HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Brussels Post, 1899-9-28, Page 22 THE BRTTSSELS POST. SEPT, 99, 1899
WHICH IS THE RIGHT ONE
REV. DR. TALMAGE SPEAKS OF
THk DIFFERENT ROADS,
A, Thousand Wrong Iteads, nett Only One
night One 'Tint Illanway printf eerie
to Woven -11m Easiness of Uro
verse -The Or, el•enebt$ as Inte119081lng'
and In inactive Sermon..
lA despatch from Washington, says:
-Rev, Dr. Talmage preached from
the following text: -"And an highway
shall be there, end a way, and it shall
be palled, The way of holiness; th
unclean shall not pass over it ; but i
shall be for those: the wayfaring men
though fools, shall not err therein
No lion ehall be there, um any raven
cus beast shalt go up thereon, i
than not be found there; but the re
deemed shall walk there; and th
ransomed a the Lord shall return
and Dome to Zion with songs an
everlasting joy upon their heads
they shall obtain. joy and glad
nese, and sorrow find sighing shall
flee away." -Isaiah xxxv., 8, 9, 10.
There are hundreds of people in
this house this morning who want to
find the right road. You sometimes
see a person halting at cross roads,
and you, can tell by his looks that he
wishes to ask a question as Lo what
direotioa 'he had better take. And 1
stand in your presence this morning
conscious of the fact that there are
many of you here who realize that
there are a thousand wrong roads,
but only one right one; and I takecit
for granted that you have come in to
ask which one it is. Here is one road
that opens widely, but I bave not
much faith in it. There are a great
many expensive tollgates scattered
ell along that way. Indeed at every
rod you must pay in. tears, or pay in
genuflexions, or pay in flagellations,
On. that road if you get through IL all,
you have to pay your own way,; and
since this differs so much from what
I have heard in regard to the right
way, I believe it is the wroag way.
Here is another road. On either side
of it are houses of sinful entertain-
ment, and invitations to come in and
dine and rest; but from the looks of
the people who stand on the piazza.I
am very certain it is the wrong house
and the wrong way. Here is anoth-
er road. It is very beautiful and mac-
adamized. The horses' hoofs clatter
and ring, and - they who ride over it
spin along the highway, until sudden -
they find that the road breaks
over an embankment, and they
try to halt, and they saw the bit
is the mouth of the fiery steed, and
cry "Hot ho 1" But it is Loo late, and
-crash!-they go over the embank-
ment. We shall turn, this morning,
and see if :we oannot find a different
kind of a road. , You have heard of
the Appian Way. It was three hun-
and fifty miles long. 'It was twenty.
four feet wide, and on either side the
road was a path for tool passengers..
It was made Out, of rook cut in hexa-
gonal shape and fitting together. What
a road it must have been t blade of
smooth hard rock, three hundred and
fifty miles long. No wonder that in
the construction of it the treasures
of a whole empire was exhausted. Be-
cause of invaders and the elements,
and Time -the old conqueror who tares
up a road as he{'goes over It -there is
nothing left of that structure except-
ing a ruin. But LI have this morning
to tell you of a road built
e
t not on the right road, that bridge
, will break, those overhanging rooks
will fall, the night will come down,
leaving you at the mercy of the moun-
t i tainbandita, and at the very next turn
of the road you will perish But If y
of course it is well built. • Bridges conte out beautiful white shoots di
splendidly arched and buttressed have paper, so often the rags of earthy des..
given way and crushed the passengers titution, under the eylintlere of death,
who attempted to cross them. But come out n while. enroll upon welch
Christ, the King, would build no such
thing es that, The work lana, He
mounts the abariot of His love, and
multitudes mount with Him, and He
drives on and one the steep of heaven
amid the plaudits of gazing worlds 1
The work to done -well done -•glorious,
ly don,e-magnificently done,
shall be written eternal emancipation,
eh 're was one passage of Scripture, the
form which 1 never understood until
one day at Chamounii, with Meat
Blanc oa one side, and I.lontanvere on
to other, I opened my Bible and read:
"As the mountains ttre around about
Jerusalem, so the Lord is around about
Still further; this road' spoken of is there that fear him," the surround -
a clean road. Many a tine road has ing were an omnipotent commontat•y,
become miry and foul because it has "Though troubles email, and dangers
not ,been properly oared for ;..but myl affright;
text says the unclean shall hot walls Though friends should all fail, and foes
on this one. Rooms on either side to all unite;
throw away your sins. Indeed, if Yet ono thing- secures us, whatever
you want to sorry sheat along you ire helicis„
The Scriptures assures us the Lord
will provide,"
Still further: the road spoken of is a
pleasant road, God gives a bond of
indemnity against all evil to every
work
- are really OR this clean road of which I
man that
tr tors it,good And t things
sthose
; have been speaking, then you will
stop ever and anon to wash at the wa-
' ter that stands in the basin of the
eternal rook, Aye, at almost every step
of rho 'oume on. will be ar Ln out:
1 I" Cree j with you a glee heap o
you have no such aspirations as that,
to proves that you have mistaken your
tt'ay: and if you will only look up and
see the finger -board above your head,
you may read upon it the words:
1" There is a way that seemeth right
unto a man, but the end thereof is
death:' Without holiness no man shell
see the Lord; and if you have any idea
that you can carry along your sins, not much more Clotho you, 0 ye of lit -
''
lusts your
BEFORE THE APPIAN WAY,
and get it is as good as when first
constructed. Millions of souls bave
gone over it. Millions more w111
come.
