The Huron News-Record, 1892-01-13, Page 7elm -Record
et4re1te3 '
til 'tom 18 Tito 11$92'+,
1,•
their holee'r, eeeuMsd' the Seine Ott,
tache vie the first, and were evident..
'ly charmed.
"BY *levet 1)(191. they:csino out
drovoe, auld sit v that the vicinity,
way alive with, 'them, long oxo.
r•XR
perienoe With these',' reptiles. hada.
�.,I1x1,, •
EBt ts,O IVI't'l-,n,yrr1,'
•, .e,afibtifo,Ttfnn 1 I't
A '14441 ONPPQ
d -`t . r
. �p e ,td..lco one:. (lute,:
I d iia° a p
t t , lGrpntit puncher, :As:gha roll
. a htgarette with, •et deftness born
A a %.9'pg:preatiaet and tatting a few
rrtiwiiJettte- e f
d, htms 1. co"wfortAbly
' LA :11ie sect. . .
. Xn ox cation* • ' l ako
... a• wg ,
`. - kT
tnalree ;gine .Ecol ciuger, when.
' ar..it,`•and•.if' ye 'ffllo.we
u." d., like, toy hear •it' .I: will tel
'1t e'w§re`on "the oaetevn• bound
;• train 'Ott;,tie;.;) s itoba'Road.,lt few
Miles Ontof Benton, and.,a sllgh
saottaiptau,e,of„a few, days'previous
>itt the city had `q';'iokly passed into
la feelipg";of 4o'un eahip,that is in-
herent in eyery luau; who has lived
aUy" `length ;;of time in the 3Vost,
nay# a:,ivtitor in the Spokane Citron-
4QZO.. My 'newly nlade" friend has
been ,' for '- Many years a " cow-
punCli'erl"`'lina° had left that huei-
• usss as tlio ooturUry'1iad rapidly eel-
' t.1,04 'µp and,. was now, running a
!land'"-of.shoifp,:-on the 'Malicia River,
in ,North, Montan°a; Ho was on his
way'eaat to, see his People and have
4.good titne,'and as ho chatted in a
blteozyt wholesome way that was
"c'hart i lig, -Y" filled my memory
`with somo.of hie yarns, and this, I
'think; was the most striking of
sttrein:all', .
"I aea6 working for the J. Y. out -
'fit," • he bogey, ` "and we had just
.gone ,.on'the 'epring round -up, and
were• working on the Son River
range. We were camped this day of
any adventure at'Whielcy Brown's,'
`.right; =under" Square butte, on the
4. ''4rld Stage road to Helena and a few
-.billed from Fort Shaw and tho Sun
'$iver`croyeins,` There was a good
spring:there.which Brown used in
exrrigating hie ranch, .and the round-
up always;`camped at that place a
ly( ay or` two while the surrounding
Feountry ;wao` worked. Our horse-
-herder`was sick, and each outfit had
Theca' •furniehing a man to herd as
their'turn, came. ; This day it was
ours;,.a%�d';,I''Wae the man. I took
the 'handl, -From the night harder
about.`$.30 bathe morning, and after
'.ithe -bops, had 'caught their horses
und Int` them feed around the spring
awhile,so -that all could drink if
:.they wished , and then drove them
`.about half'a mile -down where the
-grass was, better.
"It was a•lovely day in the latter
p
it of May, sun juet warm enough
to aloe a fellow feel lazy, and see -
tit that, _;ll ' the band had settled
' -de n. _ to feed and none were root-
:less- t got -off my.horse, and taking
-off the bridl:1dave him a chance to
fill up.' -. Then I sat down, half re-
clining .on my arm, so that I could
este every; horse and the whole ooun-
try before me. Tho ground that I
eooculated was nearly the : highest
point around, and the view was a
glorious ono. To the east miles
' away lay the Belt mountains, further
• on tha`Little,.Rockies; to the north
ii good '150 miles were the Sweet
'!:(`areas hills, the three buttes loom;
up bright"and distinct in that
clear atmosphere, while back of me
..-to 'the !vest were the mighty Rocky
anouritaine, with plenty of snow .on
thelr`.lofty heights, dotted here' and
there with patches of timber that in
contrast with their snowy back-.
