HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Brussels Post, 1900-7-26, Page 2THE MYSTERIOUS CRIME
ON THE S.S. NEPTUNE
C'HAPT:PR 1,
It wad a calm Southern nlglit, with
• silver moon shining serenely. iu a
Cloudless sky, and over the glitter-
beg expanse a ocean steamed the P,
and 0.'a lvossel " Neptune, on her
way from Bricdisi to Malta,.Every re«
volution of her powerful engines tient
hex plunging
through the blue we-
bers, i
s wlwithChe, (wawa nreuk ng
1n
trembling jnasses of white foam from
her towering aides. "The passenger's,.
n umbering about three huudred, were
all in liigh spirits, having had a most
delightful voyage from Australia,
and were looking forward, with plea -
sura, to their arrival at Valletta on
the. morrow..
Cen there be anything in the world
more pleasant than sea life on si
steamship with jolly people? Anyone,
who is a good sailor, will answer
"No," though perhaps Ulysses, who
travelled over th snare waters,
might not agree, but whoa 'he wan-
dering Greek had not a P. and 0.
steamer at his command.
On this charming night a dance was
in progress on the hurricane deck, and
the immense area had been draped
with brilliantly oolured flags, thus
turning it into an admirable ball-
room. Kiss Date Lester, Lha belle of
the ship—a position she know she oc-
cupied, and, by the way„ took full ad-
vantage of all benefits to be derived
therefrom—was the pianist, and was
playing the " Venetia Volae," to which
a number of young people were danc-
ing. The white dresses of the ladies,
the darker costumes of the men, and
the vivid Lints of the flags, all seen
under the powerful radiance of the eL-
eatrio lights, made up a vary pretty
picture.
Ronald Monteith thoigbt so, at all
•events—and Mr. Montei.h was a very(
good judge of beauty, esoucially if it
were feminine. He leaned lazily
against the bulwarks and surveyed
the festive scene with a smile on hie
handsome face, but—Joseph like,—
took no notice of the many glances
he received from bright eyes. Tall and
sinewy, with fair hair and mustaches,
blue eyes, and a skin bronzed by ex-
posure to the hot southern sun, Mont-
eith was decidedly good-looking, and
by no means undervalued his personah
appearance. His father was a weal-
thy Australian squatter, who owned
large stations in the Riverina District,
and, being, a liberal -minded and lib,
oral -hooded man, bad sent his son;
forth to see the world. Master Ronald,
nothing loath, departed with a good-
ly supply of money, several letters of
introduetion, and a huge capacity of
enjoyment ; so, as can easily be seen,
this lucky young man's lines were cast
In pleasant pieces. Tbere were lots of,
pretty girls on board who would beve
liked to marry him; nevertheless, his
higbness threw his handkerchief to
none of them, yet. flirted with aLl. He
was not a clever man by any means,'
but be could ride, shoot and swim, and
box to perfection, all of which athle-
tic accomplishments, found favor in,
the eyes of women ; he was, moreover,
an honorable gentleman, with a kind
heart and a generous spirit.
As he stood there 1n a meditative
attitude, wondering if he could sum-
mon up sufficient courage to dance
with the thermometer at somewhere
about eigbty, a young fellow, who re-
joiced in the name of Patriok Ryan,
came up and took him by .he arm.
" Come and have a drink. me boy,"
said Mr. Ryan, with a slight touch of
the brogue, " I'm half dead with Sane -
in', not to mention the way I've to
Lille, to the girls, and tet' 'em enough
lyes to make me recordin' angel take
to shorthand."
"Then why the deuce don't you stop
it1" retorted Ronald, es he accepted
this bacchanalian invitation and they
went down to the bar.
' Oh, begad, think how the girls
world tear their hair, and mine, too,
if I didn't look after them," replied
Pat; "it's purely ornamental ye are,
bait 'tis better to be good than beau-
tiful and a mighty poor consolation,
anyhow."
Pat Ryan was certainly not beauti-
ful, being short and dark, but his lack
of good looks was more than made up
by the possession of a clever tongue,
which was generally going from
morning till night, and as he could
slag, play, write verses and flatter a
Woman to perfeotiun,he we a great
taw:cite on board.
