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HomeMy WebLinkAboutExeter Times, 1898-7-7, Page 6THE LAST VOYAGE OF MARTIN VALLLANCE • A SEA STORY OP TO4DAY4 Uy jOHN ARTHUR BARRY) Author a Steve Brown% Banylp," "In the Great Deep t ete, eat aneata \as, -,--,:kmss9ssm$sswev.,.-wm...nsssstavm bad eomething partteular to say in reply ; but just then the Major's ataialt brakein Wean as with, ".Now then, Valiance, MY boat tine's al:11 41 - feet end pleasant trlip to ye. Don't call an a deserter ; but l've lead enough of the Reba. We'll sell her at the Oape, end all go home together. Gael, sir, no more sea I I% buy e farm, first la And 50 on. anal, -so on, until ale was in the boat. Still, I was very well satisfied; for even his parting words sounded not without lamellae, as regarded the fu- ture. Thus It was in good spirits that I mastered my new crew -and yet not all new, for the three "Antelopes made part of it -and roused them round with a " Cheerily, lads I let's eatova the ceava,s on her -everything she cen °Limy ! Tluose kites up there are getting blue -mouldy for want of loosing!" With a rush, to the sound of ray voice they jamped into her rigaing cast adrift, sheeted herne, and hoisted till, under every rag she had, the Ilebe lay over to a light breeze as she had not done .since 1 knew her. The cruiser had stood by us. And now, after watchtng oar start, her great screws began to thrash the wa- ter into foam once more; once mare the bow wave. rolled. up till its salt spray wetted the royal arms blazoned in blue and gold at her head ; the red cross :nag dipped; the Major, and his daugh- ter, sta,ndieg on the lower bridge, wav- ed. to ; from somewhere in her vast interior a band struck hp. "Home, Sweet Home a and my eyes grew a little dim as I hauled our ensign down tor the last time, and the big battle- ship drew majestically ahead after playing her part, to us, of an ocean Providence. Nan stood. with hetr feet on the rail clue -wing her cad serenely-; and to add some slight favour of the comie to it all, the burly, bearded " Antelope" at the wheel, pointing with great fom- fin,ger to the goat, grinned, and. said: " Hier looks Al, afr. Valiance, sir. It were nee as give the ole gal a free passidge; an', by what I hears, I nev- er done a better night's work." • " No, Johnson, you never did," Ire - plied, " l'm in your debt, and won't forget it; although, remember, it was- n't altogether for my sake you gave Nan a roving commission." • • * * I &lift think, dear reader, that I have very much more to tell yon; and if I wind up in the orthodox fashion -- getting old-fashioned. now for a story of to -day -it's because I see no way. even did I so desire, of eecaping such ending. I aen not altogether a con- vert to the new style of story begin- ning abruptly with "Smith was sick," and ending quite as abruptly with "Smith. died." Therefore, 1 shell work this one out right to the pealing of these wedding -bells with the sound of wbich finished my last -voyage as a senor. At Cepetewn we found Helen and her father, together with my old skip- per, all staying at the house of a hos- pitable friend of the Major's, the same to whom Timm° had been an his -way when fate overtook him. Our adven- tures haa icatuxally got noised abroad somewhat; and when we made our number to Green Point, our entering into the harbour was a sort of trium- phant procession of small boats and steamers. Happening, as we luckily did, to hit an empty market, the Belie's cargo sold very well. And the brig brought more than tbe Major gave for her; thus I found the old gentleman in the best of tempers. Nor, in all ways, ever did the course of true love run smoother than mine and Helen's. The Major. after satisfying 'himself respecting that little matter of kinship with the S'omerset- shire Vallances, gave his consent at once. Helen's Iwon one moonlit night under a clump of pink and white olean- ders in our host's garden, finding that 1 had made no mistake, and that her heart had long been mine. All I had to press for was an early day. And we were married at old St. George's the very next day, all Capetown coming to the wedding, together with the captain and officers of H.M.S. Alexandra. Cap- tain Craigie acted as my best man- wea,lestill, for their privations in the boat had been awful, "Valiance," said he as we parted, "I shall never forget your kindness," I had been, curiously enough, through influence exercised by one of those other Vallaames, then resi- dent al Port Elizabeth.. instrumental