, 1841, for ‘ being one of the expeditionary force, notwithstanding every degree of latitude being given by the prosecution to provea strong case, there was no direct evidence given to prove that a shot was fired by any of the boat crews. So itis highly probable that poor Amos Durfee got his death wound from some of the trembling cowards he had been that day vociferously applauding. It was an unfortunate ending, and the American Government made the most of the occasion by making strong representations to the British Court of St. James on behalf of the sovereign people 0! the State of New York. and also declared every man who went on that expedition a murderer and an abettor of murder. Happily we live in the time when the burning of a Caroline would be unnecessary, and the occupation of a Canadian island an impossiblity. But we know that there was a time when the possibility of the one made the other necessary. It is absurd to specu- late today on what might and should have been done. If we calmly consider all the peculiar exigent circumstances which gave cognate existence to that conglomeration of diverse passions and interests, then known as the people of Upper Canada, and when we consider the urgent danger that confronted the men of 1837, though they may have erred in their mode of meeting it, for they had not the light and experience of 1894 to guide them, we know they faced that danger manfully and fearlessly. And looking at the facts as they stand recorded on the page of true history, there is no need to-day for any trueCanadian to blush with shame or imagine that fame has left a stain on the laurel deckedmemories of that little band of heroes who, “asking not the reason why” went out on a dark December night to cross Niagara’s rapid stream and seized and burned the steamer Caroline. A protest has arisen in England against the absurd length to which the custom of providing flowers at funerals has been pushâ€" ed. Ibis called “a survival of the sentimental ages,”and a great many people declare that the money spent in buying flowers to be thrown into the grave could be put. to better use. One writer suggests that if to satisfy meresentiment we must continue still to be- stow substantial tributes at the grave it would be more reasonable to have the trib- utes take the form of whatever the deceased most valued in life. This suggestion opens wide possibility of innovation; for example, a dead bon-vivant would have his coffin strewn with cold asparagus and truffles, and an English officer of dragoons would be sprinkled down with brandy and soda. The sweet young thing who was cut otf In the spring time of her beauty might have her grave filled up with such booksas Dodo, and the heartbroken mourners might testify to the worth of the man-about-town by dropping complimentary tickets and tears on his casket. This summer might be seen at Greenhead, Lempizlaw, near Kelso, the extraordinary spectacle of a. hen destowing maternal care on alitter of three Dandy Dinmont pups, the property of Mr. John Wait, forester. It seems that the pups had been deserted by their mother, and in the come: of their aimless wanderings had come into contact with s. broody Orpington hen. the result being that the hen began to go about with and look after them. \Vhen she sat her- self down, the pups climbed over her back and crawled under her wings. just like so many chickens, and were apparently as much attached to their feathered foster- mother as the latter was to her canine fam- ily. It is unfortunate that we, who live in an age which may be considered remote in the brief, but eventful, history of our country, should sometimes read in American school book history the reiterated fictions they were at the time amply disproved. And it is still more unfortunate that now and then a. Canadian, trusting to the plausible appearance of the lie, and being also afflict- ed with the cocoethes scribendi, repeats in print the base fiction of the many innocent victims who went to death on the burning Caroline. He Pulls the Goose‘s Leg. Mr. \Valker Lief, who lives near Humio- ta, Man, does not use a gun when he goes after Wild geese. Great flocks of these wary birds now frequent the grain fields of the west. Mr. Lief rises early in the morning, and going to the grain field, he hides under the grain shocks so that the houkers cannot see him. As soon as a goose alights on the shock \Valter reaches out, catches the goose by the legs and ends its existence then and there. This oper- ation does not require much skill, but it gets the geese without the trouble of hand- ling a gun, which is the pleasure of the sportsman. THE FALSE CHARGES 0F FICTION. Flowers at Funerals. A Hen Bears Pups. KILLED BY A SHOT Mr. Halter-nor. of Spokaneâ€"News of Iior» «Ion l‘ulnmlngflliasl “card or no [Ian 3 Boot on 0m Foot and n )locnssln on Ihe 0thcr~The Musk 0x, Rolluleor and Caribouâ€"Indians Who Wonder at n Salllng Canoe. Mr Malteruer, of Spokane, \Vash.,has re turned to Edmonton from his trip to the barren lands. The barren lands are about 250 miles from Fort Resolution. About 100 miles furthur, at a lake called 01in- ton Golden, the musk ox are to he found. At Lockhart portage, Gordon Cumming and Harry Munn, hearing