"The prophets and apostles, too,
t' Pursued this road while here below,
We therefore will, without dismay,
Still walk in Ohriee, the good old
way."
"An highway shall be there, and a
way, and it shall be called The way, of
holiness; the unclean shall not pass
over it; but it shall be for those: the
wayfaring an, though fools, shall not
err therein]. No lion shall be there,
nor any ravenous beast shall go up
thereon, it shall not be found there
but the redeemed shall walk there;
and the ransomed of the Lord shall
return, and come to Zion with songs
and everlasting joy upon their heads;
they shall obtain joy and gladness, and
sorrow and sighing shall flee away."
First, this road of the text is tho
King's 'highway. In the diligent* you
dash on over the Bernard pass of rho
Alps, tulle after mile, and there is not
so much as a pebble to jar .the wheels,
You go over bridges which cross
chasms that snake you hold your
breath; under projeoting rocks; along
by dangerous precipies; through tun-
nels adrip with the meltings of the
glaciers, and, perhaps for the first
-time, learn the majesty of a road built
and supported by governmental atith-
oriLy. Well, my Lord the Icing de -
(skied to 'build a highway from earth
to hoavet. It should span all the
chasms of human wretchedness; it
should tunnel all the mountains of
earthly difficulty; it should he wide
enough and strong enough to hold
fifty thousand millions of the human
race, H so many of thane should ever
be, horn. It should be blasted out of
the Reck of Ages; and cemented with
the blood of the Cross, and be lifted
amid shouting of angels and the cxe-
eration of devils. The King sent His
Son fie bniid that road. He put head,
and hand, and heart to it, and after
the road was completed waved His
blistered grand over the way, crying:
' It is finished 1" Napoleon palet fife
teen million francs tor the building of
the Simlvlon 'toad, that his cannot
might go over for the devastation. of
Italy; .but our 'King, fit a grenler exe
pens, bas bailt a read for a different
purpose, that the banners of heavenly
dominion Might come down over it
and a the redeemed of earth' trove];
qtr over it. 'being a King's highway,
who love God. No weapon formed
against them can prosper, That is
the bond., signed, settled, and deliver-
ed by the ''resident of the whole: uni-
verse, \\'hat is the use of your trete
ting, 0 child of God, about food?' "Be-
hold the fowls of the air; for they sow
not, neither do they reap, nor gather
into barns; yet your ,heavenly leather
feedeth them." And will He Lake care
of the eeerrow, will Pee take care of the
raven, will He take cure o8 the hawk,
and let you die? What is the use of
your fritting about clothes? "Con -
eider the lilies of the field, Shall He
worldliness, andyetIle faith?" What ie the use. of worry -
get to the nd of the Christian race, Ina g for fear something will happen at
you are so awfully mistaken, that, in your home? "lie blesseth the habita-
the name of God, this morning, tion of the just." What is, the use of
I SHATTER THE DELUSION, your fretting lest you will be overcome
Still further; the road spoken of is of temptations? "God is faithful, who
a plain road. "Tho wayfaring men, will not suffer you to be tempted
though fools, shall not err therein" above that ye are able; but .will with
That is, if a man is three-fourths an the temptation also make a way to
Idiot, he can find this road just as escape, that ye may be able to bear
well as it he were a philosopher. The 11," 0, this King's highway! Trees of
imbecile boy, the laughing -stock of the lite on either side„ bending over until
street, and followed by a mob hoot- their bran 'hos interlock and drop mill-
ing an him, has only just; to knock once way their ft'uit and shade, houses
at the gate of heaven, and it swings of entertainment on either side the
open ; while there bas bean many a reed for poor pilgrims, Tables spread
man who can lecture about pneumatics with
and chemistry, and tell the story of A FEAST Orn GOOD THUGS„
Farraday's theory of electrical polar- and walls adorned with apples of gold
tzation, and yet has been shult out of in pictures of silver.