in procuring the captain a billet in the South Afrleszi "Harbours and Rivers." "Rut give the sea best, my lad. It's need you well on the whole. Don't tempt it any more. It's not to be truete ed ; ,see how it's served met" I don't know whether Nan can be reckoned as a bridesmaid., or rather matron; but certainly she was present at the ceremony. .And besides wearing a silver coliar,e present from the Major, some of the Capetown lasses had taken her in hand and gilded her horn' from truck to keelson, making a, very gorgeous goat of her. The Major's gift to us was a cheque on the Standard Bank of South Africa for the whole value of the brig and her cargo, running into four figures whose initial number exceeded "one!" And taking Captain Craigie's advice, my own notions tending taat way-, to say nothing of Helen's, I gave up the sea. Fier rt twelvemonth we stayed at Compton -on -Tor e eh the old folk. Then the Majar, buying a great turreted, et 'aggling place that he called the "Bungalow," at Cannel Moham, faeing Torbay, would have us go live with labn and make bis home ours. He is still hale and hearty, aml. ;mends /mush of hie time at a certain club over in Tor- quay' affeeted by the old Anglo -Th.. diens Who abound in that beautiful health -re •ort; and there, amongst these companions. he spins his tales of the Mutiny arid the incident of saving the tniceroy's life. But the favorite with hi; military hearers is the story ot his oruiee in the Rabe, whicb, by dint of time, mach embroidery, and frequent teninge, lane asstexted tliraensions and temect, unreeogniza,ble by any of the. other adore therein. Nan, too, is Wen and thriving, demeaning herself as a goal, with a history should do; looked U) to by the Bungalow dogs, whom she keeps in order and greatly reepeeted by tbe domestic animals of Combo Mo - And ca nights, sometimes, 1 lie awake and listen to the ,sea, calling at the foot of the tall red cliffs, feeling a faint thrill of the wild longing that over, now and again, comes to the land -dwel- ler whose way atorettme has been upon the great deep. But at such 'moments I turn to Helen lying at my side, or put ray hand clown towards the cot of my year-old, son. And the sea ealls etill I But not for me, not for atm.! I have made ray last voyage. The End. NAVAL STRENGTH. France and Rowe Are neptitiy Gaining ou tartlet% A. Parliamentary paper has just been issued in Great Britain setting forth the neval strength of the powers. The return gime the strength both in ves- sels built and in vessels building and the figures are interesting. Under the head of battleships, Greet Britain pos- sesses 52 built, as against 27 owned. by France, 12 by Russia, 17 by Germany, 15 by Italy, 5 by the United States and 3 by Japan. The Dual Alliance thus has 39 to the British Eirapire's 52. Of armor- ed cruisers, Great Britain has 18 France 9, Russia 10, Germany 3, Italy 3, the United States 2 and Japan 1. Of pro- tected cruisers Great Britain has 95, France 30, Russia 3, Germany 7, Italy 10, the United States 14 and Japan 10. Of unprotected cruisers Great Britain has 16, France 16, Russia 3, Germany 21, Italy 1, the United States 10 and Japan 8. Of armored coast defence ships, Great Britain has 15, France 14, Russia 15, Germany 11, the United States 20 and Japan 3. As for torpedo flotillas, Great Britain has 35 torpedo vessels, 50 destroyer' and 98 boats; France 13 torpedo vessels, no destroy- ers, and 211 boats; Russia 17 torpedo vessels, 1 destroyerr and 174 boats; Germany 2 torpedo vessels, no destroy- ers and 113 boats; Italy 15 torpedo ves- sels, no destroyers and 142 boats; the United States torpedo flotilla, is limited to 8 boats; Japan has one torpedo ves- sel and le boats. VESSELS BUILDING. Turning to vessel la. uilding, which, of course, range from ships launched and having their guns and armor put on board to ships authorized but not yet laid down, the record is interesting. Great Britain has 12 battleships build- ing to France's te Russia's 6, Germanys ; 5, Italy's 2, 8 belonging to the Limited !States and 3 to Japan. Of armored ()raisers Great Britain is building 8, France 10, Russia 1, Germany 2, Italy 2, the United States 1 and Japan 6. Of protected cruisers, Great Britain is blending 24, France 10, Russia 3, Ger- many 8, Italy 3. the United. States 1 and. Japan 6. In the torpedo line Great Britain is building 46 destroyers -and no others. France 2. torpedo vessels, 8 destroyers and 38 boats; Russia 28 des- troyers and no others; Germany one destroyers and 38 