Chapter 5

More remarkable still, he had daily passed within a mile and a half of the Twenty-eight Mile House, which was his destination.

All this time, amid sufferings that would have crushed an ordinary man, Bob Casey had only one thought, that he must stay with the mail and get it through, whatever befell him.

And he did; not a single package was lost. Starving, half-frozen, and dazed by exposure and privation, it was not of himself he thought. His duty was still uppermost in his mind.

Here was heroic stuff. How many such can the postal service boast? During all these terrible days and nights, the only thing that passed his lips was tobacco and snow.

He had with him a goodly supply of the former article at the start, and as day wore into night, and night into day, he began hoarding it with as much avidity as ever did a miser his gold.

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PRINCE OF WALES' HOME.

A writer thus describes the country house of the Prince of Wales at Sandringham, which is a model of comfort:

The large hall which you enter on arriving is fitted up as a dining-room, with a pianoforte, easy-chairs and two large writing-tables. Behind the piano are a quantity of toys for the children to amuse themselves with at the "children's hour" after tea.

Here at five o'clock the tea-table is placed in the centre of the hall, and is presided over by the princess in the loveliest of tea-gowns.

It is a pretty sight to see her surrounded by her three little girls, who look like tiny fairies, and who run about to put "papa's" letters in the large pillar-post box at one end of the hall. There are generally four or five large dogs to add to the circle.

At Christmas the hall looks like a large bazaar, being then filled with the most costly and beautiful tables, with a large Christmas tree in the centre and objects all around the sides of the hall full of presents for the household and visitors.

Their royal highnesses arrange these presents all themselves, and no one is permitted to enter till the evening.

The drawing-room is a particularly pretty room, full of furniture, and every available corner is filled with gigantic flower-glasses full of Pampas grass and evergreens.

Out of the drawing-room, on the opposite side of the dining-room, is a small sitting-room, fitted with book-cases. Beyond this is the prince's own room, quite full of beautiful things.

Here he and the princess always breakfast, and here on the ninth of November and the first of December are laid out all the numerous birth day presents.

Of the princess's private apartments up stairs it will suffice to say that a prettier room than her royal highness's own _boudoir,_ or sitting-room, was never seen. All the visitors' rooms are perfect, nor are the servants' comforts neglected.

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CAUGHT WITH FENCE-RAIL LATIN.

It requires no extraordinary shrewdness in a person of capable intelligence to expose a pretender,--especially a quack, who appears in the "borrowed feathers" of assumed learning. Lawyers have so much of this stripping work to do that it forms their cheapest fun; but it is fun, nevertheless. The Louisville _Courier-Journal_ says:

Judge Black, of Pennsylvania, tells a comical story of a trial in which a German doctor appeared for the defence in a case for damages brought against a client of his by the object of his assault.

The eminent jurist soon recognized in his witness, who was produced as a medical expert, a laboring man who some years before, and in another part of the country, had been engaged by him as a builder of post and rail fences. With this cue he opened his examination. "You say, doctor," he began, with great diffidence and suavity, "that you operated upon Mr. ------'s head after it was cut by Mr. ------?"

"Oh, yaw," replied the ex-fence builder; "me do dat; yaw, yaw."

"Was the wound a very severe one, doctor?"

"Enough to kill him if I not save his life."

"Well, doctor, what did you do for him?"

"Everything."

"Did you perform the Caesarean operation?"

"Oh, yaw, yaw; if me not do dat he die."

"Did you decapitate him?"

"Yaw, yaw, me do dat, too."

"Did you hold a _post mortem_ examination?"

"Oh, to be schure, Schudge! Me always do dat."

"Well, now, doctor," and here the judge bent over in a friendly, familiar way, "tell us whether you submitted your patient to the process known among medical men as the _post and rail fenciorum?"_

The mock doctor drew himself up indignantly. "Scherry Plack," says he, "I always know'd you vas a jayhawk lawyer, an' now I know you for a mean man!"