" Well, I'm off to the balls of daz-
zling light," he observed when they
had finished their drinks Lind were
cone more on deck. Come along, ye
lazyand I'll get you a part-
ner,"
"I'm too hot," objected Ronald,
putting his hands in his pockets,
"Oh, jisI hear him," said Pat in dia-
. ,gust, " Why, I've seen ye all day in
the saddle under a burette' sun, and
divil a growl from ye, and yet when
I offer ye a pretty girl to dance with,
ye refuse; and, as for the girl, begad,
her bounty would tempt St. Anthony
himself and small blame to him:"
" Who i.9 she 1" ttekod the Aue ra-
l.lan, with soma show of tntereet "
"Miss Lester, no lean,"
"1 thought you were sweet there
yourself, felt,"
", ,
1 m sweat on all the girls, me buy
—there's safety in numbers, and I be-
lieve in quantity as well as quality.'
Yon're getting too deep for me,"
said Ronald, palling a very bluok pipe
from his pocket, "so 111 go and have
a smoke,"
;' A pipe, too I" echoed Pat, "faith
i it's woman's greatest enemy."
I "And man's grea=test friend, retort-
' ed Monteith, as he strolled off,
i Pat, laughing went away to arrange
; another dance, end to thla end asked
Mrs, Peltypop, tall, majestic, and ag-
gressively vixtuous, was the mother-
tn-law of a bishop, and wee on her
way home to pay her daughter a vis-
it, an event regarded by the worthy
prelate with anything but unmixed joy
She had an eye-gluse—very effective
to crush presuming people—a chilling
smile and very atroog opinions about
her own position ; in short she was a
type of all that was virtuous and—dis-
agreeable.
i While the dancing was thus going
on, Ronald, having lighted his pipe,
strolled up and down the long deck
for a few minutes, then leaned medi-
tatively over the side and watched the
glittering waters sweeping- past.
White thus engaged ho felt a ligbt
Coach on his arm, and, on turning
round, saw a man he knew standing
near him.
" Hullo, Ventin," said Ronald, re-
moving his beloved pipe for a mo-
ment, " why eren',t you dancing?"
" Because I hate dancing," retorted
Mr. Ventin, irritably ; " I'm sick of
the perpetual jangle of that d --d
piano, of Miss Lester's flirtations, and
of Mather Peltypop's virtues—l'm sick
of the whole thing, and I wish the
voyage were over."
'I don't" replied Ronald, taking a
seers on tone of the deck chairs ; " it's
very jolly, 7 think."
"Yes, f daresay," said Ventin,
gloomily ; " you are young and rich,)
with all the world before you. I, on
the contrary, am old."
"Rubbish !"
" If not in years, at least in exper-
ience. ti have lost all my allusions,
and have discovered the gold of fancy
to be only the tinself of reality. You
stand on the threshold of a happy ca-
reer; I can only look back on a ruin-
ed life."
Ronald looked at him curiously as
he sp .ke. A handsome face certain-
ly, but with innumerable wrinkles and
hollow cheeks ; dark, piercing eyes ;
black, smooth hair, touched with
white at the temples; and a thin-lip-
ped mouth, with a heavy, dark mus-
tache. Yes, Lionel Ventin was hand-
some, but one whom a woman would
rather fear than admire. For the rest,
a slender figure, high -bred manner,
and in general a cool, nonchalant, de-
meanor, which bat ill accorded with
the restless glances of his eyes on this
particular night.
Ronald had been introduced to bin
in Melbourne a year previously, and
then lost sight of him, never expect-
ing to sat eyes on him again. But the
first perosn be met on board the
"Neptune" was Ventin, and a
strong friendship soon sprung up be-
tw.een them, which seemed quite
uncocoon table, considering the
difference of their dlspositions. Be'
the fact was Vantin liked Ronald'.
bappy, pleasant manner, and, on bi-
part, Monteith felt for the other the'
strong admiration which a youn
man always has Lou: one who is old,
T
1RtJB 11 El POS
JULY Ilei 1900
and knows more about the world than
himself, Ventin had been every,
where and seen everything. Be had.
shot big game in the leboky Moun-
tame; hunted elephants to Africa,
end tigers le India, knew London,
Paris, and Viennathoroughly, and,
when be cchuse to exert himself could
be a most delightful uompanleu. To-
night, however, he seemed restless
and 111 at ettee, whlo.h rather surpris-
ed lienuld, accustomed, as be was, to
the cool; careless manner of his friend.