boats; Russia 28 des- troyer and two boats; the United States 20 destroyers and 22 boats; and. Japan 8 destroyers and 21 boats. The statement thus set forth shows how rapidly other countries, especi- ally France and Russia, are gaining on Britain. At present the propor- tion in battleships is 52 British to 39 Russian and French; when all these have been completed it will be 64 to 53, a gain of about 21-2 per cent. for the Dual Alliance. Further, the foreigners can now build. nearly as fast as can. the British. This rapid increase is still more disturbing for another reason. These totals of battleships include many very old emit of little real value. Taking really modern ships, built with- in the past ten years, Great Britain has now but 22, against 16 owned by the Dual Alliance; whereas when the building- is all completed Great Britain will have 34 and the Dual Aaliance 30, a very sub,stantial gain for France and Russia. MOVING A CHURCH. LOD110)1, VditiCC to be Taken. Down Stone by Roma An extraordinary feat in chureh re- moval wilt soon be witnessed la Lon- don. Hidaen away in the quiet recess of Great Ormond street, tateensieury, is an unpretentious building externally, which in reality is one of the most bea- utiful Roulan. Catholic eburches in the metropolis. It was bunt by the late Sir George Bowyer, once a weD-known raember of prirliainent and a charabera- lin of the pope, es a, temple for the Or- der of Malta Knights of the Hospital- iers of St. John, of Jerusalem, whom the baronet was the means of reintro- ducing into England;. but it was also associated witb the Hospital ot St. Elizabeth of Hungary, next door, found- ed by Cardinal Wiseman in 1856, The extension of the ttospitaa for Sick Children., close by,. hampered the authorities of the smaller institution in &scheme of enlargement they ha.d devised, and they amordingly agreed to sell their whole property to the other hospitad and ereet a new buil,aing for themselves in St. John's wood, This involved the demolition or removal of the Churth of St, john of jertieelem, and the question. after ()armful consider- ation by Cardinal Vaughn, was referr- ed for final decision to the pope, who hes now authorized the church to be taken down stone by stone and re-er- sated beside the new hospital in the district mentioned, The beautifel elt- ar and magnificent carving whit% the church eontabas will he trerniferreda /walla, so three on its new site the building, externally and internally, will beve exactly tlao same appearance as It has at present. DONT% FOR HOT WEATHER. Don't drbak soda,water or ice -water a drink as Mtnth eeltzer, oarbenate water, Moderately cold water or bot lemon- ade aa you tea inclined, but take them between meals. Don't drink anythingwita alcohol in it, even to a Moderate degree, like beer; aathoug/i awl drink* will give a, momentary cooling effeet, the alcohol certain to start unnecessary com- bustion in the tissues, which will make you feel hotter than before. Don't eat meat oftener than tame day, and it possible eat rio meat what- ever during euinnier ; eat plenty a ban- anas and other fruits and drink an abundance of fresh buttermilk or eweet milk. Don't smoke between 9 aeue and, 7 p, in, unless you cen keep entirely out of the sun's rays dudes the whole day. Dona, fear to eat all the foe arid ice- cream. you wish, but first be thorough- ly cooled of and eat them slowly. Don't let a hot day ge ny without taking an all -ver cold bath. If you have been taking violent exercise like bioycle-riding, first take a roll in a hot- water bath, after which give yourself a sponging with cold water, Don't take any sort a bath with- in three hours after eating ; early in the morning is the best time, and late at night the second best time for the daily bath. Don't pile on clothing on the nottoe that it is fashionable to wear such and such; get a net undershirt if you can; go uithout a waistcoat, and have all the rest of your clothing as thin and light as it Is possible to buy them Don't wear tight collars, tight cor- sets, or even a tight' hat ; have all your clothing as loose as possible. Don't wear clothing of a dark color in suramer, and particularly black; the sun's heat is greatly absorbed by black, whilewhite tends to dissipate its in- tensity. The ideal, einem:ter dress for a man should be; Well -ventilated, loose straw hat ; roll collar; light gray coat; a shirt that requires no vest; wide trousers of some thin, whitish inaterial; low tan shoes, and tan stockings. Don't wear your hair