Chapter XVI: Escape of the First Mate and Crew (2)

Portugal announces a new set of commemorative stamps to be issued shortly. The designs have been accepted, but the colors and values of the stamps have not yet been decided upon. Nicaragua has issued a set of postage-stamps--1, 2, 5, 10, 20, and 50 centavos, 1, 2, 5 pesos. Also the same stamps surcharged "official." In addition, a new set of postage-due stamps--1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 30, and 50 centavos, all in orange color--and an "Officially Sealed" stamp in blue. Porto Rico has changed the colors on the current set of adhesives, thirteen stamps in all. Honduras has also just issued a new set. The Cuban Republic stamps, 2, 5,10, and 25 centavos, are sold by some of the smaller dealers.

All the above would probably come under the ban of the S.S.S.S. as unnecessary, and issued for revenue only. The work of eliminating or diminishing "speculative" stamps is very slow; but progress is steadily made, and the number of new issues during the past six months is less than the average.

J. L. HUNTER.--The coin is a French 5 centimes of 1856. No premium.

H. VAUGHN.--The probabilities are that the Cuban Republic stamps
will be accepted by the great majority of collectors; but as yet
the advanced philatelists will not admit them in their albums. They
seem to me purely speculative, hence uncollectable. The $20 U.S.
revenue is worth $1.50; the 24c. and 30c. War Departments are worth
50c. and 30c. respectively.

F. B. KINGSBURY.--Your coin is worth 6c.

J. SCHMIDT.--The 24c. 1869 U.S., with reversed centre, is worth
$100 if in good condition.

G. B. SNIDER.--The only way the number of the sheet can be known is
by the printed margin of the sheet. All the stamps on a sheet are
identical.

R. S. CHASE, 30 Alumni Avenue, Providence, R. I., wishes to
exchange stamps.

R. F. T.--Stamps printed "Marca di Bolo" are Italian Revenues. The
25c. Venezuela 1892 are common; millions were printed and used.

F. H. HORTING, F. J. WATTSON, D. W. HARDIN.--The coins are common.
No dealer would pay a premium on them, as he picks them up in the
regular course of business at face value. When dealers sell they of
course ask an advance on face. They have to pay rent, clerk hire,
advertising, and their own living expenses.

E. L. H.--The 8d. yellow New South Wales, 1860 issue, is worth 25c.
The Canada 12-1/2c., 1868, is worth 18c.

D. W. H.--The millennial stamps have not been accepted as
collectable by the majority of philatelists; but, of course, that
is a matter to be settled by each collector for himself.

PHILATUS.

ADVERTISEMENTS.

Arnold

Constable & Co

* * * * *

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* * * * *

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NEW YORK.

There was a crooked man, and he walked a crooked mile,
And he found a crooked Hair-Pin against a crooked stile;
And if to see this pin yourself you happen to insist,
Just buy the CUPID Hair-Pin you'll find

It's in the TWIST.

By the makers of the famous DELONG Hook and Eye.

RICHARDSON & DELONG BROS., Philadelphia.

A cream-of-tartar baking powder. Highest of all in leavening strength.--_Latest United States Government Food Report._

ROYAL BAKING POWDER CO., NEW YORK.

There are monarchs, there are monarchs,
Men of every clime and hue,
From the Czar of all the Russias
To the Prince of Timbuctoo;
Monarchs good and monarchs famous,
Monarchs short and monarchs tall;
But the _best_ is _our_ Monarch--
It's the Monarch of them all.

Monarch

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Send for Monarch book.

MONARCH CYCLE MFG. CO.,

Lake, Halsted and Fulton Sts., CHICAGO.

83 Reade Street, New York.

LOOK HERE, YOUNG PEOPLE!

Until May 25th, we will accept =10 Cents= in payment of one year's subscription to =THE MONTHLY JOURNAL=, a literary magazine, published and edited by young people for young people. Address

The Monthly Journal, New Brunswick, N. J.

The Eight Numbers of the Franklin

Square Song Collection contain

1600

of the Choicest Old and New Songs

and Hymns in the Wide World.

