CHAPTER XIX.

WRECKED AGAIN.

I was almost stunned at the news the carpenter brought, but I knew of the only thing to do, of course.

"Rig the pumps and get to work at them," I squeaked faintly, fearing to try to talk loud.

"Ay, ay, sir," he answered, "but it will do no good. Lord Harry! she's opened up like a sieve, sir!"

Soon we had the water from below pouring on to the deck and running into the scuppers and mingling with that that came on board of us over the rail. But the wind increased in strength until it seemed that it would take the aged masts out of the brig, and it actually threatened to blow the clothes from off our backs.

Chips had gone below again to sound the well, and I was holding on to a belaying-pin, and trying not to show how weak and sick I was. I noticed that one of the men, a narrow-headed fellow with an ugly gash of a mouth, was not putting all of the beef he might into his stroke on the pump handles. So I slid over to him and laid hold myself; but the man endeavored to push me to one side.

"Hands off, Captain Jonah," he said, "it might stop working! We had plenty of good luck until you came aboard of us. Hands off, I say!" he cried, "or we'll feed you to the whales."

I could have struck the man for his insolence, as his words had been heard by two of the men opposite; but I saw that the result might be bad for me, so I replied nothing, but taking a firmer hold of the beam, I wedged him out of his position, ready at any moment to fell him if he attempted violence. I was the stronger, and at last I broke his hold. Where the force I now felt command of came from I cannot tell. The man would have slid over against the bulwarks if I had not caught him by the shoulder.

"Go over on the other side and work, you shirker," I cried, and, to my surprise, my voice roared out the words in tones like those of a bull.

I gave the man a push up the slope of the deck, and began heaving up and down with all my might and main, but I had made a discovery.

It was only my lower tones, my demi-voix, that were gone. For three days afterwards this phenomenon continued. If I wished to talk, I had to use the full lung-power that I possessed, and the result was a sound that would do credit to a boatswain's mate in a typhoon. It was as unlike my former voice as a broadside to a pistol-shot. But I am wandering.

The effect of my treatment of the insolent sailor had been marvellous. Not a disrespectful glance was cast at me thereafter. Soon the carpenter came up from below.

"We may have gained some three or four inches, Captain, but no more," he panted, laying hold alongside of me. "I think the water is getting in forward too, sir," he added.

"Get out four of the prisoners and man the forecastle pump," I roared at him.

He jumped at the odd sound of my voice, but made no remarks, and scrambled to the hatch in a jiffy.

"Four of you up out of that!" he cried through the hole, at the same time battering away at the fastenings with a belaying-pin. The hatch was flung open, and instead of four, all ten of the Britishers came rushing to the deck. They probably had been dying of terror down below, and one glance at us working away for dear life told them the condition of affairs.

Without a word they set to work, under the direction of their own officers, to get the spare gear out of the way and start the forecastle pump going.

The carpenter soon reported from the hold that we had gained some four inches, and were now holding our own. This was at the end of an hour's work by all hands.

I perceived, however, that it would be foolishness to work all the men to death at the outset, and that the sensible way would be to divide them into relays, even if the water gained a little on us.

So I told off my own men into two divisions, and sent half of them into the galley to get rest and a bite to eat. But the prisoners I drove at it, as we had fully two hours' start of them. They needed no encouragement yet, and one of them even replied, "Ay, ay, sir," to my orders to hit up the stroke.

There is no use of prolonging this description. All night we worked away, and the gray dawn found us still at it.

Fisher, the wounded man, I had mounted guard over the prisoners, arming him with a cutlass and a brass blunderbuss that I had found in the mate's room. I hated to goad men the way I had to, but I think my own people worked almost as hard, and needed less urging; but the Englishmen had begun to fag.

By noon the sea had gone down, and, probably owing to the swelling of the timbers, the leak had apparently decreased. We had gained a foot and more on the water in the hold, and the carpenter found out that it was as he suspected, the water had been entering through a started seam, and he said that if we could get to anchor, he thought might be able to locate where it was. So I ordered all but four of the prisoners below. At first one of the mates demurred; but I would admit of no talking, and at the sight of the pistols he obeyed me.

Now the great question was to find out where we were. By two o'clock I made sail, and seeing that the old tub did better with the wind astern, I ordered the helmsman to steer the same course we had been holding, and I started to go below to rest.

I slept like a top, and it was six o'clock when Dugan ran in and awakened me, telling me that land was in sight off the starboard bow, distant about twelve miles.

But where were we? That was more than I could tell.

I had some idea of our position when we struck the storm, or, better, the latter had struck us, and I presumed that we must either, from the course we were steering, have entered the Irish Channel or gone up the west coast of Ireland itself; but it mattered little; we had to find some place to anchor and, if possible, to repair our damage, and besides, I intended to land the prisoners at the first chance, as they were a constant source of menace to us, and so many more mouths to feed.

Coming on deck, I took the glass and climbed into the foremast shrouds.

What an odd circumstance it was! Here I was a full-fledged Captain, and had never been aloft on a vessel but once before in my life, and that was when I had covered myself with tar and glory by climbing to the cross-trees of one of the ships at the wharfs of Baltimore. But I went up as far as the topsail-yard, hanging on harder than was necessary, perhaps, and from there I took a sight at the distant land. I made it out to be a collection of islands, with what might be the mainland farther on to the north. After I descended to the deck I changed the course a few points to the east, and in a little over two hours we had brought a high, rocky shore close to on the port beam. It was an island, as I had surmised.

The sky had now cleared to a glorious red sunset, and I could discern the conformation of the shore. Two arms ran out to the eastward, and--a remarkable sight!--I saw that the island was split in two by a narrow crevice, and that on the southern point it dwindled down into a narrow spit, at the end of which rose a sheer rock like a tremendous castle.

The carpenter had started the lead, with the result of finding no bottom until we were well within the water embraced by the extending arms. At last he reported suddenly fifteen fathoms; at the next heave, thirteen: and seeing that it was shoaling so rapidly, I feared to go in nearer, and we hove to and let go our anchor.

The water was as smooth as a carpet, and with the stopping of the strain and working of the hull, the leak ceased pouring in, the carpenter reporting, after a trip to the hold with the lantern, that she was only weeping a little along her inner skin. I had kept four of the prisoners at the pumps, however, and now I called every one, and in an hour's time we had her nearly dry.

Ordering the Englishmen back to where they belonged, Caldwell and I took the first anchor watch, and the rest turned in to sleep.

The huge shadow of the rocky cliff enshrouded us, and in rear of the black silhouette of the island I could see the pale greenish-blue of the sky in the west, with a few stars twinkling through it, and myriads of them gleaming in the deeper blue overhead. It was so peaceful and calm, and in such contrast to the scenes that we had been through, that were it not for the pain I still suffered, I could have felt almost joyous. But nature asserted herself, and lying there sprawled on the deck, I fell asleep.

