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The Brussels Post, 1894-5-25, Page 2THE ' HIS U rHTER CHAPTER P. y Of course the day of the marriage had to be fixed by myself, and knowing that 1 ebould gain nothing by delay, acid eolnewhat is the frame of mind of a patient nakieg, an appointment with his dentist, 1 named an early day in the following mouth—the 4th a May, It was a Saturday, and 1vet !solved that I would not attend oburoh the Sunday before it, and would so avoid the infliction of a wedding sermon in whioh my father who had apnounped his intention of taking for the subject of his sermon, the marriage in Cana of Galilee, would I felt sure, compare himeolf to all the most min - ant personages of Scripture history. For him, at any rate, Irefleeted bitterly, the marriage meant a very practical miracle indeed—the conversion of hie potations of opirits and water, for the remainder of his life into some of the best acknowledged vintages. I am bound to say that Sir Henry, who was a thorough geutleman,gave nie so little trouble, that I almost began to feel a sneak- ing regard for him. Ile was always at hand when wanted, and yet was never obtrusive. Heseemed toknow by instinotnotonlywhen I preferred silence, but also when I preferred to be left entirely alone, and on these later occasions there was invariably some ingeni- ous little excuse for his departure. .After all, I began to reflect, Mrs. Peel may not be so entirely wrong. I shall be ontirly beyond the reach of all small troub- les and bitterness, and my prison will be as pleasant a one as Art and all the iufinfto reaoureea which are at the commaud of wealth can make it. And thus the hours Blipped rapidly by, On the Friday morning a new importa- tion to our oirole—a lady's maid, with whose services SIr Henry told me I might dispense at any moment that I pleased, whether temporarily or finally, but who had a good and tried character, and would for the present, at any rate, be useful to me. Miss Jackson—or Jackson, as she pre- ferred to be called—was about thirty, of pleasant appearance, nimble and clever, and quite silent until addressed. These were valuable qualities. Indeed, I am not sure that when the eventful Saturday morn- ing came, I could have managed to array myself without her aid. At my express wish the marriage was strictly private. There were no brides- maids and no best man. The curate of an adjacent pariah came over to assist in the ceremony, but if I remember rightly, he did nothing except ask the question, "Who givetb thio woman to be married to this man?" to which may father responded with all his own gravity, ' I do," and then pro- ceeded with the remainder of the service on hie own account, entering into the spirit of of the thing, and not omitting a single 'word or even hurrying himself, although no doubt be was anxious for the moment of breakfast and champagne. lt was over at last somehow, and some- how I found myself at the wedding break- fast and cutting the cake. Beyond this I have a very vague idea of anything that happened, but I just remember being dress- ed for my journey, and I remember the dress, which like everthinp else, had been furnished by the great Madame Elaine, who had received carte blanche from Sir Henry. It was a plain shepherd's plaid silk, a long jacket of sable, trimmed with priceless sable -tail, and a tiny bonnet, which was awork of art. "All your ladyship's things," Jackson announced, " have been properly packed. 1 have your ladyship's hand -bag for your ladyship's handkerchief, gloves, and other things, and this is your ladyship a dressing - bag." Before I got into the carriage I had to submit to a farewell embrace and blessing from my father, but I paid no attention to it, and so his remarks were delivered to the bystanders , for wham no doubt they were intended, and who cheered them lustily, and altogether exhibited that effete enthu- siasm so common on similar occasions. The cheering was kept up as we drove away. "You ma robabl be too tire may,probably Y d, my dear Miriam," said Sir Henry in his most courtly manner, to care for conversation. I confess myself that these early hours are unusual and bewildering." 