.ground looked almost purple. Tho
title and plains were covered with
nature"e bright carpet, relieved with
frequent dashes of early wild
flowers, as though sown by the
<, hind of the master gardener to
,;prove his wonderful skill in malting
this wilderness of seven months a
paradioe :during five, I could mark
' • the course of its black banks, 'where
the mighty Miseotfri rolls down to
theaea,''and in my mind I followed
this greatest of rivers down,' down
t housands of miles to the sea and
up the Coast where my little ones
lived,.. and boys I got—melan-
-Choly, so taking out a email mouth
organ or harmonica, which instru-
• neat in those days was a great fav-
orite among cowpunchers, 1 began
to play.
""I have heard some play on this
instrument who would make a pro-
fessional uneasy for his laurels. I
watt a fairly good performer, and be-
ing in, as I said, a tender mood, I
gave vent to my feelings in 'Home,
Sweet Home.' Then I went into
what I considered my masterpiece,
beginning 'Hear me, .Norma.' I
played softly and slowly, and had
got to 'At thy ,fest behold,' and
*vh'. the boys always called for—
tlia ie, when I hoard a low rattl-
ing,
lookingdown a fe
` Y w
'Ibg, .and feet
below mo I saw a largo rattlesnake
colied,.°with his head slowly eway-
ing to and fro; and evidently enjoy-
ing the music. `
� 0' "Ah,- 'ha l thought I, here's a
take that appreciates operatic
ini'sio. And. as I had oflon read of
the 'power music° is supposed to
have over snakes of 'all kinds I de-
t,`srmiiied .. to keep on playing and
see what it would do,. ad I finished
'Norma' and went over it again;
'but this' snake was soon joined by
otherai.'who, at they crawled out of
ix ado ine iaetlgelble to fear of them,
and worked up `Fay tilo novelty„Af
n the thing'and the egaitoment of 805..
i'hg an wapy of',these powerful de,
eta'oyors eubjegi) to Guy will, I forgot
, all, about my personal safety and.
kept on playing, and enjoying
onceI �sto ed,; and 'the -be n
pp � ,gP
angry ,rattling and a quick disap
eareneo of teeny, ,but they subsid;±
s•
ed and. all came 'back back' as,
sutnod... I ,gave; them aire.front the
:,Bohemian ir1' varied •.with. Osl
1 "Devire Dream, ifrs, llioLeod'e.
Reel,' and'lhe Girt Irma: Behind
Me,' and they readily responded
with their swaying heads to the
diferent time. But the tune that
seemed to please them most was
the 'Suwaueo River,' and one big
fellow in particular, on whom I
counted twelve rattles, got so Oh.
cited
.-
cited that -his leaps and twists had
brought him within a few feet of
where I sat.. Thea ho suddenly
quieted down and his head just bare-
ly came down above' hie coil, while
his tail slowly rattled in time with
the music.
"Then I caught his gaze - and,
boys, I was fairly fascinated by the
look I saw there. I believe this
talk of snakes charming people to
be all fancy but in the eyes of this
rattler that were fastened on mine
there was s'tch a wicked, cold,
devilish, fiendish stare that 1 fairly
shivered, and moved my band
around to get my pistol to take a shot
at him. I was sitting up now,
with my back almost touching a
small ridge of rocks. Still keeping
my harp in my left hand, I was on
the point of pulling my gun from
the scabbard when a low, intense
voice a few yards behind me eaid:
"Don't move, Jim, for God's sake,
and keep on playing. There's a
big rattler within six inches of your
nock and another close to your
hand. Keep on playing until the
boys come up. I'm all alone and
can't help you."
"I knew the voice to be that of
my boss, Wallace, and from its
tones I was in great danger, and for
a moment I faltered, and in that
moment I could feel the cold body
of the snake as it came in contact
with my hand; but, although I felt
like yelling and jumping up, I
knew that would mean death, for
quicker than any living thing ex-
cepting- the cat, is the movement of
a rattle snake as it strikes.
"So I sat still and kept on play-
ing the `Suwanee River,' where I
heartily wished I was. Every few
seconds—they eeemed years to me
—Wallace would whisper, 'Keep
up your nerve, old man, the boys
are `almost here. - There's lots of
whisky in camp if you're bitten.
Don't stop playing or you're a
goner,' and other cheerful words, at
which, serious as the occasion was,
I almost felt like laughing, so
wrought up was I.
"Still I kept up the 'Suwanee
River.' My tongue got dry and my
lips almost_ refused to ebape the
notes. On I kept until the•'Suwa-
nee River' had run into a perfect
muddle of extemporizing, the like
of which no one ever heard before
from a rhouth organ. I tried to
,get -back on -to some air I°knew 'but"
although I know my life depended
upon keeping the snakes quiet by
the music, I could not remember a
single thing, and had reaehed the
state when all Icould bring out of
the harp was the noise made as I
drew and repelled my breath.