1 start out on this King's highway,
and I Tina aharper, and I say:' "Wbat
is your name?" The harper makes no
response, but leaves me to guess, as
with his eyes toward heaven and) his
hand upon the trembling strings this
pin sum "What shall it pro#it amen tune comes rippling on the air: "The
Lord is my light and my salvation,
if be gain the whole world, and lose Whom shall I fear? The Lord in the
bis own soul?" Many a man has been strength of my life. Of whom shall I
a fine reader of tragedies and poems, be ttfr•iidr" "I go a little farther
heaven. There has been many a man
who stood in the observatory and swept
the heavens with his telescope, and yet
has not been able to see the Morning
Star. Many a man has been familiar
will all the higher branches of mathe-
matics and get could not do the sim-
and yet' could not " read his title clear
to mansions in the skies." Many a men
has botanize], across the continent, and
yet not known the Rose of Sharon, and
the Lily of the Valley." But if one shall
come in the right spirit, trying the way
to heaven, Cha will find it a plain way.
The pardon is plain. The pease is plain.
the same road and meet a trumpeteonr
of heaven, and I say: "Haven't you got
some music for a poor pilgrim?" And
wiping his lip and taking a long
breath, he puts his mouth to the trum-
pet ani pours forth this strain, "They
shall hunger no more, neither shall
they thirst any more, neither shall the
Everything is plain. He who tries to sun light on them, nor any heat, for
get on ;the, road to heaven through the the Lamb which is in the midst of
New Testament teaching will get on the throne shall lead them to living
beautifully. H+ wee goes through 11 i e fountains of water, and God shall wipe
philosophical discussion will not gel• on away all tears from their eyes." I go
et All. Christ says: "Came to me, end a little distance farther on the same
I will take all your sins away, and 9 road, and I meet a maiden of Israel,
will take. all your troubles away," Now Sha hog na harp, but she has cymbals,
what is the use of my discussing it
any. more? Is not that plain? If you
wantsd togo to Albany, and I pointed
you out a highway thoroughly latd
out, would I be wise is detaining you
by a geological discussion about the
gravel you will pass over, or a physio-
logical discussion about the muscles
you will bave to bring into play? No.
After this Bible has pointed you the
way to heaven, is it wisp for mo to de-
tain you with any discussion about the
nature of the human will, or whether
the atonement is limited or unlimited?
Thera is the road -go on it. o
IT IS A PLAIN WAY.
"This is a faithful saying, andworthy
of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus
came into the world to save sinners"
And that is you, and that is me. Any
little child here can understand this
as well as I can. Unless your become
as a little child you cannot see the
Kingdom of God." If you are saved, it
will not be as a philosopher, ib will be
as a little child, " Of such is the King-
dom of Heaven." Unless you get the
spirit of little children, you willnev-
er mime out at their glorious destiny.
Stilt further: this road to heaven is
a safe road. Sometimes the traveller in
those ancient highways would think
himself perfectly secure, not knowing
there wash lion by the way, bury his
bead deerI between his paws, and then,
when the right moment came, under
the fearful spring the m'an's life was
gone, and 'there was a mauled carcass
by the roadside, But, says my text,
"No lion shall be there," I wish I
could make you feel this morning, your
entire security. I tell you plainly that
one minute 'after a man has become a
child of God, he is as safe as though
he had been ten thousand years in
heaven. He may; slip, he may slide, he
may stumble; hut he cannot he de-
stroyed, Kept by the power of God,
through faith, unto complete salva-
tion. Everlastingly safe. The sever-
est trial to whioh you eau subject a
Christian man is to kill him, and that
is glory. In other words, the worst
thing that can happen a child of God
Is beavan. The body is only
the old slippers thee he throws
aside ,just before putting .on the me-
dals of light. His soul, you cannot hurt
it, No fires can consume it. ' No
floods emu drown it. No devils can
capture it,
"Firm and unmoved are they
'Who rest their souls on God;
Fixed as the ground where David
Meade
Or where the ark aborlo."
His soul is safe, leis reputation, is
safe. Everything is safe, "Bob,"
you say "suppose his store burns up?"
