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A Fairy Omnibus. I think everybody gets a. touch of romance some time in his life. The green glade of olden days is probably replaced by a. busy street, your arm- or-clad knight by a city man in a frock coat and. silk hat, your distressed dam- sel is a practical, level-headed, enerâ€" getic little typewriter, perhaps. The actors are changed, but, believe me the element of romance is just the same as it was in this days of chivalry. Now I dare say you would not believe that a. bald-headed, middle-aged, stout old solicitor like [tieâ€"getting every day more engrossed in business, and more and more apt to be a trifle crusty in my temper, owing to a. tiresome liverâ€" was ever suificiently “interesting” to play the part of a. modern knight er- rant. Let me tell ydu all about it, and how it ended. Et’s commonplace enough, I know, and I dare say most of you have gone through something similar, but if it does nothing else it may perhaps serve to stir up pleasant memories. I had nearly completed my articles, and was reading hard fom my "final," when one morning the firm rtold. me to go to a. client who was ill and take instructions for her will. ' "You IooEedEQrVy BEaffilVin-gj'v'wl said, with a. young man’s bluntness. I land- ed her safely on‘ the path, and she thanked me. I asked her if I could be of any further service. She thought not. She only wanted to get into a Paddington bus, and then she would be quite safe. Now, I wanted a Paddington bus, but I didn‘t say so. As soon as one came up I stopped it, put ‘her inside and went on top myself. Perhaps you will think me quixotic for going outside in such miserable weather. Well, I believe you Would have done the same thing af- ter all. You see, I was afraid she might think I was pestering her if I follow- ed her inside. It looked rather like taking advantage of a trifling service, and I was at that age when a man would rather have rheumatic fever than sacrifice the good opinion of a. pretty girl. Things are different nowâ€"I'm a married man. But, bless your heart, you can’t escape destiny by gettingoutside an omnibus. I' [hadn't been up there three minutes, the rain had only just commenced to soak through the knees of my trousers and trickle down my legs. when the conductor came up with a. [significant grinron his face v ‘7iE_§a-uw£l‘éa§:il:fi i: "there’s a. young lady inside wants to speak to yo_u..';fl "I’m very sorry," she said, laughing, "butâ€"I’m afraid my shoe has come off. lit stuck in the mud I looked around. Sure enough,a few yards behind us wasa shoe lying in he 111'le1 looking very lonely and getâ€" ting horribly wet. "Can you stand here for a. moment," I said, "while I fetch it?" I left her there, standing on one foot, with the tip of a little stockinged toe just touching the ground to steady her. A cab driver who happened to pass found the situation amusing and said so candidly, but I'm proud to say that I managed to keep a grave face. The shoe was such a small one that I mar- veled how a. human being could ever get it on. much less get it off again. it last we were ready to start again. "1'1. WW , ,,V ,--. .. _-..-., “5.4”... “It was very kind of you not to laugh at me," she said, with a little blush. “I must have looked very sil- lylflgtanglin‘g fihere on one foot.” v I climbed down the ladder with which bufgs in _those days were furnished. She was an old maiden lady living in Padding-ton, and our people had transacted all her business for her for something like forty years. It was #3- wet dayâ€"«me of those days that we get from time to time in London, when you feel as if you would like to go to bed and not get up again until things (have changed. Holborn was like a lit- ‘tle river, and the traffic slapped and splashed along in a. way that made you feel damrp even to watch" I stood on the ourbstone waiting for a. chance to cross without being smothered with mud, when I noticed a girl standing near me. She, too, was trying to cross. It was very funny to see her. She twas evidently from the country, and didn’t at all understand the London traffic. Three times she started, and three times she turned back in despair. I watched her with interest. There was an amusing expression of good temâ€" pered misery on her face. She was pret- tyâ€"very prettyâ€"and daintin dressed, andâ€"de, I seized my opportunity like an articled clerk who is worth his salt is bound to do. "Excuse me," I said, raising my hat, "but I think you want to cross the) road." She looked rather startled. “I think I shall get on all right," she answered "if you would kindly tell me when to start." She did not give me her arm. I ’took irt, and we started on our pilgrimage. In and out the cabs mid omnibuses I. guided her safely until we golt to about the middle of the road, wmch, as you. know, is very wide opposite FurnivaJ's inn. Suddenly she limped and gave a. fulopy little hop. "Suppose we try together? Give me your arm." ' a. touch of den sprm pened int fairylam ends tha. chance acquaintar if neither could te Points of agreeum chance acquaintance-3, and it seemed as if neither could tell the other too much. Points of agreement and