Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutExeter Advocate, 1901-5-30, Page 2e— p eta le 1111[111 It[10 1 'elotelantekletenlb,edielbeltadintlielledanela f 73omebody diecovened lb In a mil- dewy pictuamagallery in Germanynand liezelciali Hobbes, the inultiemil- lioneire, who had amassed ti,s fortune oui of the pameeede of tinned fish, plir- C1104ed it for a mere eong. It made Lim fiirpotte and, gave him a plaemL 0Ciety ±ieb eVell his mil- lions could hot buy. , After all, anybody might be a mil- lionaire, if he had the •elitence ; but geoure an undoubted Raphael,paint- eal in that prince of artists' best man- ner, is' a distinction indeed. About a dozen of the guests at Bramley Castle wene in the picture - gallery admiring 1( , To Crawford Rivers; the rising young arti,st, who wae said, by the ,waty, Lo be wildly in lone with Mar- garet Hobbee, the pieture was an in- exhauetible subject of study. I a poem," be muttered, in his enthustasra--"a poem iwitliout words ox naualc—a poem in colour." " Yes, it's a very pretty picture," sate.' the gduchess of Sussex, looking at the ivroug ono through her lorg- ne,ttee. Sim possessed a Picture gal- lee.y of her own, which was crowded with tins duk.s's ugly ancestors, and she had uo intention of waxing enthu- siaelic over anything Mr. Babes pos- sessed. "I believe Mr. Hobbes refused fifty thousand for it, did he not ?" she enquired of Margaret. "I really don't know," said Miss Hobbes, laughing, "but I alanost wish he had told it. Every day brings a otter from some one inaploring him to name a price. One old gentleman fairly wept, he was to overcome, be- cautio he couldn't buy. it ; and I firm- ly believe it will be stolen some day." " Imagine an art. -collector organie- Lig a burglary expedition to rob Leeamley Caetle of its 'Madonna.' What fun it would be!" tontinueel she. "'You uould scarcely give a nice- lookinge- white-haired old gentleman sP --they all have white hair, you know-- Cdl in charge to the police. We should Str have to ask the burglar to dinner, and then drive him down to the Police - everybody in the house wee; asleep, or t.\•,(any 2 -ate, ellould have b(mIn Richard was in. the middle of an anee- dote out an extettOrclinary advein- eases of WA at Eton, in evidela he per- forined prodiglea of valour ; and Lord -171aitatab1e, who had heard the tale at hmet twenty times, was tliinktug, about something else. " Why, b1c iy soul!" said Lord Whitssu table ddenly, " There's some- one, 'walking about. There ! Can't you see hien? Ho' e creeping along/the path between the dawn and ,t hat thiirdebutl. trees. Wait a uninute. have to o crss that patch of moonlight direct- ly, then we ;that' be able to eee him bette,r," A moment later the figure of a man deceseet io a long coat crossed the end of the, lawn, ae if he ware going to the. etablea. " Well be hinged if it isn't young, Rivera 'I' bald. Sir Richard. "1 ?remember that queer macintosh of his. Ile, wore it the, other day at the " What ever is he 'doling at this time of night ?" , " Going for a walk, 1 euppoee. Per - hems he Can't sleep. Been thinleing too much about that confounded 'Ma- donna.' All these artiints are marc or less mad, you know." " It'e,. very queer," *aid Lord Whit - table gravely, " I suppose he has as Much right to go fon a walk at night, as we have alt up and. emolec." Half an hour later they saw the man in the tudokbatoshi return. Next morning the, whole houee was thrown into toneternation by the news that tile "Madonna" had been stolen. The. picture had peen cut faerin the frame with a penknife. dt'verybody was horror etrieken, and at Lord Whitetableds suggestion, a telegram \vete' Gent to Mr. 1-tobbes,ca11- ing him to the castle at once. tiomehow It leaked out that Lord Whitstable and Sir Richard Buxton had seen Cam-wfurd in the grounds at three o'clock in the morning, but no one had the courage to speak to him abput it. At luncheon, ?when the whole par- ty met together for the first time, the "Madonna," was of course, the subject of conve.reation. " This? ise no ordinary, robbery," said Lord Whitstable, " The pistol.