Why then il: will be only a change of
investments from earthly to heavenly
securities, "That," you sty: "surpass
his name goes clown under the hoof of
scorn and contempt.?" The name will
he so much brighter in glory, "Sup-
poses his physical health, fails?' God
will Hour into him ale flood of ever-
lasting health, and it will not snake
any difference. Earthly, subtraction
is heavenly addition, The tears of
earth are
THE CRYSTALS OF IIEitVhIN,
As they take rags and tatters and put
them through the paper-rnlll, and they
They lock as if they had rusted from
sea-sprey; and I say to the maiden of
Israel: "Have you no song; for a tired
pilgrim?" And like the clang of
victors shields the cymbals clap as
1lIiriam begins to discourse: "Sing ye
to the Lord. for He hath triumphed
gloriously; the horse and the rider
hath He thrown into the sea." And
then I see a white -robed group. They
come bounding toward me, and I say,:
"Who are tbey? The happiest, and
the brightest, and the fairest in all
heaven -who are they?" ,And the an-
swer comes: "These are they who
came oat of great tribulations, and
had their robes washed and made white
with the blood of the, Lamb,"
I pursue this subject only one step
Leather. What is the terminus? I
do not care Mow fines a road- you may
put me an, I want to know where it
comes out. Vey text declares it: 'The
redeemed of the Lord comes to Zion,"
You knew what Eion was, That was
the Ring a palace. It was a moun-
tain fastness,
IT WAS IMPREGNABLE,
And so heaven is the fastness of the
universe, :No howitzer has long
enough range to shell those towers.
Lett all the batteries of earth and bell
b'aze away; they cannot. break to
those gates. Gibraltar was taken,
Sebastopol was taken. Babylon fell;
hub these walls of heaveu shall never
surrender either to human or Satanic
besiegemenls, TheLorcl God Almighty
elft the defense of it. Great capital of
htheighuwnayiver1se 1 Terminus of the Kings
Dr. Dick said that, among other
things, be thought in heaven we could
study ahemt.stry, and geometry, and
orotic sections, Southey thought that
in heaven he wou'Il have the pleasure
of seeing Chaucer and Shakespeare.
Dr. Dick may have his mathematics
far all eternity, and Southey his Shake
pears, Give me Christ and my old
Criende--that is all the heaven' want.
Christ and Iris people that e kneww on
earth -that is heaven enough for me.
O garden of light whose leaves never
wither, and wncse fruits never fall!
0, banquet of God, whose sweetness
never palls the taste and whose guests
are kings for ever! 0, city of light,
whose walls are salvation, and whose
gates are praised! 0, palace of rest,
where God is the monarch end ever-
lasting ages the length of leis reign!
0, song louder than the surf, -beat of
Inlay waters, yet soft as the whisper
of eherub.m
0, my heaven 1 When my last
wound, is healed, when the last heart-
break' is ended, when the lest tear of
earthly sorrow is wiped away, and
when the redeemed of the Lord shall
comp to Zion, then, let all the beepers
intro down their harps ands all the
trumpets, and all across heaven there
be chorus of morning stars, chorus of
white -robed victors, chorus of martyrs
from under the throne, chorus of ages,
choreas of: worlds, and there be lout
ons song sung, and btil one name, spok-
en, +and but one throne honoured--
That
onoured-That of Jesus only.
STRENGTH OF ENGINES,
An ordinary railway engine ie oqui-
vaient in strength to about 000 horses
C01100 111 Poem Aio
It is nox • to impossible for a mar-
riage augagemout without the oon-
aurreues of the elders of the family
to be coneraoten in Porto Rico. Tbo
constant surveillance maintained over
the girls of the household and their
eontluued subjection to parental auth-
ority, even atter reaching years of
maturity, is a sucoossful barrier to
cenyt'hang sensational in contracting
a life partnet'ship. No association is
tolerated that may lead to a wee/a-
lbums, and few opportunities are of-
fered to create an. attachment -without
the full knowledge and consent of the
heads of the family. The only occas-
ions upon which this may happen are
the larger social gatherings, such as
Mardi Gras balls and dances at the
Casinos Espanol, which occur several
times a year,
Young women are always surround-
ed with a suitable guard of chaperons
by clay and night. After reaching a
place of social rendezvous the young
folk are allowed some iuberly to prom-
enade, dance and chat together while
those charged with guardianship sit
near and take note of the proprieties.
The attention of an inamorato to the
object of bis devotions must not be
too ardent nor too continuous; 'he must
not dance with her more than twice,
nor &toyer near long enough to exolte
otvmment, Which is prone to bo prompt
and free,
Under these conditions the susospe
tible young stranger who succumbs to
the witching glance of a west soft
eyed senorita finds the paths of love
auyt'hiug but flower strewn, It re-
quires heroic measures to break
through the human wells of bristling
dueunas and scowling matrons that
guard the approaohes to her shy
young heart.
After an engagement is announced
the conditions are changed. Hence-
forth they can dance only with each
ether. For centuries it has been de-
creed to be a flagrant breach of pro-
priety for an affianced or married wo-
man to step through the mazes of
the dance with any other than her
Hance or husband. However, the
chaperonage continues until marriage.
