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Twilight was falling one November afternoon many years ago, as three! minstrels plodded along a rough,[ country road through a wild and unâ€"i inhabited section of old England. . “Would that we might find shelterfor the night!" exclnimed Richard, the ; tallest of the three, wrapping his cape? more closely about his shoulders.l “Me thinks a storm is approaching‘ on the wings of the wind.” ‘ a an 1:...â€" vu uuv vv...a.. vâ€" -._- , “Small chance have we of finding host or cottage on this lonely‘ road," replied Pietro, the Clown, dubiously. But Leon, 9. boy, striding on ahead, said nothing; only peered more eager- ly into the thick woods at either side. ' ‘ ‘ “' - ' I ___.I Lnnbnnnr‘ within. Listen!” Bneathlessly the companions stood on the threshold. Yes, something was, inside the cottage, for they could hear! distinctly now, a faint crying soundl coming from a darkened corner. , "Perchance some animal has sought] shelter here, even as we have," said1 Leon, entering fearlessly. I \v £2-43) vu, u ........ a -V, Just them Richard struck his fllnt'l and steel together and light flashed} for an instant, revealing rough, tim-l bered walls, earthen floor, and in the middle of a pile of straw a small,1 furry animal, who sat up and regardâ€"i ed the travelers with a look of startled‘ surprise. I" __‘1,.1....,.A Pietro lit a pine fagot from Rich- ard’s spark, and held it high in his hand. Methinks the little creature perhaps wandered away from home," 7 â€"â€" mn-Jrn A? UL naps u 9......“ V _ 1' râ€" 7. he said, “for there are no marks of[ other animals about.” l “If so, he may be hungry," added Leon. “A piece of bread might help to win his friendship.” And kneeling' on the straw he took a small bundlel from the leathern pouch at his side,l and unwrapped it carefully. ‘ “Here, little one," Leon broke a bit of black bread from the loaf. “See, I will share my meal with you!" At first the bear drew back until only the tip of a tiny nose was visible. But gradually, as if in answer to T.pnn’§ friendlv smile and coaxing At first the bear drew back untu only the tip of a tiny nose was visible. But gradually, as if in answer to Leon’s friendly smile and coaxing voice, he worked his way ont again, and finally, with bright eyes fixed warily on Leon’s, thrust his head for- ward and took the bread between his white teeth! Richard and Pietro watched the strange scene, as the boy fed morsel after morsel to the hungry bear, and when all was gone, the furry creature came out of the straw altogether, laying his muzzle in Leon’s hand, un- afraid and content. That night, in the Worid outside, snow began' to fall, covering the trees and earth with a mantle of shimmer- ingI, white. But the paie moon, shining through the window of the cottage, showed the wayfarers asleep, “Why, it's a A M'INSTREL BOY OF LONG.” AGO. Boys and Girls A HUNGRY BABY REG’LAR FELLERS~By Gene Bymes. baby bear!" exclaimed For the BY FLORENCE ROMAINEfi safe and warmâ€"’â€"Richard and Pietro ‘covered with their cloaks, and Leon} lhalfâ€"hidden in the bed of straw, with ‘ the baby bear cuddled close at, his feet. A few days later, and not many miles from the mlnstrels' woodland cottage, a little, flaxen-haired girl lstood by the tower window of a great ‘sto'ne castle, looking out over the win- try landscape. “To-day's feasting holds naught of happiness for me," she sighed, “for without my cousin GwendOlen I am lonely indeed.” “Let not thy father hear thee say as much, my Audray," replied her companion quickly; “Thou knowest well, that sipce his‘quarrel with thy unde, both he andy=GWendolen are forâ€" bidden here.” ‘ their: back Vaflé'ai‘fi “Ay,’,’ rgsponfled the little girl. “would thggfidfiiéthing might bring “Butiégfigfcfiildf the nurse took her gently by the hand,” let us go down, lest thy father think it strange we tarry." l Together they descended the broad staircase and entered the 10fty hall, where already Audray's father and his henchmen were seated around a long table. FEASTING IN THE HALL. Logs blazing in the huge fireplace burnished the silver with fiery glow. There was a din of many voices, and laughter echoed among the rafters, but as Audray endethe nurse came in, Duke Henry sprang to his feet. “At last thou art here," he cried, pulling out the chair beside him. “Now may theplight of thy presence make, bright our feasting! Bertram, fetch food and drink for Lady Audray, at once, and quickly." “Thy daughter's smiles have fled, whispered the nurse softly to thel :Duke. Then with a braver note in her voice: “It was not so when her; ‘cousin Gwendolen lived here; the child ~-misses a youthful companion