"As the terrible discord reached
the snakes a change came over
them, and I could see my big
enemy in front preparing to strike
and heard the one at my hand rat-
tle ominously, when a low 'Now,
boys,' and a:deafening report be-
hind me came and I saw the big
one in front part company with ite
head, and then I fainted and knew
nothing more till I felt something
red hot going down my throat and
came to to find my head supported
on Wallace'e knee, and one of the
boys pouring whisky into me out of
a pint sup, and the bodies of a half
dozen snakes lay wiggling close
by: o-
'The fellow by° my hand had
bitten mo, but as I drank about
three pints of ranch whisky the two
poisons had a fight for it -and
whisky came out ahead, I was
sick for a couple of days, but felt
no other bad effects from the bite.
Here it is on my thumb. I have
never tried to charm any more rat-
tlesnakes, and the sound of 'Suwa-
nee River' gives me the horrors."—
Sara Francisco Chronicle.
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE.
Edward Hanlan, Champion Oarsman ;
says : 'Tor muscular paine, in the
limbo, I have found St. Jaoobe Oil a re-
liable remedy. Its resulte are the most
beneficial, and I hove pleasure in recom-
mending it from personal exporienoe."
The best anodyne and expectorant for
the care of oelds and coughs and all
throat, lung, and bronchial troubles, is,
undoubtedly, Ayer's Cherry Pectoral.
As your druggist for it, and at the same
time. for Ayer's Almanac, whioh la free
to all.
c
Garte "Nes
tw. re two cbt4d la, like these orrery
it beeutrd set
Iov$ct as fleetly .fwenlyn. a grave
Ag lrvoe'a deep uureet.
They Were but phildrens-.jjoyottr, tree,
And I thought tea barna to toil
" 0fthe 'sten* Of eternal, fatr►e'ot'sang
.
,that the pew.( tint? aQ .well,"
BO time we O4 they'bett'ariie
New dew's* In.,wouaan's Yeti
And l saw th+ltr eyes had'a,dee er'l1ght,
And thole', gnianeele,tgtror gt't'yP;
fled, Bva *"bona"r' a figwel+•of gold
A flower to sun the night
But Gweulyu; air the springsBrst Moon
That makes the end -heart -light
Ana light an4 gl d. with wondrous love
My pad heart quickly grew,
And the merry sweet sprang and youth
.. 1~7a 1e all,old things seem, new,
And yet a little while, and then—
And then the end was point: +
,.And 0wenlyn'n was the way of light, -
And mine was the way of,$1oom,
TRAPPING WIDOW ROSE, ..
Whereas there be many who, from the
very lack of well -tondo and beneficent,
uncles, are in great straits and know not
whither to look for assistance, and
Whereas, we ere blessed with abundance,.
and have aothingr in particular to do,
Resolved; 1, That we adopt the world as
a Nephew, for the purpose of.rendering,
collectively, an Uncles care to such as do
most sorely need the same, etc.
The above is an extract from the Consti-
tution of the Uncle's Club of New York.
The club was composed of twoscore of
the jolliest old jolly fellows, —practical
men, men of leisure, favorites of fortune,
but all, practical. They believed that noth-
ing in the world was without its use, if one
only chose to use it,
Having contemplated human affliction
from this point of view they found it quali-
fied to afford amusement and gratification
to the club, and treated it accordingly.
Once a week they met, to amuse them-
selves with the woes of others. Once a
week they dined together royally—the
Unelea--in luxurious rooms.
The business ofethe club was done after
dinner.
In a cloud of smoke the secretary read
communications from members.
When‘a member found a man in distress,
debt, hard luck, that man, deserving or
not, was reported to the Uncles.
And as the secretary read, pictures of
sorrow and trouble drawn in the light and
shade of humor and pathos, floated in the
fragrant smoke-cloud—pictures that took
richer hues and warmer tints from the
club's good wine, that went merrily round
the while.
Then when the Uncle's hearts were warm
with good cheer, chock were drawn and
signed, ways and means considered, com-
mittees appointed, and, ere the next meet-
ing, all the aforesaid troubles were as far
as possible relieved—many turned to posi-
tive rejooing.
With infinite tact and delicacy the work°
was done, men too proud to take help from
their own brothers would find their diffi-
culties, as it seemed, miraculously removed.
