HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Exeter Times, 1886-10-28, Page 6RIFT AND SPRAY ;
0 R,
LOVE AND VENGEANCE AMONG THE SMUGGLERS.
Tilt; 4VOST. FASOLSATISO Q0BA.N 1:ovu.k.;•tor. SINOE THE ])ATS OF
COOP&U. A -No NAUTATT.
racing affair, and the sabstitution of that
CHAPTER IV.—(Coerroavse,)
" Hoy !" shouted Captain Dolau, in reply, IsZiTei.PPeo Sahib, for the Light of Morn,'
Who'hails ?" Ana you must go andI
, l,(1souse."
" His majesty's sehooner Spray." I thing out of the way to make folks forget
it. There's a smuggler and pirate and
" I thought se."
" No impertinence. Who are you? Strike wrecker and ell that sort of thing that Sir
your bell that we may know where you Thomas Clifford, the admiral of the port at
Fahnauth, is always bothering us to conun is -
are !"
" Haven't got one. Down YOU helm, slots asooniifetthind pre, jelly to huut down. You
Martin. That's it. She'll send a shot into bv,, yes:
us if she ean." " Well, there was a row !"
" Cutter ahoy !"
" Ay, ay, sir !" " Yee, I refused --dem ! Point.blank re-
" Who are you ?" fused, and that same night a loss-, molten-
" ical fellow ; a tinker, or tailor, or candle -
The Maryherrings and pickaxes !" Jane—South Shields—Red stiok maker, or soznething Of that start, he
Bang from the Spray ; but got up in the House of Commons and he
! went a gun
as the Rift had altered its course, the shot asked the First Lord of the Admiralty if he
could tell him whether or not the Honorable
flew harmlessly past her, and it was only
for one fleeting mama, by the flash of the Charles Minto Grey was still in commission
as a post-oaptain in his majesty's navy, after
discharge, that the position of the Spray the recent expose of the 'swindling trans -
could be seen through the fog. Dodoes at the last Leger!"
"That you 1" said Dolan. "Now I know "Oh I did he say that, sir?"
where you are. I eau get out of your way. "The very words--shooking !"
North by two points east, Martin."
" Ay, aar, sir !" "Scan-dalous—hem 1"
"Well, my noble relative, the First Lord,
The light canvas which had been set on he got up and he said that the young and
board. the Rift fluttered for a moment in the gallant officer—meaning mea -had been, for
breeze, and flapped itself into action, with a moment, the dupe of designiug( people,
the change of position of the little vessel, but that with his characteristic gallantry
which then, at an accelerated pace, fought and nice sense of honor, he had—meaning
its way through the rising sea. me—at once given up his command of the
And the sea was rising; for the fog ap- Orion and had volunteered to go into
peered to have condensed the air above the schooner and rid the Channel of one of the
-water, and to have produced some elemental most daring and blood -thirsty pirates that
:strife—such as is evoked in nature by the had ever appeared upon the coasts of Great
-efforts at equilibrium and equalization— Britain—ineanitig me. '
• which are the causes of meteorological "You—the pi—"
• changes, "Deni, no! The volunteer."
Again the Spray fired a gun in the sup- "oh, yes, sir 1"
:posed direction of the Rift, but, like a spirit, "Well, then, all the treasury hacks and
it had flown off into the mist, and the bright the govertunent men cried, Hear, hear I
lash of the piece of ordnance only for a brief
-moment lit up the spars of the goverment
schooner.
Brief, though, as was that illumination
through the mist, it showed to the officers
on board the Spray the yacht like vessel,
from which floated the stars and. stripes of
America. Not above a cable's length to
windward the yacht was making a long tack
to sea, as if it had become aware of its
rather dangerous proximity to the French
coast.
Then from the Spray a voice hailed the
yacht and the sound came hoarsely through
the fog.
' IN hat ship? Ahoy 1"
s' Who are you ?" shouted a voice from
the yacht.
"His majesty's schooner Spray."
The reply was prompt;
" Yacht Nautilus, United States of Amer-
ica, Captain Morton, owner, in command 1"
"How did you get here ?"
"Keel downward 1"
"Hold !" cried a clear, sedate voice, of
quite a different description to that which
had up to this moment hailed and answered
the hail of the government schooner. "Hold,
Mr. Dabitrys 1 I will see to this. What in-
formation is requested by his majesty's
schooner Spray that I, Captain Morton, of
the Nautilus yacht, can give ?"
"Hoe came you here 9"
"We have made the voyage from New
Bedford !"
" In that boat ?"
a yes.
"Good luck to you, sir, and a safe return."
"Thank you!"
