HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Brussels Post, 1899-4-28, Page 3APRIL 28, 199b.
TILM 13BUSSIIILS
POST.
WATER 1 WATER 1 WATER
REV. DR. TALMAGE TALKS ABOill
THE WATER OF LIFE.
Wilier h eypicid et lee Gomel Pie IIle
erection, noll Abundance -4W DEMEEE
WM Became Exhausted ate
Every none ',tie There fe term Some
-The Itr. Preoelles a Practical err.
10011.
• A despettah from Washington, Bays;
Rev. Dr. Talmagee preached from the
following text;—"Whosoever will, let
him take the water ot life freely,"—
liev. xxii. 17.
Micl-desert, the water exhausted
from the goat -skins, the caraven pant-
ing under e blistering sun, the feet
consumed by the desert, what: is it
that the people most want 1 For
what would they give tlp the naost
valuable oargo on -the back of the
caanels? Water I Water I
An army ia on the murals. They are
fainting from the long way. The can-
teens are empty. The hour of battle
is earning on. Forward yet for many
a weary mile. No shelter from the
burning eun; pushing un through suf-
fooation and heal. What le it that
the soldier most wants? For what
would he give up everything that he has
with him? What awful' want fills his
mind, and fevers his tongue, and con-
sumes his vitals? Ask him, as he stag-
gers on under the weiget of knansitak
and blanket, and if he have strength
enough to answer he will say, "Water!
Water I"
I was told by a gentleman who
walked over one of the battlefields on
a hot summer night after a day of
.carnage, that the cry of the wounded
Was absolutely tuthearable, and that,
after giving all supply that he could,
he put. his fingers to his ears, for the
cry all over the plain was frum most,
a the dying, "Water 1 Water I For
.God's sake give us water I"
The Bible is all a -sparkle with feun-
tatris and wells, and rivers and oceans.
They toss up their brightness from al-
most every chapter. Solomon, re-
freshed with the story of heaven, ex-
claims, "As cold water to a thirsty
.soul, so is good news from a far coun-
try." Isaiah, speaking of the blessed-
ness of Christians, says, "They shall
spring as willews by the water-
courses." In the Canticles, the Church
is often speken of as a "well of living
water,'' and "streame from Lebanon."
The prophet, glowing with the antici-
pation of the ,millennium, says,
"Streams shall break forth in the
desert ;" while the tekt holds torth ten
thousand chalices filled with living
water for a thirsty world.
I have, in the first plane, to remark
that water is typical a the Gospel,
because of its brightness. That which
dashes from the city fountains has no
lustre in it compared with that which
springs up to -night from this Bible
aqueduct. The unpretending foun-
tain breaks forth fromt the side- of the
hill, flashing with silver, and gold,
und beryls and chrysolite; and as you
see it, ran almost. clap your hands with
gladness. But 1 nave to tell you
that there is pro. brightness in it oom-
pared with this living fountain of the
Gospel; for in each falling drop I see
the glory of heaven. "Good news!
Good newr I" The angels chanted it.
"Behead! I bring you glau tidings of
great joy and salvation; which shall
be to all people." Joy of pardoned
sin I Joy of broken bondage 1 joy of
a coming heaven 1 Ohl it Is a bright
• Gospel! You remember the time when
that fountain first: flashed upon your
vision, and you cried, "Behold -I I have
Lound in .Whom niy soul leveth 1"
And there Was joy in heaven among
the angels of God over your forgiven.
spirit. Roll on, 0 ye waters of glade
tame! Boll on, till every deaf ear
shall hear the ripple of the wave, and
every blind- • eye shall see the toss
of the crystallite:1 brightness, and the
glory shall cover the earth as the wit -
ter the sea.
I have further to remark, that the
water typifies the Gospel by lis re-
fresbanent. Itow different yort feel
after you get a glass of cool water,
or atter you have plunged into the
bath 1 On a het summer day there is
nothing that so soon brings you. back
from0, bad temper ex a disturbed
seirit, and pats you into s happy
frame of mind and body, as cold water.
131essed Inc God for water I I love to
hear it fall in the shower and dash in
• the cascade, and to see it rush from
the ice -pitcher into the dear glass.
Rend around this meter of the hills,
and drink, all of you, to the maim of
Him who brewed it among the moun-
tains. Thank God for water I Clear
water I 'aright water 1 beautiful water 1
But I have to tell you there te a beta
ter refreshment even than that. There
was a tiarm, when you wet% hounded
by coovichons. Sinai thundred, The
wrath of God (tried, "Ely 1" justiee
cried, "Fly I" Your own there cried!
•"Fly l'' Mercy said "Come 1 Come I"
and you plunged like a hart into the
water -brooks, and out or that flood
your soul come up cool, and clean and
radient ; and you looked around, and
said, "Come and hear, all ye that fear
God, and 1 will Loll you what he 'lath
doni for my soul.'