that a white mu was to follow in their direction, left a let, iter requesting Malterner to 'press on and overtake them. Mr M alterner received the letter three days afterwards; but not know- ing Gordon Cumming. thought he might be an explorer or miner, little thinking that, he was on a similar trip as himself. When last seen Gordon Cumming was wearing a shoe on one foot and a moccasin on the other. On the west side of Artillery Lake Mr. Maltsrner found that the delay caused by the ice, and the supplies running short, would not permit him to travel a hundred miles into the barren lands with safety with his Indian uide, he therefore turned back. He descrifiss the barren lands as ex- ceedingly rocky and very difficult to tra- vel in. The rocks and ground are covered with lichen. which, when dry is hard and as beautiful as coral; but when wet is quite soft and sponge-like. The moss is the food of the reindeer or caribou and is the source of numbers of mosquitoes and fleas. The deer had evidently only preceded them a short time as several wolves of a grizzly brown color, differing from the timber wolf and cayote were seen. These wolves follow up the cariboo when they goncrth and were not far away. Fur bearing animals are exceed- ingly rare. The beaver is not found much nearer than Fort Resoluticn district, the wood buffalolive in a southwesterly di- rection and bears are very seldom seen. On July 16 a large hear was killed with fur in perfect season just as bruin had come out of his wirter quarters. Mr. Malterner brought the skin with him and found it very useful in his after trips to sleep upon. Mr. McKinley, 0f the Hudson's Bay Comâ€" pany's store at Fort Resolution, considered it a. very fine one. The fact of this bear being shot in sucha latitude with fur in season on July 14, showa now very long. these animals are able to live without food from the time they hibernated in the fall. The only other animal seen up there was the red squirrel, which is seen as far north as there is a. spruce trec. Several ptarmigan were shot in summer plumage, dark brown feathers with white tipped wings. Other birds noticed were loons‘ of which there were three varieties, a few geese and very few ducks. THE BARREN LANDS AND THE GREAT SLAVE LAKE. WHERE THE VICTORY WAS WON. It is in the mountainous tongue of land ‘ extending out into the seafrom West Corea., towards the Chinese province of Snsntung, that the Japanese won their great victory 1 the other day. Ping Yang, or Phong- Yang, where the battle occurred, is on the I the Taâ€"tong River, and is the largest and, ‘ commercially, the most important town in I the northwestern province of Corea. Alli Corea is covered with mountains, and I there are no highways except the wretched roads along the valleys and across the passes. Several of these lines of travel from the north, east and south centre at I Ping-Yang, and the water that flows past I it reaches the see about thirty-five miles to ‘ the west. All these advantages have given ‘ Ping-Yang,considerable importance. When i the Chinese marched their forces across the ‘ frontier about six Weeks ago, they made straight for this point of vantage, the largest town in Corea. north of Seoul. It was in the face of these fortifications that less than a thousand Japanese. who had come up the west coast on a troop ship, made bold to jOin battle with the enemy. Of course they were driven back, and their inevitable repulse was hailed as a great victory in China. Then the Chinese crossed the ‘l‘a-tong River, and planted their out- posts a few miles south of it. \Ve are mentioning only a few leading facts that are now known to be true. It had been known for about a fortnight thsta Japanese column from Seoul was marching north to- wardPing‘Yung. It hadalsobeen intimated, rather indefinitely to be sure, that other soldiers from Japan were taking the sea route in the same direction. It was not cer- tainly knowu, however, thata. thiril detach- ment had been headed for the same goal from Gensan, over a hundred miles to the north- west, one of the best harbors in Corea. and the port that Russia covets so much. These forces has thus been converging gradually and in part secretly upon Ping- l’ang. They made ilieir approach very evident. just eight days before the big battle began. They were thirty-five miles from Ping-Yang when they drove the Chinese outposts before them and captur- ed Hwangfl n. It was a week later before the column from Gensan came up on the Chinese right. and the three columns cloed in upon the front and flanks of the Chinese position. What use theJapanese will make of their great victory remains to be seen. We have no reason to believe that a single detachment of Chinese troops faces them now in north Corea. They are. as far as we know, free to advance unopposed to the frontier, to seize the passes leading into the country, and even to throw China into a panic by marching toward Pekin or invading Manchuria. A Dem‘riplion of Ilu- Place “'hcro the Japanese “‘01: Their Great “Mary, Heâ€"“ Have you met Miss Richgirl '3" Sheâ€"“Once or twice.” Hesâ€"“Pretty sharp, isn’t she ?" Sheâ€"“I should say so. One has to k! away from her elbowm? IN THE FAR NORTH. Rival Belles. to keep A (‘lmhgo In the System 0! l'nylng (In- Snlnrlos ol'Twenly 'I lwusalul Henâ€"Tho 0m l'uy (far Doomed. The new system of payment inaugurated by the otficials of the Grand Trunk Rail- way is expected to be beneficial in every respect, and an advance upon the old methods, and. judged by broader views, to practically remove the serious risks the company ran under the old system of pay- ing by car, which delayed payment of sal- aries along the line several days. All the leading railways of the United States are contemplating a change from the old system. The object is to make available the bank- ing and other facilities which have grown up since the Grand Trunk initiated methods or adopted English ones many years ago_ Instead of transmitting hundreds of thou- sands of dollars through the country, with the attendant risks, counting money over and over, making up numerous remittances for one class of payers, and sending pay- masters with the requisite equipment for another class, it is now realized that funds are lying in the cities and all the more im- portant towns, adequate for all local wants1 while at smaller places there are the co m- pany’s own funds to draw upon. The ex- press arm of the Grand Trunk service also affords a. valuable adjunct in the distrihu- tion and supply of money. By the means new successfully introduced, though to a. limited extent, the placing of funds at remote points only to work back to the large centres. is avoided. The banks assume the actual disbursement of the money for which their agents are eminently qualified, and the company’s staff will devote every care to the accurate produc- tion of the drafts, and to the delivery of them to those entitled according to the pay rolls. The banks have cordially entered into the plan, and it is to be carried out without cost to either the employee or the company. The compensation to the banks is to be found in the increased note circulation and the opportunities which will be afl‘ord- ed the payees to become acquainted with banking facilities and the consequent incentive to provident habits. It is con- fidently believed that as the plan gets fully 1ntroduced employee will realize that the pay draft is aVailable for ready money for outstanding accounts, for deposit at banks from which it may be drawn as occasion requires, or, better still, it may augnent some accumulation already lying at inter- est. ” pay car system” will. cease. At present we understand the whole of the mouth succeeding that in which the money is earned is occupied in drawing,distributing, paying and checking up the necessary ac- counts, Hereafter it is anticipated there will be no remarkable inequalities in the dates of payment to the members of the large body of nearly 20,000 men atfected by these arrangements, indeed we understand it may be practicable to circulate all the drafts by the fifteenth, instead of not until nearly the close of each month. It would seem as reasonable to expect the Grand Trunk employees, to use the pay drafts as we have suggested in their own time and convenience. as it is for them to rely upon themselves in their matrimonial and other appointments. We trust the plan inaugur- ated may prove beneficial to the Grand Trunk service, and predict that other large corporations will see the advantage of adopting similar methods. If properly understood and spplied,there will be no rush to particular points, and the ample margin of Lime given for collec- tion will be so appreciated that the unseem- ly crowding which has prevailed under the Wifeâ€"“ The doctor tells me that he thiflks you_ havg gnlargement of the heart}: HusSaudâ€"“I thought he must imxgine I had something of the sort, by the size of the bill he sent. in." Human Sacrifice. The Khonds or (lands, of Orissa, India, until quite recently, set apart special in- dividuals, known as Meriahs, for victims to fertilize their sowing. These Meriahs iutermnrried, and their children Were brought up to the same profession. During their lifetime they were regarded as sacred, and treated with great affection and defer- ence. At the sacrifice they were cut up, and a. shred of flesh was given to each cul- tivator, who buried it in the centre of his field with his back turned and withoutlook- ing at it. In the Hertz Mountains there are the vestiges of a. similiur sacrifice at seed-time. A living man is carried through the village on a rough bier,dirges being sung during the procesaion, and on arriving at the fields he is lightly buried by being covered with straw. Instances of such associations of killing and immolatinn with the sowing of grain might be indefinitely multiplied. Considerate Lightning. The flash of lightning which recently struck the new palace of Potsdam may be congratulated on a. measure of tact and consideration seldom seen in connection with the electric fluid. Having greatly endangered the safety of the royal building, the current instantly hurried along the telegraph ereS to the fire alarm and set the bells ringing. Thereupon the palace firemen and the town brigade of Potsdam were quickly upon the spot and the fire :...s mpg; :2. in: um. AN ENORMOUS PAY SHEET. A Costh Diagnosis. Evangelist Hammond . will V conduct special services at, Chathmm