1? I gratefully smiled a feeble smile of assent, and we did not exchange another word until we reached the station. It had been 'settled that we were to pass the honeymoon in Paris, breaking the jour• nay in London at Craven House. By the time we reached this mansion, whioh was at one of the corners of St. James' Square, I was thoroughly tired out, and but dimly remember the hall, blazing with lights ar• rayed with a wealth of hothouse flowers and gorgeous with serried ranks of domes - ties. Anyhow, it was a relief to have the day over, and au immense satisfaction to know that far once and for all I was absolutely rid of my father. That worthy man would, within a few hours, be reading himself in ae Dean, and would, no doubt, for some time, trouble himself as little about me as I about him, On Monday morning there was a victoria and pair wetting for us after breakfast, and Sir Henry suggested shopping, London shops were for myself, who had only seen the Cathedral Close on rare ooeasione, a new experience, and, I will confess a pleas- ant one. We first stopped somewhere in Bend Street, where Sir Henry made 'seine little purchases, and more especially an exquisite purse, or rather porte•monnaie, of inlaid tortoise -shell, which as I discovered when I examined its interior more carefully on caving the shop, had been filled by some magic with new banknotes and mint -new sovereigns—somewhere about one hundred andfiity pounds altogether, as I afterwards ascertained. Then Sir Henry asked me if I would mind going by way of the Foreign Office, and waiting for him there a few minutes. Of course I said no; so we rattled down St, James' Street, and then brought the Mall to the back portals of that enormous pile. It was a glorious day, and I certainly saw London for the first time at its best and brightest. Tho Park was beaming with hawthorn, and I .could see through the rna the railings g ornamental water alive with every kind of rare and beautiful waterfowl. Presently a squadron of Horse Guards trotted past, their cuirasses and helmets flashing in the sun, and their scabbards rattling and jangling. The 10 terminable eneoeesion of earriage9 was even more bewildering than it had been in Bond Street, and yet the smell of the fresh may - blossom from the Park and the tries of the waterfowl made me believe myself again In the country, So I sat dreamily looking on, for it may have been twenty minutes, or even loner, and than Sir Henryyreappeared radiant with what wee evidently good news, and followed by en obsequious hall -porter who bowed profoundly as our footman•= -I was already beginning to ay rt We" and "our" -•,-having eon his maotee seated, jumped upon the box. ra I have aomo really geednews,my dear child," he said; "better news then even perllapo that of the Deanery, and eet'tainly more immediately affooting ourselves. "am delighted to hear it. Pray what la it. am milted to undertake in September," he refilled, " juat when London will be empty and dreary, a most delicate and im• portant mleeion to Constantinople. The compliment ie one to which I feel rnyaelf entitled, but whioh I yet confess I had rather expected, so that it has to a certain extent taken me by ourptleo. But aheuld I succeed in my negotia. tions, of whioh 1 cotertain but little doubt, I am promised, as distinctly as any thing ever ie promised in the olffofal world. an important and brilliant post, no less than that of minister at the Court of Sb. Petersburg, from whioh Lord George Sey mour will at that time be retiring with a full peerage, and not at all improbably the Garter itself. Oonetantinople, which J. have visited more than once, ought really to be the capital of Europe, and is not only un- like any other city in the world, but it is in many respects liner than them all. It is certain to Interest you extremely.' I had nothing to say except to emile as- sent ae pleasantly as I could, while Sir Henry in his most vivacious manner com- menced to:discourse eloquently about the Golden Horn, and the subterranean reser- voir, and the bazaars, and the Sultan's Court, until 1 almost imagined that 1 was once again pouring over my Lane's "Ara- bian Nights." One thing only was olear, that we had to start that evening for Paris, and so we at once made the beat of our way back to St. Janes' Square, It was my first sea voyage, and also my first departure from England, and we journeyed so luxuriously that I freely eon fess I enjoyed me self. There was a special saloon for the short run from Victoria to Dover, and instead of going by the steamer we had an Admiralty yacht waiting for us at the pier. Al Calais, again, another saloon carriage had been reserved, and as the train rattled us along the change of air and the fatigue of the journey made me dreamily and pleasantly drowsy. As we .passed the fortifications Jackson made her