andâ€""' i “Cease!” muttered the Duke an-‘ lgrily. “I will not hear that namel‘ .Bertram, call the minstrels in, per-‘ lchance they can bring joy to the heart 'of little Audrayfi' All eyes turned to the doorway. And ‘at that instant, our old friends, Rich- fliard, Pietro, and Leon, leading the baby bear, advanced toward the com- With a word of thanks Audray slipped into her seat, but was quiet as the meal wore on, although song and story begulled the time and men-lâ€" ment ran high at the long table. - A Pietro began the performance,1- |throwing many colored balls into the airâ€"one, two, three, a halfâ€"dozen at- a time, weaving them into curious;l ipatterns above his head, and catching; {them lightly and easily with swift" ‘fingers. He finished, and Richard took; ‘ his place, making the men roar with {laughter at his drolleries. And then Leon stepped forward; sweeping the strings of his lute with. .firm, thought gentle touch, while his, < ivoiee floated clear and true through the great hall. I I . > I Peace bejcto all, and joy. 1 t In every heart to-clay i I Let strife forever cease to be, i And love remain alway. As the sweet tones melted away the swarthy men were silent, and Audray ; clapped her hands, smiling happily. A burning log crashed in two, send- d ing a shower of sparks up the chimâ€" -- ney. ‘ u pany “Let strife cease to be, and love re main alway,” repeated the Duke, to himself. He turned to Audray. “Would it make you happy, little one, if I should send for your uncle and cou- sin?" he asked, a gentler expression on his dark face. “Oh, Father.” Audray threw her! arms around his neck, her eyes shinâ€"I ing. It wa‘max‘zlswer enough. Duke Henryg gtroked her hair ten-‘ derly. “So be 'it, my child," he replied,‘ and to the henchman at his side: “BerJ tram, thou shalt go now with a mes- :mm to my broth? and his daughter,‘ sage to my in Above ls shown “Byrowndale Guard," the ye: and Stanley Douglas, of Caledonia, Ontario. whlc ship at the International Stock Show m Chicago championship only by‘ the Prince of Wales' “Ki dale Guard" also won championslhlps in Tom] generations of the Douglas famlly have been enl her bidding them good cheer, and we‘.- come to our house again!" ~ ‘ Many happy days the three min- strels remained at the castle. Leon taught Audray and GWendolen to play the lute. Brown Bruin became a gré‘at pet with everyone, and the torch of peace burned bright, lighted by the ‘song of a Minstrel Boy of Long Ago. The golden wedding recepnon nau - tired both of them a Littlkâ€"the mass 1 in the village church in the morning. then the breakfast, with ’the immense '3 table in the fashion of olden tlmes. At the head of the board slat the old couple. Next came the cure, the chil- dren, the grandchildren, friends! neighbors and tenants. One hundred; covers were spread by a caterer fromI Paris, on nestles across the lawn. To spare the chief figures in the fete the repast was a breakfast, not! ’a dinner. The village fiddlers had] played their renerbory. After numerâ€"I ‘ous healths the guests had departed,i mma lw auto and some by train. Thel some by auto and some by train. The‘ caterer had loaded his finaphernalia into enormous trucks and the garden- ers had cleaned up the littered park. I Count Stephen was seventy-eight! years old. He was still handmme, with his fine white imperial. Countless Sophie Edmee was sevenâ€" tyâ€"two. She was very slight in figure, a. little ben-t, but her blue eyes spat-lg led vivaciously in her delicately wrinkled face. They sat alone that evening m we salon, which was packed with flowers. “My dear Sophle Edmee,” said the count, “We are in the twilight of life. I don‘t want to let this day end withâ€" out thanking you for all the happiness you have given me. There are few women with virtues like youth.” “You have always been very good,“ answered the countess. “I ought to thank you, too, Stephen. You have loved me and cherished me, and have never been jealous." W'fiie 315$“ got up gallant-1y and kissed his wife’s hand. “Thanks, my dear Edmee. But who could be jealous of a wife as (wanemantl as you?" w She smiled. “A husband less perfect than you, my dear Stephen." Count Stephen smiled in his turn. “I have never had cause for jeal- ousy. Your life has always been open and loyal, without any secrets." “Without any secrets? I wished it A LAUGH AT JEALOUS HUSBANDS “I don't mean to say that I always understood your motives.” . . . “For eample'.’" “You remember the porcelain serâ€" vice which you had painted, about thirtyâ€"five years ago, by that young Polish artist? He spent three months here doing the work. I made no com- plaint about it. He was also a good musician and I owed him many pleas- ant evening's. Do you remember?" She sighed. i be so." (Cop 'riglu. 