I awakened with a start, to find it was daylight. I noticed that Caldwell must have staid awake after I did, for he had rolled up his jacket and placed it as a pillow beneath my head. But the honest fellow had given in at last, and there he was, snoring away on the top of the forward hatch, with his arms and legs straggled out like a jumping-jack on the floor of a play-room.

Now if what had happened before this calmly dawning day appears strange or improbable to any one who may read, and if they are tired of the relation of these facts, which, I can say without boasting, are unusual to have happened to any one being, let them lay aside for good and all the reading of what is to follow. For what has previously happened is nothing to what I am going to tell, in my opinion, as I am a truthful man.

I awakened Caldwell gently, and told him to go down and stir out the man who was doing the cooking for us, and have him brew some coffee and prepare breakfast. We had some fresh vegetables still left, for the _Duchess of Sutherland_ had not been long from port when we had taken her.

Then, all alone, I gazed at the island in whose little bay we were resting.

A narrow stretch of beach ran from the foot of the cliff to the water's edge. The top was verdure-clad, and to the north some stunted underbrush grew along the crest. The strange crevice that I had noticed ran from the green slope, sheer and straight, to within twenty feet of the water's level. It looked as if it might have been made by the stroke of a giant's sword. The high rock at the end of the tongue of land to the southward resembled more closely than ever a moss-grown ruin; but all at once I jumped for the glass. A thin, twirling column of smoke arose from a little hollow a quarter of a mile up the shore, and by the aid of a telescope I could make out two or three huts, and some gray objects on the slope of the hill that resolved themselves into grazing sheep. I made up my mind, before I landed the prisoners and set to work stopping the seams, to row ashore and find out where we were. But hunger asserted itself, and the smell of cooking coming from the galley reminded me that with the exception of some sopped biscuit and a bit of fat meat that I had managed to worry down the night past, nothing solid had passed my lips since my struggle with the man in the passageway.

Running below, I asked the carpenter in to breakfast with me in the cabin. He was my First Lieutenant, as I have said, and of course I knew, without his saying so, that he had saved my life--with my own pistol, too, I surmise.

"Well, Captain Hurdiss," Chips said, "a busy day's before us. I think if we can careen the old hooker and get that opened strake so we can handle it from the outside, we can take her across, bar another such storm as we had last night."

"We'll make a try for it, Mr. Chips," said I, roaring out the answer after two or three futile attempts to speak quietly.

"You won't need a trumpet this voyage," was the carpenter's rejoinder to this, at which I laughed, for the hot coffee and food were restoring my spirits.

The men, too, were in an even frame of mind, and when I ordered out the boat they went about it like good ones. I saw that the prisoners were fed before I left the deck, and then going over the side, I gave the orders, man-of-war fashion, to "Shove off!" "Let fall!" etc., and after a pull of a few minutes the carpenter and I landed on the beach near the hollow in which the huts were, and finding a path, we ascended to them.

As we approached the door of the largest hovel, that was built of sods and stones, a nondescript figure, with just enough rags on to save it from appearing savage, emerged. The man appeared a little frightened at first, and was truly startled at the sound of my voice. His reply I could not translate, although I had merely asked him what island this was, and what was the name of the coast that we could discern to the eastward.

At last, by dint of signs and repeating the question, I made out something that sounded like "Innishkea," and when I pointed to the island to the north the same answer came. When the land to the eastward was designated he said Muhllet a Blackshod over and over. I gave him a bit of silver, and the meaning of that he understood quite well, for he grinned and closed his fist tight upon it, at the same time giving a pull to his long front lock. I never heard such outlandish lingo in my life as the man spoke, but I remembered the sounds of some of the words, and when I got back to the ship I went into the cabin, and the carpenter and I got out the map that showed the coast of Ireland, for Chips insisted that the man was talking Gaelic, and that it was either Ireland or Scotland whose shore lay off to the eastward.

"Hurrah! hurrah!" I cried suddenly, my attention arrested by a name. "Here we are, Mr. Chips. The island of Inniskea--and off here is the peninsula of Mullet that encloses the waters of Blacksod Bay."

So I knew where I was at last!

But there was lots to be done. Arming the crew, we took the fastenings off the hatch, and ordered the prisoners into the boat. We left them on shore with a barrel of ship's bread and a half-barrel of salt meat. And then we rowed back, and prepared to do some impromptu calking, and fit the old hulk in a better condition for putting to sea.

The _Duchess of Sutherland_ was loaded with machinery for some sort of crushing business, and the rest of her cargo was cheap cloths and print-stuffs, probably for the East Indian market. According to her papers, she was bound for Calcutta.

The seam that had done most of the leaking was hardly a foot beneath the surface of the water as she lay on even keel, we discovered. It had opened up badly forward, and again amidships. So we set about lightening her first before we hove her down.

Rigging a block and tackle, we jettisoned some heavy bits of machinery, and found that the cargo had been very badly and loosely stowed.

The brig--she had been outfitted in a hurry--carried four guns, short carronades of heavy weight, on her deck, and we shifted these to starboard side, and then we rigged out an anchor at the end of a spar; and I was surprised to see what a purchase we got on her, and how well all this answered for our ends. As soon as they could, the carpenter and the crew set about calking her with hemp from an old cable, whistling and humming away merrily.

They progressed finely with the job, and as there was nothing for me to do, I went aloft. I could smell the tar that they were boiling in the galley, and was hoping that we could finish our work in time to get under way that evening, when all at once I felt a jar, as if the vessel had struck something below, and it appeared to me that we heeled a little more to port.

In fact our list was very evident now, and the masts had quite an angle on them. I saw that the carpenter, who was standing in a boat alongside, had stopped work, and was looking curiously up at me. The seam at which he had been tapping was now two feet above the surface of the water, and the ripped green copper of the brig's bottom was plain to view.

The carpenter laid his head against the side, and then shouted up, in a frightened voice:

"For heaven's sake, Captain Hurdiss," he cried, "there's water entering somehow! I can hear the sound of it from here."

He and the men in the boat hastily scrambled up the side.

Just then there came another jarring sound. It was the cargo shifting.

I was hastening to descend, when I cast a glance toward the shore, and there I saw one of the prisoners, whom I had noticed standing on the top of the hill, suddenly wave his arms about his head, and come tearing down the slope toward where the others were grouped about a fire.

But this was not all. Through the cleft in the hill-side I could see the waters on the other side of the island. And in this narrow space, framed by the walls of the cliff, I saw a vessel just coming about into the wind. Another instant and she was gone, hidden by the dark mass of land. But so firmly impressed was this quick vision upon my mind that I can see it to this day, as firmly fixed as were it a painting that I had studied in its every detail.

As I reached the deck the brig gave another lurch, and our bulwarks were almost in the water.

"The cargo all adrift, Captain Hurdiss," shouted the carpenter, coming up the ladder. "And we must have a bad leak in our top sides. The old thing is rotten to her heart," he added.

The men, without orders, were tumbling into the boats, and even with my small experience I could see that nothing could save the _Duchess_ from sinking where she lay. I looked toward the shore, and saw the prisoners in a body running up the beach toward the north. Just as I caught sight of them, they rounded a point of rock and disappeared.