disagreement were norted eagerly. We had read the same hooks, visited the same places, and wherever we turned there was neygr grguqd of sympatt‘h’yr ' She had only been in London a. week and had not visited any place of amusement. I wondered if I could find a chance here of pushing my advantâ€" age and approached the subject with delicacy and caution. But at this point it seemed that the mutual confidence stopped, for she declined to understand my tactics and remarked that her time] was too fully occupied to go about much. Only too soon we reached the place where I had decided to alight. We shook hands warmly and thanked each other rather vaguely and nerv- ously, and then I found myself once more on a. nasty, welt London ve- ment. I had had a glimpse of airy- land, but it: was only a. glimpse. I was back again in the practical, uncomfort- able world, with a. living to be earn- ed and a. will to make. The gates of fairyland were closed,‘for._ like a dopâ€" key, I had omitted to find out the fairy's name and where she lived. It seemed impossible to bring one's mind back to the legal subtleties of will mak- ing. but it had to be done, and Itrudgâ€" ed heavily on my way to our client's house finding, to my infinite disgust, that ‘I had got out of the omnibus much sooner than I need have done. Imagine my surprise when, on reach- ing the house and being shown into the dinin room, I found there the hero- ine o the lost shoe. That settled it. I felt that heaven had decided I. was to marry that young lady, and I formâ€" ed the pious intention then and there of givmg heaven every possible aSSist- shoe and made such a. beautiful hash of her aunt's will that it required some six or seven visits to put matters straight. Curiously enough, though, from the moment we met in the house her friendliness ceased. Every time I came she was more cold and distant, and I was almost in despair. The conâ€" versation which had flowed so merrily in an uncomfortable omnibus seemed impossible over the dining room fire1 and she refused to go beyond the most commonâ€"place ci/vilities. She calmly igâ€" nored that drive, which I had found so delightful, and treated me with or- dinary politeness due to the representaâ€" tive of her aunt’s solicitors. In lookingg up a word in the diction- ary several days ago my eyes fell on the definition of " emulation "-â€"-" the act of attempting to equal or excel in qual- ities or actions; rivalry, desires of sru- periority, attended with an effort to attain it." Only the evening before we had been talking about a little woman who was once pretty. but now has a. hyarrassed and anxious expression of countenance. " She has no disease. She is wearing herself to death by emulation of oth- er people. The strain will kill her if she keeps it up. Nobody in this world can stay first." His words and t'hle dictionary definiâ€" tion set me thinking. Are not many wo- men killing themselves by this same process? And how drearin unprofitable it all is. when one considers the truth of the physician’s statement, that “no- qux in phis~world >can stay first l'f The position grew desperate, because I couldn’t conunue to make blunders over the old lady’s will forever. Alâ€" ready the firm had reprimanded me for stupidity, though, to be sure, the old lady herself bore with me with won- derful patience and good temper. The crisis came. It was my last visit about the will, which was now readyâ€"abso- lutely correctâ€"and the dear old creaâ€" bure had approved of every Word of llt. IJt only required to be executed. She said she would like her niece and me " What is the matter with her ?" ask- ed one. It was ap‘hvysician who ans~ wered: " Nobody,l For strive as we may,t‘here is always some one with a little more money, a handsomer house. more influâ€" ence, or perhaps more brains. There is merit in the desire to make the best of ourselves and of the talents given us. There is no credit due her, who, because of "a. desire for superiority ” over another, wears herself out in atâ€" tem ting to do that which she can not per orm. Is this not one reason for the nervous, anxious look on tlhse faces of our American women? They strive to to be the witnesses, and as she was much better and able to get up we as- sembled solemnly in the library. But she was a funny old character and scouted‘ the idea of solemnity, ringing the bell for the servant to bring up some champagne, so that we might drink "success to her will." I'm thank- fill to say that, though I was by this time hopelessly in love with the niece, I had sufficient presence of mind to say, "Success to the will, and may it never have to be proved!” which pleasp ed her immensely, and'before I left I was invited to dinner the following Sunday. From that moment things went pretty smoothly, though it was only last evening that in talking over our courting days in the far away past my Wife explained the meaning of her extraordinary coolness to me. Seems that when, after the drive-in what she is pleased to call the "fairy omnibus," I walked into her aunt's din- mg room, she quite recognized that I must be her destiny, and so, with fem- inine perversity, she felt called upon to struggle against fate as much as POSâ€" Slble. "13'th ou ought to be very thankf‘ul to me or one thing," she added. ' It was I whoâ€"but never mind." “YVell,” she said, "it was I who sug- gested you should be invited to d111â€" ner.