"I don't know why the deuce Tshould
trust you," sold Venting sitting time
near Ronald and eyeing him keenly;
"we are only fellow -travellers, and I
am not usually given to confidences,
but oeoasionafiy it does a Inas good
to open his heart to someone."
"Fire away, old boy," said Ronald,
puffing out a big cloud of smoke, and
settling himself comfortably bx his
chair; "you look like a man with a
history."
"Happy tine nation that bus no his-
tory," quoted Ventiu, cynioally. "I
suppose the same remark applies to
a man's life. My history begins in
that accursed Malta, for it was there
I met her."
"013 I a woman?"
"Of course; most men's histories
eaminen08 and end with a woman,
that is why confidences are so'mono-
tonous. Well," turning restlessly in
his seat, "1 may as well say Ventin is
not my real name. No—it is—well I
need not tell you my real name, as it
is quite unnecessary. I didn't do
much credit to it when I had it, and I
daresay my present name is not quite
blameless. Bah! Why do I senti-
mentalize? Forty years of life ought :
to have knocked all that out of me.",
"You're not fort 1" said Ronald,:
looking curiously at him.
"Why 1" asked Ventin, quickly turn-
ing his haggard face toward the Aus-
tralian; "do you think these wrinkles;
due to ago or dissipation?—'To botb, 1
I'm afraid, though I suspect the lat-
ter bad had more to do with them
than the former. God made man
in Elis own image. He oan't be very
delighted when lie sees how hard we
strive to mar His handiwork."
;here waa silence nor a rew minutes,
and the two men could hoar the repel
lar beating of the crews, the fitful
sound of music mellowed by distance,
and the gay laughter of the dancers.
The voices of the whist players, dis-
puting over some point in their gums,
came from the smoking -room, and in
the semi -darkness extending along
the deck could be heard Lbe soft notes
of a woman's voice, or the deeper
tones from a teas.
Then Ventin began :o .peen In slow,
measured tones, quite different from
his former vehement style
"I was never a good young man,"
be said, cynically; "but 1 don't think
T was worse then the generality of
fellows. Give a boy money and place
him amid the temptations of London,
and, in nine oases out of ten, he'll go
to the devil, or, if he doesn't go, it
La because g0312e lucky accident pre-
vents him. Perhaps he has a man -
of -the -world friend who advises him
—or he loses his money, and has tot
leave the primrose path, —or, he may
marry a good woman, and her influ-
ence may save him from his worst
enemy, himself. Ahl if we only knew
the value of a good woman's love—
now she can be our guardian angel,
and keep us pure and honorable in
the midst of temptations But we
never find out the value of Guth ,
treasures till It's too late—but there"
—with a weary sigh—"I am sentimen-
tslizing again ! Let me go on with
my story.
"I lost both parents at the age of
w'enty, and I went to London with
plenty of money and no experience
rhatever. Unluckily, I had n0 one
e play the part of Mentor to my Tele -
.thus, so I had to gain wisdom by
Very
Bch in Earnest
Are the People Who Testify Below to the Bene.
fits Derived From the Use of the Famous Henle.,
dies of Dr. A. W. Chase.
Both the Recipe Book and the great
Family Remedies of Dr. Chase attest
hie earnestness and sincere desire to
benefit hie fellow -beings. His just re-
ward Is found in the grateful apprecia-
tion of his grand work by persons who
have been benefited, Here are three
earnest letters:—
BAD CASE OF PILES.
air, W. E. Sheppard, travelling ex-
cursion agent, Sutton West, York
County, Ont., writes ;—"I must send a
word of commendation for Dr. Chase's
Ointment. I was badly used up with
piles, and in misery most of the time,
when I beaad ea Dr. Chase's Ointment.