But a strange shifting motion in the brig warned me to hasten. What impelled me, I do not know, but seeing the glass wedged in the shrouds where I had planted it, I made for it, and picking it up, jumped into the boat.

We had rowed but a few dozen strokes when, with a lurch, and a dull explosion as the forward deck blew out from the pressure of air, down went the _Duchess of Sutherland_, like a little _Royal George_. But the only living things she took with her were a few half-drowned chickens in a coop near the galley.

Even the carpenter now showed signs of despondency, and what I told him about the vessel that looked like a great lugger with one mast, that I had seen on the other side of the land, did not cheer him.

"We're in for it now," he grumbled. "There's no prize-money in this affair. She's one of their revenue-cutters, and she'll scoop us surely."

"That's what the prisoners were scampering for," spoke up Dugan, who was pulling stroke oar. "They've gone around to fetch her."

"Well, that's all they'll find," said Chips, pointing over the stern of the boat.

I looked back. Only a few feet of the _Duchess_'s masts were visible, but there was a lot of debris floating on the water near them.

[TO BE CONTINUED.]

Next Saturday will occur the eighth annual in-door interscholastic championship games of the Boston schools at Mechanics' Hall, held under the auspices of the Boston Athletic Association. The events are all scratch, and include the 40-yard dash, 300-yard run, 600-yard run, 1000-yard run, half-mile walk, running high jump, putting 16-lb. shot, pole vault, and 45-yard hurdles (3 flights, 2 ft. 6 in. high). Besides, there will be special team-races arranged. This meeting is open to the members (under twenty-one years of age) of all schools in the vicinity of Boston. Each school will be allowed to enter three men in each event, except in the 1000-yard run, when only two are entered and but one may compete.

Ever since 1889 the schools have competed annually, and it has been the winter athletic event of the school world. In 1890 the Boston A.A. offered a large silver shield to run for nine years to be contended for by the different schools, the one winning it the greatest number of times to become the final possessor, and this generous action has had a stimulating effect in making every school anxious to have its name engraved on the blank spaces made for that purpose. Consequently, as the occasion comes around each winter, speculation is rife as to the probable champion school.

The outcome next Saturday, while based on relative comparisons, is more or less a matter of conjecture, as youthful athletic competition is an uncertain quantity. Not a first-prize winner, with the exception of E. W. Mills, of last year's meet, appears in the list again, and this fact should be encouraging to those who would otherwise have to struggle against established champions.

The New England Interscholastic records are about as low as it is possible to get them, and while no record-breaking is looked for, yet in one or two instances there may be some change of marks. In the 1000-yard run E. W. Mills, of Chauncy Hall, who now holds the record of 2 min. 33 sec., will be able to better that time if anybody can. It is traditional custom that the two winning schools of the year previous shall meet in a team-race, and this year English High and Worcester Academy will clash. The Worcester boys are bitterly aggrieved over losing the in-door championship of '96 by one point to English High, and will make strenuous efforts to regain some of their laurels by winning this event.

To prophesy correctly the winner of the first event on the programme, the 40-yard dash, would be impossible under existing circumstances. The string of foremost dash-runners that the schools will furnish are very evenly matched, and most of them are doing the distance in 4-4/5 sec.--record time--so that it will be less than a yard that separates the leaders in the final heat. English High is sure to have more than one of its runners in the final round, with H. J. Kane, H. C. Kennington, and A. F. Duffy wearing the colors. Kane was third in the 100 and 220 yard runs at the out-of-door championships, and ever since he has shown improvement. All three of these athletes are capable of doing 4-4/5 sec. H. C. Jones, of Phillips Exeter, who won the novice 40-yard at the B.A.A. games, February 6th, is predicted to keep pace with the swiftest, and will be a dangerous competitor.

Newton High has H. W. Owens, another dash-runner, who in several instances has done 4-4/5 sec. His inconsistency in running is his worst fault. The Worcester schools are likely to bring down a set of good sprinters. The high-school has in A. M. Butler a slashing sprinter, who won a handicap dash in his city a few weeks ago.

The Worcester Academy athletes, with the benefit of a fine out-door track of 150 yards in length, built on scientific principles, and also a well-known professional coach in attendance, should exhibit some redeeming strength at the meet. George Hersey won third in the 40-yard dash in '96, and ought to better that now. He circled the school track in the 300-yard dash considerably under the record, and if the corners at Mechanics' Hall do not bother him, he can justify the confidence imposed in him by his school.

Captain G. H. Huntress, of Hopkinson's, will be that school's best entry for the 40 and 300 yard runs. He has good staying powers coupled with plenty of speed. Noble's School will contribute to the 40-yard dash A. T. Baker, who lately won prominence by taking the 40-yard handicap prize away from over a hundred entries at the B.A.A. games. J. W. Sever, of Brown and Nichol's School in Cambridge, is in the front rank of scholastic sprinters, and is running in trim form this year.

There have been rumors that Phillips Andover would not send a team, but this will not prevent individuals from entering, and in that case the appearance of J. J. Peters may be counted on. With the prestige obtained by his appropriating the hurdles at the big B.A.A. meet, he is given precedence over everybody in the hurdle contest. His elegant physique is a factor that will stand by him well if he is hard pressed. J. H. Converse, the national champion, who defeated A. H. Beers last June, is in this fight, and his reputation hangs in the balance on the result.

Hopkinson's School has a trio of clever timber-toppers in J. Hallowell, E. Cole, and E. Whitman. They are evenly matched, and finish on a line in practice, but Hallowell's past experience on the track would make him the favorite in a race. Worcester Academy will furnish a star in Hall, whose smooth movement over the sticks is bound to make him conspicuous.

Last year's calculations in the 600-yard run were all upset by the two probable winners failing to qualify, and by an unknown stepping into the breach. This contingency may have a repetition, for those thought to have the best chances are not to be depended upon. M. M. Marks, of English High, who recently won his heat at the B.A.A. games in 1 min. 20-3/5 sec. from 30 yards, is entitled to recognition. Those who have watched his running have great faith in his progress, and he certainly creates a favorable impression by his length of stride, which is wonderful, considering his slight body. Whether he can repeat is the doubtful question, and remains to be seen. C. I. Porter, of Hopkinson's, is going to make a strong bid for something in the 600. His practice trials have convinced his school that he is a valuable member of the athletic team. A. W. Lincoln, captain of Boston Latin's team, will be the grittiest runner in the bunch. He is game through and through, and if his speed stays with him he may catch a prize.

There is not a shadow of doubt in the minds of the prophets that E. W. Mills will capture the 1000-yard run. He is too much of a veteran to be jockeyed, and has speed and endurance enough to make him a winner. He will give the record most of his attention, and place it where future runners will never touch it. The only one now in view who is able to keep him company is D. T. Sullivan, of Worcester High, who is the national interscholastic mile-runner. E. W. Crawford, of Boston Latin, may win a place, as he is practising this distance daily, and has a beautiful stride. English High is relying upon F. A. Ferguson to keep its name from being tarnished at this distance. Hopkinson's has a couple of fair runners in Cunningham and Ladd, and they are expected to give a good account of themselves.