"We are looking for a smuggler. If you
see a vessel cutter -rigged with a yellow
streak just above water—"
"No, sir; I shall see no such vessel, cut-
ter -rigged or otherwise 1" said. Captain
Morton. "1 am not about to effect myself a
supplementary custom -house officer for his
Britannic majesty 1 Good -day, sir."
" Ahoy ! Yacht ahoy 1"
The Nautilus sped on her course, and the
officer on board the Spray laid down his
trumpet as he said :
"Confound the fellow's coolness ! That's
th,, way with these American officers; they
have always got some answer to you so pat
and ready that one can't think of what to
say till after they have sailed off."
"Can you think now, Mr. Green ?"
growled Simon Royle, the old sailing master
of the Spray, and who in reality commanded
the schooner.
" Well, s -a -h ! Oh, of course ! If he had
only wished, I should have said to him—a—
wel1=-I should certainly have said something
very sharp."
" Ay, ay, air 1"
Mr. Green gave himself a congratulatory
nod as he descended to the cabin, muttering
as he went:
"11 only wish that the Rift, or whatever
may be the name of the smuggling vessel,
would founder, or that somebody else would
take her in hand 1"
In the cabin of the Spray a young man
was negligently lounging on a couch with
the stem of a meerschaum between his lips
and a Turkish smoking -cap on his head,
while a pair of red morocco slippers hung
half on his feet,
" Now, really," he said, as Mr. Green,
the :tains( lieutenant, appeared—" Now,
really, Green, did you ever lead such a life?
Dem everything! Ah, what is it all about
now"
" Well, sir, it is annoying."
"Annoying1" said the Honorable Charles
Minto Grey, who was in command of the
Spray. "Annoying, do you call it, Green?
It's a good deal worse thee that. What is
the use of having a great uncle at the Ad-
miralty if one has to ge on deuced expedi-
tions like this? What is the use? Now,
there's that man of mine, Simmons. He
cant make coffee. Be don't know anything
—the brute 1 You can sit down Green.
And there's that Moselle ! It is delecate, but
the sea air—the sea air—Deirt ! it's the sea
air !"
" HAS it touched the wine, sir ?"
"Ah 1 1 shotild Say yes, and there's each
an order of—bah ! What is it 1"
" Tar, 1 shoitid say, sir ?"
And what for?"
" :11r. Doyle has been paying the schooner
for'ard. sir."
" Paying ? Dem 1 I'll pay hint when 1can !
He's 9 brute, Green—an old brute I Now,
really, as I say, What is the use of having a
great uncle at the Admitialty ? It was all
very well—Soda water 1—it Was all very'
well when I was in cominission as captain
of one of he ships in ordinaiy that were to
be some day in active service. No, Seltzer
Water 1-1 won't have this. Shmeons I"
" Yes, sir 1"
" You are a fool 1"
" Yes, sir 1"
"10 off As 1 was sing—Iet me see
what I was saying—well, what is the use of
having ateat uncle at the Admiralty
lVfarmadu e said to me Charles, you haVe
rather committed yoerself about that little
Loud cheers,' said the Times, next morn-
ing. And that was the way I was, so to
speak, pitchforked into this precious affair.
Ah! ;More seltzer water—no champagne—
still? Be quick will you? Ah, it's a
fatiguing life this, Green, and I don't know
where to look for pirates and those pet of
annoyances. Now, what on earth is that
for ?"
The rapid discharge of a couple of guns
above on the deck of the Spray disturbed
the equanimity of the Honorable Charles
Minto Grey, and then the voice of Mr.
Royle was heard in almost shrieking vehem-
ence, shouting:
"Cutter ahoy? Heave to, or I'll sink
you! Who and what are you ? '
"All 1 vous 11Q parlez pas Franeals. I
shall spoke English. You too—you too—
you are one prisonnier
''1 ain,"
Captain Mocquet immediately embraced
Gerald, and then a voice from the deck of
tho Rift cried out ;
"Dcollit be too quick over it,matee—she'll
soon fill and go down !"
For a eminent the Freech captain seemed
to be trying those words in differeet ways,
to see if he could extract any other meaning
from them than that Which seemed obsieee-
ly upou their surface. , Then with a shriek
Of ageay, he flew upon the hatehway and
beat with hie delimited hand upott the wood -
ea covering.
" Nou—non—no ! Pitie—what you say—
mercy! My Marie—mercy 1 Oh, non, non 1
What you cell to give all, all, pour ma Marie?
Mercy, mercy !"
Not the remotest attention was paid to
the shrieks and prayers of Captain Mooquet
who then, with hands bleeding and such a
look of despair and agony upon his face that
it was awful to see it, half fell, half stagger-
ed back into the cabin, and flingiug himself
on the floor he placed the pistol to his head:
"Adieu, adieu ! ma belle France 1 Adieu,
ma chore belle ! ma belle, mon. ange : Adieu,
adieu !"
