Chapter 11

Although Silas Morgan had received the most convincing proof that he had nothing more to fear from the "hant" which had so long occupied all his waking thoughts and disturbed his dreams at night, he would not have taken one step toward Mr. Warren's house before morning, had he not been urged on by the hope that the sheriff would be ready to pay over his money as soon as the robber was given up to him. The desire to handle the reward to which he was entitled was stronger than his fear of the dark.

"And what shall I do with them twenty-five hundred after I get 'em, Joey?" said he. "That's what's a-bothering of me now."

And it was the very thing that was bothering Joe, also. His father had always been in the habit of spending his money as fast as he got it, and the boy fully expected to see this large sum slip through his fingers without doing the least good to him or anybody else.

"I'll tell you what I _wouldn't_ do with it," said Joe, after a little hesitation. "I wouldn't give Hobson any of it."

"You're right I won't!" exclaimed Silas. "He's got more'n his share already. What be you going to do with yours, when you get it?"

"I think now that I shall put it in the bank at Hammondsport," answered Joe. "It will be safe there, and if I am careful of it, it will last me until I get through going to school. You don't want to go to school, but you might go into business and increase your capital."

"That's it--that's it, Joey!" exclaimed Silas, who grew enthusiastic at once. "I never thought of that. But what sort of business? It must be something easy, 'cause I've worked hard enough already."

"Mr. Warren says that there is no easy way of making a living," began Joe; but his father interrupted him with an exclamation of impatience.

"What does old man Warren know about it?" he demanded. "He never had to do a hand's turn in his life."

"But he don't know what it is to be idle, and he is busy at something every day," said Joe. "I'll tell you what I have often thought I would do if I had a little money, and I may do it yet, if you don't decide to go into it. The new road that is coming through here is bound to bring a good many people to the Beach, sooner or later. As the trout are nearly all gone, the guests will have to devote their attention to the bass in the lake, and consequently there will be a big demand for boats."

"So there will!" exclaimed Silas, who saw at once what Joe was trying to get at. "That's the business I've been looking for, Joey, and it's an easy one, too. Of course, I can let all my boats at so much an hour, and I won't have nothing to do but sit on the beach and take in my money."

"And what'll I be doing?" inquired Dan, who had not spoken before.

"You!" cried Silas, who seemed to have forgotten that Dan was one of the party. "You will keep on chopping cord wood, to pay you for the mean trick you played on me this morning. You see what you made by it, don't you? I reckon you wish you'd stayed by me now, don't you? How much will them boats cost me, Joey?"

"I should think that ten or a dozen skiffs would be enough to begin with," answered Joe, "and they will cost you between three and four hundred dollars; but you would have enough left to rent a piece of ground of Mr. Warren and put up a snug little house on it."

"Then I'll be a gentleman like the rest of 'em, won't I?" exclaimed Silas, gleefully.

"No, you won't," said Dan, to himself. "That bridge ain't been built yet, and I don't reckon Hobson means to have it there. He is going to bust it up some way or 'nother, and I'm just the man to help him, if he'll pay me for it. Everybody is getting rich 'cepting me, and I ain't going to be treated this way no longer!"

Silas was so completely carried away by Joe's plan for making money without work that he could think of nothing else. He forgot how determined and vindictive Dan was, and how easy it would be for him to place a multitude of obstacles in his way, but Joe didn't.

The latter knew well enough that Dan intended to make trouble if he were left out in the cold, but what could be done for so lazy and unreliable a fellow as he was? That was the question.

While Joe was turning it over in his mind, he led the way through Mr. Warren's gate and up to the porch, where he found his employer sitting in company with the sheriff and both Uncle Hallet's game-wardens. The deputy was in an upper room, keeping guard over the other prisoner.

Of course, Tom and Bob, who were greatly surprised as well as delighted to see Joe and his party, wanted to know just how the capture of robber number two had been brought about, and while Joe was telling the story, the sheriff marched the captive into the house and turned him over to his deputy.

Then he came back and sat down; but he did not put his hand into his pocket and pull out the reward, as Silas hoped he would.

"This has been a good day's work all around," said Tom, who was in high spirits. "The next time there is any detective work to be done in this county, Bob and I will volunteer to do it. We can catch more criminals by sitting still and writing letters, than the officers can by bringing all their skill into play."

The sheriff laughed, and said that was the way the thing looked from where he sat.

"The fun is all over now," continued Tom, "and to-morrow we will go to work in earnest. You will be on hand, of course?"

Joe replied that he would.

"By-the-way," chimed in Bob, "did this robber of yours have a gun of any description in his hands when he was captured?"

"No."

"Then, Joe, you and I are just that much out of pocket. The guns are gone up."

"What has become of them?"

"They are out in the hills somewhere," answered Bob. "When the robbers made up their minds that they had better let me go, one of them had my gun and the other had yours; but the robber Brierly captured says that the weapon impeded his flight, and so he threw it away. Whereabouts he was in the hills when he got rid of it, he can't tell. No doubt your gun was thrown away also, and the chances are not one in a thousand that we shall ever find them again."

While this conversation was going on, Silas Morgan, who stood at the foot of the steps that led to the porch, kept pulling Joe by the coat-sleeve, and whispering to him:

"Never mind the guns. Tell the sheriff that I'm powerful anxious to see the color of them twenty-five hundred."

Joe paid no sort of attention to him, and finally Silas became so very much in earnest in his endeavors to attract the boy's notice, that the officer saw it; and when there was a little pause in the conversation, he said, carelessly:

"Oh, about the reward, Silas--"

"That's the idee," replied the ferry-man, who thought sure that he was going to get it now. "That's what I'm here for. You have got the bugglars in your own hands now, and I don't reckon you would mind passing it over, would you?"

"I?" exclaimed the sheriff. "I haven't got it. I have never had a cent of it in my possession."

"Then who's going to give it to me?" demanded Silas, who wondered if the officer was going to cheat him out of his money.

"Well, you see, Silas," said the sheriff, "the reward is conditioned upon the arrest and conviction of the burglars. They have been arrested, and their conviction is only a matter of time; but you can't get your money until they are sentenced."

"And how long will that be?"

"The court will sit again in about six weeks. As some of the money was offered by the county, and the rest by the men who lost the jewelry and things that were found in that valise, you will get your reward from different parties, unless they hand it over to me to be paid to you in a lump."

"That's the way I want it," said Silas, who was very much disappointed. "I'm going into business."

"What sort of business?" inquired Mr. Warren.

"I am going to keep a boat-house down to the Beach."

"Well now, Silas, that's the most sensible thing I have heard from you in a long time," said Mr. Warren. "I'll rent you a piece of ground big enough for a garden, and you can set yourself up in business in good shape, build a nice house, and have money left in the bank. If you manage the thing rightly, you and Dan ought to make a good living of it."

"Who said anything about Dan?" exclaimed Silas.