Fifty Cents per Number in paper; Sixty Cents in substantial Board binding; One Dollar in Cloth. The Eight Numbers also bound in two volumes at $3.00 each. Address Harper & Brothers, New York.

This Department is conducted in the interest of Bicyclers, and the
Editor will be pleased to answer any question on the subject. Our
maps and tours contain much valuable data kindly supplied from the
official maps and road-books of the League of American Wheelmen.
Recognizing the value of the work being done by the L. A. W., the
Editor will be pleased to furnish subscribers with membership
blanks and information so far as possible.

Continuing the journey from where it was left last week, proceed from Lyons westward up hill, turn left at the top, and proceed downward, over the canal, and thence, keeping to the right, cross the canal again, turn sharp left up a hill, and cross the bridge into Newark. This is eight miles from Lyons. The road, except at the hills, is in very good condition. Leaving Newark, take the second turn to the right and cross the canal, but instead of proceeding straight ahead towards East Palmyra, turn sharp to the left, and crossing the canal again, proceed to Fort Gibson, three miles further on. It is better to take this road and to proceed direct to Palmyra over the turnpike, which is reached at Fort Gibson by turning sharp to the right, than to pass through East Palmyra itself, though it is possible to take the direct road, which is somewhat shorter, and proceed through East Palmyra. From Palmyra run out over Main Street, using the side-paths and side-walks where available, until the yellow mills are reached, thence cross the canal, turning to the right, and keeping to the left, follow the turnpike to Macedon. Macedon is twenty-one miles from Lyons, and from this point the route to Rochester is easily followed. The road is in good condition, and the rider will find no difficulty in keeping to the road from Macedon to Pittsford, and thence to Rochester itself.

Entering Rochester, ride in through Monroe Avenue to Clinton Street, thence to East Main Street, where the Powers House will be easily found. Rochester is another place where there is great interest taken in bicycling. There are several good routes in the vicinity of the city. One of these is to Elmira, the route being to return, as already described, to Pittsford; thence proceed to Canandaigua, to Reed's Corners, Gorham, Ferguson's Corners, Penn Yan, Milo, Dundee, Rock Stream, Reading Centre, Watkins, Montour Falls, Mill Port, Pine Valley, Horseheads, into Elmira. This is a run of one hundred miles. Another run is to leave Rochester and run out to Sodus Bay, passing through West Webster, Webster, Union Hill, Ontario Centre, Ontario, Williamson, Sodus, and Alton, to Sodus Bay, a distance of thirty-nine miles. Another interesting but much shorter run is to proceed from Rochester out through Genesee Street to the end of the street, thence following the road along the banks of the Genesee River, through Buttermilk Hill, to Scottsville. Thence proceeding to Spring Creek Hotel, which is twenty-one miles from Rochester, you will get a good dinner for fifty cents. After dinner it will be interesting to go over the State Fish-hatcheries. There are several different routes of greater or less distance by which you may return to Rochester.

EDWARD J. BROWN.--There are several kinds of chain-cleaners, but
none of them are of very much use. An ordinary rag that is clean,
used with some care, is quite as effective as anything else.

NOTE.--Map of New York city asphalted streets in No. 809. Map of
route from New York to Tarrytown in No. 810. New York to Stamford,
Connecticut in No. 811. New York to Staten Island in No. 812. New
Jersey from Hoboken to Pine Brook in No. 813. Brooklyn in No. 814.
Brooklyn to Babylon in No. 815. Brooklyn to Northport in No. 816.
Tarrytown to Poughkeepsie in No. 817. Poughkeepsie to Hudson in No.
818. Hudson to Albany in No. 819. Tottenville to Trenton in No.
820. Trenton to Philadelphia in No. 821. Philadelphia in No. 822.
Philadelphia-Wissahickon Route in No. 823. Philadelphia to West
Chester in No. 824. Philadelphia to Atlantic City--First Stage in
No. 825; Second Stage in No. 826. Philadelphia to Vineland--First
Stage in No. 827; Second Stage in No. 828. New York to
Boston--Second Stage in No. 829; Third Stage in No. 830; Fourth
Stage in No. 831; Fifth Stage in No. 832; Sixth Stage in No. 833.
Boston to Concord in No. 834. Boston in No. 835. Boston to
Gloucester in No. 836. Boston to Newburyport in No. 837. Boston to
New Bedford in No. 838. Boston to South Framingham in No. 839.
Boston to Nahant in No. 840. Boston to Lowell in No. 841. Boston to
Nantasket Beach in No. 842. Boston Circuit Ride in No. 843.
Philadelphia to Washington--First Stage in No. 844; Second Stage in
No. 845; Third Stage in No. 846; Fourth Stage in No. 847; Fifth
Stage in No. 848. City of Washington in No. 849. City of Albany in
No. 854; Albany to Fonda in No. 855; Fonda to Utica in No. 856;
Utica to Lyons in No. 857.