-" A Which just shows what contradic- tory creatures women amt ' miglit give t1] lives he longe "Notnsefiéel'fmlisziid: "G0 on. VYe are too old fashioned to be romantlc any lopgerzi' HER ANXIOUS FACE an additional strain“ they m. And would not our in the land? A PUBLIC A EXECUTIUNER Something About the lleudsman of France â€"llus field the Posltlon Thirty-Nine Yearsâ€"“1H Soon Betlre to Private Llfe. M. DEIBLER, OF PARIS, HAS GUIL- LOTINED 502 CRIMINALS. The man in France who has probably killed more human beings than any oth‘ er person in the world, unless those 2,000 rebellious Mussulmans who were executed in the Northwestern province of China. a. few months ago were decap- itated by one man. which is not like- ly. is soon to renounce his trade of blood and retire to private life. In oth- er words, M. Deibler. popular known as " Monsieur de Paris," is to resign from his office as the public execution- er of France with a record of 502 of- ficial deaths to his credit. M. Deibler has been an executioner for thirty-nine years, From 1858 to 1863 he assisted Roch, his predecessor, in eighty-two executions. and then became "executeur des hautes oeuvres ” him- self. He is now seventy-three years of age. If such a. term be permissible. it may be said that he is the most popu- lar “bourreau” that France has ever had, and he has very seldom been plac- ed irn an embarrassing position at the scaffold. He carefully tests the guillotine beâ€" forehand. and even again at the last moment, just before the execution, The knife he keeps in his own possession at his home. The different filaoes in France appointed for ‘executio-ns have A HEADSMAN THIRTY-NINE YEARS each their own scaffolds. In 'ourney- ing to and from an execution .Deibler carries the knife with him in a. small black case of leather made for the purâ€" pose. This case once seen is never for- gotten. The memory of its deeds seem to haunt one. M. Deibler seemed to have astrange almost supernatural power over his in- tended victims, and it rarely happens that he meets with any resistance. When he does 'the police are there to do his bidding, but he usually insists on managing the refractory criminal himself. In personal appearance M. Deihler has been an ideal “ Monsieur de Paris," with his black beard, iron gray hair, dark mournful eyes and pale visage. He always dresses in black, with long frock coat and tall silk hat. His do- mestic life has been quiet, as might naturally be supposeu and his wife, who died a few months ago, was a delicate, refined and well-read woman, hardly the spouse that one would expect to find in the home of " Monsieur de Par- The lonely life of a lighthouse- keeper calls for stem, unswerving de- votion to duty, and sometimes for weal heroism. A story is told of the wife of a lighthouse-keeper of Chicago which shows that the heroism is not always confined 'to the \keeper himself. The light which this keeper tended is at a place called the “Crib,” two miles out in the lake, and surmounts the massive masonry at the entrance of the :tunnel which receives the water supply of the city. One day .in early winter the keeper went ashore for supplies. Night came, and he did not return. A wild storm had swept suddenly down, and it! was impossible for a boat to cross the lake; but though the keeper was not there, the light burned steadily and the wife kept her lonely watch, tending the light and‘ looking for her husband. It was two or three days. before he came, and even then the waves ran high and the. wind roared. She stood It has been reported that she was a descendant of the famous Samsonnvho beheaded Louis XVI. That is a mis- take, Samson had but one son. who was named Henri, and who was Roch's pre- decessor until 1848. when he retired from office, with rather an unenviable name. About fifteen or twenty years ago he published the famous " Memoirs de Samson.” Mme. Deibier was the daughter of the executioner of Algiers, SNOWBALL, RUNAWAY, SUICIDE Peter Joseph Dreis was the oldest druggist in St. Paul, Minn, and one of the city's leading politicians. His son. 13 years old, threw a snowball at a man in a. cutter the other day, and it struck the horse. causing it to run away. This runaway resulted directly in three other runaways, in which much damage was done. Two of the injured persons called at the drug store, and demanded damages. \Vithout making {my answer Mr. Dreis walked directly into the office at the ream of the store. put a. revolver behind his right ear. and fired. Death was instantaneous. Mr. Dreis has been in the drug business here forty years. LIGHTHOUSE - KEEPER’S RETURN Bravery of "is Wil‘ “'slu' n the ith a. rope enly down, and it! was boat to cross the lake; keeper was not there, 1 steadily and the wife ' watch, tending the Hg for her husband. r three days. before he then the waves ran "1nd roared. She stood I the buyer waiting for e reuuy Lo draw up the In journeyâ€" illm From a small cargo. It was soon safely