appearance with coffee and piste - lets, and a cup of coffee, really exquisitely made, fairly roused meso that Iran remem- ber distinctly the drive from the busy Gere du Nord through the empty streets to our quarters at the Hotel Bristol, and the im- mense fire of wood that was blazing and cracking on the tiled hearth. But I remem- ber little beyond this, for the journey had quite worn me out and I was soon asleep. That afternoon for the first time in my life, I saw Paris in the height of its season, and in its full glory. Sir Henry had to go to the English Embae- ey in the Rue Faubourg St, Honore, but Jack- son, amongst her other accomplishments, knew her Paris intimately, and under her esoort I went ,bopping, and certainly, according to my own ideas, spent money reakleasly, Why should I not do so? For the whole of my life hitherto, I had been compelled to consider every sixpence before I parted with it, and to carefully reckon my change. Now I could do as I pleased, and from my own point of view I am afraid that I plunged wildly. I remember buying a num- ber of things which I did not want, and to the ultimate destination of which, Jackson, who suggested the purchases, and chattered voluable French to the assistants, had no doubt her own eye—things such as gloves, and lace, and a parasol or two, and other knioknacks. This was in reality shopping for Jackson, butI also did a little shopping on my own accouna,bringing backwith me some exquis- ite flowers,with frnidand bonbons—crystal- lised violet blossoms I particularly remem- ber—and some books, English and French, daiutly bound, and some photographs, and a rosary, the beads of which were guaran- teed to be cut out of the olives of Geth- iemane, and possibly may have been, for all I know or even cared. You must un- derstand that I was beeomieg hardened and reckless. 1 had got the money. It was the price I had taken for myself with my ogee open, and why should I not speed it? And so when we reached the hotel an our return, the victoria nes filled with packages which gave Jackson no little trouble in their superintendence and ultimate arrangement upon my table. It was strange. Six weeks ago I could have lingered over these many treasures for hours, examing them one by one. Now that I had got them, and the excitement of purchasing them was over, the mere eight of them seemed to weary me, ea I gat Idly in a chair by the open window, in which SirHenryprosently found me ensconced and oeoupied with neotarines, a fruit whioh I had never before tasted in my life, and which I still hold, as I held then, to be a direct product of the Garden of Eden itself. Sir Henry seemed positively beaming with hope, and life, and good nature, and everything pleasant except youth.' His dignity bad somehow vanished, and he was as vivacious as a school -boy epee breaking. up day. I have secured a box at the Opera to- night, my dear Miriam," he said, "and it is actually between those of the Auetrian and the Italian Ambassadors, both of which will be occupied, so that your maid will have to do her best. Nottbetany efforts are needed on her part," he added in his courtly manner, " where, as with yourself, nature unadorned adorns the moat. The opera is Dinoreh, in which competent critics hold that Meyerbeer is at his beat, and Patti at hers. I am sure that it will please you, and after the per- formance we are to have supper at the Russian Emhasay. You will find Prince Xuroff a most aecompliehed and charming man and fully worthy not only of his ex- alted position, but of bin most fascinating wife," No. Talleyrand could have been more im. preseive. It was impossible not to smile assent graciously. But somehow or other I could feel no enthusiasm at all this gaiety. How different I should have been under happier Sireumstentee ? Jackson had now, for the first time since my wedding -day, an important duty, to the accomplishment of which she set herself with thoroughly professional zeal, I could not help admiring the result of her skill as 1 glanced at myself in the im- mense eheval•glass. My dress was of rich white satin, deeply trimmed with old point- laoe. yiy jewels, tiara, earrings and neck- lace, ecklace, were pearls, at the value of whioh I could hardly guess. Ivey rings were most judiciously talented, and to pens over other items, my fen ela(med to be a veritable Watteau, and I dare say was, Figbt as I might agamet the now tom• forts of wealth, none the leas I began to feel the enjoyment of them pereeptibly growing upon the and