Any questions in regard to photograph matters will be willingly
answered by the Editor of this column, and we should be glad to
hear from any of our club who can make helpful suggestions.

TIME-SAVING HINTS FOR THE AMATEUR.

When one has a quantity of aristo prints to mount which he does not intend to have burnished, he must be careful not to wet the face of the print, as it destroys the gloss imparted by the ferrotype plate. The usual method is to lay the print face down on a sheet of glass and paste it, cleaning the glass after each print has been mounted. A much simpler way is to take pieces of newspaper several sizes larger than the prints to be mounted, lay them in a pile on the table at the left hand, lay a print face down on the top piece of paper, paste it, and drop the piece of newspaper in the scrap-basket. Continue thus, using a fresh piece of paper for each print, till all the prints are mounted. The newspaper makes a good surface to paste on, as the print does not slip, as it does sometimes on the glass if not held very firmly. This way of pasting prints saves a great deal of time and trouble.

Before beginning to mount pictures trim each one and lay it on the card on which it is to be mounted. Some amateurs when mounting pictures always mark where the picture is to be placed on the card. This is not necessary, for the eye can be readily trained to see when a picture is straight if the picture itself is properly trimmed.

A simple arrangement for drying negatives is made by taking a stout wire, bending it in the middle at a right angle, and then bending the ends over to make short hooks, which clasp the edges of a plate. The wire should be bent close enough so that it is necessary to spring it a little to fit it to the plate. Put the wet side of the plate toward the wire, and set the plate on a shelf with the edge resting on the shelf, the wire supporting it somewhat after the fashion of an easel.

In filtering solutions, unless one has a fluted glass funnel, the filtering paper adheres to the glass and allows the liquid to pass through very slowly. A simple way to hurry the process is to fold the circle of filtering paper together, and then fold it from the centre back and forth like a fan. Crease the folds so that they will remain, and when put in the funnel there will be spaces between the glass and the paper through which the solution will run very quickly.

Films are quite inclined to curl both in the developing solution and in the fixing solution. This necessitates pushing them down into the fixing bath, and often causes much annoyance to the operator. If the hypo is put into a large glass tumbler the film may be curled round a bottle, and the bottle set in the tumbler of hypo, which will do away with any trouble of keeping the film down into the hypo. The bottle should be clean, and filled with water so that it will set flat in the tumbler.

SIR KNIGHT FRANK EVANS, JUN., 1116 Brown Street, Philadelphia, Pa.,
wishes to correspond with some of the Camera Club members. Sir
Knight Frank says he has some good formulas which he would be
pleased to send to the Camera Club. We shall be glad to have them
and to publish them. Send full directions for use, please, and
write on one side of the paper only.

SIR KNIGHT RAGEAN TUTTLE, Auburn, Col., asks where to get the
photographic supplies mentioned in the ROUND TABLE. They may be
bought of any reliable dealer in photographic goods.

LADY MANA M. MONAHAN, of Michigan, asks the address of a good
school of photography. At Effingham, Ill., is a school of
photography called Illinois College of Photography, where all the
branches of photography are taught.