"I did. Of course you can't ignore him because you are wealthy. He wants a chance to earn an honest living, and he needs it, too. He's a strong boy, a first-rate hand with a boat, knows all the best fishing-grounds on the lake, and would be just the fellow to send out with a party who wanted a guide and boatman. You can easily afford to pay him a dollar a day for such work as that."

"Well, I won't do it," said Silas, promptly. "He's a lazy, good-for-nothing scamp, Dan is, and I won't take him into business along of me."

"But you will hire him, and give him a chance to quit breaking the game law and make an honest living," said the sheriff. "By-the-way, Silas, I guess you had better bring up those setters, and save me the trouble of going after them."

"What setters?" exclaimed Silas, who acted as if he were on the point of taking to his heels. "I ain't got none. I took 'em down to the hotel and give 'em up."

"I am glad to hear it, because it will save me some trouble," replied the officer. "I have had my eyes on those dogs ever since you got hold of them, and I should have been after them long ago if I had known where to find the owner. Don't do that again, Silas. Honesty is the best policy, every day in the week."

"If you will leave your business in my hands, I will attend to it for you, and you will not have to go to Hammondsport at all," continued Mr. Warren.

And Joe was glad to hear him say it, because it showed him that the gentleman did not intend that his father should squander all his money, if he could help it.

"It is too late in the season for you to do anything with your boats this year, but I will give you and Dan a steady job at chopping wood, and if you take care of the money you earn, instead of spending it at Hobson's bar, you can live well during the winter. If the reward is not paid over to you by the time spring opens, I will advance you enough to start you in business and build your house. Then I think you had better give Dan a chance."

"So do I," whispered Tom, to his friend Bob. "Dan has lived by his wits long enough, and if Silas doesn't begin to take some interest in him, the sheriff will have a word or two to say about those setters. I can see plainly enough that he intends to hold that affair over Silas as a whip to make him behave himself."

"Do you think Silas will ever have the reward paid him in a lump?" asked Bob.

"No, I don't, because he doesn't know enough to take care of so much money. Joe can get his any time he wants it, for Mr. Warren knows that he will make every cent of it count."

Then, aloud, Tom said:

"Well, Bob, seeing that we've got to get up in the morning, we had better be going home. Come over bright and early, Joe, and we will take your things back to your cabin."

"And I will send up another supply of provisions," said Mr. Warren.

Joe thanked his employer, bade him good-night, and led the way out of the yard.

For a time he and his party walked along in silence, and then Silas, who began to have a vague idea that he had been imposed upon in some way, broke out, fiercely:

"What did old man Warren mean by saying that if I didn't get all my money by the time spring comes, he would advance enough to set me up in business?" Silas almost shouted. "Looks to me like he'd 'p'inted himself my guardeen, and that he means to keep a tight grip on them twenty-five hundred, so't I can't spend it to suit myself. That's what I think he means to do, dog-gone the luck!"

Joe thought so, too, and he was glad of it. If that was Mr. Warren's intention, Joe's mother would be likely to reap some benefit from the reward; otherwise, she would not.

[TO BE CONTINUED.]

EIGHT GOOD RIDDLES.

Feet have they, but they walk not--stoves.

Eyes have they, but they see not--potatoes.

Teeth have they, but they chew not--saws.

Noses have they, but they smell not--teapots.

Mouths have they, but they taste not--rivers.

Hands have they, but they handle not--Clocks.

Ears have they, but they hear not--cornstalks.

Tongues have they, but they talk not--wagons.

CREAM OF THE COMICS.

"Brisk as a bee." --_Boswell's Life of Johnson_.

--In the drama of life the clerk plays a counter-part.

--Why is a whisper forbidden in polite society? Because it isn't aloud.

--A tinsmith in the country has a sign which reads: "Quart measures of all shapes and sizes sold here."

--Customer: "Is your bread nice and light?" Baker's boy: "Yessum; it only weighs nine ounces to the pound!"

--"Home, Sweet Home"--a bee-hive.

--The egotist lives on an I-land.

--The Bank of England--a fog-bank.

--"April showers bring forth May flowers." Said Flora to her brother Bob: "Robert, dear, what do April showers bring forth?" Said Bob: "Umbrellas, of course!"

--"Don't you find the people around here very sociable?" asked Cobwigger of a new neighbor. "Yes, indeed, I do," was the hearty response. "Only a moment ago I met a beggar, and he held out his hand to me."

--"Pa," said little Jimmie, "I was very near going to the head of my class to-day." "How is that, my son?" "Why, a big word came all the way down to me, and if I could only have spelled it, I should have gone clear up."

--Mamma (coaxingly): "Come, Bobby, take your medicine now, and then jump into bed!" Bobby: "I do not want to take my medicine, mamma." Father (who knows how to govern children) "Robert, if you don't take your medicine at once, you will be put to bed without taking it at all."

--A little girl in Charles Street, Boston, has an old-fashioned doll which has the following words worked in red silk letters on its sawdust-stuffed body:

"Steal not this doll for fear of shame, For here you see the owner's name.

"PRISCILLA ALDEN."

--A little grammar found in an old garret in Portsmouth, N.H., has an illustration representing the difference between the active, passive and neuter verbs. It is a picture of a father whipping his boy. The father is active, the boy is passive, and the mother, sitting by herself on a stool, looking on, but doing nothing, is neuter.

--"Here, Johnnie, what do you mean by taking Willie's cake away from him? Didn't you have a piece for yourself?" "Yes; but you told me I always ought to take my little brother's part."

--Young physician (who has just lost a patient, to old physician): "Would you advise an autopsy, doctor?" Old physician: "No; I would advise an inquest."

--"Pause!" cries the sire unto the lad, "Let judgment teach you sense." "I will," he answers, "when I've had Enough experience."

--Doctor: "Now, my little man, you take this medicine and I will give you five cents." Young America: "You take it yourself, and I will go you five cents better."

--Mistaking the door, young Mr. Cipher walked into the dentist's office instead of the doctor's. "Doctor," he groaned, "I'm in bad shape. My head aches all the time, and I can't do anything with it." "Yes, yes," said Doctor Toothaker, cheerfully. "I see; big cavity in it; must be hollow; you'll need to have it filled." And, seeing his mistake, young Mr. Cipher apologized and went out, and told it all around as a capital joke on the dentist.

OUR LETTER BOX.

DECLINED.--A Sad Catastrophe--A Stage-Driver's Story--My Dog Carlo--The Children's Celebration--Flossie's Letter--The Scotch Yacht Thistle--Brave Dog Nero and his Friends--Our First Boat Ride--Little Sam, a Tale of Long Ago--Penny.

Q. K.--The first fire insurance office in the United States was established at Boston in 1724; the first life insurance at Philadelphia in 1812.

J. E. M. AND R. B. G.--Every requisite for admission to the West Point Military Academy was fully detailed in No. 12 of the last volume, which will be mailed to any address upon the receipt of 6 cents.