1925 vb ONTARIO BULL SECOND AT CHICAG wedding receptjon had y ThorBell Syndicate. Inc) ward," the yearling bun owhed by James Ontario, which won the junior champion- )W in Chicago. being beaten for the grand of Wales' "King of the Fairies." Brown- thps in Toronto and in London. Three have been engaged in shorthom breeding. “I remember Ladislas." “It is true, his name was Ladislas. You have a good memory. Wei], when the first sets were finished you became displeased with his painting. You let I hin'i dolonly the thirteen pieces for soup, :fish, meat and dessert. He went away. You have never used th‘e'serâ€" vice. It is in the dining room, and except for annual cleanings it has slept there for thirty-five year-5 It is ithe only thing in which you seemed Ito me a. Little fantastic." The'o'ud lady smiled silently at these‘ memories. Then she lifted her head ' and looked squarely at the count. E “Stephen,” she said, “we are so old . that I can boll you everything, just as if if concerned another person. Ladis- las went away atrmy reques ” “Why? He had not finished paint- ing the service.” The countess sighed again. “Come,” she said, “we will talk it out." x “This evening? Certainly, if you wish to do so." J The count carried a lamp into the dining room and the, countess looked ‘for the key to the china closet. They ‘ took out the porcelain pieces, on which {the delicate fancy of the Poiish paint- mu. uleVuâ€"v -wvri , er had traced exquisite garlands of flowers. Sophie-Edmee arranged the pieces on the table, inspecting them carfuiiy, changing thi’r positions and putting them in a certain order. Ill-v4.1 “What difference does it make whether this plate is to the right or left of this other one?” asked the count. “Aren’t they all alike?" But she continued to shift them. Finally all were in place. i um! , “It is a shame," said the count. “The service is charming. I admit having felt annoyed that he never finished it. Why send Latislas away so soon? He ought to have done the 104 pieces beâ€" fore We let him go.” " Sophie-Edmee fixed her still beauti- ful eyes on her husband. “Look, Stephen," she said. “Each piece caries in the decoration a ietter whiah you have never notired.” He adjusted his monocl-e. “That is so. A capital letter on the dishes and small letter on the plates." “Take a pencil and write down the yletters in the order in which I have placed the piecesâ€"in the same order ‘in which Ladislas presented them to > Full of curiosity, the count wrote down, line by Line: “Love is -a11-; It is happiness. _ With a i-augh at jealous husbands, Here is my heart.” The count dropped his pencil and let his monocle swing. “By the Pope's shadow!" he cried, “that is a piece of insoienoe! An in- .sult in my face! \ And I never knew it!” The countess smiled broadly. “That is why,” she said, “I asked Lad‘islvas to go away before he had finished the 104 pieces. I was suffi- ciently warned by his quatraln of fifty-two letters." She added. tactfully: “I am really old now since the only little secret of my life has been re- vealed. Already Stephen was piling up \he bopyrigh: 1925 by Hoylc. Jr W RGUS ON New SerieSQYWYNNEfE 'DA'JA 1' We cannot all hold good cards but we I all can hold our tempers. Many a game i and rubber is lost by bad temper, an in- : excusable fault from every angle. The ‘ writersawthis well exemplified the other night. Two fairly good )layers had cut together for several ru bers and were not only holding bad cards but also get- ting bad "breaks." After several such hands, one of the layers lost his temâ€" per com letely an began to blame his artner or their bad luck. This natural- y didn't lfelp so they went from bad to worse. Finally, after one hand in which a very bad and unexpected “break” of cards caused a big 1059, the hot tem- Ecred player said: “\Vell, partner, I ave lost all confidence in you." The very next hand,.the 'partnu‘~ made an lnformatory double but the hot tem- ered one refused to bid, saying: “I now ver well what you want me to do but 1' l be hanged if I fol-low. your ignorant orders." As a result of this childish loss of temper their opponents went €ame and rubber. Don't allow yourse f to lose your temper at the card table. There's no better way to lose not unis: your money but also your friends. veral of the hands that caused this strong difierence of opinion. were rather ' interesting and instructive. -I Hand No. l , pieces and replacing them in the china closet. He locked the door and came to kiss his wife's hand. “You are always young, my dear, since I am still jealous, surprised and grateful, for you could have gone on keeping your secret. 