SIR KNIGHT HERSCHEL F. DAVIS wants to know the right exposure for a
moonlight view, with largest stop, and if it will blur the plate to
include the moon in the picture. From a half-hour to an hour is the
usual time given for a moonlight view, according to the brightness
of the light. The moon may be included in the picture, and will not
have a halo; but the moon, instead of being round, will make a
longer or shorter streak on the plate, according to the length of
time it is exposed, as, of course, with the motion of the earth and
moon, it will have traversed quite a space in the course of an
hour.

* * * * *

A CHANCE FOR AN EXPERIMENT.

Have plants intelligence? Do they ever think? These are interesting questions that would have to be answered by the statement of an observer of the ways of pumpkins and melons. Says he: "Plants often exhibit something very much like intelligence. If a bucket of water, during a dry season, be placed a few inches from a growing pumpkin or melon vine, the latter will turn from its course, and in a day or two will get one of its leaves in the water."

We do not vouch for the truth of this, but if there be any young gardeners among the readers of the ROUND TABLE it might make an interesting experiment for them next summer when they are pursuing their avocation.

ADVERTISEMENTS

Comfort in Bicycling

In every part a bicycle must be adjustable so as to fit the varying conditions of human anatomy. No bicycle so fully meets this requirement as the

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Columbias in construction and quality are in a class by themselves.

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Many of the Columbia merits are described in the superb Columbia Catalogue. The book also tells of Hartford bicycles, $80, $60, $50, next best to Columbias. Ask the Columbia agent for it, or send two 2-cent stamps to us for postage.

WALTER BAKER & CO., LIMITED.

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Always ask for Walter Baker & Co.'s

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It bears their Trade Mark

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Beware of Imitations.

LAUGHING CAMERA, 10c.

The latest invention in Cameras. You look through the lens and your stout friends will look like living skeletons, your thin friends like Dime Museum fat men, horses like giraffes, and in fact everything appears as though you were living in another world. Each camera contains two strong lenses in neatly finished leather case. The latest mirth-maker on the market; creates bushels of sport. Catalogue of 1,000 novelties and sample camera 10c., 3 for 25c., mailed postpaid. Agents wanted.

Robert H. Ingersoll & Bro.,

Dept. No. 27. 65 Cortlandt St., New York.

Postage Stamps, &c.

STAMPS! =800= fine mixed Victoria, Cape of G. H., India, Japan, etc., with fine Stamp Album, only =10c.= New 80-p. Price-list =free=. _Agents wanted_ at =50%= commission. STANDARD STAMP CO., 4 Nicholson Place, St. Louis, Mo. Old U. S. and Confederate Stamps bought.

$117.50 WORTH OF STAMPS FREE

to agents selling stamps from my 50% approval sheets. Send at once for circular and price-list giving full information.

C. W. Grevning, Morristown, N. J.

JAPANESE POSTAGE STAMPS!

Every one who sends me 20 unused stamps of his land will receive 20 unused stamps, in good varieties, from Japan.

Sekigyokuken, Mitsunosho, Bingo, Japan.

=STAMPS.= Confederate free if you send for our Approval Sheets at 50 per cent. commission. Enclose 2c. stamp, and give reference.

=DIAMOND STAMP CO.=, Germantown, Pa.

=1000= Mixed Foreign Stamps, San Marino, etc., 25; 101 all dif., China, etc., 10c.; 10 U.S. Revenues, 10c.; 20 U. S. Revenues, 25c. Ag'ts w'td at 50% com. _Monthly Bulletin_ free. Shaw Stamp & Coin Co., Jackson, Mich.

=125= dif. Gold Coast, Costa Rica, etc., 25c.; 40 U.S., 25c. Liberal com. to agents. Large bargain list free. F. W. MILLER, 904 Olive St., St. Louis, Mo.

STAMPS! 100 all dif. Barbados, etc. Only 10c. Ag'ts w't'd at 50% com. List free. L. DOVER & CO., 1469 Hodiamont, St. Louis, Mo.

U.S. Stamps and Coins. 8 dif. large cents, 50c.

R.M.P. Langzettel, Box 1125, New Haven, Conn.