Courtship must be. conducted under the
parental. eye, members of the Nous-'
hold remaining in the room during the.
visits of men, and rarely can the
sweet, loving nothings be breathed
without reaching ether ears than those
for which they are intended. Some-
times the Argus watehfulnoss is re-
laxed -for a few moments, which are
improved to the utmost, It can be im-
agined, but are liable to be broken into
unexpectedly and frequently by the
scrupulous and anxiously responsible
parent or matron in charge.
In the preparation for marriage the
bridegroom is expected to provide a
home according to his means, more or
less completely equipped with house-
hold linen and all necessities for house-
keeping. This in virtue Of the sen-
timent that the bride must bring to
httn nothing, but herself and her
trousseau. In this country of fine
needlewomen this trousseau is some-
thing remarkable in variety and exe-
cution, often of such daintiness that
many o8 our 'brides might envy them.
Porto Rican brides do not waste
mush time or money upon many
gowns or those for public display. It
es to please the eye of the husband
alone that all the ants of construc-
tion are °amended in house .gowns,
lingerie and negligees. A popular
model is a cambrio princess, the front
a mass on lace and drawn work round
neck and gossamer tight fitting or
flowing angel sleeves. A number of
these enter into the outfit, each a
marvel of exquisite work, according to
the. purse or deftness of fingers of the
bride.
A fashionable time for the wedding
ceremony is from midnight up to two
o'clock ?m the morning. The bride-
groom, with his immediate relatives
and friends proceeds to the home of the
bride, and from there a wedding pro-
cession is formed to the church. Car
riages are rarely used, the party, if
living in town, making the short jour-
ney an foot, the bride walking with
'her godfather, the bridegroom with
his godmother. The ceremony over,
they return to the bride's home, whore,
upon she lifts the veil frame her head
and throws it over that of her nearest
girl friend, who cuts it into bits and
distributes it among the unmarried
guests.
The bride than strips to pieces the
orange blossoms of her crown, and al-
so those whioh deck her gown more or
less eiaborately, aocordiag to the num-
ber a her guests, turd a spray is pre-
sented to each. The fun then groWs
Lively over counting the blossoms,
tlitaso full blown signifying years, the
hale blown months and the buds days
which will intervene before the re-
eipient's marriage,
The bride then retires to make a
change in another special feature of
her array, the bridal garters, which
ago elegant affairs, ornamented with
White statin rosettes and orange Mos -
Sons and suspended from firs waist by
strands nT w'hite satin ribbons. Each
garter is emalosed in a pratty box and
presented to her most intimate girl
friend. The strands of ribbon are sat
into piecee and distributed among the
other guests, Then, simply attired in
the wadding gown, samatimeo even this
laid aside; for another, the bride and
Use i'esutvittes take the form of those
usual to such occasions,
BefreshtmenLs are served, never omit-
ting chocolate, which from time im-
memoria1 has been the nuptial beve-
rage, sla gennerally recognized t'ha!t
when a friend wishes to ask the date
of a marriage the question takes the
farm of "W'V'en will chocolate ho
served?'
After satteraL ensure of gayety the
bridogrooan takes' bis bride to their new
home, and they begin a. lifo of t -rue.
domosierii:y. They oontinue t0 bastion
occasionally
o
nallY
in society, Y,
but generally
chaperoningsame young Lrl nets or
adlal.iing with their contemporaries, or
quietly and contentedly moving
through the dame, always, invariably,
with. each other,
MAN'S PHYSICAL DEFECTS.
14tavcn 8hottldct's, Amts. Legs tubi MPA
Aso Ntuncrone.
A, man can be measured to the best
advantage, tailors say, away from a
glass. Standing before a mirror he is
almost certain to throw out his chest,
if he dons not habitually carry it so,
and take an attitude that to would
like to have, rather than the one he
commonly holds ; whereas the tailor
wants him, as the portrait painter
wants his subject, ia his natural pose
and manner. With the man in that
attitude, the tailor oan bring his art
to bear -if that is required -in the
overcoming of any pbysioai defect, and
produce clothes that will give the best
attainable effect upon the figure, as
they will be aotually worn,
The physical defeat most mammon in
man is unevenness of the shoulders.
One shoulder is higher than the other,
and this is a defeat often encountered,
though the diiierence in the height
may not be so great as to be notice.
able, except by one accustomed to tak-
ing note of such things. This is a
defect that is easily overcome by the
tailor, when it exists in a compara-
tively moderato degree« et is dune
sometimes simplyby cutting the coat
to fit on each shoulder, the perfect fit-
ting coat carrying with it the idea and
the appearance of symmetry. Some-
times, and this is commonly done in
oases of more pronounced difference,
symmetry is attained by the fumilar
method of building up or padding the
lower shoulder. The infiueaao of the
lower shoulder extends down on that
side of the bgdy, sothat sometimes
ie is necessary below the arm. to cut
that side of the coat shorter. Next'
to unevenness of the shoulders, round
shoulders are perhaps the commonest
defect.