long in sum- mer -time and don't wear a beard ; the hair catches up the heat a the air and oonainunicates it to the skin, while it never does the same thing with any stray breezes flying around. Don't forget that the great secret of keeping cool is to have your •nervous system perfectly calm and your di- gestion in perfect working order. Don't worry over anything, particul- arly during the heat of the day; you cannot accompLish much by worrying at that time, and you are only getting your nervous system excited. Don't lose your temper with your employees or your superiors; don't complain of how much warmer it is than it ought to be, and altopether avoid everything that is liable to get you excited. Don't walk on the sunny side of a block because it is a few yards nearer to your destination. Don't hesitate to drink even ice-cold. water if your perspiration has stopped ancl you still find it oppressively hot; very likely the stoppage of the per- spiration is the first stage of sunstroke. Produce a sweat by ice -water at once and you are all right. FOR THE HUS13AND. Now for some of the little failings that try the patience and temper of many wives. Did it ever strike you how long and lonely the days must seem to the girl you have taken from a merry home circle? Evidently not., or surely you would not ha.ve rushed off immediately after dinner to see that "fellow at the club." Of course she said she did not mind -women al- ways do! All the same she was mis- erable the whole evening over the thought that nothing would have tak- en you train her side a few short months ago. Than is it quite necessary to immerse yourself in the paper during the whole of breakfast time. emerging only to devour your meal in hurried fashion? Why can't you wait till you get in the train ? Of course you think it remarkably silly that she should fret ever such trifles, but a woman's happiness or unhappi- ness is made up of trifles. You saw no reason why she should cry the morn- ing you forgot to kiss her, and felt an- noyed when you discovered tear -stains on your return home. "You forgot!" Waydhates just what hurts! You would not have forgotten once you. know! No there is not a scrap of good. in ;Assur- ing her that you love her as well or better than you. did before you marri- ed. her. She wants the little attentions that, prove to her you do. The only men who make their wives really happy are those who are lovers as well as hushands. Men devote thetmselvee to their profession or business; during the day scarcely a passing thought is giv- en to wite or home. A wore= is so different. Every thought of hers be- gins or ends with the man she loves. Even men themselves acknowledge this ....at least it was a men who said, "Man's love is of ma.n's life a thing apart; woman's whole existence l" Knowing how much you are to her, is it too much trouble to pay her tlie lit- tle attentions she thinks so much of, or let ber be eare that she is as dear to you as she ever was? D1SCOVER,Y OF A WAR POET. A traveller meeting a settler near a -house in,the backwoods, the following colloquy engaged: ; Whose house? iNegge% , What's it built of Logs, And neighbors Frogs, What's the soil? Bogs. The climate? Fogs, 'What do you eat Hrw Hogs. do you catch tern Dogs. EXETE111 IIVI la, ',ARUM e-t_.,..ettereastere ADMIRAL SAMPSON... Commanding the United 'States fleet off Santiago de Cuba. Imams IMOIMMINIEIMP A Modern Romeo. She bad coasted down a steep hill which turned. two sharp corners. She had an escort, but he was a. young man wirth discretion and. a brake, and while he would do a good deal to save her he couldn't see the pleasure in per- ishing with bar. So when she whirl- ed. round the first corner he resigned himself to losing her and wondered how he would. take the body home. The thought came to him that the situa- tion would be less complicated if she should be -dead than if she should be seriously wounded, but he put that idea aside hastily, and hoped that she wouldn't suffer eineh before he could get aid. . When he eautiously turned the sec-. ond earner he saw the victim sitting . on a stump beside the' road. and tap-» ping the ground. with her foot. I "Come by freight ?" she asked. scorn- fully. Der protector dismountaid and looleed her over. • "You aren't hurt ?" he said anx- away. "Of course not 'What could hurt me ?'