Debts would suddenly be paid, favorite
plans (almost given up for sheer hopeless-
ness and discouragement) would become
easy of accomplishment, a poor man strug-
gling with misfortune would find the foe
yielding when it had seemed strongest.
After those reports had been read and
disposed of, cattle the reports of commit-
tees of the previous week, and the Un-
cles chuckled and roared with mirth and
satisfaction, as they heard how Trotter had
looked when the bills one after another
came—all reeeipted—to his office, or. how.
Downes had; congratulated himself on the
consummate ability with which he had
managed his last deal, or how old Mas.
Murphy, on her knees, had thanked St.
Bridget for "puttin' a new pfig in the sty
in me absince, an' the ould wan sould for
Tint," --all being in fact duo to the timely
help of the merry Uncles.
And if they met with iltgratitude here
and there (for some people will be ungrate-
ful on general priuciples, even though they
know not to whom they shall be so), they
laughed the louder; after all they had done
it for their own amusement. So they
dined, and the gods were their guests.
Wit and Art were there, and Wisdom,
and free -hearted Mirth.
And hand in hand with Bacchus in his
merriest snood carte the Chtistiau Graces
—for Bacchus in good company is no pot -
house deity but an inspiring influence—and
the Graces disdain not the feasts of men of
And the secretary �rvead as follows :
S
" EOieOMraH, Nov. 16.
"DEAR OLD Bova,—I. don't know when
this letter will roach you, for the snow, in
spite of the beautiful•climate attributed to
the Puget Sound forests, is four feet deep
on the trail, and we are seventeen good
miles—bad miles, I mean—eleven • by land
six by water, from the post office, and the
storm that's smashing through the tops of
the big trees, three hundred feet overhead,
means more snow; and mord' snow means a
flooded trail for several days after the first
thaw, for the Skokomish drains a large part
of the east side of the Olympic Range, and
is a sort of wet tornado when it rises.
"It's lonely here, awfully lonely, in the
shadow of these huge mountains among the
white columns of the trees—white because
the snow has clung ,to the moss and they
loop like enormous marble pillars, holding
up the mass of storm -clouds. In fact, it's
like a gigantic cemetery, which makes it
semi-torri-fic. It is so lonely that the snor-
ing of Jackson in the next room (for this
cabin has two whole rooms in it), snoring,
which under ordinary circumstance would
support a plea in justification of homicide—
is here a welcome and companionable sound.
And, speaking of Jackson, he's the Object
ofaidsletter. -If there ever was an'unfoi-=-
tunate wretch, it's Jackson. 1 recommend
him unhesitatingly for adoption, on the fol-
lowing grounds: Jackson is deeply -s --but the
less said about that, the more (which means
that the less I say about it now, the more
I shall by and by). To begin with, Jackson
is ,the best shot in the Shokomislr Bot-
tom, and a skilful trapper. He is ter-
ribly hard up; for the game has all
gond down to the coast on account of the
inclemency, to put it gently, of the win•
ter, Jackson—`Three-.Fingered Jackson,'
we call him, for obvious causes—would go
there also, if it were not that he has good
reason of his owf—and some one else's—
for staying here, and he can't even go off to
work in a logging camp, which is the
settler's usual resource when fish and game
give out.
"He is a thoroughly good fellow when
sober; and as the heavy snow caught him
at the bottom of bottle, and as we have
been snowed up over sinoc—living, by the
way on salt bear, which I don't like—he's
been sober for some time. And even when
it't otherwise he', not bad.
"Every day he takes his rifle and goes
out. -So do I. And sometimes he brings
home a bit of game, but it doesn't last
long, and then we fall back on salt bear,
of which there seems to be an unfailing
supply.
Every day ho goes the round of his
treps, and bis invariable answer when asked
alboe bl� tltl eeentfit r+f, What th,�alttieboy
1i11oG alt,
i",l'he,itttlo bey lu t uQot's% h legendary
and proverbial; end is sltklioeeel to have
Sb' °?
at "nptlllu'« r:
"� 4 te to^ the, reason of Jtro!i'sorts rltay b
bare, the Widow 1%s) islreeponitble. .,,
pretty, ;little woman of about twenty-prre,
"with two gbildren, wba would be the deathof !Host methors, left to take care of herself'
Rand hhueembai4n4 twhLa.bklae
inktd wiinlderohgsigacttpp
year and ti half scot by a i4elline tree, flee
little +ane? eaervhioheshe'icae a in p. tri r o - e'
_ p r
is about a railexlewn the x'tyer from. here..