From present indications it seems as if Worcester Academy would make the most points in the field events, as some excellent marks have been made in practice. C. H. R. Howe has jumped as high as 5 ft. 8 in., which insures him a prominent place. He is credited with a height greater than this, but not in competition. H. B. Kendall, a schoolmate, is close behind Howe in jumping, but his specialty is pole-vaulting. From different sources comes the report that he will approach the record. As it is, he can go higher than 10 feet, and has done it repeatedly. J. H. Converse, of English High, has branched out as a high jumper, and his 5 ft. 6 in. in rubber-soled shoes means more when he gets on the floor at the interscholastic tournament. C. M. Rotch, of Hopkinson's, can reach 5 ft. 7 in., and is being carefully coached, so that this, together with his perfect style, will have a telling effect.

The shot-putters will be a stocky set of athletes, as no giants are in sight, and the list of foremost putters have muscle bred on the football field. W. W. Coe, of Noble's School, has the call for first honors, and he is deserving of whatever should befall him, as he has industriously kept at his endeavors to increase his distance. His stout arm, with a well-trained composition back of it, has sent the 16-lb. weight 38 ft., and this would win for him. Eaton of English High and Boyce of Brookline High are about in the same class, with the advantage on the latter's side. Worcester anticipates placing a "dark horse" in the shot.

The half-mile walk will have a scant gathering, as efficient walkers are scarce. Mohan, an English High pedestrian, with a point at the out-door interscholastic games last summer, is a reliable man in keeping his feet.

The championship of the ice-polo league of the schools in and about Boston has been won by the Arlington High-School. Space prevents any detailed comment upon this result in the present issue, but the ice-polo season will be reviewed in these columns at an early date.

It is announced that a track-athletic league, to be known as the Interscholastic Track Association, has been formed among St. Paul's School, Garden City; Lawrenceville School, of Lawrenceville; and the Hill School, of Pottstown. No meet will be held this year, but the first will take place in 1898 at Lawrenceville. The next in 1899 at St. Paul's, and in 1900 at the Hill School. The events agreed upon are the 100 and 220 yard dashes, 440 and 880 yard and mile run, 120-yard hurdle, 1-mile bicycle, pole vault, throwing 12-pound hammer, and high jump. A dual meet for this spring has been arranged between Lawrenceville and the Hill, the events to be those adopted by the triple league.

Although it is now somewhat late in the season for ice sports, the formation of a hockey league among the New York schools is nevertheless to be commended. The membership consists of Berkeley, Cutler, De La Salle, St. Austin's, and Montclair High-School. Of these schools Montclair High has probably done the most work at the sport this year, although Berkeley has developed a very fair team.

The banner at the Long Island A.A. in-door games, held in Brooklyn, February 20, was taken by Berkeley, with St. Paul's second, the scores of the competing teams, by points, being as follows: Berkeley, 25; St. Paul, 17; Barnard, 14; Pingry, 8; Adelphi, 7; Latin, 5; Dwight, Poly. Prep., and Collegiate, 3 each; High-School, 2; Columbia Grammar, Trinity, and Harvard, 1 each.

The in-door pole-vaulting record was broken by Paulding of Berkeley. He raised the figures from 9 ft. 10-1/2 in. to 10 ft. 4 in. At the Knickerbocker A.C. games last year Paulding cleared 10 ft. This year, therefore, he will doubtless do much better, and should again win the event.

The 50-yard dash, as was expected, went to Robinson of St. Paul's. He lost his heat to Sulzer of Pingry, but took first place easily in the finals. Kinney of St. Paul's put the 12-pound shot 43 ft. 1 in., and the high jump was taken by Serviss, B.L.S., with 5 ft. 6-1/2 in.

The entries for the big games at the Madison Square Garden, under the auspices of the Knickerbocker Athletic Club, close March 20. It is to be hoped that by that time all of the schools in this part of the country will be represented on the lists.

"TRACK ATHLETICS IN DETAIL."--ILLUSTRATED.--8VO, CLOTH, ORNAMENTAL, $1.25.

THE GRADUATE.

* * * * *

DR. NANSEN AND THIRTEEN.

The safe return of the _Fram_ is regarded as a knock-down blow to the thirteen superstition. There were thirteen men in her crew, of whom the thirteenth joined at the last moment. All returned safe and well, and none of them was ill at any time, or a cause of anxiety. Then, too, it was on the 13th of August that Nansen reached home, and on the same day the _Fram_ got quit of the ice, seven months to a day after (on January 13) she had struck a southerly current. To these coincidences it is added that three litters of thirteen pups were born in Nansen's pack of Eskimo dogs (though a greater number than six to a litter is unusual), and that just thirteen publishers bid for his book after his return.

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.

DEFECTS IN NEGATIVES, AND THE REMEDY.

The most common defect in negatives, and one which it is easy to avoid, is the small transparent spots which appear on the negative after developing and fixing. These spots are called pinholes, and are caused by small specks of dust which cling to the film, and which do not wash off when the developer is turned over the plate. When a print is made from a negative in which there are pinholes, small black spots appear in the finished print wherever there were pinholes in the film. These holes can be filled up by retouching, but they may be avoided altogether, and prevention is much better than cure. After the sensitive plate is in the holder, dust it over carefully with a small wad of surgeon's cotton before putting in the slide. If plates remain in the holder some time before they are used, it is a wise plan to dust them again before they are put into the developer. Pinholes are sometimes caused by using old developer which has not been filtered, and the tiny specks which are in the solution settle on the plate during development. Always filter developer after once using, and it saves time if it is filtered at once when through developing.

Larger spots with sharp dark edges are caused by air-bubbles forming on the plate when the developer is poured over it. If the tray is slanted a little when the solution is turned on the plate, air-bubbles are seldom formed. A piece of clean surgeon's cotton passed quickly over the plate will break the bubbles.

Where there are large irregular spots on the plate which are not fully developed, it shows that the developer did not cover all the plate immediately, and therefore acted longer on one part than on the other. There is no remedy for this; but such markings can be prevented by pouring the developer quickly over the plate and rocking the tray for a few seconds.

If the negative, after fixing, is covered with fine markings, the print looking as if the negative from which it was made was crackled, it shows that the tray was not rocked sufficiently during the process of development. The tray should be gently rocked in all directions, so that fresh developer is constantly passing over the sensitive film. (Not long ago one of the members of the club sent two prints to the editor, one of which was covered with fine markings. The letter stated that the negatives were made and developed one after the other; and while the first was all right, the second had the crackled appearance. An explanation of the cause was asked and received.)