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Oil and Vinegar. -- "Remember," said a trading Quaker to his son, "in making thy way in the world, a spoonful of oil will go farther than a quart of vinegar."

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For the Companion.

THE WOMAN IN THE MOON.

I've often heard of the man in the moon; And his profile often have seen In the almanac, drawn on the side of a lune, Just so--with a smile serene.

But I guessed the secret the other night, As the clouds were clearing away; And what do you think was the wondrous sight Which the mystery did betray?

I fancied I saw in the crescent, half hid, Fair Luna herself reclining; Not a man in the moon, but a woman instead, From the sky was brightly shining.

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For the Companion.

"CHUBBY WUBBY."

She had such an honest, hearty, round little face, with two brown eyes, a dot of a nose, and such chubby, hard, red cheeks that Aunt Gussie named her "Chubby Wubby" as soon as she saw her.

Her real name was Fanny, although mamma called her "Blossom," sometimes, and papa declared she was his little "Boy," while grandma had a whole host of pet names beside.

Aunt Gussie thought "Chubby Wubby" seemed to suit her the best of all, she was so round and plump and rosy.

Miss Chubby was cross one day, and among other things, she took it into her head that she wouldn't be called by any of her pet names. When mamma said to her, "Blossom, come and get your hat on," she shrugged her shoulders; and she answered, "Agh!" when Aunt Gussie made a rush at her for half-a-dozen kisses when she came in off the lawn, with such tempting cheeks that it was impossible not to want to bite them.

When Aunt Gussie said, "Come here, quick, you sweet little Chubby Wubby!" Fanny just kicked out one of her bare, plump little knees, and cried, _"Pig!"_

Now that was a very dreadful thing for her to call her auntie, for Fanny thought pigs were very horrid sort of beasts, and it was the worst name she knew, and beside, she said it in a naughty, wicked tone.

"O Chubby," cried Aunt Gussie, laughing, "we haven't got any pigs in here, and we don't want any colts either, and if you are going to kick that way, we shall have to put you out in the stable."

Chubby didn't feel a bit like laughing at this, but said again, very loudly, "_Pig_, Pig, PIG!"

Mamma heard her from the other room then, and she called out, "Come in here to me, Fanny; I want to look at your tongue." Fanny kicked up her heels and ran in to her mamma, and stuck out her little coral-tinted tongue. "Wha' fo', mamma?" she asked, thinking perhaps some little sweet pellets might follow.

"I wanted to see the naughty spot on it," answered mamma, "I heard it call auntie a _name_ just now, and I wanted to tell you if I ever heard it call any one that again, I should put something on the spot to cure the naughtiness."

Little Fanny shut her lips very tight then, only opening them to say very earnestly, "Never no more, mamma."

"Well," replied mamma, "I hope you won't forget, for I shall not; now kiss auntie, and run out on the lawn and play until luncheon."

Then little Chubby Wubby went in and threw her arms around Aunt Gussie's neck, and all was forgiven.

Somehow "never no more" happened to be a very short time, for not very long afterward, when Annie, her nurse, called, "Come, Fanny, bread and milk is all ready," she ran away off down by the brook and answered, "No, I don't wan' to tum."

"But mamma says you must come in right away," and Annie ran after her.

"_Pig_, Pig, PIG," again cried Fanny, in an angry tone.

Mamma heard her, and came to the door. "Pick her right up, Annie, and bring her to me. I am going to cure her of that habit directly," and so poor little naughty Chubby Wubby was borne into the house, kicking and screaming lustily.

"Stop your crying and put out your tongue," said mamma. "I'm going to put some pepper right on to the naughty spot, and burn out the name you have called auntie and Annie to-day."

"No, mamma, no, no, never no more," sobbed little Chubby Wubby, her eyes and round red cheeks all wet with tears.

"Well, if Aunt Gussie and Annie say so, I will let you off this time," said mamma, with the little pinch of pepper in her hand all ready.

"But remember, if I ever hear your tongue call any one 'Pig' again, I shall put the pepper on it and burn out the naughty spot."