.Jackson -;goes steer every,; :day (et help her,
Milk the cows, get in wood, eto., end her
lonlinefie and .utter helplessness $m c¢se' of
accidentkeep him from going away. Be.
.$ides, a*1 I. was saying When internipted,;
Jackspl)<la deeply, emitter; with the'lady.
a
S hi
ii
knotee it, btdoesy't oecoura hiii utl-
vauces, because 1 e'nbver • Makes any' and/ ,
I (;B ink, fo R n4; othttt `reueoii..,:,, ;
• I hasn't got,two hits. 10• m auto''
n ,
soya. Ja,pkson, `that's what I ',ain't.. And
she's get a . goad `little , ranch es ever you
'see, and lq won't be called no fortaua-
hunter by no man. If I could just lay
up A bit-- but how can I leave her sit' thorn
two kid$stay •all �alone iii this bit o' timber,
an' go off toget work? That's what? , .And
she" Ain't a:owliero else to go to,' Iii fact
Jacksoh is too proud•-tormarry Mrs. Rose,
bringhe can give her as good as oho
"Boys, the candidate for your avuncular
protgetion needs it, and, which is rare, de-
serves it. •
"If we can manage toad him up
injuring that same pride of his, and it don't
take much in the woods here to make a
rich than, he'll have no scruples about ask-
ing the Widow Rose.
Thou—unless I'm greatly mistaken in
the lady's feelings—the children will -have
a father, and the helpless women a husband,
and Jackson will have all he wants in this
world, and, counting the children, perhaps
a 'little more.
"If we can only get him into possession
of a small sum-, he'll marry the girl at once,
and there will bo joy on the banks of the
Skokomish. I hope to hear from you soon-
er or later, and will do all in my power to
further any good turns you may care to do
Jackson. (It he knew I had written this,
I'd'have to sleep in a snowdrift.)
"Your obedient servant, J. M. P. '
"To the Uncles, at the Uncles' Club,
N.Y. City."
As the secretary fell comfortably baok in
his chair, there arose a murmur of appro-
bation.
Ono of the best cases the Uncles had met -
with for some time.
Moved and seconded that J. M. P. be
fined for the pun on cemetery—amount to
be left to hie own conscience, and to be ex-
pended as he should see fit for the benefit
of Jackson. Carried.
Moved and seconded tha1-Three-Fingered
Jackson of Skokomish, and the Widow
Rose of Skokomish be formally adopted,
and that a fund bq'sent to J. M. P. for the
purpose of enabling him to extend the Avun-
cular Protection to the Nephew and Niece
so adopted.
Carried unanimously, with acclamation. _
And far into the right the Uncles laughed
and sang and chatted, and by and by they
rolled away to home and bed.
CHAPTER II.
There had been a flood on the Skoko-
mish. A hundred mountains had poured
the wash of their snow -clad sides with its
canons and the river had overleaped its
bounds and swept the snow froin the trail
and the low land. Now, receding again it
had left the banks clear, but still roared
lustily between its rocky walls, and thun-,
dered a great peal of angry laughter to the
mountains," and the mountains thundered
back and called one to another with re-
sounding voice*, and the, forests shook with
their mirth.
...Well up the river trail walked the
Widow Rose, behind her with a bag now
nearly emy, the representative of the
Uncle's Clu�
"Did you know that Jackson couldn't
ye
lad away froni you ?" he was saying to etre
"Here's the best trap.but one," said she.
"Now, truly, Mrs. Rose," said he, "don't
you think he's a aplendid fellow ? You
Can't find a better man nor a stronger in all
Washington—and mighty few bigger—and
then see how he's stayed right here and
looked after you and the children this
winter—"
'Well, if he can't live away from me, as
you were sayin' how can he help livin'
here? I ain't nowhere else," said the
Widow Rose. "And as for bein' a fine
man, he may be all you say—and a good
deal more—and hi -is the best shot in Mason j
County, card 'the beet-liearted (Mari in or out
of it, maybe ; but as for me likin' him, ho
ain't nevn asked me to, and I've no use for
a man as :ain't say what he means. And if
he's as good a feller as you said, he'd do as
much for any woman as he has for me, so
that don't prove not•hin'."
"Don't you know he's afraid to ask you
because he has nothing, and you have a
ranch, and he thinks it would seem—"
"Oh, bother 1" said she ; "these things
don't count, an' if he had plain sense he'd
know that much."