OLD READER.--1. The oldest daily newspaper in this country is the North American and United States Gazette, founded in 1771, and still published in Philadelphia. 2. There may be some curiosity dealer in your city who would be willing to purchase the ancient paper in your possession.

YUM YUM.--Boulak is the port of Cairo, Egypt, being situated on the right bank of the Nile, one mile northwest of that city, of which it forms a suburb. A noble museum of antiquities is situated at Boulak, and the latest additions to its treasures are the mummies described in No. 22.

F. E. N.--Level is a term applied to surfaces that are parallel to that of still water, or perpendicular to the direction of the plumb-line; and when it is desired to ascertain the altitude of any specified locality, the level of the ocean's surface is always taken as the standard from which such reckoning is made.

ALEX.--The easiest and most skillful methods of killing setting and preserving insects were set forth in Nos. 18, 27, 47, 48, 49 and 50 of Vol. III. The process of making the "killing bottle" is too lengthy to be reproduced here, but is given in full in the first-mentioned issue, under the heading "Herme's Museum."

W. B. W.--By closely studying the construction and solution of the puzzles printed from week to week in this paper, any boy of average intelligence will have no difficulty in mastering them in a comparatively short time. A very interesting article on this subject was presented under the title of "An Instructive Pastime," in No. 22 of Vol. VII.

CLARENCE B.--There is only one source of alcohol--the fermentation of sugar or other saccharine matter. Sugar is the produce of the vegetable world. Some plants contain free sugar, and still more contain starch, which can be converted into sugar. The best vegetable substances, therefore, for yielding alcohol are those that contain the greatest abundance of sugar or of starch.

A SUBSCRIBER, H. C. J. AND S. O. K.--Boys aged from fourteen to eighteen years are eligible to appointment to the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Md. The limit of age for those enlisting on the government training ships is from fifteen to eighteen years. Both of these branches of the service are open to any American youths capable of passing the physical and mental examinations required of all applicants.

H. S. W.--The Bible informs us that Tubal-Cain, the son of Lamech and Zillah, was the "instructor of every artificer in brass and iron," and on that account he is considered the first blacksmith of which there is any record. Respecting the tools used by him there is no mention made by historians. Jabal, another son of Lamech, "was the father of such as dwell in tents and of such as have cattle," and his brother Jubal "of all such as handle the harp and organ."

FRANKLIN SCHOOL.--We prefer to refrain from publishing medical recipes, such as pimple removers and the like, always advising a consultation with a first-class physician, who will prescribe some blood-purifying compound for the relief or cure of the trouble. In our younger days, a mixture of molasses, cream tartar and sulphur was considered a sovereign remedy for skin eruptions, and a weak solution of alcohol or ammonia a most excellent annihilator of "blackheads."

HARKINGOPITCHER.--1. The originator of puzzles is not known, nor is it at all probable that the mystery surrounding their inception will ever be cleared away. The fabled founder is the Sphinx of Egypt, who, the mythologists inform us, propounded the first enigma. 2. It is an invariable custom to notify our readers of the appearance of new serial stories, and therefore you will receive due notice of those written by your favorites, when we conclude to publish them.

THEO. H.--The action of machines used for making ice consists in evaporating ether, or any similar volatile liquid, in a vacuum, and again condensing the vapor to liquid, so as to be used afresh. Fifty-two degrees of cold is thus easily obtained, and the machines used for the purpose can produce several tons of ice each day in the hottest countries. Much artificial ice is now made by compressing atmospheric air, and by this method a freezing temperature is obtained on vessels employed in carrying fresh meats from distant countries.

INK BOTTLE.--1. Mineralogists apply the term "pyrites" to a large group or family of minerals, compounds of metals with sulphur, or with arsenic, or with both. The name was originally given to the sulphuret of iron, known as iron pyrites, in consequence of its striking fire with steel (from the Greek _pyr_, fire), and it was used for kindling powder in the pans of muskets before gun-flints were introduced. Iron pyrites is commonly of a bright brass-yellow color, and is found crystallized in cubes, dodecahedrons and many other forms. It is a very widely diffused and plentiful mineral, and seems to belong almost equally to all geological formations. 2. Eagle cents issued in 1858 are of no value to collectors, because they lack rarity. 3. Your exchange is too trivial.

J. B. D., of Chicago, kindly informs us that he has been able to get a slight shock from a telegraph battery in the following manner: "On every learner's instrument there are two binding-posts, and to one of them is joined a wire from the battery; a small file is fastened to the other; the key is closed, and then the other wire of the battery is taken in your wet fingers, and, with the other hand, also wet, upon the file, the wire is run along the surface of the file, and a shock results."

WALTER R.--What is known as the registry system is intended to secure to valuable mail-matter in its transition through the mails the utmost security within the province of the Post Office Department. The fee on any registered matter, domestic or foreign, is fixed at ten cents on each parcel or letter, to be affixed in stamps, in addition to the postage. The money-order system is intended to promote public convenience, and to secure safety in the transfer through the mails of small sums of money. The rates may be ascertained by inquiring at a local office.

AN ADMIRER OF G. D.--1. Two French scientists, Captain Renard and M. Tissaudier, have invented a balloon whose motive power is electricity. The dynamo machine used by them is an intensely concentrated bichromate battery of one and a half horse-power. It is very light, weighing but 121-1/4 pounds. Several successful experimental trips have been made in this machine, and the inventors claim that by using all the battery power, they were enabled to navigate against the wind. They may be over-sanguine, but expect, after making some improvements in the balloon, to attain a speed of from fifteen to twenty miles an hour. 2. Constant base-ball practice will harden the hands. No artificial preparation is used by professionals.

PARXIE.--John Howard, an Englishman, made on May 8, 1854, the greatest running long-jump, with weights, 29 feet 7 inches; without weights, the highest record is 23 feet 3 inches, made by M. W. Ford, August 14, 1886. Standing long-jump with weights, 14 feet 5-1/2 inches, G. W. Hamilton, October 3, 1879; without weights, 10 feet 10-1/2 inches, M. H. Johnson, September 4, 1884. Running hop-step-and-jump. 48 feet 8 inches, T. Burrows, October 18, 1884; standing hop-step-and-jump, with weights, 40 feet 2 inches, D. Anderson, July 24, 1865; without weights, 31 feet 10 inches, Gavin Tait, 1862. These are world's records. The best one-mile amateur bicycle record--2.35 2-5--was made by W. A. Rowe, October 23, 1885. He has beaten this record--2.29 4-5--since he became a professional.

H. C. H.--In early days the coining of copper money for New Jersey was given by law to Walker Mould, Thomas Goodsby and Albion Cox. There were two mints, one at Elizabethtown and the other at Morristown. These coins display on their obverse a horse's head, usually facing right, with a plow below it, and the legend is "Nova Caesarea." The date is placed in several positions. On the reverse is a shield, with the motto "E Pluribus Unum" around the border. In ordinary condition, these coppers are worth from ten to fifty cents. The rarest varieties are those having the date under the beam, which are worth $100 each: with the General Washington bust, $150 each; and with "Immunis Columbia, 1786" for obverse, $50. Doubtless the one in your possession is a common variety.