• " You really oughtn't to do that sort of thing, you know," he protested. "No- body has any business coasting that sort of a hill." "I hope you don't think that a bad hill." He did and he registered a mental oath tbat the next time he should take a girl wheeling she wouldn't be able to rhea better than he, but he smiled feebly and then the girl relented. "I guess it is a nasty hill," she said, sweetly. "But Pm never afraid. of coast- ing. They say the best way bo teach a boy to swam is to throw him into de4 water and let him scramble for life. If he finds he can take care id himself, then he'll never he afraid again. I learned to coast something after that fashion. I don't believe I could ever have screwed up Courage enough to try it deliberately, the way you men d•aa The young man looked. less exasper- ataeudm. ,pand pre-empted part of the s " How die it happen?" he asked. Her hand was a nice soft little one, and he. concluded it made little difference if a girl did ride well. There were other things to be considered. On the whole he thought he wouldn't change girls for his next ride. "We were up at Magnolia," she said, "and 1 had been riding all su,namer, but 1 used a brake and back pedaled down hill, and if the place was a bad one T got off and walked. People said I didn't have proper pride about wheel- ing, 'hue 1 wasn't taking any risks, and the very thought of coasting made my blood run. cold. One day we started for Anniequara, and about half way there we struck an awful hill. It was frightfully steep and long, and was full of gra-vel. Then there were springs in the Woods, so that little streams ran across the road diagonally and had washed cut deep hollows. At the bot- tom the react turned a sharp corner in sand and X071 down almost to the beaoh, but it finally divided, one path going on to the beech and the other turning along the shore. "I thought at first that I'd get off but Tom went ahead." Then some dif- ficulties with regard to staying on the sturap were arrauged, and she wait on with her story. "Several swell carriages were owning up the hill, and I didn't want to look like a, Wald eat, so 1 pedaled ahead and started down. X tried to use my brake, but the wretched thing wouldn't work, and by the time I found that out I had struck the first washout. My w-lieel gave a jump -you know how - ray feet flew off the pedals, I flew off the seat, but I came dolwaa on the saddle, and away we went. My, how we did fly 1 I didn't know what to do with my feet, so I tried to curl them up out of harra's 'way and grip- pecithe handle bars andworiderea who would feel worat about my death. What? 0, but you see you didn't know me than, so you -wouldn't have known what you were losing. "The people teamed out of the ear- riagea to watoh me go by, and 1 heard one oia gentleman say, 'Crazy fool. She deservesa-' but I was too far by that time to hear the rest of it. I suppose he thought I was do- ing my little stunt for fun. Tom was ahead of me, and I couldn't turn out for anything, so I screamed,'Look out, Tom, I'm coasting l' He said, 'Jerusa- lem,' and scrambled. to the side of the road looking as soared as 1 felt. He thought I was doing it all on purpose, toot I "My wheel made flying leaps over every little strea,m„ and I stayed. on, but I knew about that sand at the bot- tom of the hill and thought I could see any finish. It took something more than sand to stop me in ray mad oareer. I flew around the corner and on down the road, but I didn't have sanse enough to turn the second corner. "The wheel tore along down the path, over the pebbles and. stones, and into the water. When we met in ;the ,surf we went down. I was sur- prised at that. It seemed to me no- thing but the end, of the world would stop that wheel. I grabbed the bicy- cle and waded out. By that time Tone was on the beach waiting for me." "Wasn't he relieved?"? asked the young man tenderly? She looked. indignant. "Relieved? He . howled He said when he took a girl bicycling he was prepared to save her from some kinds of death, but that he wouldn't swirn to her rescue. He couldn't afford to shrink his bicycle togs. "Now, when I'm going riding with a man Tom always advises him to wear i his bathing suit." A BIT OF CUBAN HISTORY. Sixty Years Ago Spain (Pilfered to Sell Cuba, Porto liteo, and the Philippine Islands. The Spanish governmept is making great pretensions as to its purpose to hold on to Cuba and is rejecting with apparent scorn every propo_al that looks to the sale of the island. It might be inferred from this that Spain had nev- er entertained any proposition that would alienate Cuba. History, how- . ever, speaks otherwise. IAbout sixty years ago when Maria Christina, of