° ts so well known that no dealer would give a thief half a crown for it. I don't believe it bas been 8tolon for its pe- cuniary value. It has been taken by someone who lane au interest in the picture itself—a collector, or—or---o He wa,s going to say "an artist." Crawford looked :across at the eaker, with flaahing eyes, and turn - pale ; 'then he, said, in an odd, con- aidted voice: ' I have half a mind, to go up to va and Meet Mr. Hobbes. Per - at Lord Whitstable interrupted atennly. I think, eir," he Said, " that under circumetances, nobody not even 1 tee tet ion in the brougham."' Y'lla *Later in the, clay, Margaret happen- ,E olt to be in the picture -gallery alone, hin wad by one of, those 2e:snare:able coin- " eidences which eccasionally happen -Eh onen people are an love, Cez.twfurd found her th•ere. , "Do you 'know," he teitiel, "that tl2e 'Madonna,' is very like you ?" 'IS it really ?" aha answered. "But Pan sure I'na net half so good -look - Mg.,' No, of course not," he said absent- ly, for be was etudying the picture intently. " Really, Orawfurd, you are too otendid for anything." 'I beg your pardon," he answered, In confusion, delighted at being call- e.d ''Crawfurd," and annoyed with him- self fon having blundered "1 , ao, as an artist, not as a—as.---as elaanytdaing eve 1 i ha'd el'ee einiled demurely, and perlaapS , 01-a wished he ho.d finished the O./ate/Ice ' hay . cw a guest, ought to leave the house." There a little lined of approval all round the table, and Crawfurd's lips went together tightly. Margaret was as white as the, tablecloth, and to-embling from head to foot, but she soon recovered lier pelf -control. Oh, please don't let us worry about the wretched picture," atm aid, trying to sneak naturally. "I'm not going to. d ehall Play tennis. Mr. Rivers, will you let me try to beat you this afternoon?" At five o'cloeic IVer. Hobbes arrived at. Baamicy Station, eed Lead While stable and ee'Lr Richard Buxton drove e to meet bee, and tel him what happened. In the nacantaree, wfurd and Margaret: -had been eng a long CCTIVCC'ation. hen Me. Hobbes arrived, he went straight up -stairs, and ordered one of the servants, to ask Mr. Rivers. to come to his private etudy. Everybody tried to behave with we.11-loged indifference, but cueidsity ran higla, and great astonishment was expresse?cl when isoniebody announced that Crawfurd had gone to Mr obbes s study accotnpanied by Men - et. Half an hour later new$ was ught that • t,he butler had been, privately for a constable. i t laat, tlie dinner bell rang, and, verybodyte surp-eise, Crawfurd ap- •ed in his' usual place, though his Nvae pale and set. argaret looked unmietakably an- ' - le line made a fool of that poor " said the duchess to Sir Rich- " ancl Gbe can't forgive him." o allustion to the lost "Madonna" made, during dinner, but a hint passed round that Mr. Hobbes Id like, .5,voxybody to assemble—in drawing -room afterwards.. ivas a curlews scene which fol lowed, and one noi to be forootte by those. evho took part in it. Mr. Hobbes entered the room, fol- lowed closely by Margaret and Craw- ford. He carried a picture. "Ladie.s and gentlemen," he said, speaking, even mare energetically than usual, "you will be glad to know that the "Madonna" is quite safe. Hese she is." • He held the picture up. It was be a common little. oak frame. Everyone looked puzzled, and Mr. Ilobiaes smiled sarcastically: " think I owe you an explanation," he wont on. "Of eourse, an old man of butsenes.s litter me, 'wasn't such a fool ad to buy a valuable. pieture and not take care of it. 