A very common thing is unevenness
of the hips. A difference of half an
inch hare would not be at all remark-
able ; it is sometimes much more. If
a man feuds one leg 01 his trousers -
the legs as he knows, being alike in
length -touching the ground while the
other clears it, he may reasonably con -
eider that there is a difference some-
where in his legs. It may be that
one leg is longer than the other, but
it is more probable that one hip is
higher than the other, or one leg full-
er, so that It takes up the trousers
more and thus gradually raises the
bottom more. It would be a common
thing if men were seen with their
waistcoats off, to find suspenders set
at uneven heights. The variation in
the suspenders might be required, to
bs sure, by a difference in the shoul-
ders, and not in the legs.
It is common to find man's arms of
different lengths. The difference m,ay
be so slight as to require no special
attention in the making of their
clothes, but it is frequently necessary
to snake the coat sleeves of different
lengths.
The fact appears to be that there
are not many perfect men, that is, man
of perfect harmony of development and
perfect symmetry of proportions, in
which respect man is like all tbings
else in nature, like horses, for in-
stance, and trees; but in the greater
number of men these defeats aro with-
in such limits that they might be de-
scribed as variations rather than as
substantial defects.
ELECTRIC LIGHTING.
Much Sickness Prevented kr Iia tnbstttn
lion for leas.
There are no stronger advocates for
electric lighting in houses than medioal
men, who say, that an immense
amount of sickness has been rayed
since the eleotrio light took the plaoo
of gas in modern houses, There ottn be
no doubt that in the matter of main -
tatting the purity of air during incan-
descence electricity stands without a
rival. Air is composed of four parts
of nitrogen oombined with one part of
oxygen. The nitrogen, in a sense,
modifies the too aotivo powers of oxy-
gen, which, if undiluted would make
every one inbaliug it so excessively
energetic that the human framework
would speedily be ranked to pieces,
When combustion takes place oxygen
is absorbed, and carbon dioxide, a
poisonous gas, is given off, The act
of breathing produeee a similar effect,
and thus resembles the burning of a
lamp or candle. Air containing as
little as 3 per cent of carbon dioxide is
difficult to breath in, and when it is
considered that a medium gas burner
produces as much of this got as eight
or nine men, about 0 feet per hour, it
naturally follows that air in a room
so Lighted soon becomes dangerous. Be-
sides carbon dioxide, there are other
impurities in gas, such' as sulphurous
acid, ammonia, sulphurettod hydrogen,
eta., whioh vary in quantity according
to the purity of the gas, Each has
its own deleterious effect. on the a.ir
and surroundings, and moan of them
cause flame to be less luminous. With
an electric incandescent lamp t here is
no combustion. The filament merely
becomes incandescent by reason of its
resistance to the 'passage of the aur -
rant, which is compelled to exert a
certain amount of anergy in traveling
through it, This energy is given bank
by the filament in the form of light;
but the whole being, her•metieally seal-
ed in vacuo, there is no, exhalation
from the proems of incandescence, and
i h, outside air remains unvitiatod by
,t,
VIENNA'S TOTAL ABSTAINERS,
The Society of Total Abstainers ,just
formed in Vienna is the fleet ever os-
tablishod in Austria. Everybody drinks
in Austria, An Austrian baby begins to
sip( boor at the age of three months, and
as it grows 1tps learns to oonstirrta the
liquor in over-ivareasing quantity one
HI, when a furl -grown titan, he Dan
drink it by the gallon,
00 NILES S .EER HOUR,
A WONDERFUL RATE 01' SPEED
WILL BE ATTAINED..
Thug and Distance to no Annihilated by a
Sete titivated Bitllrsad-tlatm Opet•ntod
ley' I:Iet•t Clotty to le lemzelag Over -
bends supported by it Singte 110,0 of
1'll lura,
1f the claims of Harris F. Smith, of
Middletown, Obio, for his new railroad
tun beetle out by experience -and en-
genets who bave examined his plans
sea no reason why the,/ should not be
--the problem Of rapid transit is solved
and w'o shall soon be able to go whiz-
zing across the country, over meadow
thud stream and country road, staying
or turning aside for nothing, tit the
rate of 200 miles an hour,
IL is understood that a company is
already in dee Process 01 organization,
numbering among its members some
of the best known financiers of the
United States, Mud that a lino may
soon be built between Cincinnati and
Chicago. The promoters of this gigan-
tic enterprise are aanvinced, after the
most careful doliboratioa, that the
plan. is entirely Tensible, and are ready,
it is stated, to Mink their opinion with
their money.