There came a time or perplexity in.
your heart. You lost your property.
Death, 11)11 0 black hawk, swooped up-
on the fenilly brood,.4111)1the' children
were gone, You naensured your life
from groan to groan, from loss to loss,
trout tear to tear. Yott sailsafrom
your distressed spirit, "Oh I 11-e7 had
the wings of o <ion, for then would
CY away and be at rest." Front
Ike depths of your fevered soul you
called out, "Has God forgotten to be
gradotie? T.s hia many Merin gone
forever ? Hath he in his anger shut
up Ine -tender mercies against me ?" AS,
When you have beat eventing in a thiek
wood 011 ft hot suirneer day, -yott heard
Ma dash of founteies end you' spirit
,vat cheered, ma while you were lea.
ening for the anewer, the promise bf
lod dropped cool and fresh and sparkl-
ing from the throne; "There is a river,
he siream, whereof shall make glad
the oity of our God." Yoe rejoiced at
he thought of the fountain. Your
fevered Soul thrliled with the cool
touch, and you cried, "Eureka I Eurekal
l have fotuid it. Water 1 Cold water]
Bright water 1 ;Everlasting water,
burstIng from the throne I"
I go further, and say that
eater tyifies the Goepel lay eats
freeness. On a hot Sabbath, -when the
ibute break thruugh the alders of the
mettdows to drink, how touch do they
pay for that which they cleinic? The
humming -bird drinks from the wine-
glums of the boneysuekle. How mueb
is it a glees There is a tax on the
city water, but no lax upon the great
rivere that roll in perpetual volume to
the sea. How much will tbe world pay
Inc nil the showers that this summer
refremhed the corn-fielcle a Nothing. It
is fres; and so is this glorious Gospel.
It is free in its pardon, hope and sal-
vation to all who will accept it. Etere
it a man who emys, "I will pay tor
it, or I will not have it, I am an i0 -
dependent man ; and I will give so
much to have my soul redeemed, I
will endow a oollege; or I will estab-
lish a school; or I will build %church,
and by that purchase my salvation 1"
Or be says, " I will do some. grand,
good works; and God, I know, will
accept them," God says, ' Away with
your good woeks as a purchase for ral-
vation 1 Take this Gospel for nothing,
or never take it, IL is free."
1 have further to remark, that the
water typifies the Gospel because of
lis abundance. When we pour the wa-
ter from the pitcher into the glees, we
Lave to be careful, or the glass will
overflow, ahd we slop when the wa-
ter has oome to the rid. But when God,
in summer, pours out his showers, he
keepta pouring on and pouring on, un-
til the grass blades cry, " Enough!.
and the flowers, " Enough!" and the
trees, "Enough I" but God keeps
pouring on e:nct pouring on until the
fields are soaked, and the on,
over-
flow, and the cisterns are all filled,
and the great reservoirs are supplied,
and there is water to turn the wheel,
water to slake the thirst of the <ay,
water to cleanse the air'water to
wash Lhe hemisphere. Abundance!
And so with Ilia- glorious Gospel. En-
ough for ono; enough tor all. Tlioue
marls have come to this fountain, and
have drunk to the satisfaction of
their aunts. Other thousands will come;
and yrt the fountain will not be ex-
hausted. But glory be to God I that
in this Gospet fountain there is water
enough for all the armies of the earth,
and for all the armies of heaven. You
can not drink it dry. Oh, ye tempted
souls, come and drink of this blessed
promise: " You shall not be tempted
above that you are able, and that from
every temptation God. will make a
way of escape, that you may Inc able
to bear it." Ob, ye bereaved souls,
come and drink of this blessed prom -
Me "All things work together for
good to those who Love God." Your
light afflictions are only for a mo-
ment, and they work out a far more
exceeding and an eternal weight of
, glory." Abundance of supply I
" Ye wretched, hungry, starving peor,
1 Behold the royal feast!
Nt'heretirleercy spreads her bounteous
• sto
For every humble guest.
See taresus elands with opened arms
Ha calls ; Inc bids you come:
Sin holds you back, and grief alarms,
But still there yet is room" _
I stand, thie evening, offering this
Gospel to. all who are here, with just
as much confidence that there is enough
for them as though there were only
Iwo or three persona present. Hear
it ye dying man and women—hear itl
The Spirit and alba Bride say, Come.
And let him that Is athirst aome; and
whosoever will, lee him take the water
of life freely,"
I have one more leading thought;
The water typifies the Gospel in the
feet that it is perennial. I know that
in this hot summer weather some of
the fountains have dried up; but stand
you on the banks of the Amaxon, or
of the Si;. Lawrence, or of the Mississ-
ippi, or of the Ohio, and see if they
run dry. No; they have been flowing
on for thousands of years, and they
will probably flow on for thousands of
years mere. The trees of the forest
hayeecast their leaves for nee into
the bosom of Glees waters, and the
lairds of heaven haVe dipped their wings
in tha wave, And so it is with this
Gospel. It is a perennial Gospel. On
earth we only see a portion of that
great River of Life; but after awhile
the river will :rise, and it wilt join the
tides of the celestial river that fLOWS
hard by the throne of God. And the
Lamb which Ls in the midst) of the
theone shall lead them to living toun-
tains of water."