'A few days ago I asked Mr. Riverrs if he could make a copy of this picture. ..1-1e, made one for me. privately; and when it was •done. I can assure you that, if it had- n't been for the frame I couldn't. tell the cEfference between them, until Mr. Rivera made me elmely them through a glass. The real ' Madonna ' was thenput in thiS frame., and locleed up in my safe, and for ,the last few days, lattice and gentlemen, I am very sca- ry to Gay, you have been admiring the wxong one." . • He -e Mr. Hobbes' g-rinned, and the Duchesa of Sussex showed signs of .fainting, euul tell volatile was sent for. "Well no?w," oontinund Mr. Hobbes', 'I have been found out in my little dratted, so hope you won't be offend- ceL NoeNr, the Wiens ' Lee:Lao/Ina e was oat out of its' frame lard. :night, by one of .my servants. Ile was commis- sioned to do it by a very wealthy, but half-egacked London tiolleet or. whose name I won't anent ion. After- he bad removed the picture, he ste,pped into IVL the word "lover," a,s he had evi- dently intended. " Theca never 'vac a woman as Java - as iihe is,".he eoncinued. "Look, at the shading of the eyes, and the sweet trembling little mouth, almost ready to speak, or perhaps to pray. Then see the hands. Did you eVer see a woman of the nineteenth century fold fee: hapda in that restful wa • ?" Out furthen imanteede-dettleb was pre- gear vented by the arrival of 111r. Hobbes'. Idra, " Why, Rivers, my boy," he began, in hie dry, energetie way, "enjoying the 'hfadonna ?' You are the identi- t° e - sal man I want to talk to. Maggie, Pe ewl go downstairs, my honey, and look Lae° after: the, duchess. That's the worst 1'1 of having a real live duchess on the g-tY-, peernises, you Must always be trot- " ting about after her." , Margaret left them, and for half aad, are hour the two men walked up and down the p tuee-gal lery, talking was earnestly, sometinaes stopping in front of the, '' Madonna," only, to renew the 04 nonversation more energetically still. he But nobody was told the result of their deliberations. - The next week slipped away pleas- antly enough. The love -making went OD merrily, though to he sure, not a „good .of love Nvas spoken on either side; for, if a young man whose in- com. e about R200 a year, hae any decent feeling, he must find it ena- baeraeaing to make love to a girl :Whose father's income is nearly a hun- dred time§ a$ great. But eveey day Margaret became 1110re attaChed to him. He was a dif- ferent type of naan from any she had me -t. He had the breeding and in- dependence of an English asistocrat, without his vices anti insolence, and he had 'the quick, inapuleive sympathy of the antiat, without the artist's 4 -waywardness and indolence. Indeed,his energy Nene the joke of the house. In c.very spare Moment he was making studies of the "Madonna," and hie ideal of happiness seemed 'to be work- ing at hie art, with Margaret by his side, to talk to, Tbanlcs to her thought- fulness a d,ressing-nocm ,and a bed - soma had been allotted to him, which led out of the, picture -gallery, and it euas currently reported that he com- menced working at els: o'clock- evely morning, 'At any rate, his room was Uttered with etudies, and the servants hed ateict orders to Lona nothing. t One night, inetead of going to bed like two respectable old politicians', Loa`d Wbittable and Sir Bleb ard E 1.1X - ton, two of the guests, sat up gos- &ping in the billiard -roam. They bad 0v -itched off the eleetric light, and Were sitting in tile dark, smoking. It wae three o'eloole in ,the menniaim 111-th Hobbes httd 1)eert.sum- th:reed to town the essevioue day, and, exeepUmg theee two old gentlemen, Mr. llivers'a 'dressing -room, the door of whieh atood open and took his macintosh'. a mention this," he add- ed girxnly, ," beeatese my friends, Lord Wrhitetable, and Six Richard Buxton, eat up /either lat& last night, and formed a wrong instil eselon, " And now," said the bluff Mr. Hobbes, continuing his speech, "1 have only Cale More thing to say. They tell ane melds ts make u000mmonlygo od eon -Lei -law, and I made up my mind coming down in the train 'to day to toy the experiment." TRYING TO BEAT THE LAW. SUGAR AND OTHER GAMBLES THAT MADE FORTUNES. 