Naples was queen regent cif Spain she offered to sell not only Cuba but Porto Rico and the Philippine Islands 'also, to Louis Philippe, who then at on the throne of France. Sen - .or Campuzano was the Spanish diplo- mat delegated to conduct the negotia- tions for the sale, while a Spanish banker residing in Paris by the name of Aguado was to look after the finan- cial part. The price agreed u.pon was 36,000,000 Spanish reale for Cuba, and 10,000,000 reels for Porto Rico and the Philippiues. This would have been equal to a total of about 02,000,000 at the present time a sum which looks ridiculously small when the value of islands is considered. The bargain was made on this basis, however, and the papers relating to Cuba were signed, notwithstanding some controversy over the manner and method of paying the money. But when the negotiations reached Porto Rico and the Philippines, Loais Philip- pe began to haggle about the price. He could not forget1 that he was a trades- man before he was a king and his pro- pensity to "beat down" asserted it - seta He claimed that 10,000,000 reale was too much for Porto Rico and the Philippines, and insisted that 7,000,000 reels were an ample sum to pay for them. This amount he declared was all he would pay for the islands; and said that if it was not acceptable "the contract must be thrown into the fire." The Spanish diplomat, angered by what he considered royal meanness, suiting his actions to Louis Philippe's words, seized both the Cuban and Por- to Rico -Philippine contracts and. threw them into the fire, and ended the nego- tiations. What the subsequent fate cif Cuba might have been had this bargain hese carried, out, it is useless to conjecture. But the transaction shows that the the value Spain set upon Cuba was once only neminal, and that the claim that the "Ever Faithful Isle" will never be sarrendered is of recent growth. FORCIBLE TEACHING, Bill Butcher was called to see a friend and. was admitted by a pert, disoblig- ing maid. In telling his friend of the disrespect with which he had been treated Dill worked himself up into a towering rage and concluded his com- plaint with: Next time I tome to this house if she behaves that way P11 smash her face ; teach her to recognize a gentleman when Mae sees one, A HELMET QUANDARY. Why So llama, atrittiuh ham Mated in Action. Capt. Norton, M.P., is to 14Sliixques- tim in the ll'ouse respecting the. large proportion of British offieere sex•ving with native regiments who were kill- ed or wounded during the recent cern- on the Indian frontier, says the London Oapt, Norton holds that the chief cense for these lamentable casualties whioh, owing to the unofficered con- dition of the native regiments, might have become a serious menace to the effioieney of the Indian army, is the feet that British officers wear a dif- ferent head dress from that of the na- tive officerand treops under them; and are so rendered especially distin- guishable by the enemy's marksmen. This danger in modern warfare has long been recognized in Europe, and in the home army the adoption of the universal pattern field service cap for all ranks has been satisfaotorily shown to rednee to a minimum. the distinc- tion ev-hich formerly existed. between of- ficers and men, With British regiments in. India the white pith or khaki helmet acts in FA similar way; but in native regiments, where all but the English officers wear an Eastern headdress, the white helmet is a fatal distinction. Capt. Norton holds that the chief Secretary of War to make the dress of all ranks when on active duty as uniform as possible; but it is diffieult to see how this eau be done, as fax as headgear is concerned. With the sub- ject races of which our Indian army is composed the wearing of a partic- ular kind of headdress is an integral part of their religion, while the pro- posal to make British officers adopt the turban would be equally unpopu- lar. Capt. Norton's question, therefore, seems calculated to briag the Indian army authorities to an impasse; but doubtless, if they appeal to Pall Mall the strong force of experts wbich has been applying a limited amount of brain power to the invention of a ser- ies of xaore or less obnoxious " improve- ments in military headgear during loale,• period of years, will be able to help them out of Capt. Norton's difficulty. Encouraged by the success of the in- elegant and useless convertible fatigue cap, the experts sateuld find it a mat- ter of small moment to produce a spe- cies of universal pattern