The first application had such pod re-
sulta that I continued using it until
thoroughly oured."
SICK HEADACHE.
Mrs. Don, 1350 James street north,
ldaniilton, Ont., says:—"I have been a
martyr to Mak headache, Though 7
tried numerous remedies, none seemed
to bring relief. 11,t times Ieerand my-
self on the verge of despair; nothing
met my case. I recently procured a
box of Dr. Chase's Kidney -Liver Pills,
and ant thankful to easy that at last I
have found the right medicine. At
once I obtained relief. Dr. Chase's
Kidney•Liver P111s3 have worked won,
dens for me, and Isbell always 'enema.
mend them."
HEALTH FOR OLD AGE.
bIrs. Margaret Iron, Tower Hill, N.
B., writes;—"Dr. Chase's Nerve Food
has done me a world of good. I was
so weak that I could not walk twice
the length of the house. My hands
trembled 140 that Ieould not carry a
pint of water, I was too nervous to
sleep, and .unable to do work of any
kind.
"Since using Dr. Chase's Nerve Food
Ihave been eomplately reelore11, I can
wrl I a mile without any inconvenience,
Thugh 7L1 years old and quite fleshy,;
do my own house work, and consider-
able sewing, knitting and reading be•
sides. Ur. Chase's Nerve Food bus
proved of inestimable value to mo."
Imitators of Dr. Cnase's Remedies
do not dare to reproduce his portrait
and signature, 'which are found on
every box of his genuine rnmediee. At
all dealers, or Edtnanson, ;later & Co,,
I Toronto.
experience, and pretty dearly I paid
fpr it. I been= a hard, oynlcal Man
of the world, fora thirteen yearef
residence in London wad a liberal edu-
cation :to ms la the nil admirari phil-
osophy of to -day, and then—Well my
money lasted longer than my health
and 1 beeame seriously ill—so had in-
deed that wy doctors ordered me to
Matte to be-ourod. Oa,heavensl how
ironical Is Fate—it was merely a 0480
at out of the frying -pan into the fire
—for any part I prefer the frying -pan.
It was true the balmy air and bright
skies of Malta eured me of Quo disown,
but unfortunately I contracted an-
other net so easily dealt with—that
of love.
"1 became acquainted with two
charmingly pretty girls of the ages of
twenty-three and nineteen, and-fer-
give my apparent egotism—both fail
In love with me. It was the choice 01
'Hercules over again, but unitioklly I
chose the wrong Lady, and married Lhe
'elder. 'Hell has no fury like awoman
'frowned,' so the younger soon hated me
'like poison, and left Malta for Eng-
land. 1 married the woman of my'
choice and then my punishment con
1 meneed. She was a perfect devil,
!with nothing but her beauty to retrain
-
mend ben, ;ler father boasted they
had Arab blood In their veins, and my
belief is that the ancestor of the
family must have been Eblie himself.
Often and often she threatened tokill
me for some petty thing, and I ba.
Neve she would, had not some instinct
of danger restrained her. If I looked
at another woman, there was a
storm of reproaches—if f wore away
for a day, her jealous mind conjured
up a hundred infidelities—in short,
our married life was a hell upon earth.
At last, after a year of this -cat -and -
dog existence, I determined to leave
her, and 'to this course she. assented,
after a good deal of persuasion. A
deed of separation was drawn up, by
which I allowed her a handsome in-
come on condition that she resided' in
Valletta. She agreed to this and,
after a stormy parting, I went to
England, and lived tbere a moody, dis-
contented man,"
To be Continued,
QUEEN VICTORIA'S SUNDAY.
OhJect.. to Reins the ('entre of a SnadIey
dhow, and so Bae Private Worship.