'I thank you in both senses for showing me this serâ€" vice.” Mozart Interrupts An Opera. “Play D sharp, you wretches!” shouted a young man one night in the audience of an opera house, and he sprang to his feet as he shouted. The audience hissed, and attendants came hurrying towards the interruptor,j while cries of “Turn him out!” reâ€"i sounded through the theatre. But when the audience recognized him, their anger vanished and a tumult of applause greeted him. It was Mozart. The opera was his oWn. At a certain important point in the score some of ‘the instruments had played a wrong fnote! Fine dust found at the bottom of ant'su nests and taken internally was a populasr cure for snake bite among the early American Indians. Hearts -â€"K. Q, I. 9, 7 Clubs â€"â€" A, K, 4 Diamonds â€"â€" K, J, 10, 8, 2 Spades â€"- none No score, first game. Z dealt and bid one heart, A one spade and Y and B passed. Z bid two diamonds, A two a des and Y and B passed. 2 now bid t rec diamonds, A passed. Y bid three Hearts â€"- Ky . 9 Clubs â€"â€" 10. . 5 Diamonds â€"â€" none Spades â€"- K. 10 There are no trumps and Z is in the lead. How can YZ so play the hand that they will win five of the ei ht tricks against any defense? The so ution of this problem has already been given but a possible defense by B was suggested for analysis. At trick one, Z should play the king of clubs and Y should play the seven. Z should then follow with the seven of s ades. A should win this trick with the 'ng. It was suggested that A 31 uld now play the kin of hearts and {0 low with the nine. If % plays the six of hearts on A's king, and wins the second round of hearts with the ten, Hearts â€"- 8, 5, 3 Clubs 5â€"â€" 10, 7 Diamonds -â€"-9, 3 Spadesâ€" A, 8, 6, 5, 4, l vwnsuu w, .. ._ Cfluthor (f ‘T'erguxgq'ér; auction Budge" Reds Bit Ant Dust ARTICLE No. 11 THAT’S A LAEF ON Answer to Problem No. 7 Hearts â€" 7, 4, 2 Clubs â€" Q, 7, 2 Diumonds â€" none, Spades â€" Q, 6 I190 THAT'E Hearts -â€" Q, 10, 6 Clubs â€"â€" K Diamonds â€"â€" K, 6, 2 Spades â€"â€" ‘l hearts, B and Z passed and A doubied. All passed and A opened the king of spades. How should Z pla. the play of the hand? Hearts â€"K, j, 8, 2 Clubsâ€"A,],9,3 ' : ! Diamondsâ€"K,],7,6 _ :A B : Spades â€" 7 : : Score, YZ 10, AB 0, rubber game. Z dealt and bid three spades, A and Y passqq, ‘dou'tzled and all passed. What ‘should' A lead? A Typographical Error. Hearts â€" j, 10, 5 Ciubs â€" A, 10 7, Diamonds â€" A, 8, 4 Spades â€"' 8, 6 '37 2 A B p. o. '- Y Z '0 ol .- No score, first game. Z dchltand bid one guade, A and Y passed and B bid two iamonds. Z, two spades, A three dinmonds, Y three spades and all passed. A opened the ace of diamonds and all (ollow. What should A now lead to the I second trick? ‘ H asyleuons m â€" ,,__. A“ I Hearts â€"â€"- K, 7_, 5. 3 Clubs â€" 7 : Y . : Diamonds‘â€"- A, K, J, 8, 3 :A B : Spades â€"â€"- j, 7, 6 I Z ! ‘ No score, rubber mm. 2 dealt and bid one club, A‘one iamondI Y one heart and B one s ade. Z now bld two hearts, A two spa es. Y three hearts and B ‘three 5 adea. Z now bid four hearts. What 5 ould A now bid with the fore- going hang? _ ,1 LL--- (3.... Lnnrla ur:,‘ ‘Ul||s IIGIIHQ An analysis of these four hands will be given in the next 'article. They are not tricky but usual, ordinary hands that come up constantly. Study them over and be ready to compare your reasoning with the writer's opinion. YZ can only win four tricks for Z will have to lead diamonds to B's hand. When A leads the king of hearts, Z should pla the ten of hearts and win the secon round of hearts with the queen. He should then play the king of diamonds and lead a. low heart. A. must win this trick with the jack of hearts. No matter what he now leads, Y must make his queen of clubs and queen of lspadcs. This variation is very instruc- . r 7 , -L-..” LA nara‘ul‘lti nnfod Plav 5 Hubs. All "0...“ tfve and shgleaufie careffiilly néted. Play it out and notice the proper play by A and Z. Newly Fleéged Surgeonâ€"“I don’t hr tend to settle down until I find the. best posibLe location." Friend-41 can point it out to you at oncewthe most popular railmad crossu mg in the country.” The Lacey mica mine, near Syden- 1mm, in Frontenac County, is said to be the largest amber mica mine in the ‘worid. Canada is one of the three principal mica producing countries of the world, the others being India and the United States. Hearts â€"A, 9, 6, 2 Clubsâ€" K, J 8, 4 Diamonds â€" x7 Sgadeeâ€"‘Q, 7, 5, 2 The Sea Hand No. 2 Hand No. 3 Hand No. 4 Hearts â€"â€" none Clubs â€"â€" J, 4, 3 Diamonds â€"- J, 10, 5, 4, 9 Spades â€" none 3t Location for Him