I AM my dear brothers and sisters,
sense of you hays found this life a de-
sert march, You hove hadalt your
troubles, , 1$ there One in this midt-
erm that has never been bereft—that
has never been brokenhearted/ Not
one, You °eine to 801118 onet W110 you
SuppoSe is alwaye happy - whom you
think has never had any misfortunes;
but he will tell you he has hada thou-
sand trials. A man of greet many
troubles saw a shepherd in the field
watching the sheep, d Inc said to
I anIllmaelf, "Alit there is a man that
nevee had anything to trouble hinn"
and he wenh to the shepherd and ac-
• ousted him, saying, "Everything is
beautifut molted here. , You have no
troubles; you Lire, to be congratulated.
I have so many 4 -athlete" "Ahl said
the shepherd to the man, "you do not
understand my lite. There is a blaok
ewe that every few days goes off, and
ali the sheep of my flook follow her,
and 1 hat black ewe is the, plague ot
my life.' /1 was a parable, In emus,
inan'a life there is at least one blaek
ewe—one sorrow, ono perplexity, one
disaster, ono bereavement, one agony.
I sad, you have found this Life, some
ot you, a deeert, mareb. The sun has
srattlen yon by day. You have been
consumed, almost et the desert, and
you have staggered wearily
im ix the long tranip, Your lips are
parched; your tunitue is fevered; your
heart is sick, What do you want'd
Breed to feed your hunger; water to
slake this all-eonainuing thirst,
I am glad to know thai while earth-
ly cities may sometimes eun Mort of a
supply of water, the New joeusaltan
will never leek plenty of water. Dovc
you ever thought anintitely of that
promise ef the Thide Dull there will
be living • foun i tot 10 beaven? Not
stich as We see 10 oar oily. parks,
spriaaling only a faiat baptism on the
Mr, but oommeueurate with the greet
oily of heaven. On every street, be -
fere every mansion, around the temple
a God mid the Lamb, living fountains
of weter, Flowing through that
great eity, with trees a life in im-
mortal tentage on either bank, there
will be a river. London Las a river
rutinlag aweigh la but that Is tbe
Itt-
1113' Ithattree. Paris has a river running
through it, but that la the anclean
Seine, Yeniee has water running
through it, but [bat is dieturbed by
I Inc filthy gondoliers. fiebylonof old
had a river running through it, yet
that was the beellined Euphrates. But,
blessed be God, no scum or filth shall
pour into the river that flows through
the Eternal City. God hath made every
drop of that weter bright., and clear,
and beautiful. The righteous, robed
in white and garlanded, sit on its
banks, and watch its tides, and hear
the roll ot its waterfoe ever and for
ever. No unhealthy mist hovers over
that river; no tnalaria rises from its
sUrfame no blaspheming orew put
their oars into that water. They who
"shine as the stars for ever" shall look
down into the glassy wave, and have
their feces reflected. The thrones
and temples on either bank of that
river will bridge it with their shadows.
In it the, trees oflife will dip their
-branches. Breezes froth off the hills
of Amaranth will ripple the waves.
I suppose you hem seen sheep and
Lambs go down to the river to drink,
Hark 1 1 hear the voice of the sheep
and lambs of heaven now coming down
Ikon t the hills, coming tbrough all the
valleys, coming down to the river of
heave', to drink, led on by one snow -
while Lamb, at whose bleat all the
flock.: follow, .Elear the bleating of
that one white Lamb! le.nd as the
angel of God, standing on ono of the
Life, looks down, and sees that one
banica of the river, under the Tree of
white Lamb leading all the great flook
of the redeemed, he takes his harp
from the willows by the water -courses,
and strikes this beautiful strain, soft-
er than leaves' rustle or humming-
bird'trill: 'Vile Lamb which is in
the midst of the throne shall lead
them to living fountains of water, and
God shall wipe all tears frotai their
eyes."
Blessed be God for the brightness,
for the refreehment, for the freeness,
Lor the abundance, for the continuity
of this glorious Gospel! "Ho 1 every
one that thirsteth, come ye to the Wa-
ters." Come now.
just off our coast there is a dan-
gerous point for the sailors, and a
light -house has been set up. There
is a great lantern in that light -house.