tropical head- dress which should so combine the ap- pearance of the turban with that of the solar topi, and so amalgamate the discomforts and advantages of both, that, while the British wing officer wili look like a native and the 'invader and the naick fancy themselves almost white men, the wily Afridi will be able to pick off either with equal fac- ility and disinterestedness. TIPPING IN ENGLAND. t L Atanst Warse Ylian Getting Shaved A "True Westerner," who has been giving his Canadian brethren his im- pressions of the old country, declares that London is the loveliest place in the world -it is so big, so vast. Never- theless, there are points of detail in which oar habits might be improved upon. For instance, the writer con- fesses:- 1 had less patience with the barber shops of the old country than I ca.n tell. You. are seated in a little straight-backed chair with a padded rest for your head, no other upholster- ing. Then you are a beardless man quicker than you can say "Jack Robin - First timer t was left with lath- er in my ears and my face scarcely wiped. I insisted. on having my neck shaved, and ever so many little extras done. Well, I paid for it, that's all. You. pay for what you get there always. The scraping costs only a trifle, but they make up in the extras, winch must include a tip for the barber, or you had better never sit nn his stool again. I should think an Englishman would go to sleep at once when being shaved in one of our elegantly uphols- tered chairs, such as are invariably, used in this country. As to tipping, by -the -bye the writer seems to have had one unique experi- ence, which he caps, with a .very good story. He says :- I only found one man while I was abroad who refused a tip, and he was a guard in the Bank of England. If I had not left my doclak behind 1 would have taken his picture. As our grand ship Canada was about leaving Liverpool landing stage, one of our passengers, holding a. handful of change, shouted out in a 'loud. voice, "If there is any man, woman or child. here that a have not tipped since I have been in England, I am prepared to do it now.' SIRLOIN Ott BEEF. Tae original of the word sirloin of beef is variously stated. One account tells us that, King James L, of witch- hunting memory, knighted a loin of beef at a banquet, whieh joint was ever after called. sirloin. Another story ascribed. the freak to Charles IE. THAT brAN. A. good story is told of a busy man who leaves his house early in the morn- ing and gets back after dark and rare- ly sees his children. One morning he found that his little boy had got up before him and was playing outside the house. He told him to go in', but the Loy would not, so his father milled him and went on to work. The boy went in crying, and his mother asked him what was the matter. Man bit roe, said the boy. What raan ? said his mother. The man that stays here on Sun- days. A SAD OUTCOIVI.E. I thought I would cure my daugh-,, ter of the extravagant fondness of can-- dy by letting her clerk in a candy store. Well, how did it work? liere's her employer's bill for what she ate the first week; either he is a ruined man or I am. THE SPEED OF INSEOTS. nowamos Thing to See a nee Keeping Vp With e Than. rs the popular belief that tbe flight of birds is leach swifter than that et the ineeets, but a number of naturalists who have been making a study of the molter think that such. is not the case. A common, Louse fly for example, is not very rapid. io its flight, bat its WiligS make 800 beats a second, and seed it through the ate twenty-five feet, under ordinary cir- cumstances, in that sParze of When the insect is alarmed, hovrgver, it has been found that it, oan inerease its rate of speed to over 150 feet per second. If it could continue suob ree• pid alga for a nate in a straight line it woald cover that dietancee exactly thirty-three seconds • It is not an uncommon thing when, travelling by rail in the summer time to see a bee or a wasp keeping up wittla the train and trying to get in one of the windows. A. swallow is consid- ered one of the swiftest of flying - birds, and it was thought until a short time ago that no inseet nand es- eape it. A naturalist tells of au excit- ing abase he saw between a swallow and a dragon fly, which is among the ewiftest of insects. The insect flew with incredible speed, and wheel- ed and dodged with such ease that the SIVallOW, despite its utmost efforts, completely failed ta overtake and cap- ture it, • GOOD ROADS IN QUEBEC, The second annual