GRAPE CITY.--1. The modern express traffic was originated by William F. Harnden, on March 4, 1839. At first he carried the packages himself from place to place in a satchel; but his patrons grew in number until he had to establish an office in each city, with a daily messenger each day. Previous to this, all such packages had been sent by friends, or by special messengers. 2. The precise time of the invention of the telescope, as well as the name of its inventor, is unknown. Prior to the end of the thirteenth century, glass lenses were in use for the purpose of assisting the eye in obtaining distinctness of vision. Galileo is generally credited with being the first who constructed a telescope by which he was enabled to make many of the great discoveries upon which the science of astronomy stands for its foundation. 3. By good business methods you can doubtless build up a trade such as that stated. 4. Inquire at a book store.

KICKAPOO.--1. At the beginning of the eleventh century it is said that the Northmen attempted to plant a settlement in the locality known as Rhode Island. In 1614, Block, the Dutch navigator, explored it, and the Dutch traders afterward, seeing the marshy estuaries red with cranberries, called it Roode Eylandt, "red island," afterward corrupted into the name it now bears. Roger Williams, a Welsh-Puritan minister, pastor of a church at Salem, was banished from the colony of Massachusetts, fled to the head of Narraganset Bay, and there, with a few followers, planted the seed of the commonwealth of Rhode Island in 1636. The place selected by him for settlement he called Providence. 2. The first wife of Julius Caesar was named Cornelia; the second was Pompeia, a relative of the noted Pompey; and the third was Calpurnia. 3. Napoleon Bonaparte was born at Ajaccio, Corsica, August 15, 1769, and died May 5, 1821, at St. Helena, to which island he had been exiled after the battle of Waterloo.

NEMO.--The recipe for making a copying-pad and the ink used thereon was given in No. 2, vol. V. --E. D. AND AUTHOR. We are fully supplied with literary material by experienced writers. --SOLOMON C. Acrobats do not use any artificial preparation to increase their suppleness. Constant practice is the secret of the agility displayed by them. --W. B. The construction of a photographic camera was detailed in No. 13, Vol. IV; while the making of blue prints formed the subject of an article in No. 51, Vol. II. --NINTH AVENUE. Interesting articles on the subject of electricity have been presented in Nos. 3 and 4, Vol. VI, and 16, Vol. VII. --SUBSCRIBER. An ingenious, painstaking boy can construct a very neat aeolian harp by following out the directions given in No. 16 of the fifth volume. --COPPERHEAD. 1. The drawing of the binder shows considerable ingenuity, and is doubtless novel and useful enough to warrant patenting. 2. One of the simplest and best forms of the canvas canoe was illustrated and described in No. 37, Vol. VI. In this and the previous number another kind is represented. --W. C. H. Any study can be mastered if the student is persevering and ordinarily intelligent. --D. P. H. 1. None of the curiosities in your possession are of any special value. 2. The gold coin will pass at its face value. 3. Nos. 2 and 18, Vol. II, are out of print. Three dollars per year is the regular subscription price of GOLDEN DAYS. 4. The magazine is out of print. --BUCKSKIN BOB. This paper has always been sold by us at a uniform rate of six cents per copy. --W. M. K. Tan the small skins according to the directions published in No. 7, Vol. IV. --S. C. Yes. --J. A. W. Place the matter in the hands of a lawyer. --W. G. W. The addition of a small quantity of japan dryer to printing ink will make it dry quickly. --CHESTNUTS. A boy of eleven should confine his reading to more useful literature than novels, leaving those to be perused at a maturer age. --COW BOY. There is such a series of juvenile books. Make inquiry at a book store. --GOLDEN CROSS. A first class bookseller can obtain for you the books of travels written by Stanley and Livingstone. --MIDDY (Washington). The length of a ship's cable is about 720 feet. --B. O. S. No premium is offered for 1819 quarter-dollars, Hong-Kong coins or French centimes.

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Notices of Exchange.

[->] The publisher will positively take no responsibility concerning exchanges effected by means of this department, neither will the reliability of exchangers be guaranteed. To avoid any misunderstanding in the matter, it would be advisable for those contemplating exchanging to write for particulars to the addresses before sending the articles desired.

[->] Exchange notices containing offers of or for _shot-guns_, _air-guns_, _pistols_, _rifles_, _poisons_, _dangerous chemicals_, _animals_, _odd numbers of papers_, _valueless coins and curiosities_, _birds' eggs_, or "offers", will _not_ be inserted.

*Exchange Notices conforming with the above rates are inserted free of charge.*

L. Boyd, N.E. cor. 18th and Hamilton Sts., Philadelphia, Pa., a set of boxing gloves and a book by Verne, for a miniature sailboat, 2 feet long.

S. A. Chevalier, No. 366 Columbus Ave., Boston, Mass., 49 photo negatives of notable yachts, buildings, etc., for an electrical outfit, a cornet, or a banjo.

J. Hirsch, Box 212, Corpus Christi, Texas, a collection of sea curiosities for stamps.

E. T. Warner, 155 S. 5th St., Brooklyn, N.Y., Vols. VI, VII (complete) and VIII (to date) GOLDEN DAYS, and 20 books by Castlemon and Alger, for other books by Castlemon, Alger, Otis or Ellis.

L. G. Banks, 92 Maple Ave., 31st Ward, Pittsburg, Pa., a magic lantern with lens, lamp and 12 views, and "Robinson Crusoe," for a Model printing press.

H. J. West, 1610 Hollins St., Baltimore, Md., a magic lantern with 13 slides, in a leatherette box, for a pair of 3-pound Indian clubs and a pair of 3-pound dumb-bells.

R. F. Baird, 205 Wylie Ave., Pittsburg, Pa., Vol. VII GOLDEN DAYS, for a Waterbury watch.

E. D. Flugel, 134 E. 109th St., N.Y. city, a large bagatelle board with marbles, for a collection of not less than 300 foreign stamps only. (City offers only.)

F. L. Shipley, Box 275, Creston, Ia., Vols. LVII and LVIII "Youth's Companion" and Vol. VIII (up to date) GOLDEN DAYS, for a printing press and outfit.

H. B. Cochran, 345 N. 12th St., Phila., Pa., a Waterbury watch, a font of newspaper type, and 2 books, for a book on mineralogy and natural history or specimens of minerals.

E. Rudolphy, 389 S. Halsted St., Chicago, Ill. Vol. VII "Harper's Young People," for a photo tripod.

H. A. Eastman, Box 1080, Keene, N.H., a printing press and 5 fonts of type, for a telegraph key and sounder.

J. Tracy, Conneaut, Ohio, a maple-shell snare-drum with ebony sticks, for any vol. of GOLDEN DAYS prior to the fifth.

M. Graham, Grove City, Pa., a magic lantern with 35 slides, a panorama, a 3x4 printing press with type, a telephone and a cabinet of tricks, for a telegraph instrument with batteries.