I sear it a few summers ago. There
is machinery by winch this light is
reflected over the sea peculiarly, and
that machinery must, every half hour
in the night, be wound up. If the
man at that post should happen to
sleep alas tor the sailors in the storaal
alas for the ship I God has lifted a
great lantern to aline over the sea of
this world's sin, and darkness, and
temptation and trouble, It needs no
human agency to wind it up. It shines
through ell the darkness of the
world's suffering; and it pays to
those who are tossing on the sea,
"Keep off the rocks!" 'HOw shall we
escape if we negleot so great a salva-
tion te IL after this water of salva-
tion has boon provided, without money
end without price, we rejeot it, where
shall we spend our eternity but
among -those whom God bas cast
off V"
While the door of moray is open,
come, 0, ye wanderers! While yet
the fountain le flowing from tbe rock,
come, 0 ye thirsty ones I "Who-
soeVor will, let him take the water of
life freely."
LONG TIME ON THE WAY.
Letters neurered Itecentty Millen Were
Matted Twenty -MEM rears Ago.
In France, a little while ago, letters
for three hundred people were deliv-
ered—to as many of the ''addresses"
as were still living—whith had been
mailed nearly twenty-eight years be-
fore. They were delivered, moreover,
at the earliest possible moment, al-
though the distance between the send-
er and the receiver was, in many cases
only a fear miles.
The story of this long trip is inter-
esting. During the seige of Paris by
the Germans in 1870, the post -officio
administration hit upon the expedient,
in addition to the balloons, of enclos-
hag letters in small zinc globes, wat-
er -tight and hermetically sealed,- and
of dropping them into the Seine. There
they floated—if they were not os,ptur-
ed by the Gennans—down the river to
the French lines where a net stretch-
ed across the river gathered them in,
and they were sent on their way in
Paris.
Tanfortunately for the Fronde the
Germans discovered the ohmmeter of
these zinc floats, and as they (mold
not hope to see and fish out; by ordine
wry mes,ns all the letters that went
down thus, they stretched aoross the
river, at Villeneuve -Saint -Georges, a
net of their own, and effectually stop-
ped this new systeen of postal com-
munication.
The zino balls and theuse
ir were
pretty n,early forgotten, when, a short
time ago, a fisherman found in the
Seine, near Vpleneuve, a queer -look-
ing globe al nue. With a lump knife
he opened tie to see what might be in
it, and found three Irundted • letters,
still legible, and all dated in Deoem-
bar, 1870, They were delivered to the
postal authorities, and after this long
wait in the river, vvent their way; but
their news of the state of things in the
country was a little stale.
MEAT COOKED BY COLD.
Anyone who has ever picked up with
a bare hand a pleoe of intensely oold
iron knows that the touch burns al-
most as badly RS if the metal were red
hot. Indeed, the action of great heat
and extreme told are ao similar that
o tIungerien allergist has turned the
latter to sec,ouut, to prepare meats for
food.. He subjeets the meat to 60 de-
grees of frost, and then seals it up in
sir -tight tin mins. The result is that
the meat, which is pritotietilly "rmoked
by cold," will keep any time, and ettn
be eaten with very lihtIa terther prm
pa ration.
Floriculture,
A SONG 09' CLOVER.
wonder what the (never tbinks1
Intimate triend of bob-o-linIce,
Lover of delsies, slim and wbite,
Waltzes with eutteroupe at night;
Keeper of ban for travellug bees,
Serving to them wine dreg'. and Mee,
Left by the retro.' hurneuing-hirds,
Who sip and pay with fine -spun words:
Fellow with all the lowlient.
Peer of the mem awl the best
Comrade of wind, beloved of sun,
Kissed by the dew -drops, one by (mei
Prophet of Good Luck mystery
By sign of four which few may see;
Symbol of natureat magic zone,
One out of three and three in one;
Emblem pf comfort in the speech
Which poor inen's babies early reach;
Sweet by the roadsides, sweet by rills,
Sweet in the meadow, sweet on hill%
Sweet in its white, sweet in its red,
01.1, halt its sweet cannot be said;
Sweet in its every living breath.,
Sweetest, perhaps, at last, in deatb
Oh, who knows what the clover thinks?
No one! unless the bob -o -links
WHY FLOWERS HAVE COLOR.
Adeline Knape0 in her pretty book
""Upland Pastures," oxplaint:
'What we oall a flower is not, usu-
ally, the flower at all, but merely its
petals. The real flower is the Muster,
in the center of the calyx, of the ids -
tile and their surroundings pollen -bear-
ing stamens. Away back in the ages
when man had not yet developed his
esthetic sense, perhaps even before he
had learned to make fire, the primi-
tive flower lame only these pistils and
stamens, with a little outer proteoting
whorl of green petals. It was ferti-
lized by` the pollen falling upon the
stamens.
"But this was not good for the plant.
Those flowers that in seine way be-
came fertilized by pollen from other
plants of the same variety—by oross-
fertilization, In faet—were healthier
and stronger than those fertilized by
their own pollen. In suph plants as
wind-blown pollen reached, this 0085 -
fertilization was an easy matter. The
buttercup, for instance, is not one of
these. It is forced to rely upon In-
sects for fertilization. So the plant
began to secrete El. drop of sweet
liquid at the base of each green petal.