housed, and the rope descended [or the keeper. Just as he grasped it the waves swept boat from under him, and carried it away beyond his reach. His safety depended on the strength of his (wife’s arm, and he trusted himself to it. Slow- ly, very slowly, 'he was drawn: up, till he reached the window’s edge, but'be- fore he could grasp it a. heavy gust of wind struck him, and he was hurl- ed back into the water. - . Once more the rope was thrown with- m his reach,and inch by inch he felt himself ascending the rough wall of the stone tower tossed to and fro by the force of the wind. IWould the strength of the wife hold out till the final effort was made, or would the wind triumph and send him badk' into the raging water 3“ It seemed impossible that the woman. could sustain such a weight so long, yet he slowly ascended till the critical spot was reached, and with a. long, brave pull the ledge was passed, and he climb- ed in at the window. Then, and not till then, did the brave woman’s endurance give away. As her husband touched the floor she fainted. It was no wonder. He found her clothes woarn through where slre had braced 'her knees against the stone wall, and her left arm was born and bleeding. The sudden jerk when ha fell had wounded her arm and disabled it, yet she had not given iin. "I knew there was no time to fain ," she said, when she opened her eyes and. looked in his face. "You. were at the other end, and so I drew that rope up with my right hand and my teeth." VALUE OF PUBLIC PLAYGROUNDS. The Great Benefit Which They Confer on Old and Young. Among the many plans which have been suggested in England for com- memorating worthily the sixtieth an- niversary of the coronation of Queen Victoria in June next, none seems to find more favor than the proposition for a. concerted movement for setting aside plots of ground or places of his- toric interest to be dedicated to the common use and enjoyment of the peo- ple. It is pointed out that this is a plan- which will give-the people of each town and. country a personal interest in the celebration, while it will give them also the feeling that they are sharâ€" ing in the great national movement. Should this plan be adopted, hundreds of “Queen Victoria" gardens, parks; playgrounds and fields, dotted over the kingdom, may express the popular apâ€" preciation of Queen Victoria's benefi- cent reign, and at the same time con- fer a. great. and lasting benefit upon the people. lThere are one or two errors which should be guarded against, however. For one thing, places set apart for the public use should not be too good to play in. Neat paths, closely trim~ med sods and signs of "Keep off the grass" do not meet the need. These are all well, but somewhere in the park there should be grass which one can stretch out upon, and ground that the boys can trample over. Another mistake is that communi- ties do not begin soon enough to set] aside fland for commons and public grounds. They wait until thepressure of opulation makes breathing-space abso utely essential To the general health, By that time land commands a large price, and the difficulty of se~ curing enough of it Within easy reach of_the people is considerable. ‘ . Playgrounds, too, are needed in thei country as well as in cities. It is often assumed in the country that boys and girls have all pu‘Ldoors. 1p which t‘o play, and that special provision for them is not necessary; but it often happens in rural communities that khere is no lace in which chiJLLren may romp eely. They either play in the roads or trespass In private fields and pas- tures. Rural communities which move in season to secure open grounds for the public use not only provide for the children of to-day, but give large ex- penditure later, when population pres- ses upon them, and land comes to be reckoned at so much the squarelfoot. Another ties do not aside {land ggounds, ’ PRUSS IAN SABLE. Ten thousand dollars seems a. big price to pay for a. secondâ€"hand garment. but the members of the Royal house of Europe do not hesitate to spend this amount frequently to obtain one for winter wear. The first owners of the costly dress are endowed by nature with a precedence in the matter of wearing that no amount of money can overcome. and the millionaire or titled representa- tive of a. European monarchy must be content to purchase the garments after they have been worn for years. But the Russian sable is not a human being and, no matter how much the animal may drag the fur through the mire and dirt, no one will consider it a. dishonor to wear it. In Russia. and many of the Northern countries a sable coat or cloak is worn as a. mark of distinction, and Svengali, in his expressed ambition to Wear "23 big funrcoat,” undoubtedly re- ferred to the fine Russian sable that is seen so connmonly at the courts of Europe. \Vhifle the fashion in most fur changes year by year, sable invariably holds its own. and the possessor of a rich gar- ment of this material can well feel the pride that comes from owning some- thng not commonly worn. The de- mand for sable has never been so ex- tensive here as in Europe, and very few understand the difference between the relative value of