4. Most Eertraordinary Sight—Es:citing Struggle Between British and French Tea leZerchants--The Death Duty in Britain. When the rumour first spread that sugar was going to be taxed, a few week e ago, a great, army of business- men started to race the Chancellor , for a fortunh—Or ruin. They began the big gamble an an enormous scale, buying up all the. sugar that Europe had to sell, and struggling to get it over to England ' BEFORE THE TAX BEGAN. France, Auetria, Gerniany, and Hol- land were ransacked for sugar to such an extent that the Continent became eshort of it, and nearly all Weetern Europe lead to pay another farthing a p owed for its sugar in con - Sequence. All i'he quay$ and wharves of the great foreigncities were blocked with ugar-bags, throwing all other businetss into confusion; and over 10,000,000 hundred -weight bags of sugar, worth about $22,500,000, were "cornered" by the British law -rac- ers. To get it over, scores of ateam- ers, sailing -vessels, and craft of all kinds, were chartered; and the rush was so, great that speculators who had au/1k their all in sugar, which was spoilt/1g an the Continental wharves, went nearly frantic. The coa vas enrpeted out 01 colliers, and auger took its place—anything to get it oven h*' time; for, it came even a few hidXs after the taxi. was a settled matt all profit was lost.. Again, if the eletx did not "comn off" at all, two-thirds of the sugar -gam- blers were ruined, having tons of sugar they could not pay for with- out extra profit; and sugar would fall to almost nothing in price, so It a3tvatshe,. nation at large benefited. A gAGNIEICENT GAMBLE. Not long ago there was a slight ex- tra duty laid an tobacco, which led to some of the most extraordinary sights ever seeo in the business world. Small a$ the duty was, it made a vast difference 'to the trade, and a great rush was made upan the bonded ware- elm houaes—places where imparted' goods div can be stored, and the duty' paid When Pre they are taken out. These are controlled by Government 0,0 ern and a great army of seal(' business- man, wildly excited, besieged the A warehouses in the race to get their rea goods. out before the extra duty] came rive due.' Shouting Mobs of them surged be- 1-)3' fore the. doors, kept in order by lines can of 245 policemen. Thousands of pounds were Made by.thoee who were in tinae, eud and many thousands Were lost by late- eei(),.0 comers. Dignified mercbants who d'ut were successful capered with joy outs Leeeel• side the warehomees, and rushed off to realiee; while the struggling, de- T epairing mass who could not get their men applicationattended to before dos - ng tirne, because of the crushe almost ehdd went mad. When the doors were closed many wept tears of disappoint - sect risen t. the A.? Thus, by the usual City custom, they sold hundreds of thousands of pounds' worth of geode which they .had not got, ad (mold not have paid for if they had. They stood to win or lose, ie all, about $10,000,000; and when, it yeas. given oat that prohibition had been abandoned,' the priee went up, and T They eolluiliT JaWo‘Et RPEa371WfolSr Ewph.at they had bought on credit, and a eroP of over thirty, bankrupteiee was the result. • A "race" with both Death and the Government waa started in Britain when tile famous death duties caine into force, by whieli all legacies were taxed. People who had ononey to leave at once made "deeds of gift" of their property 'to their heirs„ to es- cape the heavy, dues. Small people did riot, feel the weight of the new order, but the wealthy did, and the Duke of Westminster isles one of the firt 1,n; the race, Breen:lade the great- er part of his $55,000,000 aver to, his eon and thou! aods of other people did likewise. But there was a hole through which the law cauld creep in, and it did. All the tax -racers found themeelves forced to pay the full duties, as well as heavy costs in' law and "enforcement"; and they dis- covered, too late, that the Govern- ment vvas too swift to be beaten in the "Death 'Duty Handicap." " FACTS AND FIGURES. The piofits on British railwaylast year was £41,576,378. The British ambassador to France gets a salary of X9 000 while the Bri- tish ambassador to Germany gets only £8,000. , An automobile is not allowed to run faster than 12 miles an hour in England, while in Scetland the speed limit is 10 miles per hour. ; Germany published 23,908 books lest Year; France, 13,2G8; Italy, 9,567; Great Britain, '7,249; United States, 5,315; Netherlands, 2,863; Belgium, 2,- 272; Denmark, 1,198; Switzerland, 1,- 000. In the last 43 competitions for