Such insects as cuseovered this nectar
and stopped to sip were dusted with
the pollen of the plant and carried it to
other flewera where it fertilized the
pistils. This was very good as far as
it went, but the flowers were pale and
inconspicuous, and many of them, over-
looked by the insects, were never vis-
ited. Certain ones, however, owing to
accidents of soil and moisture, had the
calyx a little larger or brighter col-
ored than their fellows, and these the
inseots found. It happened, there-
fore, if anything ever does merely hap -
Man, that the Elowers with bright petals
were fertilized and their descendants
were even brighter-oolored. Thus in
time the buttercup, by the prooess
wince for lack of a better name we
call natural reelection, came to have
bright, yellow petals becauae these at-
tract the insect best adapted to ferti-
lize it. If man's aesthetic sense Is gra-
tified by the flower's beauty, why man
is so much the better off, but that man
is pleased by the bright oolor is not
half so important to the buttercup as
is the pleasure of a (tertian little wing-
ed beetle which sees the shining golden
oup and knows it means honey.
"In the same way the lupin, with
its pretty blue and white blossoms,
bas developed its blue petals because
it is fertilized by the bees. They seek
it as they do other blossoms not only
for honey, but for the pollen itself,
whioh stands them in place of bread.
The very shape of the flower is due to
the visits of countlees generations of
this inseot. The bee is the Insect best
adapted to fertilize the lupin, and
when be alights upon the threshold of
a flower his weight draws the lower
petal down, and entering to suok the
sweets he gets his head dusted with
pollen. If a fly were to gain eutranoe
he would carry emu no pollen. He is
entailer than the bee and his head could
not reach it. So boney-seeking flies
alight in vain; their weight is not
enough to press the calyx open, so
they may -not enter and sup upon the
motor. On the blossom of the mime-
lus, the odd-lookiug monkey -flower, a
honey bee has the same experience.
The bumble bee is the only insect that
is large enough to rearm the pollen in
thie blossom and so its doors will open
only to it.
"Botanists tell us that all this great
family to which the peas and their
cousins belong, were once five -petaled
plants, but natural selection has
brought about their present, eluipe,
whioh is -an admirable proteetina
against the depredations of small in-
sects, that could only .rob but could
not fertilize tlae flowers.
".13Lue is the favorite color of the
honey bee, and next to blue he pre-
fers red. So bee blossoms aro blue or
red, Flowers that open at night ars
mostly white and are fertilized by
moths, eto., that fty about in the'
darkness. This aceounts for their
color and their fragrance, both of
which are to attract the 'newts that
distribute their pollen,"
FLORICTJLTURE FOG CHILDREN.
Since no one will question Beecher's
assertion that flowers are the sweetest
things God ever raade that ha did not
endow with a soul, they seem divinely
ordained as the best gift to child -life.
This the child possibly realizes by a
sort of intuitive knowledge ; oertain Ib
it; thitt the infant heart thrills with joy
in the presence of their eich colors arid
delightful odors. Yet, while their puri-
ty has from time immeniorial linked
them symbolieally with childhood, they
haveboon literally isolated from it—at
least 10 tho majority of oases. True,
the new education has introdueed them
into the kindergaeten, retaining them
Linton. or less close communion math
the high sehOol is readied. But such
plants art, as a rule, owned ancl oared
for by the teiteher, while in the intr.
eary, where they ehould higunate a part
• t the dams owe treaeures, of lila life,
ighting it with the "stars which on
earth's firmament do shine," there i
an oppremeive dearth end gluten.
One a the earthen munifemlationn of
a child's desire la that of imitation.
wbat marmati does, that it etrivee
-le with all the intensity of lei nalure.
Lo thwart these afloat; Id to ignore
the prirmiples 1 peyebology, to cruel,
amiable arabition ; to eneouinge and
guide them bi certain to increase for
the child the bappinees the present
—possibly infinitely more that of the
lotus.
Children love variety; even 11)0 0010'
that noon becomes wearleoine unless
possessed of 0 wardrobe so exteneive
an to admit of frequeut elm:ages. Na -
Luxe beuntleully beetowe diversity in
the develapmen 1 from seed to seed.
Patience; there natant be, certainty, In
watching the varioue stages ef greLyth:
yea, and thoughtful care; for a tingle
negleot al a °tithed period might. fen-
der previous labor vain, save in rieh
memories. But these are cardinal vire
tees, and wisely in It ordered that we
cultivate Diem with the timers. Gen-
erositY, too, is teetered in an extreme
degree; fur though slime flowers and
seeds are freely given, the mouroe of
supply is as unfailing as the widow's
cruse.