the American and Rus- sxan furs. At the court of Russia every member must have his sable furs for state occasions, and it is estimated that this equipment must cost each one not far from 3525.000. In Germany the maids of honor are compelled to have their garments trimmed with sable tails and clippings, while in the court dresses of several other European nations the sable figures in various ways. Doctor (e life insural father and Applicant _[ 'xactly 1'0 mg serlous NO’ me H] SERIOI 1n 1 waves swept , and carried L. His safety of hishfivife’s If to it. Slow- rawn: up, till edge, but'be- a. heavy gust he was hurl- noli TERRIFYING THE PEOPLE OF BEL- GIUM’Sf BIG CITIES. BANDITS LED BY A WUMAN A Daring Woman chk TurpInâ€"People Afraid to Leave their Ilouses After Nightâ€" fallâ€"The Police Are Complelely Bam- ed. Belgium has a gang of bandits the~ atrical enough in their methods and. make-up 'to warrant their appearance on the stage in melodrama without so much as adding a feather to their hats or a daub of grease paint to thein' cheeks. To begin with, the leader is a. woo man, and the woman is apparently young and graceful, as well as relent- less and determined in operations. She always wears a. mask when: she is 01m conducting a business enterprise. so he): face has never been seen by any of her. numerous victims. But the assump- tion is that she is beautiful. 'As for uhe gang. which she seems to rule with a. rod or iron, itis made up of as inter- estingly villainous an assortment 01'. seoundrels as the heart could desire; To add to their natural piratical out; they wear slouched hats and are mask-1 ed. like their leader. ¢ warp, and. in addition to a. great num-‘ ber of petty robbers in farm-houses- and farm-yards, they have waylaid and pillaged belated travellers on the high‘ ways. in the vicintiy at Brussels and Ant- One of their last exploits was neat the village of Thfisselt. It was late an night, and two men who live in tha village were returning home. Their road lay along the border of the Wil- lebroeck Canal, and at a. place Where! great trees grew so close together that) they cast a. deep shadow, even thought it was winter and. they were stripped! of their leaves. ,At this point four dusky figures sud-t denly loomed up before them, and they had just time to notice that one of. them was a masked woman when they! were seized, thrown violently to the ground and gagged. The woman her- self shared in the attack, leaping on one 'of the men like a. panther and bearing him down with a strength and suddenness that seemed incredible; \Vhen the men were beyond the power» to move or make an outcry the wo- man stood aloof, while the rest of the! gang de the pillaging. ,‘When this was aceomplished the woman joined hen subordinates in giving- the unhappy1 burghers such a pounding and kicking as left them barely able to move. Then! the gang got into a boat that was! moored to the bank of the canal near by and, with muffled ours, disappeared in the darkness. The whole transac- tion did not take more than five min- utes, but it was an hoiur beforeOthe battered and bruised victims got 111W the village and told their tale. POLICE HAVE NO CLUE. The gendarmes turned out in force, and the whole country for miles about was ransacked, but not a. trace of the‘ robbers was found. it was as though the mist hovering over the canal had swallowed’them up and they had melt- ex amay with it when the sun came in the morning. _The result of this and a. number 01? Similar robberies which have occurred find are still occurring is that there IS a. surt of reign of terror existing! among the people who live in the in-1 fasted district. Women are afraid to leave their houses after nightfall, andl even men will not venture after dark along the country unless in sufficient: numbers to be sale from attack. Grotesque Amusement of lhe Natives of h w South Wales. Dancing "as she is taught" by French masters is little in vogue with the na.-« tives of New South Wales, but they do something far more original and in teresting, in their own wayâ€"though: rather too violent and eccentric to be introduced into the civilized ball menu It is not a religious exercise like the} whirling antics of the dancing dervishes and the grotesque comer-Lions of our. American Indians celebrating a good harvest or a. victory over foes. It is. rather a. tribal social event, and a source of amusement, indulged in [on the purpose of stirring the blood and getting up a. liLLle pleasurable ex- citement. \Vhen Lime hangs heavily on the hands of the young savages they decide, much like their more civilized brothers, to liven up things by a. dance. I danclng may be their toilet. Thi thei'r bare. brown in lines to repress for the arms am ones for the ribs sists of a lnt of sh en, and accoman en, and accompnmed by v« verse of tuneful. \Vhen the fire burns brig ing the surrounding la deeper gloom, and the hi the wal'shields reuds the sh The gang has been operating of late- 1‘1 THEIR LAST EXPLOIT THE SKELETON DANCE. vel spot edged by a. forest some- hie lie the I‘h the] 3.3 if 115 the o the upany 0111 of the rightly, throw- Jgndscapq‘ intq din of. re sud- stru V2111 the nly IDS to