"Why won't you make it easy for him in
some way?" said the Uncle pleadingly.
"Give him a good chance to speak, just to
see what he'll say," he added, offering as
strong an induceinent as he could to the
feminine mind.
"This," said the Widow Rose, agnin, "is
the last trap hut one. You can put that
parcel in this one, an' watch from that
holler stump—au' 1'11 do on to the next,
which it ai.,'t fur off, with the rest o' ycr
things there, an' join ye when he's gone
back. It's about time he came along -so
get a move on."
So saying she took the bag and went on.
He took from his pocket a fat envelope
marked :
" Three -Fingered Jackson,
+From his affectionate Uncles,"
snapped the trap on one of its corners, and
hid in the stump.
About this time an immensely tall fellow,
broad and sinewy, with his rifle on his
shoulder, wee coming up the trail.
"Looks like somethin' had been there,"
said he reflectively. "Can't see no tracks
though—snow's washed off and the' trail
froze. '
Then he stopped to look at his first trap.
"Sprung," said he, "an' by all that's
mighty—what kinder bird is that ? Well,
now, that'll make Hatty an' the kidsagood
dinner, but I never see no turkey here be-
fore." Stopping at the next trap he was
further surprised to find a sucking pig in
splendid order. "Bald-headed bolonon's
beard 1" said lie ; "there's a hen an' pig
ranch 1 rope loose up en the mountains Borne
place. But here's this feller already
butchered an"ready for pork. Well, some
one's a-playin' it on rte, an' it can't be
helped, an' I'm 'bilged to him. It's that
feller from the Eaet—that's what it is, au'
I don't know where he's gone, nor where
his home is—an' he left here this mornin'
early. Well—God lakes him—he always
was a good fellow, only he didn't' know
much," '
The next trap had captured a beautiful
Winchester --tile result, together with a belt
and much ammunition, of J. M. P's. fine ;
the next, a fine Smith and Wesson ; the
next, a good knife.
r4'.t'lie felliite"it a" tallItaelefiinetniatit rllwl '
Neu, nen*.if' hat4 .offetrwd toglese, mostletwe
• blugs,atny ether way; f wouidn't a, took.
ern 1 ,butleondn' !n attk trap*.it !metas dif.
ferent' *omow1 all a , e w.w. good feller"„
A fur pap Wee lit the neettr trap, and 'AA,
Pa put it on without:04%4mur,;. The ,lent.
co}ttained an eiivelppe seals;("; •
"Theee•I'ingeted Tacitddp,'
"„Vroan his aifeetlonate`Ileol,r:'"'
A apor ii ids enol; airetlter• ertyelilne, .•
now all mewl* these preeeets.
"Th t wa, she: U,nptq's Club" .of New
Yorks el
.k,,�tr torah acknoerled' e:ae'�n r••b.
loved Nephew, pro• tern:;. hree*p' erect
,'aoltspn of .Skokoineiln aufl beg, ,bun to
accept the, eaolpsed es a +nark of Four
wi%etten �'
Vile 'Was sealed with the sealef thel7ltele''e
Club --an ant dreeeed in neesculltie; Attire
and it Was eigued; with forty names. .kind.
the, inner envelope eeettained u roll of; bills,
ere thousand dollars,-4for tho,TJncles did
well by their edeptell, ^d'(iat sunt is a large
'fprtuu'g •on the SkOkptnish. The Uncle
watched from the stump. "Jackson was
staggered for a moment. Then he Sat down
on the trail and road .the letter over and
over, Then he- counted, th,e roll of hills.
Ile opened his mouth., and. shut it again.
At last he said:. •-
"Well, I never knew I had no Uncles—
hut as this here/fine says, I" might know it
now -.-by these presents!" and he went on;
up the trail. '
The Uncle crept from the stump, and fol-
lowed stealthily, at sou,.o distance. Pres-
ently the trapper stopped, befor'o a great
rock whose base wassurrounded with
brush.
Man is never satisfied. The more you
give him, the more he wants.
"Now comes the last trap," said Jackson.
"I wish that I might find Hatty in it --
seems like I could ask her, now."
,The Uncle heard a rustle in the brush,
and the aharp snap of a sprung bear -trap.
" Bear," said Jackson ; and forgetting
for the moment the fruits of his adoption,
Hatty—all but the game—sprang to the
rock, and,stopped. Tho Uncle crept after
him and peered through the leafless bushes.