"Stop, sir 1" said Gerald, as he snatched
the pistol from Captain Mocquet's hands,
ll'hat would you do, sir? Don't you know
that the good God would be displeased with
you ?"
"Le bon Dieu 1"
. "Yes, I know that much French. You
are a man, sir; and should ;eat be cast down
to kill yourself because Dolen and the crew
of the Rift ere thieves and. bad men."
" No no. But yoa don't know; vous
shall know my child (I cannot spoke de An-
glaise well), my child, iny Marie. She Will
'kin on board one Coquette. Oh, you shall
know. She is si behle, so s beautiful, she
sleep so unsuspect comme un Beige, and she
and de wild sea roll, roll over one head of
my dear little child. Mercy 1 mercy! No
mother, no mother, no father to say live and
I will die for you, my Marie.
With tears, and sobs and frantic cries,
Captain Mocquet then explained to Gerald
that his little daughter was on board the
Coquette and would-be drowned in the ves-
sel on its being sunk by Dolan and his crew,
as it seemed to be their manifest intention
to do. At the thought the image of his own
dear sister Grace, who was the one being
: that he loved, and who made up that one
charnx d tie thatheld huiu to life with
beautiful hope and a happiness even in the ,
midst of all else that spoke of harshness and
misery, came up before the mind's eye of
' Gerald and he felt deeply for the despair of
poor Captain Mocquet
I "Sir, sir !" he said, "tell me as plainly as
you can. Do you mean to say that your lit-
tle daughter is on board the C�quette ?"
"Out, yes: my child my child 1"
"Good Heavens ! They do not, they
ot know it."
"The Rift simiggler and pirate ?" roared -
a voice in answer.
Gerald rushed up the hatchway and
knocked a,s loudly as he could aaa,inst (TO BE coNTMED).
it to
man's childshaaJgeass. down With the co-
quette 1"
Even as he spoke, a ocanething glided pest
hint on the top, of a. WO/Yg—h41i on the top
of it paxa half below it—rolling over and
over, and loohieg like anythiag hat a asausa
form, amid the fog and the light ocean apray
that was aboet it. ,
Gerald wise impressed with the idea that
it was some little child lie was to look foil;
but this did not come up to that notioit ;
and when, upou (Whims the suit oeze from
his eyes, he felt eonfident that it was a hu-
man form that WAS rapidly floating away.
Um him, he did not think it was the fair
girl who lied spoken those few words we
have recorded, to the villain Dolmiiand ,who
wee the life and hope of poor Captain Moc-
quet's heart,
But abihl, that the objeot in the water was
human, he now felt assured, so Gerald struok
out for it,
And now a circumstance that neither he
nor Captain Mooquet had calculated upon
very nearly proved the complete destruetiou
of Marie. Mocquet had found in the ga,blil
a the Rift the rope he bad flung to Gerald, ,
and he 'had. lashed the end of itfirmly to a
ring in the paneling of the cabin. .Now,
however, Gerald fouud that he was sudden-
ly brought up by this rope, 4.0 that the
white -looking object in the water was float-
ing away from him rapidly, while he weld
not advance another inch in pursuit of it.
"Cast off the rope !" he would fain have
said; but his words would easier have reach,
ed the crew of the Rift, busy as they ell
ware, then the ears of Captain Mocquet. So
Geraldhad only to make a struggle in the
water to get the rope from around him,
which was no easy task, wet and tight as it
had got.
After several efforts, however, Gerald did
slip the rope over his head, and was free. ,
Then, with vigorous strokes, be swam after
the floating white Object in the water; and
as he went with the same current that car-
ried it, and swam likewise, he soon overtook
it; and flinging One arm around it, he strews
to raise the face of the young girl from the
waves, in order that if the itings had Mit
yet ceased to play, they might inhale fresh
life from the free air.
She did not move.
"Dead 1" gasped Gerald, "Dead !"
He then looked for the Rift.
It was at that time that Captain Dolan
had ordered the first change in the course of
the vessel, and that change had the effect of
bringing it each succeeding moment nearer
and nearer to Gerald, who found no dif-
ficulty in keeping his place in the water, al-
though he might have found it an impossible
task to swim after the Rift, burdened with
the apparently dead body of Marie Mocquet,
which he still supported on his left arm.