CARDS

The FINEST SAMPLE BOOK of Gold Beveled Edge, Hidden Name, Silk Fringe, Envelope and Calling Cards ever offered for a 2 cent stamp. These are GENUINE CARDS, NOT TRASH. UNION CARD CO., COLUMBUS, OHIO.

* * * * *

A Swiss Wedding.

We have lived in Switzerland for five years, and have, of course,
seen a great many weddings among the people, but never one of those
grand affairs which are the talk of a small town for weeks. Last
autumn, while we were in Winterthur, we learned that a wedding was
to take place in the "Stadtkirche," bride and bridegroom coming
from two of the best old families. As both were millionaires (in
francs, not dollars), people expected something magnificent, so we
decided to go to the church to see what it would be like.

There are no private church weddings in Switzerland. Every one who
chooses may go to witness the ceremony, and the day we went the
church was full of people of every description--ladies and
gentlemen, as well as bareheaded peasants and children. It seems to
me that one must have an enormous amount of courage to get married
in Europe. The bride we saw had to submit to be stared at for a
good hour in church, and even then she was not allowed to go off
and rest.

When we had waited patiently for about half an hour the clock
struck one, the church doors were thrown open, the organ pealed
forth a wedding march, and in came the bride on the bridegroom's
arm. They walked up to the beautifully decorated altar, in front of
which were the seats reserved for the wedding guests, and here they
separated, the bride going to the places on the left of the aisle,
the groom to those on the right.

Then followed couple after couple, the ladies all in full evening
dress, and each separated at the altar also. When they were all
seated the minister preached a short sermon. Then the organ
accompanied a song sung by the bride's sister. This was very
beautiful, for there was also a violin obligato. Then the bridal
couple stood up and were married, after which they again parted,
going back to their seats. Some little children sang with the
organ, and then the ceremony was over, but not the wedding.

There was a grand dinner which lasted hours and hours, for between
each course there was acting, or tableaux, or dancing, and it was
not until late in the evening that the bride could depart on her
wedding journey, and very tired she must have been. Some people go
for long drives in the afternoon, if the day is beautiful. In this
case they all go bareheaded and in open carriages. The peasants
cannot always afford to drive, so simply take long walks, some to
the country, but the general preference is for the town. Here they
walk, two by two, through all the principal streets, going in at
some confectioner's for something to eat, and enjoying themselves
greatly. These brides generally dress in black with white veils (or
none at all), and artificial flowers in their hair. The girls are
always confirmed in black dresses in German Switzerland, and the
poor people wear the same dresses for their weddings. A very
thrifty custom, is it not? Swiss weddings may be very nice to Swiss
people, but I, for my part, prefer American ones, and if I ever
marry, I hope it will be in my own dear country.

MARIAN GREENE, R.T.F.

* * * * *

Cryptography.

From very ancient times secret writing, known as cipher (from the
Arabic _sifr_, "void"), or cryptography (from the Greek "hidden
writing"), has been an important means of communication. In great
national crises, where absolutely secret communication was
necessary, it has saved much time and trouble. Charles I. wrote his
famous letter to the Earl of Glamorgan in cipher, consisting of
variously shaded and lengthened strokes of the pen. This letter was
afterwards deciphered, and proved to be a concession to the Roman
Catholics of Ireland, which, if generally known at the time, would
have caused serious trouble. Lord Bacon also made frequent use of
the cipher but even his ingenious methods have since been
discovered.

There are many methods. Perhaps the most common is the variety
found in one of the _Sherlock Holmes_ tales, where, in a seemingly
plain, every-day sentence, words set at intervals give the hidden
meaning. Poe's fascinating "Gold-Bug" is founded on the solution of
one of Captain Kidd's cryptograms. One can readily construct a
cipher requiring considerable effort to read. One of the best known
for common purposes is the "Dial Cryptogram."