The educational influence are mani-
fold. The tiny tot learns as readily to
diatingUith thered or yellow petals 111
the tulip and rose as in the worsted
ball whioh constitutes ite first gift
from the disoiple of Froebel. Later it
takes infinite pleasure in counting the
petals, aad it may be readily taught
that this can be aectoropiished without
dissecting the blossom. Thee comes
the study of form, abundantly illus-
trated in the multiplieity of leaf out-
lines. These are but a few of the pre-
paratory steps leading to the more
complete mature study, now a- part of
the curriculum of the progre,ssive grad-
ed school.
If florioulture- appeals to the lower
olasaes as well as the higher in adult
life, this is true to a still greater ()a-
gree in the case of the child, who is
more impressionable, less absorbed in
the duties and reeponsibllities of life.
The fragile wild flower planted in a
rude box is as much an object cit ad-
miration as the oboicest exotic grown
in a costly vase; its life history is as
wonderful, the lessons taught as
worthy of contemplation.
With florloulture physioat oulture is
inseparably linked. No better morn-
ing exercise has been devised than an
hour's work in the garden, while in-
stances have been reoorded of renewed
life, when death seemed inevitable, by
the vital breath found in direct con-
taot with the soul.
The aesthetic element has been al-
ready alluded to. Important in itself,
it has a deeper significance In that it
leads irresistibly from an admiration
for the wondrous works of nature to a
reverence for their Creator.
Plan, therefore' that your little ones
may be providedduring the coming
year with at least one plant of their
very own. Ah, that /nippy realization
of ownership! What a pleasure it
yields I The stock may consist of but
a single crocus, a hyacinth to be grown
Lo water, that the root system may not
be hidden, or simply a small seed.
Carefully direct in its oulture, at the
same time impressing on the obild bis
responsibility in tile matter; and plan
with him for increasing his stook as
the ability to take charge of it is .ao-
quired.
COUNTRY NEIGEIBORS.
The old-fashioned obarm of neigh-
borliness is vanishing from town life,
but it still abides in the country,
where people yet: have leisure to know
one another, to run In for a bit of
friendly gossip now and than, and to
help one another over the hard places
of life.
If illness 0010e8 In the countryside,
it is not at °nee to the trained nurse
that the Penally turn, for she very like-
ly lives twenty or thirty miles away,
and custom does not warrant sending
for her at great expense, except in
oases where life and death seem to
hang in an even balance. Usually in
the village there ia a kind middle-aged
woman with faculty, who knows how
to compound dishes for an invalid, to
make the bed of a sufferer, to turn
his pillows, and sit up with him at
night. Suoh women may hayo homely
features, and their use of English may
sometimes not be altogether unim-
peachable,. but they are like God's
angels in times of trouble—se, for in -
Mende, when the man of the house is
ill with fever, or the whole nursery
brood comes down with the measles at
once,
Country neighbors perform many
obliging offices for one another, She
who goes to town carries with her a
long list of oommissions in the shops
for those who stay at home. She who
makes a visit to some centre at fash-
ion 'eturns laden with patterns and
suggestions for the neighbors, who
speed her parting and WelOOM0 her
coming back, In the country one goes
tie the dour and summons a passer-by
and asks that an errand may be done
at the mill or the store or the post -
orrice. People carry home paokages
for ono another and stop for letters
an route. Everybody feels an inter-
est in the triumphs of the girl who
goes to college from the little hamlet;
everybody cares when she wins a prize
for exceallerme in study or brings back
her diploma, and whether or not ehe
shall Tomtit at home or make further
advent:nee in the great world is 0
theme for diseuesion at. more firesides
than that of her father's house.
Many little neighborly offices are
andertaken—as, for instance, when a
mother is ordered away' for her health,
and her children are lovingly cared for
In different Mime, whore., when com-
pany conies unexpeotcsaly, the goodwife
sends for a loaf ot cake or a pan of Ins
-
mit, sure that they evill be joyfully
loaned her by her nearest
neighbor, There is a sort of perfume
and biome about life In the eountry,
where neighboelixiess still exists,
which, we fear, has gone forever front
the thronged ways of the lawn,
The Rave Charles L. bodgeon, /AWL,
OaTr011, had over 08,003 letters pigeon
holed end indexed. That names '2,001
letters a year tor toly.Oille yore.
; About the House.
LAMPS, (4013LETS AEI) FERNS.
liciaatty" Lemps.—II. is noticeable
that tail lamps, even the banquet and
.able lamps that are no)v seen to the
eeeteeion of the high piano lights in
.ortaer time are ou Imager tbe fashion.
i be pew deeigus are all low, the bowls
being wide mad shallow, The light
effects in decoration, too, Hermes to
have passed, a decided preference
begin ehown for dark, rich mature, Ela-
borate and Whined shadee have natter -
ally retired with trma lefty lanies,
which guide them nermesary and effec-
tive. The plain empire or panelled
eleade with temple oratimentation is the
Matt Suitable acomnpanituent to these
'squatty" lamps.
lie-entee Goolets.—Lealers in out
glass ennounce a return to the high -
slammed giblet style of water glass. It
cannut be denied that goblets are more
decorative ia efeeot on the table thee
Ilia tumbler bhaptl, bat in careless
hands the destruction ot the former is
much more rapid. 'the bowl of the
new goblet. is rather broader than
formerly, while its stern is not as
long as that seen un on the same glees -
es whea they were al altuuet exclusive
use for water service a few years ago.