It was with a strange sort of rush that he
heard rather than se* through the fog the
Rift coming down upon him; and in fact it
was with no small difficulty that he kept
clear of her cut -water; and she rushed alcing
past him at what looked like great speed, as
se was floating at .an angle in the other
direction
ract attention • then vath a voice
The Honorable Charles Minto Grey step-
attand
ped from the sofa on the floor of his cabin that should have been heard even above all
I
nd MrNareen ran to the hatchway.
t e bustle upon the decks of the two vesse s,
Then there was a sharp, ringing report,
aincidental to the transfer from the Coquette
and crash through the oval light of the
to the Rift of every portable article which
cabin of the Spray thercame a six- ound
any of the crew of the latter took a fancy
e
shot, which passed over the head or 'the , "Martin Martin Ben Bowline! Hoy!
•
he shouted
honorable captain aud smashed a 'Meet* I
in which he had been in the habit of admir- Onboard the Coquette is Captain Mocquet's
ing himself, on the opposite side of the
little daughter—a child, a child, Martin!
cabin. 1 Martin! you don't want to murder the little
"Good day r
child --Captain Mocquet's. child. Do you
"Fire 1" roared Mr. Royle, and there was hear me.? Save her ! Save her! Martin
a volley from the whole six_ guns wnich had —onboard the lugger—a child on board. Save her! Save her 1 and Ben Bowline !
been shipped on board the schooner for the Help, help, help 1"
special service she was on.
The smoke mingled with the fog, and for I He beat furiously against the hatchway
about five minutes enveloped the Spray in covering; but with as much effect might he
au impenetrable mist. When that in some have appealed to the raging sea to give up
measure cleared away, there was nothing its dead—for not the remotest attention was
visible, however faintly, through
pore' air of the Rift.
the va- paid to him. .
1 Weak,and faint, and exhausted, then
"Make sail !" cried Mr. Boyle. "11 it's Gerald staggered back to the cabin.
tie be Falmouth, let us be after him. These ; "It is all in vain !—it is all in vain 1"
rascals often speak the isruth in bravado I The French captain flung himself upon
thinking, when they name a, port, that that
will be the last place to which you will
follow them. Give her full way."
The Spray was a fast schooner, and but
that she was a little overladen with her
metal, would have sailed well on a wind,
such as she now took advantage of; but
even as she was, she sped through the water
at a respectable speed.
The pirate lugger had disappeared. Had
the mists or the waves swallowed her un?
his knees and with tears streaming down
his face began to pray.
"All on board, clear away!" shouted the
voice of Captain Dolan. "She is sinking—
clear away! fore and aft there, keep all
clear 1"
"Ay, ay, sir 1" shouted the crew.
I Then Captain Mocquet uttered a scream
and fell upon his face.
Gerald felt as if his own heart had paused
'in its action at that moment, and he was
then alarmed by the French captain sudden-
ly springing to his feet and making a rush
at the little oval opening thaeserved as a
window to the cabin. It was fastened by a
screw and the wash of the sea each moment
splashed upon the piece of thick, greenish
glass that was let into the little frame. -7
CHAPTER V. 1
A FAIR Tontol LIFE RESCUED PROM TRE
WAVES.
Captain Dolan, when he flung the Freneh
captain -with so little ceremony through the
half open skylight was not at all unmindful
of the fact that Gerald was in the cabin, but I
situated as he was with the boy, he did not
concern himself whether he heard a little
more or a little less of the peculiar business
of the Rift.
In fact, as his avowed. object in bringing
the boy on the voyage at all was to commit
him to the common guilt of the cutter's crew,
it was not likely that.he would strive to
hide anything from him.
The French captain had been so complete-
ly taken by surprise that he had not made
the least effort of resistance, but fell on the
table in the cabin as if it had been an act of
his own. It was only for a few moments,
however, that he was tlius mentally stunned
by the treachery' of Captain Dolan.
Springing to his feet, with a, shout of an-
ger, he made a clash at the skylight to re-
gain the deck ; but the wooden covering that
was placed over it on the moment, by the
crew of the Rift, defeated him, and then he.
dashed up the hatchway., but that was se-
cured, so that Oaptain.aocciuet was a verit-
able prisoner.
It was then that, after striking his breast
.several times in his despair, he observed kr
the light that came dubiously in from the
little eyelike cabin window that he was not
alone,
Rather pale, with his hand resting on the
side of the cabin table, stood poor Gerald.
Had Captain Mocquet--who was.•ts foe to
revenue, both of France and England, but
by no means anything else but one of the
kindest hearted and nribleet M011 breathing
—been iti his ordinaaily observant and cool
condition, he must have seen at a glance
that Gerald could be in no way concerned,
exeept as a, sufferer, with Dolan and his
crew. But Captain. Mocquet was thrown
off his balance by the treacherous ant of
which he had been the victim, and there
was despair at hi a heart, for fortune, life,
and what to him was more than either or
both, svae now at stake.