Under the rock was as pretty a grotto as a
nymph of ice and winter could wish for a
home. Tim ledge overhung; and long,
thick icicles like supporting -pillars. reached
the ground on either side. From the top.
and front, where a cleft gave them a
place, hung ferns and grasaos, frozen into
a thick fringe of ice. In this cave atgod
the Widow Rose, cheeks flushed, eyes
bright with excitement, hat off, and. her
thick hair torn from its restraining ribbon
by the bushes, falling iii rich dark masses
to her knees. 'Beside the grotto, open-
mouthed, wide•eyed, astonished beyond the
usual power of man to be astonished, stood
Jackson, his rifle at his feet, his hand halt -
lifted, still and dumb with amazement.
"Well, you big booby, can't you help a
lady off your bear -Crap, or ain't you got nc
manners? or are you too stuck on yourself in
your new hat to think of anythin' else?
He'e I am caught in your horrid old trap,
an' my fingers too numb to do anything and
I can't get my feet on the springs."
Jackson grasped the situation --and the
woman. The Uncle, satisfied and unwil-
ling to intrude, departed by stealth'
and took the trail for Hoodsport,--neat
Skoktimish, where his „baggage awaited
him. At the next meeting bnt one of
the Uncles' Club, ho reported in person,
and gained several pounds in weight. Aa
to the couple on the Skokomish, ere Hatty's
skirt was free from the trap, her fingers
were no longer numb, and Three -Fingered
Jackson had promise of happiness. And the
two coming home along the trail met the
parson from the Reservation, who had come
over at once on the Unole's representations.
When the news was 'received, there was
mirth at the Uncle's Club, and the health
of the Jackson's was drunk thrice over.
"Not forgetting the lads, gentlemen,"
said the president, as an excuse for another.
Small Change.
There are 40,000 Irish in Liverpool.
The word lady literally means loaf -
giver.
A bee does not weigh the 100th part of
an ounce.
is Sneezing was onoo thought to be a sign
of good luck.
There are nine kilted battalions in the
British army.
Blotting paper ie made of cotton raga
boiled in soda.
The profits of the Suez Canal exceed
$7,500,000 yearly.
There are thirty-eight letters ietho Rus-
sian alphabet.
Tho Cunard Line of steainshipl employs
over 11,000 hands.'
-Forty-eight-different-languages are said
:.to be spoken in Mexico.
Sixteen tons of steel pens are exported
from Birmingham weekly.
A recruiting sergeant says that few mon
have legs of equal lehgth.
From le to 2 bushels of wheat are requir-
ed to plant an acro of land.
An English Ministry lasts on an average
for three and a quarter yawns.
English manufacturers sell every year
over 5,000,000 hats in the Parisauarkot.
A London omnibus traverses about
eighty miles a day, and earns $80 a week.
A ship described as A 1 Lloyd's means
"the best of hulls -with the best of furni-
ture."
A Women's Query.
I am a. woman,
Therefore to be wooed;
A woman',
Therefore to be won;
A woman,
Thereafter—ah, who knows
What smiles or tears,
What hopes or fears,
What love or hate,
What divine fate
Shall crown the head
Of woman weed and won,and wed?
Deserved a Medal.
Mr. Richard Redgrave, the artist, records
in his diary this amusing recommendation
from an Irishman appointed to examine
students competing for medals :
I should also recommend Margaret —
for a reward. Being very young, she nat-
urally missed the point of all the questions
in the papers, but her answers were do
ladylike that I think the medal should be
given to her.
Round the Republic.
A typical wanderer has stopped tempor-
arily at Dallas. IIe has travelled for four-
teen years, crossed the country from New
York to San Francisco, worked his way
through South America, and has been a
fireman, a policeman, a railroad man, a
sport, a drummer and a soldier. He says
the world has used him pretty well so far,
and that he intends to wander around until
he dies.
Mew Through a Winnow.
A large hawk a few days ago in Creag-
erstown, Va., flow through a large window
with a chicken in its talons, breaking a
heavy pane of glass in its passage, and fell
on the floor of a room, where it was cap-
tured atter a severe struggle. The chiei;en
was scarcely injured.
J.
'+*ilius; of peettlf.rtties ot"°
. apfietitert► aeida citizen in conaer*a-
lion, . i4 .'1CJ1QW u'.n $u ir+ho be* q;ot
eaten alnotithlta 9t oleo iii'
vege; . %ariau, eis�r�dried ,titP" .