Pressed Ferns.—A pretty table, de-
coration recently seen wae acoomplieb-
ed with pressed ferns. The center-
piece was of growing terns, and -strewn
in careless but artistic profusion about
the cloth were pressed specimens of the
same green. 'Mae fresh ferns cannot
be so well used for the purpose, as the
leaves would turn and wrinkle. The
pressed variety is obtainable al a flor-
ist's and may be used more than once
if properly put away ia flat boxes or
between the leaves of a book.
SUCCESSFUL BREAD.
About 9 o'clock at night, writes B.
C. H., I go to the kitchen and make
my bread by this reolpe. One quart
boiled milk, or lukewarm water, three-
quarters terioup granulated sugar, 5
teaspoons salt, 1 tablespoon butter or
cottolene, nearly a pinh of homemade
bop yeast, or a cake of compressed
yeast dissolved in 1 1-2 teacups warm
water. I put all the materials into a
large earthen orocit holding 6 quarts
and mix thoroughly with a large iron
spoon, adding flour enough to make
a good dough. 1 never touch it with
my hands until it is turned ouL on
the board for kneading. I knead it,
adding flour it it sucks to the board,
until it Is of the consistency of india
rubber and rises instantly if a dent
Is made in it with tbe finger. X re-
place the dough in the crook, butter
the surtax°, weer it up closely and set
it on my dining room table. In awn -
mer it rises beautifully here without
any artificial heat, and when the wea-
ther is very warm I frequently make
it into loaves at 6 in the morning.
These aro light by the time the break -
lash eris boeoakkettl,astrnd bake while I am
eating
For years 1 baked my bread in ordin-
ary biscuit pans, putting four loaves
in each pan. Summer before last a pro-
fessional baker gavo me one of his sec-
rete. In order to have perfect
bread," he said. "Every loaf must be
baked separate from all the rest." Not
having the small, French roll pans,
I use, as a makeshift, my layer cake
tins. I put the loaves in these and
cover with tin pans while rising. The
dougb being stiff does not run and
spread, but rises in a light firm mass,
and when baked the cruet is a golden
brown all over and there is not an un-
der -done spot in the whole loaf. The
flavor is exactly that of French rolls
or the famous Vienna bread. I have
learned from ten years' practice that
the most frequent cense of bad bread
is that the dough is not allowed to
rise long enough the first time. When
my dough comes up an inch above the
top of the oracle, bearing on its surface;
a tin waiter, that I always cover it
with, and hangs in festoons around the
side, I know it Is just right. There is
lose danger of bread beingm
, sour fro
rising too long than there is of its be-
ing heavy trom the opposite reason. I
have mule at least 200 loaves of broad
by this method since last March, and
have never once had sour bread,
BROILING IN PAPER.
Chops, birds and dry fish are all
most delicate when broiled in paper.
Use heavy white note paper spread
with olive oil or butter. When the
article to be broiled is laid therein,
salted and peppered, the edgesof the
paper case should be turned over
several thins like a , little hem, and
pinched together Dime to the meat.
The paper will ohm, r long time before
igniting, and the contents will be
basted in their own juices. The time
required for broiling in paper is
usually. eight minutea. \Vhen the
paper 18 wall browned, the contents
will be done to a turn—juicy, delicate
and digestible foe even the stomaeh of
an invalid. Serve in its envelope,
which conserves the heat and juices to
the moment of eating, Tlae large fillet
of chicken broiled in this way is do-
liolous and easy of assimilation.
ENCOURAGING TO MOTHERS.
Mothers of the small children pos-
sessed to put ereerything in their
mouths will be glad to know that
matches at last are to be taken out
of the category of things poisoneua.
To °Vest death now, evil the Metch
manufacturers, a person veotild have to
eat the ends of some 6,000 matelms,
This even an inthistrious child would
hardly be ptil, to do. The substitution
of a mixture of phosphorous sesqui,
sulphide and chloride of potash for the
poisoneus yellow phosphorus hoe been
brought about through the efforts of
the French Governineet, which ap-
pointed a commission for the purpose
of finding something that would ignite
readily, but be less dangeroes to
nitinefeettire.
A swan') EBBE.
Elm E. Rexford writee that: Leat
mold from the woods Milts a sword feria
best, but la this is riot at hand a good
substitute is obtained by turning
over old Ward and cutting away Data
Portion full of grails COOts. Kix wit
1
this turfy matter s Mlle eharp Nan
to Make it friable. Rrovide goo.
drainage by putting an inch or two el
broken croeicery or brick in the bot-
tom of elm sot. Then fill with earth '
mail eet yeur plant in it. Water well
and keep 11 10 partial sbade. SboWer
the foliage ell over at leant twice s
week. Thie keeps duet from ermumue
lating on tee plant, and prevents the
red spider frum gaining a foothold ola
it.