" Volenr1 what you say, villain, -pirate?
One life, one life:"
11e drew from the breast of his appaeel
small pistol, and Gerald felt the cold mingle
of the weapon touch his forehead, while Cap-
tain Mocquet glared fiercely at him. The
smile with which Gerald regarded him was
So sweet and yet 80 full of tednees that the
atm of the French captain slowly dropped,
as he said faintly,
"Et vous?"
Gerald ehook his head.
It was•evident that. Captain Mocquet was
seized. with a desire to get out of the Rift
by that opening, and it was equally evident
that it was far too small for any such pur-
pose.
Then there came a cry upon the air and
there was a conunotion on the surface of the
----....-*..,
water.
The cry was the voice of Marie Mocquet.
i The commotion was the sinking of the Co-
quette,
Then a thought eanle over Gerald, and
while his eyes flashed with a new light that
made him look something more than mortal,
he cried
" Who shall say—God, who .shall say?
• It may be the will of Heaven, sir, that your
. child should yet be saved, and that I, even
I, . maY be chosen as iti•instrament. You 1
cannot pass through the window, but I can. '
I swim well. Let me go—let me go 1"
It was but imperfectly that Captain Moe-
quet comprehended. all that Gerald said, but
he understood enough of it to be aware that
he meant to make some effort to save his
daughter's' life males held him to his heart
for one moment.
" Go 1 go 1" he sobbed. ` Go I" I
Lithe and active slim and tall for his age,
Gerald found no difficulty in projecting his
feet 'through the window, and in at once
gliding into the sett. • •
It had been the favorite pastime of Ger-
ald from the carliestyears he could remem-
ber himself as an inmate of the house of
Captain Dolan, among the rocks and cliffs,
to play in the sea as though it had been his
native clement! and he was thoroughly and
fully at home in the water.
The thick, white fog that had floated over
the channel and the Rift and the Spray and
''
the or: nette and the Nautilus from f • I
coast of France, lay heavily upon the sea
and. was slowly making its way into the
cabin of the Rift. The waves were washing
to and fro with a slow, heaving motion, and
the smuggling vessel was making at that
moment but slow progress throngh the
water,
I " Here here 1" whispered Captain Moe,
quet ; and the light splash of a rope in the
, water close to hiin let Gerald to what, he
meant. The boy coiled it once aroand him
and so was ablc to keep up with the Rift.
if While gently beating the water with hie feet, he gazed as well' as he could through'
the fog over the surface of the sea.
" Lost, lost 1" he said, " The rretich. earthquakes as hlts been domed by him.
A Bad Tale.
There lived in New York city duringthe
last twenty-five years a family that consist-
ed of a brother and two sisters. They were
all members of the Presbyterian Church,
and held that position in society that culture
and a comfortable income secure.
I It became apparent some years ago that
the brother was tippling. His friends in the
church expostulated with him, and as the
! effort availed nothing, afterwards sought
counsel of his sister. The fact was admitted,
yet excused and softened, and even to some
degree exonerated. Ultimately the coin-
munify *ere shocked to learn that the sisters
had long drunk, and were then drinking
he9vily.. The few .counteracting cords that
it is r church to throw
around the falling -victims of our liquor
traffic were quite too slight to prevail at all
against habit and appetite which drink had
strengthened, while it had demoralized eon -
conscience.
Rapidly the family passed the downward
stages to poverty and contempt. It was
during the last year that one of the sisters
died. The sexton brought the case to the
notice of one of the prominent ladies of the
church, asking her to go and see what could
be done. The details of the case were a
single room ; utter destitution; the living
sister drunk upon the floor beside the dead;
the landlord waiting only for the funeral
to set what was left of the home, the in-
come, and the respectability out upon the
sidewalk. When a temporary lodging was
sought for, it was found that in all that
city there was not an institution that could,
by its charter, receive the living woman,
except the Tombs. And into its filth, with
ignorance and crime, she was placed.
Out of this last startling fact grew an effort
to establish a Home for inebriate women.
But out of the sum of the facts, selfspreser-
vation, preaches to every one of us a power-
ful temperance sermon. The gist of it is—
Let reepeetable people lel drink came.
...o.---
Alligators' Nests.
Alligators' nests resemble ha -cocks.