Her Majesty prefers hymns to an-
thems, and she likes a sermon that
takes about twenty minutes to de-
liver. The hymns for the Sunday
service in her private chaples are fre-
quently selected by Princess Bea-
trice. She is particularly fond of
the alder Evangelk:al hymns, which
are happily common to all denomina-
tians, among them being, "Jesus Lover
of My Soul," "How Sweet the Name
of Jesus Sounds," and "Rock of
Ages." Her love of "Nearer, My
God, to Thee" is shared by the Prince
an,d Princess of Wales, and the hymn
b at known by !ts refrain of "i by Will
be Done" is equally appreciated. Of
the hymns that have been made fami-
liar of late years she prefers New -
man's "Lead, Kindly Light," "Brief
Life is Here our Portion's and "Come
Unto Me, Ye Weary 1"
In fine weather the Queen spends
soma Little time out of doors alter
her breakfast on Sunday mornings,
and then attends divine service,
which begins at 00041, and is over at
one o'clock. During the Sovereign's
married life she always took a walk
atter Sunday morning service with
her husband and children, which at
Windsor included u. visit to the stables
and a leisurely stroll in the Shaw
Farm, which was the Prince's great
hobby. In the afternoons she liked
to walk on the East and North Ter-
races, among the public, who were
admitted there freely. Sometimes,
however, she simply sat in the large
windows of her private rooms, and
listened to the band on the East Ter-
race, which than, as now, played there;
and now she occupies a chair at. Lhe
head of the Italian staircase on the
east front, and Watches the people
as they walk to and fro and enjoy the
lovely scene and exquisite music.
Then comes the pleasant afternoon
ten, and after it her Majesty simply
enjoys sealed intercourse with her
family, and reads or is read to, and
the preacher of the day is generally;
bidden to the royal dinner table,
where he is an honored guest.
At Osborne the Queen used to go
regularly with her family to Whip-
pingbam Parish Church, until she
found that tourists flocked there on
Sundays in a manner that showed
plainly that they regarded it as a
show, with herself as the central
figure. This led to a large room on
the first floor of Osborne House, with
fine windows overlooking the terraces,
being set apart for devotional pur-
pesos. It is very simplot with quite
a plain walnut pulpit and communion
table„ a small organ and rows of com-
fortable chairs. The front row is
(coupledby the, royal Neatly, and ,hr
Queen always has a small table before.
her. The household and servants oc-
cupy the ether rows. A very similar
room is reserved for worship at Bat -
Moral.
a
The three Buse delegatee. sebo have
been Louring in the United Slates, are
now le Parte.
AN AIM ON THE TIMOR,
HOW A BRITISH COLUMN ADVANCES
IN TIME .OF WAR.
It h a1
;MlnerlteMr e-KagebllMelina Melina none Is 1 1 PeotnIqYuaO1n1thetrF1e-;loweef
e
1ylr1wle,
A British cQlmmn advancing 1n Cttryme
of war through an enemy's oounik
a1 once s magnlfieent and a rentarl-
side spectaole; o1' rather, to be quite
geared, it would be, provided the eye
could take in all the detaile at a eine
gm Blame.
But that is juke precisely what the
eye awnnet du, A column, 01 even
modea^ate strength, when on the move!
lengthens; itself out abnormally; 80
much so, indeed, that a body of
troops which in review order could be
peeked within a moderate sized par-
ade ground : will occupy ribborovise
eight, ton or even more miles of ooun-
try.
We will, therefore, take up a posi-
tion on an eminence—a kapje, it you
like -and watch in imagination a o01-
umn of British regulars marching on,
say Prete:m.1a.
First there will come in sight, rid-
ing at a
idingata walking pace, athwart the
boulder strewn veldt, a solitary pair
of horsemen. These are the advance
points, as they aro termed, and .are
thrown forward, perhaps a mile
ahead of the vanguard. They are on
the lookout for the enemy, dad at the
first hint of danger it is their duty
to ride back to left and right and
alarm the (tankers.