Small specimens of this fern are
charming for use on the dinner teble.
Also for use on brackets at the side
of the window. It makes a fine plant
Inc a banging basket if given 0010 -
adorable root morel, but the full
heauty of the plant is never developed
until it gets a large pot in which it
vigorous rote oan spread to Mit
themselves. Grown in this way, A
specimen fills a large window, its
fronds often having a spread of five
and six feet. Such a plant Is 50000 -
thing to be proud of, and will afford
its owner a great deal more pleasurs
than a score of ordinary plants. Thee
fern is of the very easiest culture and
the amateur oan be reasonably surd
of success,
THE TRUE WIFE.
A blessed thing to have is one human
soul whom we can trust utterly, wbo
knows the best and worst in us, and
who loves us in spite of all our 'triune;
who will speelc the honest truth to
is while the world flatters us and
laughs at us behind our backs; Whe
will give us counsel and reproof in
the days of prosperity and self-conceit;
but who, again, will comfort and en-
courage us in the clay of difficulty
and sorrow when the world leaves us
alone to fight our own battles es we
can.
--
STOVE POLISH AND RUGS.
I have a receipt for stove polish',
which I would like to have you pub-
lish, for it is far superior to anything
I ever tried and it migbt be of benefit
to some of the rest of your readers,
writes Mrs. P. A. Bilisley.
Cut off as much polish as you think
will polish the stove—say about two
teaspoonfuls—then three teaspoonfuls
of molasses, and mix the Iwo ingred-
lents with soapsuds. 11 should be
thiok and will stick and last twice as
long as if plalnli applied; polish as
with any other receipt.
IN THE FACE OF DEATH.
Coal Miners Play Eames Willie Entombed
In a Mine.
When a fall of octal, a flood, or an
explosion occurs in a coal -mine, wo-
men are heard wailing at the moult'
of the pit, but Lhe entombed miners
thetmselves know better tban to give
way to dismay. .The methods they
sometimes employ to keep up one an-
other's courage seem reokless and
strange, when described after the
event, but they answer tbeir and of
preventing panic. Cassell's Saturday
Journal tells of a catastrophe tbat oe-
reuredEnnogtlasondv.ery long ago in a coal-
pu in
Fifteen men ware shut off from the
o,age by tons and tons of ooal brought
down by an explosion of fire -damp.
The anxious orowd at the pit's mouth
waited until the gas had cleared hunt
the cutting, and then began the work
of rescue, but -with very little hope of
Slimes&
Progress wee rapid, however, and
after a time the relief party got in-
to the narrow passage where their
comrades were entombed. What they
aaw and heard there almost made
them gasp for breath. Fifteen colliers
were on the floor, some Of them lying
dead, others sitting up and singing
comio songs. A little further on was
a football improvised from the colliers'
eldrts and caps. It bore unmistakable
signa ot xecent rough aeage.
"We thowt as long as we'd got to
dee, we'd dee kickint" explained calm
of the survivors; "rm we rigged up a
football, ere punched it about in the
dark. George there fell down dead as
he war scoria' a goal, hut we went on
playlet' to pass tune on, and then 1' gas
cleared off a bit."
Only few of these men, who were
di:Le-mined not to turn °meads at the
eight, ot death, came out of the Inez
alive; but they bore witness MAL tue
others had diedlwithout a sign of fear.
It watt not the- bighest form a eel's -
age, but it wad °enrage that met the
tIntia
crgrohY'
In er (Saab, when the relief
party got through the mese of fallen
coal, four sturdy miners wets found
dead. That they also had sought to
render the time of waiting less ter-
rible was evident:au by scores of lit-
tle marbles, made et compreseed octal -
dust, lying on the damp floor. • Two
of the men were found lying at full
Length, with their fiats screwed up
re.adlla,troeti
f
vi
all
ip
,
Tfaces smiled, evee in
death, and this proof of their unfail-
ing hopetulness brought tears to the
eyes of !how who entered the pit.
In a.n accident that ended less tragi-
cally the miners were surmised by the
relief party while yet intuit' =Wet of
gione dear to a collier's heart.
"Hullo, lads, tve didn't expect to see
ye," laughed One of the pale tind hag»
gad meal, stooping to replete the
bleep of boat whieb served at the
"(Wok." "AM reckon yen mop alad-
hev a game with us afore we go book."
And the litilt-famithed men and boys
Weeny instated on fieishing the
gameselves to be taltee to the ellen,
b0ora Illow theme
LARGEST SHAFT.
The largeet ateet theft In the world
hes just bean Benched. It is e'? feet
10 Inches long, and its diameter In. tho
=iamb ie 37 Whet%