to almost fear that 1 must have inherited ewe slight teeth of my fatlesee wealtnees, lu what I may fairly slain to have been its most pardonable shape,' Whoa I appeared its the salon, Sit' Henry oonbomplated me oritioally, and wee avid' ently not only satisfied bet pleaood, for he kieeod mo very gramouely ami aerate a few waide of oondeseending approval tn.laak' eon, who rooelvod them with the humility of a superior young person who knows her own value,, but, like Mro. Kenwlgo :ht' " Nicholas Niokleby," considers pride in it to be elnful. Ina few minutes we bad pained up the immense staircase, with its profuse deoora- tions, and had been ushered into our box, and almost immediately the overture began. You must reaolleot that it was the filet time Ihad ever heard any other mnelo than that of our pariah organ and pariah choir, beyond a stray afternoon service [n the aothedral at. Exeter. • CHAPTER VL The moment we had seated ourselvoe ft madame angry and indignant to see that every glass in the house was being levolled point-blank at my own face, exactly as if several hundred photographers wore' at once endeavoring to focus me. I immediately drew back into the shadow of my own curtain. Sir Henry, apparently seeing nothing strange in what had happen- ed, leaned forward and looked on with a general appearance of critical interesb. Of myself, I am glad to say he took no notice. Presently the overture ooncludedand the curtain rose. I was entranced. It was a new side of life to me entirely ; a perfectly new pleasure. I scarcely recollected where I was and with whom I was, and how I came there, or when or how the whole scene of enchantment would end. I was utterly lost ; centred in the stage. I could not tell whether minutes were passing, or hours ; and I actually so far forgot myself as to mark the time with my little finger, and to allow a genuine smile of enjoyment every now and again to hang on ley features. I know now, of souse, that the very first rule iu the best society is nil admirari. But you must remember, and make cora responding allowance for me, that I was entirely without worldly experience, and a new sense of life, bringing with it a new value to life, reamed to have broken in upon me. I sat and listened, and still listened, till the curtain fell. Our box was Limb between the acts, but this gave me little trouble. The men who came apparently wanted to talk to Sir Henry. They were introduced to me, of course, and we interchanged a few phrases, worthy to be fathered upon 011endorf him. self. Had I been long in Paris ?" " No." "Ali, poor Paris ! Did we leave soon ? Ah, desolated Parisi Was not Paris the centre of the world's smiles?" 1 declare as I now look back, that it makes me weary to hear Englishmen chatter about Paris, of which they know little beyond the radius of Big - non's, I world far sooner hear a Now Englander talk about "Boretun," and pro- nounce the dissyllable through hie nose. nor myself, when the time carne for us to leave, I had only noticed one thing. In the box directly opposite our own, but separated from it by the whole width of the house, had been a lorgnette more or lees persistently directed against myself. When you are one of a large crowd you can be quite aware that you are being look- ed at although your next neighbor is quite ignorant of the fact. Your next neighbor will bo thinking of himself or herself. In the present case I was certain that this par. Soutar pair of opera -glasses had marked me down. I was a little annoyed by the fact,a little amused, and a little bewildered, all for reasons which can be easily understood. ;Vey own single wish was to be no more cow, spicuoua than I could possibly help; andyet here I waa,at the veryoutset of my married career, singled out for an attack, which the old hands in the house, and the writers for la petite prease, with their myriad eyes and their infinite hunger for rounding a paraerapli that may possibly bring in three fracas next morning tor the dejeuner,could not possibly have failed to observe. The possessor of the opera -glasses was a man of uncertain age, and ho looked like an Englishman. Between twenty-eight and forty and Englishman alters very little. Between forty and fifty-five he begins to age. He cannot reconcile himself to the idea that he is not as young as he use to be, and he often will persist in late revels and early mornings with young men who laugh at him, and amongst whom he too frequent- ly plays the part of Pantaloon. If I admire one man more than