They are four feet high and five in c !meter
at their bases, being constructed with grass
and herbage. First the animals deposit one
la,yerof eggson afloor of mortersand then, hav-
ing covered this with a stratum of mud her.
eight inches thick, they lay another set of
eggs upon that, and so on to the top, there
beingconunonly from one to two hundred
i
eggs n a nest. With their tails 'they then
beat down round the nest the tall grass and
reeds to prevent the approach of their unseen
'enemies. The female watches bee eggs until
they are hatched by the sun, and then takes
the brood under her care, defending .thena
and providingfor their subsistence. Doctor
. Luckenhurg of New °Awls relates that he
once packed up one of their nests, together
with the eggs, in a box, for the Museum of
St. Petersburg, but he was recommended,
before he closed it, to see that there was no
danger of the eggs being hatched during
ithe voyage. .0n opening one, a young alli.,
gator walked out, and was soon followed by,
the test—about a hundred—whieh.were fed
in the doctor's house, where they went up
! and down-etairs, barking and whining like
1 youna puppies .
ICharge it to Wiggins.
Do you know that there were very many
people in Buffalo—not ignorant and super.
stitious, hut educated and of rather good
nerves—who were quite worried and alarm.
ed by Wiggins' prediction of it general shalt.
ing up of our planet on that Wednesday 1 It
is difficult to believe it, but it is none the less
true. It is told. of a lady whoec reputation
for " strong-mindedness is rather wide that
She actually called upon her pastor and
had to be prayed with before her ter-
rors could be snbaued. More than one
clergyman,if report be true, had to reason
with metnbers of his floek to convince them
that the day of wrath was not actaally at
imnd, and that Wiggins could have no Such
exclusive information Us to the eoming of
FARM.
Agricultural Notes.
The sales; of cut tlawers in New York city
in 1 885 amounted to $3,000,000.
Good eeed planted iii,thoroughly prepaaed
soil, amply fertilized and unsparingly culti-
vated will produce abundant crops.
The best method of farming—make it
your business and Study it as you would
.study fee the law or medicine,
If the farmer would heel) his soil in the
highest state of fertility, be nutst consider
his grass his most valuable crop and use his
farm accordingly.
Hard work and steady work are neces-
sary for the farmer if he would obtain the
best results. But don't overwork, Better
stop a little while sometimes than, pay 4
heavy doctor's bill.
If one would have his home look attrao.
tive, plant trees, flowers and shrubs around
the house, keep the yard and walk free from
weeds and out the briars which disfigure the.
look of the front fences. ,
The low price of wheat of the last twe
years has been not an unmixed calamity to
agriculture. It has lead to an intro-
duction of our wheat in Many now ,mar-
kets of Europe and gained for it a firm
hold.
Sonie experiments in the cultivation of
tobacco in the county of Kent, England,' are
said to have been quite satisfactory thus far,
although the curing peones is likely to
prove more uncertain thau the raising of the
plants.
Tonion crop of the country is not large
this year. It is especially deficient in the
West, and onions will be shipped westward
instead of eastward before ,Winter is past.
Prices are already high and a further ad-
vance may be looked fez..
Sonic of the tender flower roots do not
keep well if their leaves have been killed by
frost. The canna, is one of these. Dahlias
and gladioli should remain in the ground
until their leaves are dead, but not long.
enough for the roots to suffer from freezing.
Farmers could spend a little time each•
day reading very profitably. Reading will
strengthen the mud by bringing it in con-
tact with other's thoughts. 'This is the one
great lack of Canadian farmers, their intel-
lects are not cultivated enough. Let us
have more of it.
The question of planting fruit trees in sod
is under a discussion in the agrimiltural
journals just now and the preponderance of
opinion is against the practice. Most fruits
will do best in well tilled soil. The pear is
no exception, but pears should be kept in
sod to check or moderate their growth and
thus ward off the blight.
The Elmira Farmers! club discussed the
use of rock salt for salting cattle. It was
thought that a piece weighing eighty
pounds, placed on boards, stones, or any
other dry supports, would be a sufficient
supply for ten or twelve cattle through the
entire season at pasture. It _should not be
placed on the ground.
If peach growers will go through their
orchards every Fall and examine each tree
closely, they will find upon many of them
gum oozing from the trunk near the ground.
By brushing away the gum a small white
grub with a black head will be, found dril-
ling his way through the bark. Kill all of
these pests and the trees will not suffer from
borers. The early part of October is ' the
best season for doing this work.
•
- The Dairy says that milk varies very
much in its quality for butter -making. The
creamires make a 'pound of butterfrom
-
thirty pounds or fourteen quarts of milk,
but they do not skim it closely. A fair,
ordinary quality of milk will make a pound
of butter each twelve quarts. The best
it has heard of is a pound of butter to four
quarts ;" but that was an extraordinary cow.
A good cow should make a pound of butter
from seven quarts.
. .
If you want your boys to stay On the
farm make it interesting for thein and let
them lead something besides a dog's life.