These latter are thrown ant fanwise
from the cavalry wbich screens the;
infantry vanguard, and they In turn
pass the word back along the trailing,
snakelike ribbon of armed men, till
within half an hour, say, of the ene-
my's being first sighted the entire
command knows of the threatened
danger and is prepared to deal with
THE TWO ADVANCED POINTS
have been well likened to a couple of
eleotric buttons, which on being
eounhed, thrill the alarm down both
flanks throughout thae entire length of
the column with which they are in
oommunictytion. The simile is not
quite perfect, however, for the alarm
is sounded by these living electric but-
tons while yet the danger is remete,
Some hundreds of yards in the rear
of the cavalry screen a vanguard and
a main guard. This latter constitutes
the first fighting unit of theadvanc-
ing column, and its strength is, of
course, proportionate to the strength
of the force it is covering. With it
are field and machine guns, sappers,
miners, engineers, ambulances, re-
serve ammunition wagons, and so
aortal. In fact, the advance guard of
a large column constitutes in itself a;
fighting force—a miniature army, so
to speak, complete in practically all
essential details. After the advanced
guard lass passed we shall probably
see—emerging from the clouds of dust,
which always, except in wet weatliao
envelopes as with a mantle a column
on the maa'eh—another solitary pair
of horsemen, and then at intervals an,
other and yet another. These are the
connecting .links. A half troop, or
Perhaps, if the force is a large ane, a
whole troop of cavalry will come next,
then more connecting links and lastly
the officer commanding surrounded
and accompanied by his staff. The un-
initiated in matLers military will now
probably expeot to see the main body;
of the army ; but no. A single in-
fantry battalion, or maybe two, will
perhaps pass, marching strictly " to
attention," bayonets' fixed, and offic-
ers'
fficeers' swards carried naked at the slope;
after which there will heave slowly
into sight an apparently endless train
of field artillery, machine guns, am-
munition wagons, ambulances, tool
carts, forage and store wagons and;
numbers of led horses, 11 is only
when this heterogeneous procession
has come to an end that tbe thicken-
ing of the dust cloud end the meus-
sursd tramp—tramp—tramp I herald
the approach of the infantry brigades.
On they tomo, rifles at the slope or
at the trail, talking, laughing, joking,
singing, smoking, as though war and.
Its attendant horrors were a thou-
sand miles away. On they oome—and
still on 1 Battalion after battalion,
BRIGADE AFTER BRIGADE,
it becomes almost monotonous af-
ter awhile, for the mighty fighting
machines, each composed of a thous-
and or more individuat fighting units,
swing past with mechanica1 precision
of gigantic automata. Everything
moves as if by clockwork. Thirty
paces interval is 1110 regulation die-
tanoe,between battalions and brigades
and thirty paces interval it fs—no
more, no less% There is no slackening
no hesitancy, for all the apparent
fres and easiness. A company lags
but a foot or two; it is spurred
sharply forward by a biting phrase
--,half expostulation, half command—
uttered by its captain. A battalion
does 1 herniae, and a wave from the
hand of Ha ever -watchful chief sends
the adjutant galloping down the right
flank, exploding as he does. So is the
ing up. The lass of .aa, few yaeda a'l
the head means hundreds. at the tall
Trivial cheek to the front of a long
miaow le a eea'i0na delay, to the }nen
in the rear of it, nod pontinuel step«
ping ont or rapid closing tends to ex«
hieuet troops,
With the peening of the rearmost
brigade the interest to the average
apeetator largely vanisbea. `.tine
there follow more machine guns, more
tool oasts, ammunition wagons, led
.horses, etc,, but all (beim have 'been
seen before. The beareroompanies,
with their' trim strot'oboa'e, and the
red cross of Geneva showing oonspio-
uously on their 'unto eleevos, arouse
a r• .1 curiosity, but they are out of
sight swallowed 09 in the dust cloud
almost ere we realize their presence,
Sf, however, we care to occupy our
kupje far another hour' or so we Omit
See yet another eland of dust advanc-
ing toward us, :;.his is formed by the
baggage train which follows all ar-
mies. Lastly comes the rear guard,
followed by a small detaonmsnt of
military police, whose duty it is to
look after stragglers•
•
WISE ANIMALS.
They Bare Item Itnewnt0 ,wart 1114,43'
Serloi, ,trnhlants.
Accidents have occasionally been
caused by animals. Here, however,
are some striking instances in which
catastrophes have been prevented and
lives spored by the action of faith-
ful animals.