Bri- tish Potst Office 'appointments for women, 4,986 women competed for 828 situations. The salary af woman clerks commences at £55 and may, rise to £300 per annum. In 1838 when the Sirius made the Passage Irani London to New Yorkin eeventeen days It was considered a remarkable run, but the Great 'West- ern ,niade the run between Bristol, and New York, the Seine year be a little lees ithan 15 days. , The length of the Canadian Sault canal between the extreme end af the entrance piers is 5,937 feet. There is one leelr 900 feet by GO' feet and the depth of nater on the sills at lowest known water level is 20 feet( 3 inches: The (total wise or lockage is, 18 feet. The Suez eaaaal is 87 miles lotig--;66 miles ol canal and 21 miles of lakes. In 1875 !he British Government pur- sed 176,602 shares frefm the Rhe- e cif Egypt for -.23,976,582. The sent value of these shares is 24,- 000, and last year the British Gov- ment derived a revenue of 1'801, - from them. ' roundabout iroute from Mont- i (to Eingstoo is via the Ottawa r to the city of Ottawa. and thence the River Rideau and the Rideau al to Kingston, a, total distance of 5-8 miles. This route could be iby Small vessels in case of a kade of the St. Lanvrence canals, vessels drawing mare than 4 1-2 of water could not get through Rideau. ,' he Trent Valley canal was cam - ced by the Imperial Government 873 but is not yet completed, al- gh a good deal of mone.y has been t from time to time oni improving ions. of the route, By tlaiS route distance frotra Georgian Bay to e Ontario mould be about 200 O af which only about 15 or 20 s would be actual canal, the re - der being made up of a series of 1 lakes and rivers, sections of h )33.Ut be improved. NEARLY $i0000,00) Lak worth of tobacco had duty paid on it mile during office laour,s that day, and mita large special staffs had to be organ- main aeed to deal with the work. erne' The Britieh and French merchants ,whic raced both each other and the Gov - ea -aliment when the tax on tea- was in- creaeed a few, years ago. It was a most exciting struggle, for the British unloaded their warehouses, W and tried to hurry uee the consign- farni mente of tea that were coming/ along; one, THE KING'S REAL* NAENT.E. hat i$ King Edward VII.'s real ly name? It is a very simple and to our ears ie does 110esound 11 Royal. It is Wettin. Prince rt, his father, was Prince of the while the French, seeing a che, ancat a rtemne, end lenieked it down to Cala- Albe ruling House of Saxe -Coburg, one of the most ancient and illustrious of swept up all the tea to be had es le and Dunkirk, ready to come over at a moment's poLie.e. They wafted for more aesuring news before ship, ping over, and they had the advant- age, because tea is not much' sought after in France, and was cheap there. The French agents over here tried to get hold of the newa, and the Eng.: Eels speculators combined to prevent their obtaining it. At last the! neees Noes practically confirmed. The British merchants peured their tea in and within a few hours a perfect navy of French ehips came Nvitly their cargoee, too. The race was about even; but the Frenchmen, wishing to make eure that there would be no hitch, had actually brought their awn gangs of dock laborers with them. As might be expected, the :English "deckles" fell foul of these, and there wag A FREE FIGHT, which delayed the French consign- , raents. A terrible "sell," which ruined a - great many rash people who thought they Gould get ahead of the Govern- ment, was brought about by arum - our, not long ago, that the sale of Spenish brandy and various popular liqueurs was about to be forbidden altogether. These products, it was eaid, were dangerously a.dulterated, and injurieus, and so the Government i.vould ban them. There was truth in it, for the Chancellor gave a hint of some sueh proeeeding, and a num- ber of epeculators, who got the news early, started selling these GOITM10- ditie.; at a terrific rate. 