A boy is, a fun loving animal and must have
some amusement Or lie will not be content-
ed. Look out for this and let the old home
be naade so pleasant he will have no desire
to leave it. The return will repay the out.
lay necessary to brighten up a little, and
you will be surprised at the corresponding
brightning in yourself.
The farmer whose information relative to.
his ,calling goes no further than his own ;:ex-,
Perience or that of his neighbor's is far
from being the man he mightbe., GO home,
take good papers, read your books and seek.
to enlarge your stock of knowledge by every
possible, means. Do not take some one's
theory off hand; but use your brains in
studying it out and adapting it to your own
soil and methods of cultivation. In this
way you can be what you should, and in ,no,
other.
Some years ago the French government
instituted inquiry to ascertain the proper
amount *of salt for different domestic ani-
mals. In the report, made up and con-
curred in by practical and scientific men,
the quantities fixed upon as a miohnum
were : Working ox or milch cow 2 ounces;
oxen fattening in the stall, 2 1-2 to 4 ounces;
pigs fattening, 1 to 2 ounces ; sheep (double
for fattening), 1-2 to 2.3 ounce; horses and
mules laounce. , •
Where the object of fall plowing is to ex-
pose the soil to thorough pulverization by
frost getting it done early is not important.
In fact, there is sometimes a gain in leaving
it until the surface is slightly frozen. This
turned to the bottom of the furrow holds it
up, and less free/zing is required to pulver-
ize the whole mass. But if a heavy, sod is
to be fall plowed have the work down early
enough so that the Sod may partly rot this
fall. If not, it will be a bad piece to put
hoed crops in next season. '
Now is the time when the careful sheep
owner will be looking about him to find
improved bucks with *Ilia to increase the
value of his flook. A buck should serve
sixty or eighty .ewes, and, svith some care in
letting him serve a ewe only Once, this
number may be increased. The buck
should be fed liberally on oats • for sonic
time before being turned in with the ewes,
and while with them. Sheep grade up rap.
idly with a good buck, • and it needs but
slight difference in the progeny to make a
thoroughbred animal Soon pay for itself.
A NDa,nge.i:O; Boarder:
The whim+, ap:jack got a' new boarder
the other day. At the first meal he took he
chokecl and had a terrible time trying to
swallovv sonie coffee.
" What'the matter, stranger ?" she ask,
except that coffee went down
the wrong
way, " •
" Goodheavens ; it isn't possible that I
have secured a boarder with two throat,"
exclaimed Mrs. Flapjack. who has been corn-
plaining very bitterly of the amotint of food a
man with only one throat can destroy,
LAVE D014010)1 NEWS.
The chestnut bell has been introduced a.
Salvation Army ,services.
Collingsvood's knock Parliament has de "
clared ia favor of manhood eufferage by*
majority of 0110.
Gilbert Graig, of Carletou, N. B., is be.
iin-; tried for aseaulting his fourteen -year-old
daughter.
Rev, Mr. Quinney, who was one of Big
Bear's prisoners, has resigned his Position ab
Fort Pitt and is on his way to England.
The by-law to raise $18,000 to extend the
water mains of the city of St. Thomas was
defeated by a majority of 88 out of a. total
vote of 442.
On the farm of Mr, Peter Shields, a Mo».
tague, is a vine, seven feet long, attached to
a potato, on two separate places of which
are well formed seedings, which possess all
the vitality of a new potato.
During the present season 2,500,872 bu h-
elp of American grain, representing 5,0f5
car loads, have been received at the por o
Collingwood, and it is expected that 3, ,
000 bushels will be received for the whole
season.
Mr. A. F. McLean, teacher in the Bala's-
la,va-etreet tchool, of St. Thomas, has been
censured by the .Mana,ging Cominittee of
the Board of Education for .thastising a pu-
pil, who, it is alleged, called him an appro.
below; name on the street..
An Indian tramp was olaservad to hide a
kage in a hedge before he entered
hathant on a, begging mission. .The pack-
age contained $70 in silver, $400 in green-
backs, and a certificate deposit for $300.,
This wealth was unearthed and was handefi
over to the tramp, who decided it to be the
part of pradenceto MON% 011.
The council of Victoria, B. C., desired to
elect astreet super.intenclent. Two candidates
were put in nomination, and the vote re-
sulted in a tie, four ballots being cast for
each. The mayor refused to give the cast-
ing vote, and there is a deadlock in conse-
quenee. The mayor claims the right to
vote or to decline to vote as he sees ht.
A FortMeLeod despatch says :—The most
reliable infortnetion' to hand is, that there
are no Bloo.cla in Montana. Eight returned
the other clay and reported six Bloods were
killed by cowboys for shooting a steer and.
not Gros Ventres. It is reported that iu
consequence of this a council was held and
decided not to go south.