L. Randall, 1825 Garrison Ave., St. Louis, Mo., a collection of over 300 foreign and U.S. postage stamps and a collection of postmarks, for a Waterbury watch.

W. P. Simpson, Box 773, Jacksonville, Fla., Vol. VII GOLDEN DAYS, a pair of roller skates and a set of books, for a silver watch or a press and outfit.

C. W. Hurst, 1825 Fitzwater St., Phila., Pa., Vols. I, II and III GOLDEN DAYS, a xylophone, a magic lantern with 24 slides, and a stamp collection in an album, for the best offer of bicycle sundries.

T. J. McMahon, 41 Thomas St., N.Y. city, Vols. III, IV and V GOLDEN DAYS, for best offer of a musical instrument.

S. M. Johnson, Lock Box 172, Round Rock, Texas, a $25 brass B-flat cornet with A and B crooks, for a 5x7 self-inking printing press and material.

J. Atwell, 10 W. Jefferson St., Syracuse, N.Y., a pair of nickel-plated extension roller skates and bag, for a banjo.

G. Frick, 2908 Fairhill St., Phila., Pa., a 48-inch steel-spoked rubber-tired bicycle, a watch, Vol. VII GOLDEN DAYS, and "Tom Brown at Oxford," for a Star bicycle.

C. E. Mason, 656 Franklin St., Phila., Pa., an International album containing stamps and about 5,000 loose ones, a New Rogers scroll saw, and 2 pairs of nickel-plated ice and roller skates, for a 26-bracket nickel-rimmed banjo, or a guitar, or photo materials.

G. Barker, 504 W. 129th St., N.Y. city, 7 books by Castlemon, Kingston and Dickens, for a violin and instruction book. (City offers preferred.)

Z. A. Stegmuller, 56 E. 25th St., N.Y. city, a game, a small steam engine, a silver watch and a gold pen-holder, for a self-inking printing press with type, or a rowing machine. (City and Brooklyn offers only.)

J. W. Edwards, 197 Hamilton Ave., Brooklyn, N.Y., a 16-foot flat-bottomed skiff with centreboard, sail, oars and oarlocks, for a 46 or 48-inch rubber-tired steel-spoked bicycle.

J. J. Morrow, 94 Pennsylvania Ave., Allegheny, Pa., a 3-lens microscope with a few mounted specimens, for Vols. V and VI GOLDEN DAYS.

C. H. Montayre, 145 W. 11th St., N.Y. city, a self-inking printing press and full outfit, for a 6x6 canvas tent. (City offers preferred.)

F. Blake, Lock Haven, Pa., a telegraph outfit, for a $10 watch, or a set of boxing gloves, or a pair of 12-pound dumb-bells.

L. H. Reamy, 113 River St., Zanesville, Ohio, a polyopticon, for the best offer of GOLDEN DAYS prior to Vol. VI.

C. V. Gibson. Box 1026, Natick, Mass., a 2-1/2 x 4 printing press with cards, 200 postmarks. 1400 foreign and U.S. stamps, and a pair of skates, for a flute, a banjo, a violin and bow, or a cornet.

C. Perry, Ithaca, N.Y., a $25 upright engine, for a scroll saw with lathe attachment.

L. M. Geer, Box 663, Corry, Pa., Vols. II, III and IV "Harper's Young People," Vols. XLI, XLII and XLIII "Youth's Companion," a magic lantern with 12 slides, 6 books and 2 pairs of skates, for a rubber-tired steel-spoked bicycle.

G. V. Bacon. 52 Dudley St., Boston, Mass., a Ruby magic lantern, a set of carving tools, and a set of drawing instruments, for a pair of fencing foils.

G. Medina, Room 360, Prod. Ex. Bldg., N.Y. city, a complete $40 camping outfit, for a 1/2-nickeled bicycle with ball bearings.

C. O. Henbest, Marshall, Ill., Vol. V or VI GOLDEN DAYS, or a printing press, for a collection of stamps.

F. A. Magee, Maiden, Mass., Vol. IV GOLDEN DAYS, a canvas canoe, a printing press, 200 stamps, 200 postmarks, a pair of opera glasses, a magnifying glass and 200 good story papers, for a large press or a bicycle.

E. C. Cary, Box 147, N.Y. city, a New Rogers scroll saw with drill, saws and patterns, a hand-inking 2-1/4 x 3-1/4 printing press, with type, ink, furniture, etc., for a violin and bow, with or without case.

N. J. Waite, 401 Giddings Ave., Cleveland, Ohio, Vol. VII GOLDEN DAYS, for any kind of electrical goods.

J. Clay Collier, Fort Smith, Ark., Vol. V and part of Vol. VII GOLDEN DAYS, for books by Castlemon or Cooke.

F. Vansant, 770 St. Peter St., Baltimore, Md., $15 worth of books, for an 8x8x8 wall tent.

J. W. Robertson, 1180 Harvard St., Chicago, Ill., a collection of stamps and 4 books, for a pair of opera glasses or a printing press with type.

C. A. Lutz, Cane Spring, Ky., Vols. II (a few numbers missing). III, IV, V, VI (all bound, without covers) and VII (unbound) "Harper's Young People," for volumes of GOLDEN DAYS or telegraphic apparatus.

G. Moulton, Virginia, Ill., an ebony 13-keyed B-flat clarionet, for a watch.

W. R. Clickner, Andover. Kans., a $25 5x8 printing press and outfit, for a rubber-tired bicycle.

C. Peck, 71 35th St., Chicago, Ill., 8 books by Reid and others, and a pair of ice skates, for a Morse telegraph outfit.

R. Buck, Sea Isle City, N.J., "Ragged Dick Series," (6 volumes), for a telegraph key, sounder and outfit.

F. Schafer, 307 S. 3d St., Brooklyn, E.D., N.Y., a pair of opera glasses with case, and a fife, for a mandolin, or a banjo with 24 brackets (N.Y. or Brooklyn offers preferred).

F. Horton, Westfield, Pa., 2 volumes of "Youth's Companion," and a pair of roller skates, for a banjo.

W. A. Sherwood, Lutherville, Md., a magic lantern with 12 slides and a font of job type, for rare foreign and U.S. stamps.

W. A. Pickering, Box 797, Eureka Springs, Ark., a 1/4-horse-power steam engine, for a nickel-plated B-flat cornet.

E. H. Gilbert, Lock Box 21, Glens Falls, N.Y., 2 pairs of skates and "Don Quixote," for a pair of opera glasses with case.