THE MECHANICAL DETAILS.
The road is to be operated by elec-
tricity. Tha power is generated and
distributed in a different and mare
ecoaonneal manner than on any self-
propelled cars yet 000struoted, from
the fact that the wheel is a part ,af
the meter, thereby eliminating in a
large degree the frsctiett whioh exists
in. all Other locomotive devious.
The oars will be 60 feet long by 0
feet wide aftd 7 feet high. Ton feet
Tram each mut the ears taper down to
nearly a point, only allowing room
fqr a narrow door, and the enters out-
line will offer the minimum of resist: -
owe to air pressure, in this following
rho latest deductions of the en-
gineers.
Tho end doors admit to a narrow
vestibule, in. whioh is encased the sin-
gle wheel, which i -n each and of the
ear furnishes both mo'live power and
rolling mentos. Doors for ingress and
egress are placed in the sides of the
cars,
A SINGLE RAIL,
The road is to rest upon a line ,of
single iron pillars which are to be an-
chored in massive stone foundations.
These pillars will be about 30 fent
apart and 12 feet high below the rail.
Upon this will be securely fastened a
square frame large enough to allow
the train to pass through. The oars
will ran. upon u single traction rail
upon a heavy iron beam extending be-
tween the pillars, and will retain their
equilibrium through the agency of u
single guard rail above, The complete
structure will extend 28 foot above
the ground. The stations and switches
will be.similar to those in vogue with
the double rail systems of to -day.
There will be two driving wheels,
one at each end of the car, and tLwo
guard wheels above, all of which will
bo double flanged, thereby making it
impossible for the oars to leave the
rail, The driving wheels will be 5
feel in diameter and the guard wheels
2 feet, The motor contained within
the driviag wheel is similar in prin-
ciple to the stationary multipolar mot-
ors used for running large mills and
faetoriess, and are of 0 capacity of 200
horse power each, making a driving
forgo o£ 400 horse power for mon car.
As they are directly connected with
the rim of the wheel the necessity of
having noisy gearing, which, betide be-
ing annoying to the passenger, causes
a great deal of friction, is entirely
obliterated. The controlling device is
so construoted that by moans oe elec-
tric cables between the curs the motor-
man has perfent oommand over the
meters in all ears in the train,:and,as
each car is provided with two motors,
every oar added furnishes its own
power, thereby making it possible to
maintain a uniform rate of speed no
matter how long the train, For il-
lustration, a train of five oars would
have a driving capacity of 2,000 horse
power, and with ibis amount at com-
mand a speed of 200 miles per hour
can be easily obtained,
PRACTICAL FEATURES,
The opinion of experts who have ex-
amined this projected road is that it
is perfect tram the economical stand -
pollee a locomotive requiring four
pleads of coat per horse power per
hour, out of whish is obtatnmd n tspoed
of 00 miles, while those oars will run
with a consumption of one and a'half
pounds of mai per horse power per
Meter with an average produced speed
of 200 miles per hour, The estimated
cost of passenger transportation is
one cenL per mile. -
To the layman who views the heavy
train upon its apparently slender sin-
gle pillars it seems a risky proposi-
tion, but when one stops to eonstder
the entire absence of lateral vibration
in a bicyole under full headway it will
be seen that only supporting power is
needed.
Notwithstanding the frail appear-
ance of t'he structure, there will in
this adventurous ago be plenty of
da ing spirits to essay the first trip,
and when the remarkable spend accom-
piished is realized the public will not
be slow to avail themeolves of the slew
device for ann:tlti.tabing time and dis-
tanoo,
BREAKING KING IN IOW SHOES,
There is a time for everything, and
that includes a time for trying On new
shoes. ,Tho feet era different sizes at
different times in the day. In the
Morning. they usually, are larger, and
muoh walking, too, inclines them to
swell, so that new slices should tot be
worn at suele times, If the shoes aro
online(' to be tight, ono road to relief
is to bathe the feet in -cold water and
dress them in new hose, 'Tight
oboes shooed mover be put tie airaot-
ly after tatting a hot bath,
COUNTRY POSTMEN IN EUROPE,
Some Information .Anon., Them Widen is
Intcrestlag.
The rural mail carriers in Austro-
Ilungary, wear gray uniforms, carry
Ironsbod atioks, leather ponchos, ink-
horns and signal -horns, and the latter
are violently blown et the entrance of
oaoh village to notify its inhabitants
that the lettere have arrived, Among
the articles delivered are letters, pos-
tal cards, newspapers, samples, and
telegrams, the fees charged for ordin-
ary letters being one kreutzer, a half
o£ a cent., and a half kreutzer for
newspapers. This payment is, of
course, additional to the charge for ,.
prepayment and is added to it for the
special delivery service.