this winter. .mhered n'om Various Atlantic to [he Gravenhurst's tax rate is 35 mills. (.lenWilliam’s 43-year-old goose is dead. The Orillia Bicycle Club is organizing an orchestra. Ottawa. had over 100 vacant, houses the past summer. An Orillia. S. 0. E. lodge will run an ex- cursion to England next summer. PURELY UANADIAN NEWS. INTERESTING ITEMS ABOUT OUR OWN COUNTRY. A new depot, is to be buiIt at Fre dericton N. 5.. next. year. I A moveménb is on foot to build a $30,000 notel an Digby. A defective sidewalk cost Walketton a 33,20013w suit. Canada’s mineral production last year reached a. total value of $19,250,000. The new free library building at London will cost $12,000. Raccoons are abundant, in the country districts of Ontario. A new lodge of Oddfellowa has been in- stituted at. Winnipeg. Hoderich will soon have an incandescent electrlc light and power system. The Winnipeg Presbytery has just/licens- ed a numb'er of aindenns t9 preagh. The rate in East Nisaouri and West Zorm this year is 35 mills on the doliar. A consignment of 160 mail bags for Hong Kong recently passed through Winnipeg. In two days eight cal-loads of silk passed through Winnipeg in bond fer New York. The C. P. R. delivers 175 carloads of wheat, daily at. the Fort William elevators. Mrs. John Sutherland, of Boyd's Settle- ment, died recently at the age of 93 years. The staff of the P. E. I. railway will erect a monument; to the late Superintendent. Unsworch. A 23-acre hop yard in Bathurst, 01m, will yield eight tons of hops. An electric railway from Arkona to the Michigan Central Railway is talked of. A lOO-acre farm has just been sold near ‘Vrigley‘s Corners, Out" for $6,550 cash. It, has been decided by the shareholders to wind up zhe Uanadn Meat, Packing Com- pany of Montreal. Eganville has a bunch of potato onions containing 17 separate ones all growing from one seed sown. Winnipeg’s new Conservatory of Music has just been opened. St. Thomas has put out $157,950 in building operations this year. G.th young men are thinking of organiz- ing an old-time minsbrel show. Fresh water turtles for the Eastern mm- keb are bred at, Chatham. The new Knox Church, Mitchell. was recently opened, the Rev. D , Battlsby, of Chanham officiating. Hallville and Mountain Station will soon be connected by telephone. Some one broke into the skating rink GAIL and stole a. silver trophy belonging the Granite Curling Club. The 11th annual in stock show of the Province of Ontario will be held at Guelph on Dec. 11th, 12th and 13Lh. The HudSOn Bay Company has closed its establishment in Keewamn and removed the entire soock to the new Rat. Portage store. The customs duties collected at the port of Winnipeg during the last fiscalyear were $150,000 165 than the amount collected in the previous year. An old bear and two cubs were captured near Lansdowne Station recently. They were driven out. of the Blue Mountains by bush fire. The C. P. R. Telegraph Company has opened ofices at Macdonaldpu the M & N. \V. railway, and Sinhaluba, on the main line of the C. P. R. in the North-\Vest. A young man was debarred the other day from entering the military training school at Point Levis Que, because he had poor teeth. He had been pronounced by the doctors. as physically perfect in every other respect. Mr. Jos. S. Gill and wife,of Matchedash, celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of their wedding recently. They have descendants in every provmce in Canada. A letter has been received in Woodstock from Mrs. Birchull, wife of Reginald Birch- all, the murderer of Benwell. She is living in London but ls in poor health. Even with present canal accommodation it costs much less to carry freight the full length of the St. Lawrence, even up stream, than across it. The Grand Trunk’s financial report, for half year ending 30th June shows gross receipts nearly $1,000,000 less thth in 1393, but the working expenses cut, down $725,- 000, leavlng the actual shortage a trifle over a quarter of million, or about. $510,000 a. week. Nova. Scotla's fruit export is of growing importance. The province will produce this year 112,000 barrels of apples and 110,- 000 baskets of plums, besxdes a. large supply of small fruits. AltogeLher it is estimated that‘the surplus for exportaaion will bring to the provmce $600,000. The Chipmunk Ran Down His Throat. A very peculiar accident happened re- cently to Eben White.a. farmer livinga‘oout, four miles northwest of St. Johns. Mich. He had been Working in the woods and lay down to sleep under a. tree, and must have slept with his mouth open. A common mongrel pup and a. small boy were hiscom- pamuns. While the old man slept the boy and the dog started a chipmunk and pro- ceeded to chase it. That chipmunk made tracks for safety,a.nd,seeing \Vhite’s mouth open. dodged in. It was a new sensation to White to have a chipmunk trying to get down his throat alive, and he woke up in 5 hurry. He nearly choked to death before he pulled that chipmunk out. and then he killed the little animal and brought it into town to prove the truth of the story he tells. A doetor who examined his throat and mouth found it badly lacrnled, and says nu believes White’s story is true. Polnta from the Puclflc. t0