If the negative after developing and fixing turns yellow it indicates that the plate was not left long enough in the fixing-bath. As explained in one of the papers on the chemistry of photography, when the negative is placed in the fixing-bath a new compound is formed of the unchanged chloride of silver and the hyposulphite of soda. They unite and form a double salts, called silver sodium hyposulphite or thisulphate. This double salt is soluble in a solution of hypo, and the fixing-bath must be strong enough not only to form this double salt, but also to dissolve it. When it is thoroughly dissolved it is quickly washed out of the film. If the fixing-bath is too weak, or if the plate is taken from the bath too soon, the plate will soon turn yellow, and in time the image will be destroyed. To prevent this the plate should be left in the fixing-bath for five minutes after the plate is cleared from the silver bromide.

When a negative after drying has a whitish appearance with a rough surface, it is because the plate was not washed long enough after removing from the hypo bath. Wash plates an hour in running water, or in eight or ten changes of water, changing at intervals of five minutes.

ARTHUR NILSEN asks if portraits can be made better with snap-shots than with time exposures; and if with time exposures, the length of the exposure. Snap-shots for portraits give too harsh contrasts. For a time exposure with good light simply taking off and replacing the cap quickly will be long enough; or if a hand-camera with drop shutter, open and close the shutter as rapidly as possible without making the exposure instantaneous. One must learn to regulate the exposure according to the light, and the rapidity of the lens and plate used. With a little careful practice one can learn to expose the plate correctly.

D. SAYLOR WILSON asks how to tell when a plate is fully developed. Examine the plate by looking through it toward the red light. If the detail is well out, and the negative looks as if it would be dense enough for a good print, return the negative to the developer, and rock it till the image is fading rapidly, then remove and wash and fix. With some kinds of developer the image must be allowed to fade entirely, but with hydrochinon developer the plate is developed far enough when the plate looks dense when examined by looking through it toward the light.

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QUESTIONS FOR YOUNG MEN.

There was, a few years ago, a law in Connecticut and Massachusetts--and I think it is still extant in Connecticut--that no man shall kiss his wife in public. Both States have laws, as have many others, that no man shall swear; and they both had laws, if they do not still have them, that no one shall smoke on the street.

It has always been considered an immoral act for a Christian to swear, but there is unquestionably a distinction to be made which is of just as much interest to the average boy as to any full-grown man. The use of sacred names in common every-day language--that is, the colloquial use of terms that represent what we reverence, what are the property of each man for himself, and his deepest thoughts--is undoubtedly a wrong. The name of God and what it represents to you and to me in our lives belongs to us, and does not concern any one else. No one, therefore, has any right to vulgarize it in our presence, and if he does so, he is infringing on sacred personal rights, and is therefore committing a wrong. That is self-evident.

There is, however, a difference between committing this actual wrong, between breaking the sturdy old New England Puritan law, and using exaggerated terms which are just as much swearing as the use of sacred names is. There are many terms which in themselves have to-day no significance--though they may have in derivation--except as exaggerated expression. One says, "Good gracious!" "Oh dear!" "Oh my!" a dozen times an hour, and is never criticised for swearing. Yet these expressions in their original forms were swearing of the most exaggerated kind, and in principle are so to-day. They all originally had the name of the Deity attached to them, the second one being probably a corruption of French "Oh Dieu!"

The important point is that although they no longer infringe on sacred things and personal rights, they are really just as much swearing to-day as they originally were. They are signs of weakness, of a desire for something stronger in the form of expression than the ordinary English phrase which precedes or follows them. The speaker feels the need of some exaggeration, and these inoffensive terms are just as unnecessary as are the offensive ones--indeed, they are only weak subterfuges which try to get the same effect without using the sacred terms.

That means a vicious, because growing, tendency to constant increase and exaggeration, which is the real principle of too much drinking that makes a drunkard, too much smoking that makes a nervous invalid, too much idleness that makes an unsuccessful life. If you will listen to the greatest orators or read their speeches, if you will read the works of the greatest authors, you will find no exaggeration of language to speak of even at most important moments, and the very temperateness of these orations and writings has a wonderful effect. Read, if you have not done so, the little speech of Mr. Lincoln's at Gettysburg, and see how simple, how temperate it is, and yet it is said by all students and judges, by any one who really studies it, to not only cover the whole subject Mr. Lincoln had in hand, but to be one of the most stirring speeches that have been made to the American public.

On the other hand, go some day and listen to a cheap stump-speaker, and in the course of half an hour you will hear that this and that is the "most magnificent," the "most frightful," the "greatest crime that cries to Heaven," and abundant other phrases out of all proportion to the subjects, which do not carry the weight of one of Lincoln's simple sentences in his address. These unnecessary superlatives are, in their way, swearing, which in principle are as bad, and as evil in their results on the user and the listener, as is the use of sacred names. They are the beginning of which the latter is the end. The feeling which makes a boy or man want to use exaggerated terms is the real evil. It grows like any other weakness, until his talk is puerile and of no value. And if he would avoid swearing, or cure himself of it, he must begin there, and not at the particular words he has discovered himself to be using, and which may have called forth criticism because they were sacred to those who heard them.

* * * * *

FAMOUS FREQUENTERS OF PUBLIC LIBRARIES.

A London newspaper says of the late Mr. Robert Harrison, formerly secretary and librarian to the London Library, whose death occurred a short time ago, that he had an extensive acquaintance with famous men of letters. In a Presidential address at the Librarians' Conference at Nottingham in September, 1891, he gave some interesting reminiscences of some of the eminent frequenters of the library:

"The most conspicuously original man among them was Carlyle. He often visited the library. His conversation was most amusing, full of extravagant and exaggerated statements, and always ending with a loud laugh, apparently at himself. He used the library books extensively for his later works, and was guilty of the reprehensible practice of writing on the margins of their books. He must admit that his remarks were never meaningless, but chiefly consisted of corrections of dates or errors in the text."

Of Thackeray, another eminent member of the London Library, Mr. Harrison had also an anecdote to tell:

"When writing _The Virginians_ he came to him (the speaker) for a life of General Wolfe. 'I don't want,' he said, 'an historical account of his career--Lord Mahon's book gives me that--but I want something that will tell me the color of his breeches.'"

Mr. Harrison had the pleasure also of helping Charles Reade to find materials for his story of _The Cloister and the Hearth_. The late Lord Lytton was a frequent visitor and inquirer, as also was the author of _Westward, Ho!_ and George Eliot. Mr. Harrison was quite astonished at first to see what pains and research were applied to the production of books so easy to read as were their best novels.

Concerning Mr. Gladstone, Mr. Harrison had likewise something to say. The G. O. M. has always taken an interest in the prosperity of the library:

"He (Mr. Gladstone) made use chiefly of their works of reference. The speaker remembered with pleasure a small incident that occurred when _Javentus Mundi_ was going to press. Mr. Gladstone called to verify a line in Propertius, or Ausonius--he forgot which. He told his need to one of the Eton masters, who happened to be present. The line was found, and it differed slightly from that which Mr. Gladstone had quoted. 'But,' said the Eton master to him afterwards, 'his line was much finer than the one which we found in print.'"

* * * * *

HIS PROPOSITION.