On Friday last ayoung man, about twenty
years of age named Frank Webber, son of
Mr. John Webber, of the 12 concession of
East Zorre, was helping a neighbor, Mr.Har-
wood, to thresh. He had been cutting bands
and in the temporary absence of the feeder
he stepped upon the feeder's platforrn and
began feeding the machine. By some means
he lost his balance and fell into the cylinder,
stopping the machine instantly. He was
taken out horribly mangled and died in a
few moments.
Mr. Matthew Sedgewick, of Dumnser,
had a year-old calf which he believed 'died
of hydrophobia. On driving it to the creek,
which runs through his farm, the animal,
seeing the water, appeared to liesepae mad,
frothed at the mouth, and run and" tumbled
violently around the field, showing all. the
symptoms of hydrophobia. Mr. Sedewick
seemed his rifle, and after firing four shots,
succeeded in killing the frantic animal. He
believes it was bitten by a mad dog that was
seen in the neighborhood a few days previ-
ously.
A rich mica mine has been discevered in
the township of 14Iethven, County of Peter-
boro, and has been acquired by Mr. Wit,
liam Martin, of Kingston, and Mr. Seth
Welch, of ' Wollaston. About two tons
have been blasted, and one pie of pure
mica Weighing. thirty poundesalsOs's:,_ been ob-
tained. 'This has been sent to 47ew York
fer examination. It is pure and white, and
the promise is very good.. Six feet of depth
has been explored, and the mica is found to
be better as the workmen go down. The
mine is believed to be ten acresin extent.
Catharine Jeffreys, of St. John, N. B.,
thirteen years of age, while stopping at
Moncton met a little girl named Ryan, teu
years old, and persuaded her to go to St.
John. On arriving there the Moncton girl
was. taken to a house and"was persuaded by
the Jeffreys girl to remove her clothing. The
jeflreye s,eirl then donned the clothing and
left' the house. This left the Ryan girl in
such a state that she did not care to go out
on the street, but she succeeded finally in
attracting,attention, and was at length taken
to the police station, where she explained
the particulars of her loss.
The Mono Mills shooting •case was heard
at Brampton last week, by Judge Scott.
It is learned from the evidence that the
prisoner, ThomasKidd, is a man of consider-
able means, owning some 300 acres of land,
besides notes and cash. He is eccentric, and
it is alleged that at tunes he keeps his money
hid under stones and stumps in the fields.
Not long ago his father when very seriously
ill, made a will, leaving to Thomas another
farm in Albion. But the old man recovered
unexpectedly, and Thomas thenwanted to
occupythe farm free of rent. Tothis the
father ohjected,'e,nd rented the place to his
son Henry. Thomas refused to leave the
place and a series of quarrels resulted, The
judge found the prisoner guilty of common
assault; but on his engaging to leave the
farm in dispute and binding himself to keep
the peace for a year a fine of only $5, was im-
posed..
The verdict of the coroner's jury in the
Plum Hollow tragedy in Leeds is that A.
L. Carr was wilfully murdered by R. H.
Carle, Daniel Carle, and H. C. •Carle. The
scene ofthe murder presented a terrible
Speetacle the morning after the deed was
committed. The bodY of themios ed man
lay on the road untouched froma ne o'clock
Wednesday night until ten o'clock oh Thurs..
'day morning. The house was wrecked and
the door -yard filled with bedding, broken
theirs, and crockery. The supposition is
that Richard Carle, being at one time a.
volunteer and having a duplicate key of the
armor, which key has since been found,
teolt the voliinteer equipments, and, after
fitting his brothers out in uniforms which
Were tnrned inside out, started to raid Mrs,
Day's 'house,' Manyof the neighbors also
blame Stevene, who owns the house. Be is
an uncle of the Carle boys, and as reported
to have offered 810 cash and a pallon
whiskey to luive• Mrs. Day put out. The
three Caries have been arrested and lodged
in 'gaol at Brockville.
What 110 Cents Will Da,
A 10 cent bottle of 1?olson's Nerviline will
cure neuralgia or headache. A 10 centhob-
Ile of Nerviline will etre toothache or faeiss
ache. A 10 cent sample bottle of Nerviline
Is sufficient to care colds, diarrhcea, spume,
dysentery, Lc, Nerviline is just the thing
to cure all pains, whether inteanal or exter-
nal. Buy a 10 emit sample bottle of Nervi -
line, the great pain cure. Safe, prompt,
and always effectual. Large bottles at any
drug store, only 25' cents,
Chung Sing. the Chinese doctor- of Pueblo
is very sad over the death of his wife, for
whom he had reeently. paid 82;000.
•".11:11;1
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