'They of- fered quentitiee of the goods at low price, encoring that when the rum- our was eonfirmea the price would drop to almost nothing, anti they would be able to obtain the lienor which they had sold—on paper--, at half the price they were booked to obtain for it from their purchasers. the eevereign fansilies of Europe. Originally Counts of Wettin, the heade of this family, became, by in- heritance and by marriage, Mar - graves of Meissen', Landgraves of Thuringia, and Electors of Saxony. Therefore the same principle which declares William of Germany to be a Hohenzollern, and Francis Joseph of Austria to be a Hapsburg, would make the late Queen Victoria a Guelph by birth, and her husband, the Prince Consort, a Wettin; and if a Royal wife takes her husband's easne, and a Royal eon his father's, then our Ringee family name is Wet - tin. ' ,VERY SENSATIONAL. A Livernond novelis't SaYs that the literary man ahould have the keen- est of imaginations. The follosving Passages, taken from his first book, prove that ewe imagination leaves' nothing to be desired: "Her hand was cold lilee that of a serpent." 'The cauntese was apeent to reply, ;when a door opened, and closed her month." "'Ha, ha!' he exclaixned in Portuguese." "The col- onel paced leackward arid forward, With his litende behind his back, read- ing tile newspapers." "At this sight jecket, and in trousers of the sante t,he negro's _face deadly pale." T "he man was dressed in a velvet colour." A cook and a housemaid had a lit- tle diffieulty in the kitchen the oth- er day, and presently reettere became' ate quiet that you eould hear a roll- drOp. • SHE POPULAR BELIEFS, WRY CROSSED KNIVES AVE SAID TO BE UNLUCKY What Spilling the Salt rereant—The Luck of Breaking a Leolting Glass— The superstition of No. 13. Why is it bad luck to croes the knives at table 1 Well the original knife used at the table was nothing ess than the dagger vrieich all men ore in their belts, ready either for erring the, Mutton, or for. cutting hroa.tst Every sailor wear e thd knife to this ay which f3erVeS him constantly both t work and at meal -times, and the elle-knife of the British mariner is thing very justly dreaded in tor- ign seaport. In days when private uarrela 0 a a WERE ALWAYS FOUGHT u Let with dagger or zword—and not So very long ago—the ver inning of a dispute, made the folk xtervoue for their hueb others or eons concerned in th ument. The crossing of blades was the ign of a fight and it's no Nvo e women found croased knives esting miefortune. But there i ason why crossed knives on mily dinner -table should eug idea. of duelling nowadaya. ve ceaaecl to mean bad luck. Spilling the salt meant once rst of bad luck. Salt was, ite lately very expensive, a dear sity, as it is to -day among tit es of India. So important wa at the finding of salt -spring ealare, England, firat bro rchante from iEurope into sa itain, opened up the earliest E h trade, and led to the civilize tho island. The very pliraee "w a,alt," means "worth his wag d "true to their aalt," is a ca rd to expreas the loyalty of rs to their Service. The word meane ealb-money. Because it important, old English usage. p the taalt-box in the middle of le, that all hands might he wit that y be - w °m- ends, O ar- sure rider sug- s no the gest They the until ne- e ne- s it O in ught rage ng - tion orth es," tch- sol•- sal- was lac - the hin eat 8 th re fa th Isa wo tin ces tiv th Ch me Br 13 of an w,0 die 0.1'yso ed tab ch. The family and the guests hove, the, ealt," the servants "below aalt," and so the difference of k was created between " GENTLE" AND " SIMPLE." rea Of a the ran 'Lehman, a ellen-shot camera, Or any?." thing doubtful. The auperatition about sitting dowde thirteen at table bee arisen, frone, theme/wary of the Laet Supper. There; la the 'beginning of the idea, that the, number thirteen is unlucky in all 1 aorta of ways. On the Continent yoU may 1 SEARCH ALL trHE HOTELS without ever finding a bedroom neinei tiered thirteen. The umlucky bedroom ie numleened ae a rule, "52 bis," or, " 12a," vhicl 5± Supposed to make perfectly aafe to elect) in. At Eng - Hsi/ laotele one can generelly get room thirteen when the rest of the holies is crowded, Before the " Drummoncf Castle" eailed on her last voyage, k1 passenger turned up