There is a little suburban town out in New Jersey, and its inhabitants are very proud of their fire department, claiming that it can meet every possible exigency. As for the truth of this statement, it is not advisable to meditate upon, and there is one thing positive, and that is the inability of its members to prevent fires. Unfortunately such occurrences were growing to be a chronic affliction, and in desperation the leading officials of the fire department and the town officials met to devise ways and means of stopping them.

"It's carelessness, rank carelessness!" exclaimed one portly gentleman. "Such things should rarely happen in well-regulated communities."

Thus it went on for over an hour, growing no nearer to a solution of the difficulty. Finally one of the fire department members arose. "Gentlemen," he cried, "I have a resolution to propose which I think, if adopted by the honorable members of this board, will entirely do away with fires in our town."

"Hear! hear!" cried the members of the board. "What is it? Propose it," etc.

"Gentlemen, I propose that three days before each fire some one should go to the house and ascertain if it has been caused by the inmates' carelessness, and if so enforce a payment of money to meet the expenses of running the engines to the scene."

This Department is conducted in the interest of stamp and coin collectors, and the Editor will be pleased to answer any question on these subjects so far as possible. Correspondents should address Editor Stamp Department.

I know several subscribers to the ROUND TABLE who have exchanged stamps with other readers of this column, to the advantage of all concerned. For the first time in two years I have received a complaint that stamps were sent to one of the ROUND TABLE readers, without receiving any return or even acknowledgment of the stamps. Possibly the first letter accompanying the stamps, or the reply acknowledging the same, went astray or was lost in the mails. The complaint is being investigated; but I hope all subscribers to the ROUND TABLE will be prompt and businesslike in replying to correspondents on receipt of letters.

One of the best methods of exchange is through the books of one or the other of the local societies or national philatelic associations. These exchanges are conducted on a cash basis. Each member pays the manager of the exchange department for all stamps taken from the books, and the manager in turn pays the members for their stamps sold from the books, and returns the unsold stamps.

L. T. BRODSTONE, Superior, Neb.--Previous to 1890 all U.S. stamps were made by private bank-note companies under contract with the government. Since then the Bureau of Printing and Engraving at Washington has made all the stamps. The envelopes and post-cards are still made by private concerns under contract with the U.S. government. There are several monumental collections in the U.S. Probably the best is owned by a gentleman in one of the New England States. The above-named wishes to exchange stamps.

J. D. WATERMAN.--The difference between the Hartford and the Philadelphia dies of the Centennial (1876) envelope is this: the word "Postage" is in a label; in the Hartford die the lower line of the label is single, in the Philadelphia die it is double. U.S. stamps are printed in large sheets, and afterwards cut apart into sheets of 100. The guide-lines are made to call attention to the proper place for cutting. As nearly 10,000,000 of the 1c. and 2c. stamps are used every day in the year, it is not likely that these stamps will become rare even in a hundred years.

H. C. BRANCH.--Just one cent.

C. H. WILLISTON.--The 1809 half-dollar can be bought for 75c.

S. S. LANGLEY.--The star in heraldry is five-pointed, as a rule. The use of the six-pointed star by the U.S. Mint was probably an accident in the beginning, but has now become fully established as the custom.

GEORGE BRIGHT.--About 10c. each.

PHILATUS.

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HOW TOM RODMAN

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Life In the Regular Army.

Most people who see members of the National Guard in showy uniforms and on dress parade, and some people who see United States regular troops on pleasant Sunday afternoons, sitting on the banks at Fort Wadsworth, and enjoying the exquisite views of New York upper and lower bays, get the notion that a soldier's life is a jolly and a lazy one. I can speak from experience when I state that the life of an enlisted man in a heavy battery of the United States artillery is not always jolly, and not as lazy as it sometimes appears.

One needs good references and a better body to get into the regular army. Many American young men who have the inclination to enter the army have not the physique, and so it happens that the American service has, one might almost say, every nationality in it except Americans.

I belong to Battery D, First Artillery, which was stationed at Fort Wadsworth when I enlisted, but has since been transferred to Jackson Barracks, a few miles out of New Orleans. Although much under thirty, I have seen service in a foreign country's armed forces, and have been in many parts of the world. Like most other Americans who enter the army, I enlisted in small part because I thought I might like the service, and in great part because I could not, just then, find anything else to do. The physical examinations to get into the service are most rigid, and there is much of what people call "red tape," but I suppose all of the latter is necessary.

Recruits in the United States Army are called "Rookies"--why, I don't know. You can readily tell a rookie from a veteran. A rookie's earliest interest concerns his "kit," which is his personal property, although issued to him by the quarter-master. The kit comprises a great number of articles, including under-clothing, shoes, collars, white cotton and fur gloves, half a dozen styles of caps, a dress-coat, and a brown canvas suit for "fatigue" duty. Each man is allowed $60 the first year, $28 the second, and $30 the third to spend for clothing. The government loans to him a bedstead, mattress, sheets, pillow, clothes box and bag, besides gun, canteen, knife, fork, and some other odd things.

Barrack life is not one which every man can take a liking to at first. The enlisted man, in scores of cases, is a rover, to begin with. But a company of such men thrown together presently find their "bunkies." They pair off by a sort of natural selection. The accidents of the mess, or of walking post, or guard duty lead to a rough-and-ready friendship.

A trying period for the recruit is while he is in the sergeant's training, getting his first lessons in drill. This he begins without gun--or arms, as the gun is called in the army. It is not till he has had these private lessons for three months that he is turned over for duty, walks his first post, and comes to be regarded by his fellows as a full-fledged soldier.

In the morning no one comes and tells a fellow that breakfast is ready. At Fort Wadsworth the bugle sounded at 5.30 in summer, and 6 in winter. Ten minutes later reveille sounds, a gun is fired, the flag is raised on the post staff--a large flag for a pleasant day, and a smaller one for a stormy day--and the fort is swarming with men running here and there, and going down stairs three steps at a bound. Assembly for roll-call is only five minutes after reveille--not a long time to wash and dress. But a fellow in the service has to do as he is commanded. You have heard of the captain who told the recruit that there were three things to do to make a good soldier. The first was to obey orders; the second, to obey orders; and the third, to obey orders. There are mess-call for breakfast, sick-call for hospital, and fatigue-call for men who are to do extra duty, like mowing weeds, moving guns, or maybe milking the colonel's cow, should he keep one. Then those remaining in barracks spend half an hour swinging clubs, running, jumping, or other exercise to develop the muscles. Each post commander fixes the hours for drills within certain limits, but guard-mount comes early in the fore-noon, is usually performed in full-dress uniform, and executed the same in all military posts. A new guard goes on and relieves the old one. There is quiet in the post, save for the bugle that marks the hours, till half past eleven, when recall is sounded. At twelve dinner is ready. At one work begins again, if there is work to do, and lasts till half past four. Supper is at five, and at sunset there is dress parade. The work done is, cleaning up the reservation, mounting or moving guns, digging ditches, and doing a lot of things that don't appear in accounts of military manoeuvres and show parades.

In winter school is kept, usually by one of the commissioned officers, when there are classes in range-finding, knotting and splicing ropes, gunnery, and the like.