In Belgium the rural mall carriers
are furnielled with a waybill, upon
whioh is entered the date, the hours of
departure and return, the position 04
the different letter boxes from which
uolleutions are made, and an impres-
sion of the starn'p of each letter box.
These rural carriers of Belgium trav-
el on the state railroads free, but only
when in uniform and when carrying
their portfolio and a card of Mentifi
oaten]. They are also permitted "to
(sirculate freely in the railroad eta -
teems," and they ere especially admon-
ished to stop at the approach of trains
or locomotives and never to cross the
tracks when tt train or locomotive is
in eight. The Heighten rural letter
carriers aro armed with clubs and re-
volvers.
Theprovincial postmen in England,
such is their official designation, are
from .eighteen to thirty years of age
at entrance to the service, the only ex-
ception 'being discharged soldiers and'
sailors, who are permitted to begin
work when over thirty, They geb
fourteen week -days a year as holidays,
got free medical attoodaooe, serve
four hours on Sunday,, for which spec-
ial pay is furnished, and receive 4440 a
week salary. The average walk of a
provincial postman is from fifteen to
eighteen miles a day. The average
rata in walking is three miles an hour.
In addition In their regular pay, each
provincial postman is allowed twenty-
one shillings a year for boot allow-
ance, otherwise shoe leather wear and
,tsar, and after ten years' service, in
case of incapacity or at the ago of six-
ty, there is a pension; for the postmen
on retirement.
In Swi-tzerland the government fur-
nishes every rural postman, who is re-
gularly employed in outdoor delivery,
;vitt one turtle a year and one blouse
and a cape every third year, while
those who are only occasionally err
ployed in outdoor delivery get a tunic
and blouse every other year and a cape
every five years. 'file salary varies
from e22 to $30 u month. The aver-
age number of working hours is eight.
Iu France the salary of postmen is
fixed by the number of kilometres
travelled and not according to any
fixed grade. There are 18,300 coun-
try postmen in France, and to their
varying salaries, as fixed by kilometre,
are added gratuities for carrying pack-
ages and repeating verbal messages.
The rural postman is not a national
institutional in. Spain.
ARRESTING THE LIGHTNING.
A. New Device Iles dust Bean perfect/A/
In liernuuty.
The problem of arresting the lightn-
ing and preventing damage by itg
stroke is one of great interest. It is
estimated that 188 of every millions
houses are struck by lightning in each
year. This varies for different coun-
tries according to the prevalence• of
storms. In Java there aro 97 stormy
days Ln each year, while Finland has
but 8, Switzerrlaud but 7a and Norway
but 4 stormy days annually.
TL has been shown by statistics that
the danger of having a house struck!
by lightning is far greater in the
country than in the Meer; 23 country
houses being destroyed to 1,3 'city,
houses, The reason .for the greater
safety in the cities is attributed teethe
largo number of telephone and tele-
graph wires, which attract thelightn-
ing to themselves and away; from the
houses. In Met one of thel great pro-
blems connected with the operation of
telephones has been the arresting of
the lightning in some way so that
neither the apparatus nor the opera-
tors suffer injury,
ut new device for this purpose has
,lust been perfected in Germany. It
consists of two bent Dopper wires
standing opposite to each other. They,
are insulated by porcelain and held
firmly by oast iron Supporta, Ono
wire is connected with the current
and the ether leads to the earth, The
relation between the aivo wires can
be regulated by sorews, Vt'hen the
lightning strikes it finds a way to the
earth without nnd, induction, It
strikes the air between that two wires
at the. point where they are nearest
together, and, on account o8 the eloc-
trioiLy passing to the earth, bursts In-
t flume. taut this flame trust bs
quenched, and this is done by the two
wires, one loading the demo eweedby
its warm current. of air, and then b.i -g
attracted toward the other,
This apparatus is designed for use
in connection with high tension our -
rents, those over 2,000 volts, When
operated for 10;000 volts no tram) of
the electric shock was visible.
GOOD SPONGES.
Although the difference between a
good and a bad sponge is vary mark-
ed, but Lew people soma able to ap-
pi'eeitate it, Thefirst requisite of a
good sponge is that it should be dark
in color, Tha beautiful yellow sponges
commonly soon in druggists' windows,
aro a delusion and, a snare. The nat-
ural color is a light to medium brown,
and the yellow sponges*we been
broached by a vitriol bath, whialr clo-
stroys their elasticity and makes them
wear out mush sooner.