meeting of the Good Road,e Association of the dis- triet of Bedford was held in Sweetsberg on the 6th of January last. The els- vention was largely attended and was most successful. A motion aeclariaxg in favor of abolistbing statue labor was carried, and by weather motion, the as- sociation expressed its approval of the policy of the Quebec Government in assisting county councils to purohase road-ma,king machinery. The presid- ent of the association, Hon. W. W. Lynch, judge for the superior court for the district, in the course of 'his open- bi n eg cialf dlfgestord ad. m:astse'said: "1)&1'1 on heo "I frankly confess that I have learnt, from very brief and hasty investiga- tion of this subject, that we are not as badly off in comparison with others aarseInhozialsounpep.osinedthwe eetwfoerltnIt;othitaatprowvee our highways, and that there are oth- ers who are enpountering the same Ulf- fklulties which beset us in this :effort, and the fact that in the great, wealtily and. prosperous Province of Ontario all t the roads are not just what they should be, and. that in 1896 it becaane necessary to commission aur friend, Mr. Campbell, to go, not alone to the back settlement, but to prosperous villages, towns and. even cities and preach 'the gospel of better roans to the inhabit- ants, and it would appear that not- withstanding the advanced education - of the people, the persuasive and cap- tivating eloquenee of our friend, he 18 not always equal to the task of con- vieeing the ratepayers that in their own. interests road improvement is nec- essary anti desirable. The same experi- ence meets the road reforinec in the Provinces down by the sea. But what was my amazement to discover that. the same complaints, the same agitation and the same lukewarmness exists in all of the States of the American Uni- on from Vermont to Georgia, from Dak- ota to New York. The Lieutenant - Governor of the state of New York in a speech made on the 5th of July last said: "Legislation directed to the en- couragement of good roads failed dur- ing the legislative session of 1897 be- cause of the opl oaten of the farra-own- ers of the State, who naturally prefer to make the road running through their farin,s themselves rather than to pey what is required for some departmeat othf ethe aSktiangte toof dgooiota. NrVoea Ik,enqouwi r et she! careful study of the su,bject, ani pen - tical experience, suoh as most of the farmers dra not possess. I believe that almest every fernier Will awe in the cost of getting his produce to market a sum great= than his individual tax by the substitution of good reads for the very poor ones so prevalent throughout the Tanpire State." New Jersey, which is said to have made the greatest progress in roadl improve - of any of the States has a Good Roads Association whose motto is "good roads deorease taxation, decrease liv- ing expenses, increase property values, inerease farraers' inooraes, increase ran:road business, and. promote pros- perity and civilization," By the law of that State the oast of building the principal thoroughfares is placed one- third, an the State, one-third/ on the abutting land -owners, and the remain- der an the county. In sixty-two years S1,400,000 was expended in the build- ang of 300 miles of permanent mad, of which the State paid one-third. The movement has acquired suoh dimen- sions and assumed such proportions that the Nationel Government of the United States has taken bola a it, an! has established a roacl enquiry di- vlsion in connection with the Deport- ment of Agriculture under the direc- tion of General Stone. Its work is edu- ofcra:tmtiehneteismaterblittyoesint. ietatis4statofa ihxyultlheotineosnisstsruueod. tion of sample roads in different parts f have no hesitation in donate -ling that our roads are not as bad as they raight be, anj if they are not worse, not altogether L1119 fault of thiseaer in many instances, who havei charge of thorn, But they should. be infinitely ittieir they ,ne tbletan(taheyttsairieyad , with v ths:. \Iitittlhe e the exception of the western and north- 4 easter n wctions of the district, the soil except in places, is admirably adapted to mad construction, and under intel- ligent direction, there exists no good reason! why our roads at all seasons of the year should nott be put on a footing to compare favorably with drinaandswirteeeniyainparzt of the werld.-Oaria- / A TEDIOUS JOD. It was tho first time Nan had seen any ono husking torn, Do you have to undress every sin. ,gle oar? she asked soberly.