"�; ° Ile . took a; euddeni'clielfker
to Meat of any kind( and e,Ve` up
eating it. ,i3ut hecould not tell'
himyeif what eauyed'•;the,,efiehge Goa
bieappotitoo
aNyWife can never"eafan ad etert"''
oeidolae present, 4< without her 'ek'n.
Breaking out in purple s ots``rase
large Gia ditties. 'She P. a u-
g fa le no uu•
easiness, hat naturally does not likes
b) be spotted like a leopard.'"
"1 way acquainted with a woman,
out west," said Another of the party
"who•bioke out with pricicly beat.
whenever she saw or tasted goat's
milk cheese. Hen husband brought'
some into the house end,hid it in a
aupbeerd. When she approhuhod it
she began to shiver, and declared
that she felf the strange prickly,
sensation,
"WI did not know that there
was uo cheese in. the house I should
think it was that,' elle said, an&
then her husbaud acknowledged.
that he had done it to teat her.
The physiological effect satisfied.
him that it was not in the imagina-
tion."—Chicago Herald.
HE TAUGHT VERACITY TO
ELI PERKINS. -
We had a man in my native town,
said Eli Perking at the Press Club
dinner, whom we all call Uncle
Bank. He was a man with a vivid
imagination. He was, perhaps,
present, company excepted, the.
most stupendous prevaricator in
central New York. I remember,
before I went oil to college that
Uncle Bank used to just daze us
boys with his stupendous stories..
Well, after cultivating my own im-
agination for four years and finally
graduating, I came back home with
an idea that when Uncle Hank
commenced calling me some of his
big lies, I would talk him' down.
As soon as I saw him he -com-
menced to toll me about the potato -
bugs in his garden,
"Gaol many- of them, Miele
Hank 1" I asked.
"Good many of em 1" he repeated
nontemptuously. "Why, I oonted
462 potato bugs on ono stalk in one
field this morning, and inthe other
field they had eaten up all the vines,
fences, trees, and woes sitting
around oil=' the clouds waiting for
me to plant the second crop."
"Why, sir," he continued as he
wiped his glasses on a red bandana
handkerchief, "I had potato bugs
walk right into my kitchen, march
right up to a red-hot stove and yank
red-hot potatoes right out of the
oven, and---"
"0, Uncle Hank !" I expostulat-
ed. -
"Fact, sir, and I wasn't surprised
at all. But I will admit," said the
old man, as if his conscience was a
little touched, "that I. was a little
surprised when I went into Town-
send's store and saw potato bugs
crawling all Townsend's books
to see who'd bought seed potatoes
for next year.,'
"0, Mr. Allen, this is impossible 1"
I said.
"Impossible?" he said, "why
nothing is impossible with a Log
City potaty bug. They're tough, I
tell you. Why, old Gifford captur-
ed an ordinary potato bug in my
garden yesterday and boiled it nine
hours, and it swam around on top
all the time !"
"Indeed ! why, you do astound
me."
"Yes, and my wife put a potato
bug in a kerosene lamp and kept it
there for four years and, if my
memory does not fail me, it hatched
out twenty-seven litters of potato
bugs right in the kerosene."
"And you saw all thia, Mr. Allen
—saw it yourself 1" I said, utterly
bewildered.
"Saw it 1" why six yerrs ago° 1t
took one of our ordinary potato bugs
into Wood's iron foundry and
dropped it into a ladle filled with
melted iron and had it run into a
skillet.
"0, Uncle Ilank, you are deceiv-°
ing ns 1''
"No, I wouldn't deceive an int
fant," and Uncle Hank placed his
hand upon his heart. "But there
was more about this potato bug,"
said the old man reflectingly.
"Lot's see, 0, as I was sayin', nay
old woman, if I remember correctly,
used that skittle for six years, and
here the other day she broke it all
to smash and what do you think 1"
"Why, what eau I think 1" I
asked in astoniehment.
"Why, that ere insect just walked
right out of his holo, whore he'd
been lyin' like a frog in a rook, and
made tracks for his old roost on the
potato vines—But," he added by
way of parenthesis, "by ginger, he
looked mighty pale 1"
With his thumb, a boy is said to have
saved the Netherlands from inundation.
Many people have been Bayed from the
invasion of disease by a bottle of Ayer's
Sareaparille. This medioine imparts tcns
to the aystom and strengthens every or-
gan and "fibro of the body.
t
es es