Sunset parade is what the soldier's lady friends always come to see. It is ceremonious. Let me tell you about it. All are obliged to answer the call for it, and fall in on their respective parade-grounds, neatly dressed, shoes polished, white gloves on, and arms bright. The first sergeant calls the roll, and brings the company or battery to parade rest. The adjutant, or officer of the day, now takes charge, and by a wave of the hand notifies the chief trumpeter to sound off retreat. At the last sound of the bugle the corporal of the guard fires the evening gun, and another member of the guard hauls down the flag. The first sergeants report the presence or absence of the men, and the corporal of the guard locks up the colors, to remain so till reveille next morning.

This ends the day's routine of a regular army enlisted man in barracks, and he may go where he pleases until eleven, when taps is sounded. At taps the lights must go out. A check-roll is taken to see if any men are absent. This is done by a sergeant or corporal, who takes a list of names of the men, and, with a lantern for light, goes through the rooms to see if each man is in bed.

Special permission is granted to men of good character to absent themselves from retreat, check-roll call, and reveille every day when not on special duty. At Fort Wadsworth, which, with Fort Hamilton, guards the entrance to New York harbor, most men have the afternoons off, and not a few of them put them in in sleep. There is a fascination about the soldier's life. And yet most men in it wish themselves out of it, and are always looking forward to the end of their enlistments, or speculating whether it will pay them to buy their releases. Sometimes we have entertainments in the post hall, and on Sundays the reservation swarms with sight-seers, who ask innumerable questions, some sensible, others otherwise. Do I like a soldier's life? Yes, though I often, as do others in the service, I fancy, build air-castles about what I would do if out of it.

FREDERIC WILKENS. JACKSON BARRACKS, NEW ORLEANS.

* * * * *

Questions and Answers.

James F. Rodgers: The best researches in the line you indicate have been made by the national government, which has explored, measured, and dug over a great part of the ruins of the homes of former cliff dwellers and Aztec Indians. The Smithsonian Institution and the National Museum, Washington, contain many pictures, surveys, etc., of these ruins. We know of no society engaged in such study, or, at least, none that makes excavations.--Ethel R. Betts: Greek is now required for entrance to Barnard, but some changes are to be made in the requirements. See the answer of the Registrar published in this column, No. 902.--Bessie H. asks how she can get foreign postage-stamps. In several ways. She can buy them from a dealer; she can trade with friends for them; she can send the money to some post-office in the country the stamps of which she desires; or she can write to correspondents in foreign countries whose names she finds in the ROUND TABLE or other publication.

Marian E. P. Greene, Jamacha, Cal., writes: "A Swiss friend, much interested in autograph-collecting, has sent me one of her 'traders'--an autograph of Emile Zola--with the request that I exchange it for some well-known American or English writer. I also have the autograph of Princess Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein, generally known as Princess Christian. This I will be glad to trade for an American autograph, or will send it with Zola's in exchange for a very good one. I would much like to have the ROUND TABLE dated December 25, 1895, and will send ten cents in stamps to any Knight or Lady who can procure it for me. If a Lady of the Round Table has passed her eighteenth birthday, can she still write to the TABLE from time to time, and send questions to be answered, or must she give up this privilege?" She need not give up the privilege. The TABLE is glad to receive morsels descriptive of interesting places, people, and things.

An Orange subscriber asks where he can see pictures of the different ships of our navy. In HARPER'S WEEKLY, files of which you will find in your local library. If you wish to possess them, you can procure back numbers of the WEEKLY. Consult the file to see what numbers you desire. In the WEEKLY you will find not only pictures of all our naval ships, but pictures of some of the larger ones in several positions.--"A. H. S." asks: "If a picture takes a prize in your Camera Club Competition and is printed in your paper, are you the holder of a copyright on said picture? And also if it may be submitted for printing in another journal at some future time?" Each issue of most periodicals is copyrighted. That copyright covers everything in the issue. Where a photograph has been reproduced in a periodical, whether HARPER'S ROUND TABLE or some other, it is best to ask the publishers' permission about using it again. That permission can generally be obtained, or at least a plate purchased. Of course one would hardly enter a prize-picture in another prize competition. That might be fair, but one cannot afford to appear over-greedy.

Richard Stark, Jun., sends us the following:

"Where can I get setting-boards for setting butterflies and moths? Is a microscope costing from $3 to $5 powerful enough to properly examine plants and insects? Is there any Chapter or society of young naturalists for exchanging specimens of natural history? If so, I would like to hear from it." Make the setting-boards yourself. The ROUND TABLE published directions for using them only a short time since. A low-priced microscope will answer very well for examining plants, but a more powerful one is needed for insects. You say "properly" examining. Much depends on how important you regard the word "properly." As a general rule, it is poor economy to purchase cheap scientific instruments. If you can afford a microscope costing $8 to $20, you will find it much more satisfactory. Might you not secure one on approval?--A New York member asks for a proof of a prize-story which the ROUND TABLE desires to have illustrated. We regret to say we have no such story at present, and no plans have been made to have our prize-stories illustrated this year.

* * * * *

Woman's Bicycle Distance Record.

Here is an interesting query. "A. M." asks the woman's bicycle distance record. She says hers, ridden during one year, is 5700 miles. She asks if she holds the record. Let us hear from members on this interesting point.

* * * * *

THAT WONDERFUL SAIL.

HARPER'S ROUND TABLE has rarely published a puzzle that so exercised the minds of its young friends and led to so much instructive research. A curious thing about the contest was the fact that questions thought in advance to be difficult were answered readily, while some quite easy questions were missed by almost every solver. Such an outcome has never before been known in all of these many contests. For example, the sign at the boat-landing, and the three riddles 21, 22, and 23, were put into the puzzle as "stickers." Yet more than half the solvers answered all three of the riddles, and every one of them, save perhaps a half-dozen, discovered the keys to the landing sign, much to the astonishment of the puzzle's author. Of the riddles, the one that proved the most difficult was 22. On the other hand, the "Mad Yankee" and the "Bad Lands of the Say It," both quite easy, were missed by almost everybody. Such a fact is no less astonishing than that all should guess the hard questions.