L. A. Cox, Verden, Ill., Vols. V, VI and VII GOLDEN DAYS, for a banjo.

R. F. Greene, Box 232, Arkansas City, Kans., Vol. LVIII "Youth's Companion" and 2 books, for any bound volume of GOLDEN DAYS except the sixth.

H. J. Hendrickson, 214 W. Market St., York, Pa., 950 foreign stamps and 700 foreign and domestic postmarks, for a collection of minerals.

C. V. B. Gettz, Moore's, Pa., a $35 gas engine (1/3-horse-power), for a bicycle (American Challenge preferred).

H. H. Sellers, 73 Exchange St., Bangor, Me., a 10-keyed ocarina, a 6-keyed clarionet, 6 books and a stylographic pen, for a cornet.

C. W. Valentine, Millville, N.J., a volume of "Youth's Companion," "Tom Brown's School-days" and a bagatelle board, for carpenters' tools.

A. Spring, Jr., White Plains, N.Y., a magic lantern with 23 slides, for Vol. I or II GOLDEN DAYS (bound).

J. G. Ross, Mariner's Harbor, Staten Island, N.Y., a 12-foot round-bottomed row-boat with centreboard and oars, for a photographic outfit, a bicycle or a press.

J. C. Hubbard, 22 E. Main St., Battle Creek, Mich., a hand-inking press and a collection of curiosities, for type and material, or volumes of GOLDEN DAYS prior to the fourth.

* * * * *

Children Cry for Pitcher's Castoria.

* * * * *

C. A. Wise, Gobleville, Mich., a pair of nickel-plated roller skates and a guitar, for the best offer of foreign and U.S. stamps.

H. A. Hammond. Box 276, Peabody, Mass., Vols. V and VI, or VI and VII GOLDEN DAYS, for a fountain or stylographic pen.

R. A. Weston, W. Mt. Vernon, Me., 300 numbers of "Youth's Companion," Vols. II, III and IV "Harper's Young People," Vol. VII GOLDEN DAYS, 3 books, 100 varieties of stamps, a pair of ice skates and a game, for a rubber-tired steel-spoked bicycle.

C. H. Dunham, 1098 Washington St. (Suite 12), Boston, Mass., a pair of roller skates, a Holly scroll saw with saws and patterns, and Vol. VII GOLDEN DAYS, for a bicycle (Mass. offers preferred).

R. H. Stickney, Valparaiso, Ind., a stereoscope with 16 views, a magic lantern with views and photographic attachment, a dark lantern and a book by Kingston, for a 7x9 wall tent.

B. M. Wilson, 1824 Ridge Ave., Phila., Pa., an International album with 100 stamps, and Vol. V GOLDEN DAYS, for a banjo.

E. S. Harvey, Ridge, Ohio, a hand-inking press with roller, furniture and a font of type, and a book, for an International stamp album or stamps.

J. Meighan, Jr., 386 Garden St., Hoboken, N.J., a pair of skates, for a catcher's mask.

C. Bagley, 10 Olive St., Lynn, Mass., a pair of skates, Vols. IV, VI and VII GOLDEN DAYS and a lot of musical instruments, for a rubber-tired bicycle (Mass. offers preferred).

E. F. Balinger, Mt. Union, Ohio, 2 vols. of GOLDEN DAYS, a pair of roller skates, a telegraph key and sounder, an Indian bow and arrows, and some books and magazines, for a cornet with crooks.

S. L. Taylor, 333 Columbus Ave., Boston, Mass., a collection of 350 foreign stamps in an album, 900 traders, a magic lantern with 20 or 30 slides, and 5 books, for a B-flat cornet, a banjo, or a cork-handled tennis racquet.

J. E. Ackerman, Jr., 7 Nassau St., N.Y. city, a nickel-plated bicycle saddle and bell, for a Duryea saddle (style, A or C).

F. H. Meyers. 38 Bleecker St., N.Y. city, Vols. IV, V, VI and VII GOLDEN DAYS, Vol. LIV "Youth's Companion," a vol. of "St. Nicholas," 5 books; a magic lantern with slides, and 2 games, for a rubber-tired steel-spoked bicycle.

C. F. Souder. Box 199, Toledo, Ohio, a violin and bow, and Vol. VII GOLDEN DAYS, for a banjo.

C. W. Howell, 646 Kentucky St., Lawrence, Kans., an accordion, a Waterbury watch, and a puzzle, for a complete telegraph outfit.

W. T. Cook, Royersford, Pa., 5 books by popular authors for any bound vol. of GOLDEN DAYS prior to the fifth.

W. H. Field, 234 Ferry St., Easton, Pa., a Holly scroll saw and a set of tenpins for a wall or other tent large enough for four persons.

P. J. McConomy, 38 N. Prince St., Lancaster, Pa., Vols. I and II (a few numbers missing) and V and VI (complete) GOLDEN DAYS, for a piccolo with at least 4 keys.

O. C. Cornwell, Girard, Kans., Vols. VI and VII GOLDEN DAYS, 8 books, a pair of skates, 5 games, a set of drawing Instruments, and 500 foreign and U.S. stamps, for a self-inking printing press, or a silver watch.

W. Bell, Box 154, Norfolk, Va., Vols. I, II, III, IV and V GOLDEN DAYS, for a Holly steam engine or a collection of 1500 to 2000 stamps.

G. E. Montgomery, Westernport, Md., Vols. VI and VII GOLDEN DAYS and "Ames' Mastery of the Pen," for standard works on physiology and hygiene or a field glass.

C. C. Moore, 76 3d Place, Brooklyn, N.Y., a magic lantern with 16 slides, and a printing press with 2 fonts of type, for an instantaneous camera and outfit.

W. Willson, 561 Lorimer St., Greenpoint, Brooklyn. N.Y., a magic lantern with 12 slides for a pair of 9 or 9-1/2 nickel-plated roller skates.

D. A. Trapp, 113 E. Maxwell St., Lexington, Ky., a collection of over 1200 stamps in an international album for a No. 2 or 3 Baltimorean press and outfit.

H. Edwards, 147 E. 114th St., N.Y. city, a magic lantern with 12 slides, and a hand-inking printing press, without type, for a set of boxing gloves.

F. Rowell, Stamford, Conn., Vols. VI and VII GOLDEN DAYS, and some books, games and stamps, for Indian grammars, or histories of North American Indians, or Indian relics.

J. E. Caldwell, Sego, Kans., a $3 piccolo, a set of boxwood chessmen, and a box of water-color paints, for the best offer of GOLDEN DAYS.

W. McIntosh, East Smethport, Pa., a 10x14 hand-inking press, with 20 fonts of type, 2 sticks, galley, leads, etc., for a 50 to 52-inch bicycle.

J. H. Cunningham, Room 507 Hamilton Building, Pittsburg, Pa., a pair of ice skates and "Tom Brown's School Days" for a learners' book on shorthand.