another, it is the man, appreciably past middle age, who will frankly admit that his time is over, and that hie remaining enjoyment in life is too look on while other people are happy. The man at whom I was now looking did not seem to me at that moment to merit any kind of sympathy. There was a good deal about him to show that he had taken his own part in man- ly pursuits. He retained the broad shoulders, the upright oarriage, andthe near, fearless eye that tell of a youth well spent. His' features, so far as I could judge, were clearly out, regular and sufficiently pleasing. The hardness abodt them may possibly have been due to his age. Beyond this I could conjecture nothing, and, in fact, by the time we had reached our hotel 1 had dismissed the mysterious stranger entirely from my thoughts, At the hotel we waited hardly a moment before I found myself being whirled to the Russian Embassy in the Faubourg St. Germain. Here was a blaze of light, a scent from a forest of tropical plants, and a start- ling lustre and brilliancy that made me for the moment forget everything else. The opera and the Opera House faded away in my imagination as if their dimensions had been those of a scanty provincial theatre. The supper at Princess Xuroff'e was beyond anything of whioh I have even dreamed. I could only langh as I pictured to myself the idea of my esteemed parent solemnly sitting down to it. Poor old man 1 his highest ambitions had never risen beyond partridges and venison when they were in season epring as are ue fie pate, toes, a bottle of port wine,, and then a atrroug glass of rum and water, and a clay Pine- Aare i Here was every luxury for whioh it is possible to ransack the rivers and the seas, the mountains or the plains. It was only May, but there wine yet immense peaches upon the table—reared, as I heard, each under its own eeparato gloms shade and at a tropical temperature. Time and ep100attem. ad to be laughed at when you had on the one hand caviare from the frozen Volga, and, on the other, prickly pears and Cus- tard apples from the Southern Arehipel• ago, Being profoundly interacted and conse- genbly attentive to the minutue around me, II also noticed that among the wince was `.4'okay, a ovine of whioh 1 had heard my father speak with bated breath se being something oven more marvellous than Cathedral pert itself. For me the total result was bewilderment. Carry yourself , back is your mind to any little home In Devonshire with its. atone roof and 1ta humble table.; rocolleot my quest in the morning to dissever if per. thence a fresh egg had been laid. One of the dishes in front of me was a pyramid of preserved fruit in out glass, and it was ornamented withstuffed humming birds poised upon their wings, In the Cathedral Oloso the prise far a stuffed tramming bird, if yon wanted one forvour bonnet, would range tram half a guinea to double that amount. here were the little creatures stuck about at random, as carelessly as in my obi home it had 'been my halite to pfaao great beechen of spring violets wherever my fancy might suggest. After ou ler there woe an adjournment to an immense salon, opening into a conserva- tory rich as the South Sea Islands thorn• selves, with tree -ferns, and palms, and a wealth of tropical orohids of ever variety of form end Dolor. The company somehow melted away, and I can only just recollect my last adieux, The Princess kissed me, but adroitly avoid- ed my own kine in return. Prince Xuroff, who looked at nie ae if he would have liked to imitate the first part of his wife's per- formance—he must have beenat least twenty years younger than Sir Henry— assured me that he had watched my hue - band's aareer.for many years. "Nature," he said, " had intended him for a diplomat- ist, but, alas 1 where was the diplomatist unless he had a wife, suoh as myself, fresh, charming, and with the supreme art of subjugating mankind ?" ' I was already beginning to get old and cunning, or,at any rate, to Melee, and I knew right well that the astul a Russian was laugh • ing heartily at my husband, and throwing compliments to myself with about as much real feeling as that with whioh you toss a piece of sugar-oandy to a child. "It has been, my dear Miriam,' said my husband, as he solemnly stood upon the hearth -rug at our hotel after our return, "a most iacceseful evening. Your own tact and good sense have proved invaluable, and I oannot help thinking that I have to- night gained information of the very high- est value whioh I shall transmit