On a six-inch square of card-board draw a circle containing
twenty-seven parts. In each write one of the capital letters of the
alphabet, including &. Also cut out a circle of card-board which
exactly fits the circle on the square. It should be edged by
twenty-seven spaces containing the small letters of the alphabet,
including &. Place this disk on the square and drive a pin through
the centre. Your correspondent having a similar dial, you are ready
to write. Suppose your message is the following:

_The box containing the famous Marston-Endive ciphers has at last
been found in a secret drawer of the billiard-room wainscoting.
Yours, Kelpee._

At the beginning you write the capital, and at the end the small
letters which are opposite each other when you have arranged your
dial. The inner circle is so placed, say, that _T_ and _m_ are
opposite each other. Beginning your message with _T_, and closing
with _m_ you would have:

_T. may vhq whgmubgbg& may zufhnl fuklmhg-ygxboy wbiaykl aul um
eulm vyyg zhngx bg u lywkym xkupyp hz may vbeebukx-khhf
pubglwhmbg&. rhnkl dyeiyy. m._

The stencil cryptogram is also a very good one, and is easily
managed. Take two squares of paste-board, and at irregular
intervals cut out narrow openings. Your correspondent being
provided with one of the stencils, you place your own on a sheet of
paper, and in the openings write your message. You then fill the
intermediate spaces with any words that will connect the whole and
make sense. Your correspondent places his stencil on the
message--and the meaning is clear.

VINCENT V. M. BEEDE.

* * * * *

That Clever Kink.

Did you find out how much that nobleman was worth? The answer is:

£21,459. It is found by taking all of the letters in the passage quoted that are employed in the Roman notation--I, V, X, L, C, D, M--setting down their value in the Arabic notation, and adding all together.

* * * * *

The Music Rack.

Good Stories about Chopin.

Frédéric François Chopin, born 1809, died 1849, very early showed
his sensitiveness to music, when only a baby prevailing upon his
parents to allow him to share the lessons given to his eldest
sister. Many tales are told of his performances as a child, but
perhaps the best is the one related by Karasowski, his biographer,
of his appearance at a public concert for the benefit of the poor
when he was not quite nine years old. He was announced to play
Gyrowetz's piano-forte concerto, and a few hours before he was put
on a chair, and there dressed with more than ordinary care, being
arrayed in a new jacket with an ornamented collar specially ordered
for the occasion. When the concert was over Frédéric returned to
his mother, who had not been present; she asked him what the public
liked best. "Oh, mamma, everybody looked only at my collar!" Little
Frédéric could do almost anything he wished with the piano, and all
his life, when in happy moods, he was fond of weaving fanciful
fairy tales and romances in music so beautiful and real that the
listeners were able to follow and understand by the mere tones
alone.

One evening his father was away, and there arose a tremendous
hubbub among the pupils which the assistant master was quite
powerless to quell. Frédéric came in, saw how things were, and
good-naturedly sat down to the piano. Calling the other boys around
him, he promised, if they kept quite still, to tell them a new and
most thrilling story on the piano. This at once quieted them.
Frédéric extinguished all the lights (for he was all his life fond
of playing in the dark). Then he sat down to the piano and began
his story.

He described robbers coming to a house, putting ladders to the
windows, and then, frightened by a noise, rushing away into the
woods. They go on and on, deeper and deeper into the wild recesses
of the forest, and then they lie down under the trees and soon fall
asleep. He went on, playing more and more softly, until he found
that the sleep was not only in his story, but had overcome his
listeners. On this he crept out noiselessly to tell his mother and
sisters what had happened, and then went back with them to the room
with a light. Every one of the boys was fast asleep. Frédéric
returned to the piano, struck some noisy chords, the enchantment
was over, and all the sleepers were rubbing their eyes and
wondering what was the matter.

MEREDYTH JONES, R.T.K.

* * * * *

Kinks

NO. 1.--A STORY.

It was a rainy day. George, spoiling for something to do, said: "Say, Fred, here's a question you can't answer within five minutes, or ten either. Wan' to try?"

"Yep."

"A lad, carrying a page of that circular to the printer who printed it, stubbed his toe. It hurt him so that he went to the same place the 'three wise men of Gotham' did, and almost lost his life, because that which ruins many a field of wheat was in his drinking water, and he couldn't drink it. But he put all three together, ate it, and saved his life. What did he eat?"