W. McVeagh. 831 W. 3d St., Williamsport, Pa., a New Rogers scroll saw for Vol. I or IV GOLDEN DAYS.

* * * * *

A LIMITED NUMBER OF *Volumes IV, V and VI* "GOLDEN DAYS," Bound in Cloth.

Price, $4.00 each.

ADDRESS, JAMES ELVERSON, Publisher, Philadelphia, Pa.

* * * * *

*From the Daily News, Genesee, N.Y.*

We wish we could impress upon the mind of every father how cheaply he could make the home circle doubly attractive by subscribing for the GOLDEN DAYS, decidedly the most valuable and most interesting pictorial newspaper we ever saw, not only for the children, but for the entire family. For the sake of his children we sincerely urge every father to send to the office for a specimen copy, when he can see for himself the great value it will be in his family, and he will thank us in his heart for calling his attention to it. Address James Elverson, publisher, GOLDEN DAYS, corner and Spruce Streets, Philadelphia, Penna.

OUT OF THE MANY EARNEST AND EMPHATIC ENDORSEMENTS OF "GOLDEN DAYS," WE PRINT THE FOLLOWING:

*A GOOD OPINION FROM REV. G. E. STROBRIDGE,*

_Pastor St. John's M. E. Church, New York city._

GOLDEN DAYS has been coming regularly to my house since its first number. It is always welcome. The children wait with impatience its weekly arrival, and even interrupt their meals to tear off its wrapper and scan its attractive pages. It is generously illustrated, and as to its reading matter, it is bright, breezy, instructive, and, best of all, pure. The most careful parent may dismiss anxiety while his happy child is absorbed in its columns.

A feature that adds to the paper an especial value is a weekly discussion of the International Sunday-school Lesson. This is given in a pleasant narrative style by Rev. D. P. Kidder, D.D., for many years editor of the Sunday School Advocate, and editor and writer of books for children. His widely-known name is a sufficient assurance that these lessons thus conducted will continue to be learned, clear and interesting.

*From the West Philadelphia Press.*

GOLDEN DAYS.--This weekly journal for young people has reached a circulation that embraces the entire country. Indeed, there is hardly to be found a village or hamlet in the newest of the States or in our far Western Territories in which GOLDEN DAYS is not a welcome visitor. The proprietor and editor, Mr. James Elverson, determined from the first to make it a journal that should please and at the same time instruct the young, and he has been completely successful. There is no weekly paper published in this or the Old World that so covers the field for the youthful mind as GOLDEN DAYS. There is nothing heavy about it--nothing prosy or difficult to comprehend in the matter it contains. Its stories are graphic, entertaining and by the best writers, while each number has articles especially prepared on subjects of practical interest to boys and girls by authors whose fame in the arena of natural history, science, biography and art is national. Add to all these excellencies and attractions the fact that no impure line or thought ever stains its pages, and it must be acknowledged that GOLDEN DAYS is pre-eminently fitted to become the intellectual and pleasant companion of the young in the American household.

*From the Sunday Courier, York, Pa.*

The remarkable success attained by GOLDEN DAYS, the boys' and girls' periodical published by Mr. James Elverson, Philadelphia, is a most encouraging evidence that pure and healthful literature is not incapable of attracting the eager interest of "Young America." Mr. Elverson seems, in fact, to have gauged the taste of the average child of our day with wonderful accuracy, as there appears to be but one opinion as to the universal popularity of this excellent periodical. So far as parents are concerned, its success should be a matter for general congratulation, as scrupulous care is evidently observed in excluding from its pages everything that could be considered as in any way tending to vitiate the minds of the young. On the other hand, its contents are far superior in vividness of interest for the little ones to those sensational publications which are the source of so much anxiety to all who have children to educate. GOLDEN DAYS, in fact, appears to have struck the golden mean in juvenile literature, and it affords us sincere pleasure to be able to chronicle its conspicuous popularity.

*From the Advocate of Peace, Boston.*

GOLDEN DAYS.--"To merit is to insure success" is certainly verified in the publication of GOLDEN DAYS, by James Elverson, Philadelphia. This admirable _weekly_ for the youth of this great land is now well-established, and has an increasingly large and well-deserved patronage. Its readers are not treated with trashy matter, but with pictures and puzzles and stories of thrilling adventure and useful knowledge. GOLDEN DAYS is supplanting a poisonous literature, and performing a wholesome mission in this day, when too much good seed cannot be sown by the friends of humanity.

*From the Congregationalist and Boston Recorder.*

Among juvenile periodicals, we think GOLDEN DAYS likely to take high rank for variety, instructiveness, vivacity and freedom from objectionable characteristics. We have examined several numbers, and it seems to be well edited and likely to deserve and win popularity.

*ANOTHER FROM REV. D. M'CARTNEY,*

_Pastor Clinton Avenue M. E. Church, Kingston, N.Y._

I have examined sample copies of GOLDEN DAYS, and most heartily indorse it as meeting a felt want. Notwithstanding the large number of papers we subscribe for now, it looks as if GOLDEN DAYS would have to be added to the number, as my children are enraptured with it.

BISHOP BOWMAN,

_Of the Methodist Episcopal Church, writes:_

ST. LOUIS, Nov. 26, 1880.

I have examined with great interest several numbers of GOLDEN DAYS, and am much pleased with them. We greatly need all such publications for our young people, to save them from the corrupting trash that meets them on every side. I wish you great success in this worthy Christian enterprise.

*FROM REV. O. C. DICKERSON,*

_Pastor of Congregational Church, Belleplain, Iowa._

ED. GOLDEN DAYS.--All hail! As a sterling friend of the young, your enterprise wakes loud echoes.

*REV. RICHARD NEWTON, D.D.,*

_Pastor of the P. E. Church of the Epiphany, Philadelphia, says:_

From what I have seen of GOLDEN DAYS, it strikes me very favorably. There is a high tone of morality about it which is calculated to exert a very wholesome influence on the young people who read it.

*From the Roman Citizen, Rome, N.Y.*

A MODEL PAPER.--Two years ago, we informed the readers of the Citizen that a long-felt want was to be supplied--viz., a paper was to be printed which would give the young people (boys and girls) plenty of good reading without corrupting their morals or vitiating their tastes--in other words, would furnish them with stories which would gratify their love of adventure without inspiring in them a desire to imitate impossible heroes, and tempting them to desert their homes in search of adventures which never occur outside of blood-and-thunder papers and story books. The paper we allude to--GOLDEN DAYS--promised this, and we have carefully watched it for two years to see how its pledge would be redeemed. We are glad to be able to state it has exceeded our most sanguine expectations. While it has been constantly filled with stories and sketches of the most fascinating character, we have never seen a sentence in it which we could have wished to have omitted.

*From the Episcopal Recorder.*

GOLDEN DAYS.--We commend this as the best of the class of publications to which it belongs, and as being essentially different from all that are contemporaneous with it. And if it shall prove to be like Moses' rod when turned into a serpent, and swallow up the serpent-rods of all cunning magicians of evil, and then become a rod of power for working good in the home, in the school, and wherever youth are found, we shall rejoice.