late and found teat there wan only one vacant bertli, in Um cabin—nu/1113er thirteen. He Chanced it:, and, so far from, meetie4,n, with lead Mak when the shiP folin- dered off Ushant, he was the only, paesengerr saved. The idea that ferry daye of had weather followe rain on St. Swithin'sl, Day come from a fine old Saxon leg-, end. St. Swithin was Lard Chancel- lor in the reign of King Ethelbert and when ha died in the year 862, hei, left directions that hie body ehouldl, be buried in Winaheeter Cathedra), but in eome spot where the raise might fall onhi grave. Afteirwarda the monks, thinking that it was beneath the saint's dig- nity and theirs that he should be ex- posed to the weather like a common man, a.ttecapted to dig him up far removal to the ahelter of tlae churehd The attempt was a total failure being prevented by a. deluge of rain day af- be, day far telex weeks. According, to tradition, they afterwards succeed -4 ed enoving the saint, despite all- proteete from the weather, anti for thoueand years a tomb was point' ed out in the cathedral as that�. St. Switlain. At last, in 1797, the" matter was put to the test. it being a enaiewn fact that St. Swithin'e head wee buried in Canterbury Cathedral./ The Sculptured Istone was raised, an underneath it waa found a ekeleten of some oth'er personage, with skull' complete. So it seems that the old; aaint triumphed over -the monks, and still lies out under the ram, whi4! keepa him So kindly in memory. A CORNER IN CARDS. France Makes a Profit Out or Theit Manufacture. 01 all the wave of protectiese, an in, cluetry, that adopted by the Govern -1. sat merit of France, for making a profiti out of the manufacture of cards must! certainly take rank as being among, the strangest. In the. filet place, there is .no hall- iseertedneas about dealing with for -di In don gar tlo ing the mar eve of t Lore tak " br ed was betr a pr tack il0114 of b No a lo such wer frien VV,Or tl'h the vvhic and Or a ad t They were was them Ma ing t tract fore witch punis get r was she clay, resen Stick woul needl ney, EVICT ; the e sudde The ly ve was g your image glaeS promp it bec 4113-gl reflec a fact the regalia at the Tower of Lon - the ealt-box one of the most genus ornaments, built like a CaS- a Silver, heavily gilded. Such be- tlia importance of the ealt-box, upsetting of it was something a than an accident. It was an nt. But suppose that the guest he house, or the ambassador from ign parts, ?upset the salt, it was en as a sign that hei betrayed the ead-and-salt" of eaospitality, turn- gabast the hand that fed hinnand only in the house as a spy to ay its Master. he epilling of salt was taken as ovidential warning of coming at-' , of danger drawing near the e. That is why it became a sign ad luck. w, as to the ill -luck of breaking okin,g-glass. Before there was a thing as a worklaouse there e plenty of poor old WOhlen left dless, and long past doing any k to win their bread. ey knew the world, they knew herbs in the field, and garden h were easeful in case of sickness, they did no harm by SELLING GOOD ADVICE, 1 little neeclicine, so they anantig- o keep body and soul together, were called "wise women." They supposed to possess powers. It whispered that they had sold $elvee to the Evil One. ny a poor old woman, pretend - o be " wise," for the sake of at - Mg customers, was haled up be- the. magistrates, charged with craft, and burned to death as a hment. Suppose one wanted to id of any enemy, the usual thing to coneult the local witch, and would provide a little image of or a rag doll, euppoeed to rep - t the person who was hated. pins into the doll, and the enemy d suffer the pains of " pins and es ;" hang the doll in your claim - and the enemy would "burn for " break or deetroy the doll, and nemy would be overtaken with n and awful death. charges of the witch were real- ry moderate, considering, and it God to know that you could kill enemy by merely deetroying his . Even his image in a looking was quite sufficient, if you tly broke the glees. That is why arhe'll32111Cky to break any look_ aes which had the honour of ting your face. It