* * * * *

NO. 2.--QUINARY.

"With you, don't think I'll bate a stiver!
And folks who put me in a passion
May find me ---- to another fashion."

In the above lines of a famous poem the word which fills the blank is the last syllable of the five words described below.

1. By bonnie braes in Scotland old,
My notes are heard with love untold.

2. Tars in hours of well-earned leisure
With twinkling feet would tread my measure.

3. A man in love with rocks and ore
Can by my aid know Nature's lore.

4. I'm hollow, and of sable hue,
And cousin to the chimney flue.

5. When sadly off the proper key,
A friend in need you'll e'er find me.

* * * * *

NO. 3.--HEADS AND TAILS.

Behead to censure, and leave to cripple; to gather, and leave to heat. Curtail to grieve for, and leave to fasten; a beverage, leave to beat; a damsel, and leave to succor; a color, and leave an edge. Behead the latter, and leave a quarrel. Curtail sly artifice, and leave a sledge; confusion, and leave an infant. Behead derision, and leave a grain; a flower, and leave a fluid; to study, and leave to gain.

RITA E. BOARDMAN.

THE PUDDING STICK.

This Department is conducted in the interest of Girls and Young
Women, and the Editor will be pleased to answer any question on the
subject so far as possible. Correspondents should address Editor.

Arabella's home is in a pretty little town twenty-five miles from New York. It is a place much liked by people who have children to bring up, for the schools are good, and the air is a tonic to breathe. Arabella told me last September that she must earn some money this year, and relieve her father, who had quite enough to do in paying her tuition bills. "If I can only make enough to buy my shoes and gloves and pay for my postage stamps and my car fares, I will be satisfied," the dear girl said. As this is her last year at Miss ----'s school, and the work is very exacting, I am afraid she cannot accomplish her end; but Arabella has perseverance in large measure, and she is a plucky girl, besides being graceful and charming.

It happens that Arabella dances very well, and some of the mothers in her neighborhood wished their small tots to learn the steps. There was no teacher to be had for such babies, and so when my favorite girlie said they might come to her on Saturday afternoons and she would show them how to use their little feet in moving to measure, the mothers were delighted. Arabella's brother Will was obliging enough to bring his violin and furnish the music, and the class has been a great success, with the result that Arabella's pocket-book is very nicely filled.

Another and perhaps a more agreeable field for money-making is one which Lilian G---- has found, or rather into which Lilian walked one summer morning. On her way to school she had to pass the house of two very dear old ladies, who lived by themselves, and pottered about in a pretty old-fashioned garden. Miss Betsey and Miss Annie were fond of the bright girls who two or three times a day walked past their door on the way to and from their classrooms, and they had their favorites among them, often stopping Lily, for instance, and giving her a flower or two to fasten into her buttonhole.

One morning Lilian observed that Miss Betsey groped a little and felt about with her stick, instead of stepping briskly around the garden as she used to do.

"My sister," Miss Annie confided to her, "is growing blind. We went to Dr. N---- yesterday, and he confirmed our fears. It is a cataract, and it cannot be operated on for a long time. What poor Betsey will do I don't know, for reading has been her great occupation and her one pleasure. I cannot read to her, for it hurts my throat to read aloud."

"Let me come every afternoon, dear Miss Annie," said Lilian. "I'll read to Miss Betsey from four to five every day, and on Saturdays I'll come twice--an hour in the morning and another in the afternoon. I can do it just as _easily_!"

Miss Annie's face lightened. "You sweet child!" she said. "If you will come, and your mother will let you come, Betsey and I will pay you two dollars a week for reading to us both."

The rest of this chapter must go over until next week.

MARGARET E. SANGSTER.

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OH, TOMMY HAD A HOBBY-HORSE, ITS GAIT WAS SMOOTH AND FAIR,
TILL UNDER IT HE PLACED SOME STICKS, AND MADE IT BUCK AND RAIR!

* * * * *

THE STRANGE STORY OF A RING.