The question was asked by one solver, if an answer fitting the question perfectly is thrown out or counted wrong, provided it does not chance to have been the propounder's answer to the question. The answer is an emphatic no. All answers that fit the questions are accepted, of course, and in case of doubt the solver is given the benefit. In the correct answers herewith given, those put down first are the propounder's answers; succeeding ones, if any, those found by the solvers, and accepted because they answer the questions. Solvers are asked to read them, and immediately afterward the explanation which follows:

1. Ba(Lear)ic--Prospero. 2. Edu(Cato)r. 3. Mis (Solon)ghi--Socrates. 4. Better leave bad company behind. 5. Noah Webster. 6. Elisha Kent Kane. 7. S(cave)nger. 8. Gras(shop)per--Para(a city in Brazil) site. 9. I(magi)nation--pre(sage). 10. Cor(rug)ation--(fur)row--s(cowl). 11. A(string)ent--(cord)ial--por(twine). 12. G(litter)ing--b(rig)ht. 13. Es(cap)ade--dis(turban)ce--false(hood). 14. Re(quire)ment. 15. S(corn)er. 16. Se(map)hore. 17. Ser(vice)able. 18. H(alb)erd. 19. B(ranch)ie. 20. In(scrip)tion--prescription. 21. Cheese. 22. A clay pipe. 23. Rabbit's foot. 24. Ce(rum)en--whiskey in ear of corn. 25. Re(cup)eration. 26. B(rake)man. 27. S(crib)e--S(cot)t--Al(cot)t--Pres(cot)t. 28. Hot(tent)ot--A(shanti). 29. S(heath)ing. 30. S(hut)ter. 31. Quad(rill)e. 32. Ro(pew)alk. 33. Sal(a man)der. 34. Sy(nag)ogue. 35. The Land of Steady Habits (Connecticut).

In 1 and 3 a doubt honestly arose whether hidden names or facts were intended. Hence both were allowed. In 6, "Mad" Anthony Wayne was not the mad Yankee, because he was born in Pennsylvania, of Irish parents. In 9, many gave "mage" in "image" for "magi," which was, of course, not allowed, and others gave "judge" in "judgement," meaning perhaps "judgment," as if it were expected solvers would misspell words. In 21, "milk" is not allowable because it is not subjected to great pressure. In 22, "iron" would not do for several reasons--see conditions. In 23, "horseshoe" does not fit, because not a serious loss to its owner, as is the rabbit's foot. That which is used by masons is the hair--in plaster. The last question, which almost everybody missed, is a simple anagram, not nearly so difficult to rearrange as the alphabetical cipher in 4.

The highest honor and a substantial prize of $20 were won by Bryant K. Hussey, who lives in Chicago and is 16 years of age. He gave correct answers to all save 6 and 35. The second honors, with prize of $5 to each, go to sisters who live in a pretty Virginia town. Their names are Amy Ralston and Katherine B. Rogers. The other prize-winners are Francis C. Péquignot, of Philadelphia, $4, and the following six, to each of whom $1 is awarded: Lewis P. Churchill, of Nova Scotia; Eunice K. Jones, of Ohio; Robert H. Mead, Raymond Tilley, and Joseph B. Eastman, of Pennsylvania; and Pierre W. Saxton, of Otsego County, New York.

In these awards an honor list is made--an unusual concession--and deservedly at the head of this list is placed the name of Master M. L. Hamlin, aged nine, who lives in Yonkers, New York. The others, whose names follow, correctly answered thirty of the thirty-five questions: Maddie C. Marshall, South Carolina; Roy Culbertson, Kentucky; Bayard B. Rodman, Long Island; Alice B. Tobey, Ohio; Harold F. Gaston and Bessie Jones, Pennsylvania; Maude G. Corcoran, Maryland; Kathryn A. Fisher, Michigan; Paul F. Case and Claude S. Smith, Monroe County, New York; Anna W. James, New Jersey; and L. J. Martin, Kansas.

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* * * * *

AN INGENIOUS DEFENCE.

An old darky was brought before a Southern magistrate, not long ago, accused of stealing a neighbor's chickens when the nights were dark and no one stirred abroad. The old man put up a long but weak argument, seizing upon every possible straw to support his defence. The evidence was too strong, however, and matters were rapidly approaching a climax that meant a month of idleness in the town jail. The thought of this and the attendant ignominy stirred the old darky to a point where he did nothing but splutter out,

"'Pon my honor, jedge, Ise--er--Ise didn't done take 'em."

At last the judge grew tired, and was about to sentence him, when a broad smile illuminated the darky's face as he cried out,

"I's got it, jedge; Ise can prove an alibi 'bout dem chickens."

"Well, what is it?" exclaimed the judge.

"You see, jedge, no poor colored man could take dem chickens at night-time."

"How's that?--what do you mean?"

"'Cause, jedge, dey's nothin' but roosters at night, and de charge am dat I took chickens."

The ingenuity of the defence won the day.

* * * * *

NO DUPLICITY HERE.

The story is told of an English and an Irish trooper who were scouting against the Matabele in South Africa recently. A band of savages suddenly burst from behind some rocks and started for the men. They jumped upon their horses and fled over the rough country, but the Irishman kept falling to the rear of his companion.

"Confound you, Mike!" exclaimed the Englishman; "ride, ride for your life! You'll be caught!"

"Go 'long wid you!" replied the Irish trooper, who was doing his best; "do you think I'm throwin' the race?"

* * * * *

ONE OF THE FAMILY.

It may interest some of our readers to glance through this short characteristic sketch of James Seymour, born in London in 1702, which is more strongly impressive than many longer memoirs. The fact that he displayed a fondness for drawing and painting in boyhood, and subsequently gained celebrity by his skill in designing horses, is too well known to comment upon. Once the proud Duke of Somerset employed Seymour to paint a room at his seat in Sussex with the portraits of his running-horses. Having admitted the artist to his table, he one day drank to him, saying,

"Cousin Seymour, your health."

The painter replied, "My lord, I really believe that I have the honor of being of your Grace's family."

This hurt the pride of the Duke so much that he rose from the table and ordered his Steward to pay Seymour and dismiss him. Finding, however, that no one in England could complete the pictures begun, he condescended to send for his cousin. The painter responded to the message in these words:

"My lord, I will now prove that I am of your Grace's family, for I won't come."

* * * * *

ENOUGH FOR HIM.

The approach of St. Patrick's day reminds one of a little incident, laughable enough, that took place during last year's parade in New York. The gallant sons of Ireland had turned out resplendent in their green regalias, marching with proud step to the music of the band. Those on horses cantered along as best as the legs of their weak-spirited nags would permit. One jovial son had considerable trouble with his horse, which seemed possessed with the insane idea that he was the whole procession, much to the annoyance and at the same time amusement of the other paraders. At last the animal, during one of its erratic movements, caught a hoof in one of the stirrups. That settled it. With a look of infinite disgust the rider exclaimed,

"Faith, if yez are going to git up, me boy, thin it's toime for me to git down." And he thereupon dismounted.

* * * * *

EXPERIENCE.

"My daddy's awful good to me," said Jennie, "treats me just like I was his sister."

"Pulls your hair, does he?" asked Flossie, who has a brother.

* * * * *

BOBBIE'S BILL.

Bobbie has been learning business methods recently, which may account for a bill which his father found recently upon the breakfast table, reading as follows:

NEW YORK, _January_ 15, 1897.

MR. PAPA TO BOBBIE, _Dr._

For not paying him his allowance for three weeks, at 25 cents a week .75 Interest at 6% .05 --- .80

Please pay up!

* * * * *

AN ACCOMPLISHMENT.

"I can run faster than you can, Hal," bragged Jimmie.

"That's all right," returned Harry; "but I can stand faster than you can, and when war breaks out they'll think more of me than they will of you."

End of Project Gutenberg's Harper's Round Table, March 2, 1897, by Various