In New York, about two years ago,
the little three-year-old daughter of
a merchant was lett by her nurse,
near an open window three stories
high. Throogii this window she crept
and would have fallen' on to the pave-
ment below, but for the intervention
of a devoted dog, who seized her
dress in lois teeth and hell her tightly
until aid arrived.
During the autumn of last year a
Bristol family were saved from an aw-
ful death through the action of a
faithful cat, In the early hours of
the memorable morning in question
the masted' of the house was awaken-
ed by the cat's paw gently patting his
cheek. He pushed the animal away,
but pussy persisted with her odd
alarm until the gentleman rose. 'Then
be diseovered that the house was on
fire, and the intimation came only
just in time to enable him and his
family to effect their hurried escape
from the fiery doom.
The exodus of a colony of rats from
a certain ship in dock led an observ-
ant Captain to have his vessel -over-
hauled, when it was discovered that
the ship's bottom had sustained an in-
jury, which must have resulted in her
foundering at sea had not the acci-
dent been indirectly averted by the ac-
tion of the alarmed rodents. ,
The shrill screaming of a ped. par-
rot, one winter's morning, awakened
a -family in Holland in th.e nlek of time
to save them Lrom the threatening
flood, which was sweeping down their
street from a dam whioh had burst
In the town above them.
From another disastrous flood In In-
dia, some years ago, the broad back
of an •elepbunt offered ample sanctu-
ary to an imperiled family. The ani-
mal heard his master's call and came
through the rising wasters to the open
window, where the family were as-
sembled. From thence the devoted ole-'
phant conveyed his precious burden
to a plaee of safety.
Ia a cage of performing anlmals at
art itinerant menagerie the tamer was
putting the huge beasts through their
trioks, when the sudden temper of an
old lion would doubtless have resulted
in the death of the tarnea', but for the
opportune aid rendered by a pet'
puma, who sprang et the throat of!
the vicious lion and diverted his at-
tcntian until the tamer had time to 1
assert his authority and restore or- 1
der.
A French gentleman was in peril of
his life at the heads of a surprised
and desperate burglar, when the burly •
body of a pel bear intervened between
the hoesebolder and his would-be mei
salient, and spared him an encounter
THE RABBITS, OF AI/STItALIA,.
At irte'et•'1Ile' Were a flair, 'l kena'l'eel
anti
NSW They lining $9,0011,800 MTV)
About forty years ago a pair of
rabbits wad brought to Auetraiia and
turned loose on a farm about fifty,
miles (rem Melbourne. In an inererle,
bly short time they multiplied to such'
nn extent that they became a pest,
The rabbits spread in milltooe over the
western and northern areas of Vic-
tor... 'i?i:udNw' South'
Walesicandhey pressedvaed on,e51111 in_
creasing a thousand galled north-
ward into Qeeensland.
The svestern'9art of Victoria, once
called Australia Felix, embraces some
of the richest eon on earth, It was
a paradise for the rabbits, Who soon
made it a desert, Tbe grass began
to disappear, Every green blade and
shrub was swept away as by fire, The
settlers eaw their cattle and sheep
starving, but were belpless. The sub,
stantial stonefences round the farms
were harbore for the imported plague,
and they were reluctantly torn down.
Wire fencing, with rabbit -proof net-
ting carried well below the ground,
was substituted. Then this innocent
creature took to alambing the fences
and displayed . marvellous gymnastic
ability in its endeavors to get at the
trap's.
.4.11 means of destroying the rabbits
proved ineffectual. Shooting only ser-
ved to make them flourish, as it killed
out enough of the colonies to leave
more food for the remainder. Dogs
and beaters were tried. Rabbit drives
were instituted. .
l. TH'OUSAN'DS WERE KILLED
in every battue, but still the rabbits,
jincreased, Poisonedwheatserved for
la time, but led by instinct the rabbits
fat last refused the doctored grain.
Poisoned carrots could not be resisted
until wisdom again taught the rab-
bit that to eat was to die. Then
nothing would induce him to look at a
icarrot. Arsenio and apples brought
a dike experience.