tomorrow to Downing Street by special messenger, and which will satisfy them that I fully deserve, not only the confidence already reposed in me, but even the management of negotia• Sons more difficult and intricate than those to which I must candidly own I feel myself more than equal." I would have given the world at that mo- ment to have grinned in my husband's face, if I should not have outraged all the proprie- ties by doing so. He had learned, I was confident, absolute- ly nothing ; and so far as 1 had seen, Prince Xuroff could have handled him as a village boy handles his peg-top—twisted a long string of hempen compliments round him, sent him buzzing away through the air into the ring, and have loft him there to rotate on his own axis until he fell from feebleness, or until another top struck him with its iron peg, and either splintered him into fragments, or sent him lumbering away hopelessly outside the charmed circle into the dismal limbo of failures. You may judge reasonably your estimate of other people if you make allowance for your own personal prejudice. But if you accept your own estimate of yourself, it -is somewhat late in the day for you to set up in business as a diplamatiat. TO BE.CO\TIi-UED.) TRADE STATISTICS. The Exports; and imports or Leading Na tins—I nghmd Raiding I er baa,• Mr. Giffen, the well-known British statistician, has prepared a table of compare - son of the trade of England, Germany, France, and the United States during the years 1890 to 1892, with the periods of 1884 and 1885, showing that the imports have increased in the following proportions: United States and Germany, each 33 per cent. ; England, 13 per cent. ; and Franc e per cont. The exports havealeo increased, ,teUnited States gaining 116 per cent. Germany 5 per oent., England 10, and France 14 per cent. Looking at the atatis• tics at all aides, Mr. Giffen comes to the conclusion that there is no weakening of the hold of GreatBritain in comparison with its chief competitors upon either the import or export trade ot the world, but that our depot or emporium of trade shows signs of falling off owing to the increased use of the Suez canal and the starting of new lines of steamers. Commenting upon the foregoing the Times says: "The impression regarding the supposed rapid growth of the German trade la wrong. So far as we can see, the positions of the leading countries are pretty much the same ae they were in 1885, allow- ing for the fact tltatcertain minor countries, like Japan, have developed unexpected business energy. As the exports of the United States are largely df artiolee we do not produce, the importance of their rapid increase is not much to us. It is a source of satisfaction that change comes slowly enough to give us time to adapt ourselves to the altered condition of commerce. " Execution of the First Bank -note Forger. The first forgery on the Bank of England was committed in 1758 by a clerk to a lawyer named Blies, residing in Lineoln'a. inn, London. This clerk, by name Richard Vaughan, was to some extent a " ne'er-do- well," and although a graduate of Oxford was compelled to accept a small salary, While in the 'service of Mr. Bliss, Vaughan engaged himself, with her parents' consent, to Mies Bliss, and it was agreed that as aeon es he had accumulated £500 he should marry his affianced, As the time drew near for the marriage Vaughan felt it necessary, somehow or other, to obtain the necessary amount ; and as he had not ad- vanced hie worldly position, and he had not the wealthy relations to whom he pretended he connived the notion of forging notes to the amount of £500. This he succeeded in doing, and about three weeks before the appointed wedding day he showed his sweetheart what he said was twelve 1120 note! as a first instalment of the stipulated cum. By some means Mr. Bliss obtained possession of the forgeries, and Vaughan was arreeted. At hie trial he protested that he had no other intention than that of deoeiving his sweetheart and her parents,' but it was proved that he had tried to get some of them cashed. He was found guilty, and was executed at Tyburn on May 1, 1758• The Shearing Habit. Hostess—"Mozart, you know, lived in poverty, died in want, and was buried in the potter's field. How do you account for that ?" Prof, Thumpkowaki—" I fear mo be vent too often to dose Harper shops," ROUND THE WHOLE WORLD WBAT IS GOING ON IN THE FOUR CORNERS OF THE GLOBE, 4)11 refill New World Events. or Interest ulrrorticicd ilrlefly--Interesting Iran - netting's or Recent )►file, The Empress of 1$noslo's physician when in attendance upon his Imperial patient re. olives a fee of $350 a day, Safety matohea that can be used without a box are to be placed on the English mar- ket by a German invenbor, The Princess Larose and the Marquis of. Lorne travel tnuoh ineognito, assuming the pities of Lord and Lady Sandridge. The sulban has a right royal terror of small.pox,and he is very partioular 10 have the household thoroughly vacetnated. Tho late Mr. Edward Stanhope bequeath- ed his estate to hie wife, with Colonel Eger- ton (her brother) and Earl Stanhope as trustees, The Queen of Greene is president of a sisterhood devoted to the reformation of ariminale, and she personally visits prison- ers. In Siam the flrab wife may be divorced, but San not be Bold ; the other wives may be both divorced and sold. Ireland has the greatest number of un- married women between 15 and 46 of any country fn Cbriatendom. There are several factories in India and one, at least, in Europe, that at Mannheim, Germany, where butter is made from coma - nuts. Mlle, Rapin, the armless artist who drew with her feet the pastel of the Duchene of York, le a young Genavoiee of ram intelli- gence. The projected Canadian -Australian cable will be 6,244 miles long, and cost $7,000,. 000, 1111 does not touch the Fiji Islands or New Zealand. France has a ()errancy of £178,000,000 gold, £150,000,000 silver, 1:115,000,000, pinaphaebirfntantall. £443,000,000, or £18.9 per Dogekin, tanned by a new eleotrieal pro mess, whereby it retains the utmostflexibil- ity, is now the favorite wear for ladies' boots is Paris. The latest statistics give the number of Roman Catholics in the world as 230,866,• 633;; Protestants, 143,237,625; Greek Cath- olice, 93,016,000. The ox -Empresa Eugenie of France is the godmother of 3,834 French children who were born on March 15, 1856, the day of the birth of her sou. A silken prayer book has been woven ab Lyons, in France, the completion of which has taken three years. The prayers are not printed but woven. The queen of Italy has founded a society for the reforming of ragged beggar child- ren, who are to be taken from the streets and taught some useful trade, The privilege of having danced with the "first gentleman in Europe" (George IV.) is claimed by an old lady,pMrs. Stewart, living in a private alms -house. In view of the frequency of such acci- dents to him there is a popular superstition in Germany that the Kaiser will meet his death through a carriage accident Signor Giolitti, an Italian deputy, wants to straighten the national finances of that country by imposing a tax on beards. The Austrian poor law gives every man 60 years old the right to a pension equal to one-third of the amount per day which he had earned during his working hours. The bones of the whales that the German Kaiser slaughtered in the North Sea last summer are to be turned into furniture for the Norwegian boathouse, at Pots dam. Mme. Sarah Grand, the celebrated author- ess, has a charming personality. Her refln• ed manners and low sweet voice are pecule. iarly attractive. She lives near London. The Princess of Wales hoe a collection of laces valued at £50,000. The nucleus ie a remarkable piece given her by the King of the Belgians at the time of her rnarriage, valued £11,000. Five=sixtha of all the girls who went into domestic [service in London lest year had never heard of a toothbrush. Examination also showed that but 707 school children oub of 4,000 had sound teeth. The recent visit of the Duke and Duchess of York to Edinburgh cost nearly £000, to- ward which only about £350 has been sub- scribed by the citizens and the balane will have to be paid out ot the rates. A bazaar, under the patronage of the Queen and other members of the Royal family, will be held at Crathie in August in aid of the fund for rebuilding the pariah church. Princess Beatrice will preside at one of the stalls. The Duke and Duchess of Fife are passion- ately fond of dogs, and when they travel they alwsys take several canine pets with them. The Duke is most fond of collies and Scotch terriers, and the Duchess of fox terriers and pugs. Mme. Carnot, the wife of the President of the French Republic, is brilliantly educat- ed, speaks English fluently, and keeps her- self well informed upon such European politics as is likely to have any influence upon the destinies of France. Young King Alexander of Servia, who at 17 has seized the reigns of government, is a broad shouldered