*From the Christian Register, Boston.*

GOLDEN DAYS is well worthy the examination of parents who wish to provide their children with a large amount of carefully-prepared miscellany, at once entertaining, instructive and clean. It is edited with ability, and shows a quick sympathy with the pleasures of the young people, and a clear outlook for their welfare.

*From the Maryland School Journal.*

GOLDEN DAYS (Elverson, Philadelphia) has fulfilled its promise, and is in every respect a suitable weekly paper to put into the hands of young boys and girls. We have carefully watched each number since the start, and have seen in it nothing to censure and much to praise.

*From the Floyd Co. Advocate, Charles City, Iowa.*

GOLDEN DAYS, published by James Elverson, of Philadelphia, is a new first-class paper for boys and girls. Provide them with good, entertaining reading, and they will grow up good men and women.

*From Town Talk, Mansfield, Ohio.*

James Elverson, Philadelphia, publishes a handsome illustrated and interesting youth's paper called GOLDEN DAYS. It should find a welcome in every home for the young folks, for the reading is wholesome, and such literature should be encouraged by prompt subscriptions. If the youngsters catch a glimpse of it they will find they need it as a recreation after study hours.

*From The Home and Sunday-School, Dallas, Texas.*

We can heartily recommend GOLDEN DAYS as one of the purest and most charming juvenile magazines we have seen. It is wholly free from corrupting influences--fresh, instructive, and eagerly welcomed by the boys and girls. Having seen nothing in it to censure and much to praise, we hope it may have the wide circulation it merits.

*From the Christian Advocate, Pittsburg, Pa.*

GOLDEN DAYS comes to us in a magazine form, making a beautiful and interesting volume. This journal numbers among its contributors probably more popular writers of serial stories for youth than any juvenile publication in the country.

*From the Presbyterian Banner, Pittsburg, Pa.*

A great advance has been made within the last twelve months in a very important agency for good--the publication of cheap, and, at the same time, unexceptionable and attractive reading matter. For a long time the want has been seriously felt for something more than mere denunciation to overcome the growing evil of the demoralizing literature--cheap and vile--that has been scattered broadcast over the land. That want has been measurably supplied, in part, by the publication of standard English classics, at marvelously low prices, and in part by the issue of low-priced but superior periodicals, attractive in appearance and contents, and suitable for both young and old. We invite special attention to the latest enterprise in the latter department--GOLDEN DAYS, for boys and girls, James Elverson, publisher, Philadelphia. It is a handsome juvenile journal, of sixteen pages (over eight hundred a year), filled with stories, sketches, anecdotes, poetry, puzzles, and humorous items, making up a total that will delight and at the same time instruct the boys and girls from eight to eighty. The pictorial embellishments are unsually fine, and far in advance of the coarse deformities in the flashy sheets that are displayed on the news-stands to horrify every refined passer-by.

*From the Baltimore Gazette.*

The remarkable success attained by GOLDEN DAYS, the boys' and girls' periodical, published by Mr. James Elverson, Philadelphia, is a most encouraging evidence that pure and healthful literature is not incapable of attracting the eager interest of "Young America." Mr. Elverson, seems, in fact, to have gauged the taste of the average child of our day with wonderful accuracy, as there appears to be but one opinion as to the universal popularity of this excellent periodical. So far as parents are concerned, its success should be a matter for general congratulation, as scrupulous care is evidently observed in excluding from its pages everything that could be considered as in any way tending to vitiate the minds of the young. On the other hand, its contents are far superior in vividness of interest for the little ones to those sensational publications which are the source of so much anxiety to all who have children to educate. GOLDEN DAYS, in fact, appears to have struck the golden mean in juvenile literature, and it affords us sincere pleasure to be able to chronicle its conspicuous popularity.

*From the Methodist, New York.*

James Elverson, Philadelphia, publishes a handsome, illustrated and interesting youth's paper, called GOLDEN DAYS. It should find a welcome in every Christian home for the young folks, for the reading is wholesome, and such literature should be encouraged by prompt subscriptions. If the youngsters catch a glimpse of it, they will find they need it as a recreation after study-hours.

*From the Baptist Record, Jackson, Miss.*

A specimen number of GOLDEN DAYS has fallen into our hands. This is a paper for boys and girls, and, from the cursory examination we have been enabled to give it, we think it deserving of support.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Illustrations:

Readers who are unable to use the fully illustrated html version of this text may wish to view some individual images, located within the "images" directory of the html file. The major illustrations are:

Cover pic01.jpg Linda's Crazy Quilt pic03_full.jpg In Search of Himself pic07.jpg Mamie's Letter to Heaven pic10b.jpg Striking out for Themselves pic11.jpg Jack-A-Dandy pic15.jpg

Layout of Advertising Pages:

inside front:

+---------------+---------------+-------------------------------+ | Sapolio |"Advertisements| Malaria Yellow Fever | | | inserted..." | | | +---------------+ Ayer's Pills | +---------------+Practical Joke +---------------+---------------+ // // // // // | | Ready Binder | | | | +---------------+ | | +---------------+ | Stamps | | | Vol. VII +---------------+---------------+ | | "Golden Days" | Pitcher's Castoria | Hammock Chair | +---------------+-------------------------------+---------------+

inside back:

+---------------+---------------+---------------+---------------+ | Wood's Penograph | | +---------------+ | (exchanges) | | Military | | | | +---------------+---------------+ | | Dictionary | Our Premium Knife | | | | | | +---------------+---------------+---------------+ (exchanges) | // // // // // | | (exchanges) | (exchanges) +---------------+ | (exchanges) +-------------------------------+ Volumes | | | Pitcher's Castoria | IV, V and VI | +---------------+-------------------------------+---------------+

back cover (three columns, all Testimonials)

Errata (noted by transcriber)

Missing or incorrect punctuation was silently corrected. Typographical errors in the advertising sections were left unchanged; those in the main text were corrected. Both are noted here.

Advertising, Front Section: For es heavy Mustache, Whiskers, or hair [_probably "forces": letter invisible_] Advertisements inserted ... agate measurement). [_no opening parenthesis_] *PAKET* of *FOREN STAMPS* [_as printed_]

Linda's Crazy Quilt I declare for 't!" she added [close quote missing]

In Search of Himself curved from the jaws like cimetars. [_spelling unchanged_]

In a Menagerie I stopped as usual at Bessie's cage [_elsewhere "Bessy"_]

Stories of Dumb Creatures the other boys will throw stones at him.' [" for ']

Jack Stanwood the street vender of physic [_spelling unchanged_]

The Young Game-Warden "It sorter hurts you to know [I sorter] You have got the bugglars in your own hands now [_spelling unchanged_]

Testimonials The pictorial embellishments are unsually fine [_spelling unchanged_]

End of Project Gutenberg's Golden Days for Boys and Girls, by Various