Yet despite tbeir cunning tnatfnot
land experienes the rabbits were stow-
; ly beaten back from point to point,
Every hole and crevice that could uffer.
the least shelter was blocked up. The
wire -netted fences were constantly
guarded. Men and -dogs -were every-
•where on the watch to hunts to death
,every stray rabbit. So bitter was the
fight that the rabbit came to be re-
,garded with feelings of greater horror
than tbose with which the average
Australian now regards the bubonic
plague,:
Beaten in the west, the rabbits In
Ivaded the north and northeast. Here
they found a country suited to their
' habits. They increased and multipli-
ed
ultiplied until they came to hold men, dogs
and guns in conLempL. Sometimes the
trains were delayed through having
' run into hordes of the vermin. Des
pairing and beaten, the settlers in.-
yoked the aid of the State. Mean-
; while the rabbits had swept on to the
Molle eountry, the home of the dingo
:and outlawed cattle. Its sandy aoil
and dry, warn, climate suited the
bunnies. They ate LL bare. It was
possible to travel hundreds of miles
,without seeing-
; •
eeing(' A BLADE al!' GRASS,
Bene they ruled an lords until blr,
Lasoelles, one of the owners of this
tract, discovered that it would grow
shoat. He determined to do so.
alis first step was a crusade against
the rabbits Inclosing an enormous
space with rabbit -proof and cattle
proof netting, he began a war on' the
rabbits that ended in their destrue,
tion, Poisoned .water was one of hist
favorite and most successful agents,
All the tanks and seater holes in hie
dry land are fenced like fortresses
with the strongest of wire nettings
and 'barbs. The wild cattle, when
summer has dried up the natural
sources of supply, drop dead around
them in tbeir frantic efforts to reach
the precious water; the rabbits fall by
thousands at the base of the impregn-
able barriers.
Theoisoned troughs oughs are then re_
sorted to, and the number of rabbits
destroyed in this way is almost incredi-
ble, From one colony to another the
pest spread, The most rigorous laws
were enacted against it, and' utli-
mately its numt:ers were .reduced to
reasonable limits. N0,w the .refrigera-
tor and the preserving can are in use,
and the shipment of rabbits to Eng-
land every yells by these means has at_
tetnecl enormous purportions. Last
year 9,421,220 rabbits were shipped,
The cash returns were 19941,4713, A
great rabbit industry has been built
up, and 'where formerly the creature
was a source of loss and exppns0, it
filnowliaffords a profitable business,
ng stores ,and ships, feeding mil
Mons and providing hats, rugs and
cloaks for other millions,
BURN CAMPHOR FOR MOTHS.
To rid a aloeet of moths first re-
move everything .which could be to-''
Aired by burning eamphor• All wreol.
0'ns may uG icfi hanging, Pat a
small pion of camphor into an iron
receptacle, and sat in, on an earth -
ern stand, ar iron aneaapd an,
fire
to the camphor; ll burns quiciclxy'and
should be placed where nothing wall
Ignite from it, Atter Eli:+. enulphot'
Lias burned out led. the closet remain
shut closely, shout •an hour, than
open wide .and remove till. the dresses,
&r.., and bang them where they will
a i rq I er re'u gSlly'
out of which be must have come sec-
ond best.
The pet slog of a British soma, by
a timely bark, prevented a patrol
from entering a Boer ambuscade, and
so saved a dozen men from imminent
death.
_,, ,-,_,
WHEREE SPIDERS ARE USE.L'UL.
At a recent meeting of erboricul-
turists en Franca, the question was
debated whether spiders should be
suffered to spin their w'e'bs on fruit
walls. The ;general opinlion seemed to
be teat the webs were mare useful
than objectio,nlihle. It was remark-
ed that thea 'prevent the inoursrians
of eirwigs and similar Insects, and
MEd interfere with theoparattons of
noxious fifes whose ;trifle reward
leaves and fruits.
•
LATEST POPULAR SONG,
I've asong here that I think will
do.
to there any sense in it1
Net a par. ticle,
rs there any tune in it?
lint a "torsei. •
footle kept "strung up." And a very, amus it. if it answers your des-
neeessary proaese.is this same siring- oriptitis it will turn out a gold mine,