boy of medium height, rather handsome and unusually intelligent. He is energetic and self willed, and for his years unpleasantly cynical. In Malaysia is apopulation of 60,000,000, MAY 25, 1894 mostly Mohammedan Malays, The British and loroign Bible 5oeiety has seven Eno. ;. peen colportours at work and twssby,flvo who are natives. At Singapore alone Bibles are furnished in torty.fhve languages. The tallest company of soldiers' in the British army 'belongs to the Scots Guards, This oomprisosninety men, averaging 0 feet, 2l, !nobles, twelve of them etandingo tee their °cooking fest, 0' feet 4 inches, and one 0 teob 700 inohfact,es, Not a man of the ninety is under The Prinoees of Wales has been studying art rather seriously at Copenhagen, leaving taken lessons from both an English and a Dutch painter, Her two daughters take great pride in decorating their own rooms. and own a collection of bibelot@ from ail parts of the world. A Turin jeweler has made a tiny boab ,formed of a single pearl. Ile Bail is to be beaten gold studded with diatnondo, and the biunaoleliglit at its prow is a perfeob .ruby, An emerald serves as a rudder, and its stand is a slab of ivory, It weighs lees than half an ounce. Its prig° is £4,000. The rate ofmortality in London is shown by a recent report to have steadily decreased with the introduction and perfection of ade- quate means of disposing of the sewage of the city. At the end ot the eighteenth cen- tury the annual average mortality, was esti- mated at 50 per 1,000, and in 1892 it had dropped to 19.1 per 1,000. ANNUAL REVIEW. The. Queen at Aldershot—TWeIs'a Thou- sand Troupe Made a Pine Display.. A London despatch Gaye v—The Queen, accompanied by the 'Prince of Wales and the Duke of Cambridge, journeyed to Aldershot this afternoon to witness the annual review of the troops on Laflan's plain. They wore received with .appropri- ate ceremony by Gen. Sic Heavers H Bul- ler, Sir` Henry Evelyn Wood, and Sir. Francis Wallace Grenfell. The weather was superb,and the evolutions of the troops perfect. Twelve thousand troops, under the command of H.R. 11• the .Duke of Con- naught, marched peat the reviewing stand. The horse artillery came first, and in the order named followed the cavalry, militia, and marines, afterwards the Infantry bri- gades marched in column, the mounted troops trotted and galloped past the re- viewing stand. The lines were then formed, and the troops advanced in front of her Majesty in review order, and gave the royal salute. The Queen presented the Queen's cup to the Warwick regiment, the winners of the inter -regiment shooting match of 1893. DASHED TO DEATH 'AT NIAGARA. yell a Hundred Peat -lila Brains Dashed Out, Ills Sleek Arms and. Legs Broken. Frank Ellie, 15, met a terrible death at Niagara Falls the other afternoon. The lad, with another named Cole, was explor- ing for a new path to the water's edge from the top of the precipice, Young Ellis, to make a survey below the precipice, ' placed sue foot on a limb of a tree that hung over. He looked clown and as his full weight came on the limb it gave way and he was dashed on the rocks about 100 feet below. The body was found terribly mangled, his brains being dashed out, hie neck, both arms and legs being broken and one side of the face being crushed in. 4 ✓ )ty o � � o 1111.CEP.MERRETT Toronto, Ontario. As Well as Ever After Taking Hood's Sarsaparilla Cured of a Serious Disease. "1 was suffering from what is known as Bright's disease for five years, and for days ate time I have been unable to straighten myself up. I was in battier three weeks; during that time I had leeches applied and derived no bene at. Seeing Itood's Sarsaparilla advertised it the papers I decided to try a bottle. I foulHOOD■S Sarsaparilla tz: , CURES relief before I had finished taking half of a bob tie. I gat so much help from taking thefirst bottle that I decided to try another, and since taking the second bottle. I feel as well as ever I did in my life." ono. Mnciorr, Toronto, Ont. Hood's Plies are prompt and efficient, yet easy of action. Sold by all druggists. 180. !THE ONLY ONE IN THE WORLD .. That will bunt R flM WOOD and COAL • Equally We ll... e OXFOD is :Mil doit:: •r- Has r-ilas the Largest dlven. IS A FARI'11R'S -STOVE Is Everybody's Cook Stove. see it. • THE OXFOt$D'• • OIL GAS COOK STOVE without wick Makes and Burns Its Own as ft From Common Coal Oil. tfra NO DIRT, NO HEAT IN THE KITCHEN. Cooks a Family Dinner for Two Cents.. 0-i The GURNEY FOUNDRY 1Or, La, TORONTO, !is"