It is stated upon what appears to be good authority that in one of the parks in the Spanish capital city of Madrid a magnificent ring hangs by a silken cord about the neck of the statue of the Maid of Almodma, the patron saint of Madrid. This ring, though set with diamonds and pearls, is nevertheless entirely unguarded. The police pay no attention to it, nor is there any provision made for watching it by special officers, because it is not believed that any thief, however daring, would venture to appropriate it to his own use; and when the history of the ring is considered, it is hardly to be wondered at that a superstitious people prefer to give it a wide berth. According to the story that is told of it, the ring was made for King Alfonso XII., the father of the present boy King of Spain. Alfonso presented it to his cousin Mercedes on the day of their betrothal. How short her married life was all know; and on her death the King presented the ring to his grandmother, Queen Christina. Shortly afterwards Queen Christina died, and the King gave the ring to his sister, the Infanta del Pilar, who died within the month following. The ring was then given to the youngest daughter of the Duc de Montpensier. In less than three months she died, and Alfonso, by this time fearing that there was some unlucky omen connected with the bauble, put it away in his own treasure-box. In less than a year the King himself died, and it was deemed best to put the ring away from all the living. Hence it was hung about the neck of the bronze effigy of the Maid of Almodma, where it appears to be as safe as though surrounded by a cordon of police.

* * * * *

A CURIOUS REQUEST.

In a Scottish church in Argyleshire the minister one Sunday morning astonished some strangers in the congregation by requesting the young men in the rear pews to smoke, "because the midges were so thick the services could not go on unless they were smoked out." The young men acceded to the request, and soon the obnoxious insects were driven away. It is said that this same clergyman once gave out a notice that upon a certain evening service would be held in the church, "weather and midges permitting."

* * * * *

YOUNG AMERICA ABROAD.

Last year my fam'ly went abroad an' travelled all aroun',
An' saw 'most all ther' wuz to see in ev'ry for'n town.
They didn' stop much more'n a day or two in any place,
But jus' rushed on as if they'd been a-runnin' in a race.
They took me 'long, and must ha' made me walk a thousand miles
Through gal'ries and palaces of a hundred diff'rent styles.
They wouldn' stop at toy-stores, or take me out to see
The soldiers drillin' in the park, or th' wild m'nageriee.
Ther' wuzn't any fun fer me in all that sort o' thing--
'Cause, what'd I care 'bout lookin' at th' pictures o' the king?
There _was_ one place in Switz'rland where I _did_ have some fun
(If 't hadn't ben fer ol' Loocern I dunno what I'd done!).
The fam'ly'd all gone off ter climb a mountain in a train,
An' left me with the hotel man 'til they got back again.
I went out in the garden, in the afternoon, to play,
An' found another boy out there--been lef' behind, same way.
He said he wuz an English boy--an' I said mighty quick,
"_I'm an American boy, young kid, no English boy can lick!_"
So then he got to boastin' 'bout the things th't he could do,
An' said his school wuz bigger'n mine, which I said wuzn't true.
He said he had an uncle was a nobleman--a Duke;
I tol' him 's how them fam'ly things was jus' a kind o' fluke.
"_Well, England's got more soldiers than th' Americans ever had!_"
"_But we can lick 'em ev'ry time!_" That made him awful mad.
"_An' England's got a lot of ships, an' guns, an' cannon-balls...._"
"_But you 'ain't got nothin' half so good as our Niag'ra Falls!_"
"_You don't have 's many holidays_," went on the little fool;
"_On Guy Fawks day American boys all have to go to school._"
So I ran up an' said, "_You red-coat British kid_," says I,
"_There's one day you don't celebrate, an' that's the Fourth of July!_"
An' by that time I'd got so mad with all his monkey-trickin',
I jus' sailed in an' guv that English boy a good sound lickin'.

ALBERT LEE.

* * * * *

A BLACK BEAR MET A GRAY FOX, AND TO HIM REMARKED, "GOOD-DAY,
IT SEEMS TO ME YOU'RE RATHER YOUNG TO BE SO VERY GRAY."

End of Project Gutenberg's Harper's Round Table, April 14, 1896, by Various