is certainly that. A LOOKING -GLASS FELL. broke in the State apartments dsor just hefOre the late Queen Nvitches ueed to sell "charms were Supposed to ward off al of danger, and that is the ori - the charms worn on Wate Most famous of all talisman horseshoe, as hung over door - worn ae a breast -pin irt ininia- Originally the sign was a cres- moon ; but any creecent was nd horseshoes were easilyr had, rved just as well. Two thousand ago the Greeks and Romans the charm aa the symbol of ddeee Diena, the charm wbielf one from the evil eye. That origin—Protection from the of the evil eye; and if any - °oils crossways at you, squints , or makes you nervous by star - le can only save yourself from blighted with evil by presenting bite of a crescent in self -de - A horeeshoe does; but if that umbersome, point the first and tie fingers, tucking M the d third fingers, which makes passable crescent .figure,, be - being cheap. The Italians, a conornical people, defend theta- and at Win died. The which /male gin o chains ia the ways, ture. cent geodi a and se yeara wore the go saved is the power body 1 at you Ingo Yo being Usa po fence. is to c and lit cod an a. very sides meet e eelv th s c ue, when they meet an Eng- eign competition, for the importation of etude is simply prohibited; while tete manufacture ie so hedged in by severe law's that it is in comparative?) ly few hands. One of these hand, at least, is Gov -1 ernmental, for the paper on which thei suits are printed is manufactured by, the Government, avhich insures its makers from employing any other. exclusive use by prohibiting the cardl Furthermore, , the Government doeel not allow anyone to make the courti card, or the ace of clubs, the plates, for iheee belonging to the State,,' which merely .eells the slips of print -i ed paper to the makers, who have only to colour them and print the Gomm= carde on the special paper wlhich they have to buy from]. the pro- perly conetituted authorities. • Thee French cards are smaller than our own, but they are scarcely' so ex- pensive, for an eicellent pack can bs' bought for twenty-five cents, and there is scarcely any demand for cards' which are dearer than forty cents a pack. Vessels of 4,000 tons can ascend the St. La.wrerice to Montreal, a distance of 1,000 miles from the sea. Only one ether river in the world, the Amazon, is navigable to such a distance for craft as large. 1 'HOURS IN. AUSTRALIA. Shop-aeeistants in Australia work only fifty ihoure per week. In Bailer-, 'at every hop, except those of tobac- conist, fishmongers and hairdressers, cleees at 6 p.m. for the first fear days, of :the week, on Friday at 1 p.m., and on Saturday et 10 p.m. The ma- jority open at 8 a.m., to be swept. aed duated by errand -boys, the as- eiatants arriving at 8.39 a.m. 'An hour is allowed for dinner and on Saturday an hour for tea, the total being about fifty hours' labour per' week. There are also eight or /ten Nvhoie-holidays in the t year. , THE SENSE OF SMELL. • It is aaid that the ,se,nse of smell us very much keener when the mouth is filled with water. An application may be made of this when it is thenght that th,e house is on fire. Doctors put this plan in practice wher called to a case of poesoning fecoe prussic,. acid, far the only way of de- t,ecting, this virulent poison is by the use of the olfactory nerves. 11 it suggested that the idea would be ol value to cooks when baking bread and to washerwomen when ironing. WIDOWS' FLAGS. In Sumatraif a Woman/ is Left rt Nvidow, immediately attar her hue, band's death, ehe plants a flagstaff at her cedar, npork which a flag raised. So long as the flag remain unborn by the wind, the etiquette of Sumatra forbids her to marry, but al the first rent, however tiny, she can lay aside her weeds and accept the first offer aho has. --- SARCASM. Beg your pardon, kind lady, began the polite bcggar, hut I'm badly in need of money, wander if you deserve help. said the kind lady Suspiciously. If 1wax to give you a cent what would you do, with 111 Your generosi1y would overwheirt the, ma'am; Id buy a past card and write you a note of thanks,