Chubby Wubby sobbed over and over again, "Never no more, mamma," and Aunt Gussie and Annie were very glad to say they would not like to have their darling punished "this time," and Aunt Gussie whispered to little Fanny's mamma, "I feel half to blame myself, for I suppose she thinks if I call her a _name,_ she may call me one," and after that day little Fanny never called anybody "Pig," and Aunt Gussie stopped calling Fanny "Chubby Wubby." G. de B.

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For the Companion.

LITTLE RUDOLPH.

_"Guten morgen! Guten morgen!"_ [*] Sounded at my door, Eager footsteps in the entry Outside, and before I could answer, on the threshold, Happiest in the land, Stood my little German neighbor, Bowing, hat in hand!

But I scarcely knew my Rudolph. What do you suppose Changed him so? He laughed and shouted, "Don't you see my clothes? I'm a boy at last! And even If my hair does curl, Folks won't ever dare to call me Any more, a girl,--

"Will they?" "No," I said, half sadly, You're a big boy now! "I shall miss my baby Rudolph." Such a saucy bow As he gave me! But his sweet face, Brimming o'er with joy, Made me glad we'd changed our baby To a noisy boy. M. M. ---

[Footnote *] Good-morning.

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For the Companion.

"PINKY."

Pinky was a white mouse that a friend of mine bought when it was very young, and so small that when it was more than two months old it would amuse itself by running back and forth through her finger ring, as she held it on the table like a hoop; and he seemed to like his plaything so well, that when he got too large to get through, his mistress let him wear it round his neck as a collar. But soon he outgrew it, and then Pinky had to give up his little gold toy altogether, and made friends with a spool of cotton, which he would get out of the work-basket, stand up on the end and sit upon and then with his tiny paws unwind the cotton, twirling the spool round on the polished table, and so giving himself a ride, and looking very cunning perched up there.

Sometimes his mistress would hold a knitting needle over the table, and he would put his fore paws over it, and dance up and down the whole length of the needle until he was tired.

He had a little red cloak with a hood, and he would stand quite still to have it put on, and then scamper off to a little block house the children had, and would peep out of one of the windows, looking for all the world like a little "Red Riding Hood."

There is always danger in letting our playful pets play too much, and one day poor Pinky laid in his kind mistress' hand, seemed tired and sick, and the next day in her hand he died.

The moral of this true story is,--always let your pets, whether puppies, or kittens, or anything else, have plenty of time to rest and sleep. R. R.

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For the Companion.

IN THE DARK.

I know it is dark, my darling, And fearful the darkness seems; But shut your eyes! in a moment The night will be bright with dreams; Or, better, you'll sleep so sound all night It will _seem_ but a moment till morning light.

There is only one kind of darkness That need to trouble us, dear; Only the night of temptation, And then we must all of us fear. Yet even then, if we are but brave, There is ONE who is ever at hand to save.

We have only to ask Him to help us, And He will keep us from harm; Only to whisper, "Jesus!"-- His Name is a holy charm: "Jesus, save me!" we need but say, And the night of temptation will flee away.

How can He be always near us? Near all of us, everywhere? Ah! that is beyond our knowing; But there is no bound to His care, And dear as the whole big world in His sight, Is the little child that He bids _good-night._ Harriet McEwen Kimball.

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For the Companion.

PATTY'S FIRST DAY AT SCHOOL.

Patty was only four years old, but she was just crazy to go to school. Her three older brothers and sisters all went, and why couldn't she? So, as much to quiet her teasing as anything, her mother fixed her off to school with the rest, one winter morning more than thirty years ago.

Miss Dobbs, the teacher, was very strict and made the scholars learn well, but I'm afraid they did not love her as much as if she had been more gentle with them. But it was the fashion in those days for teachers to be severe, and whip the scholars whenever they needed it.

The school-room was a new place to little Patty's round eyes, and for the first hour she kept very still, looking about in wonder at all she saw and heard. She sat with her oldest sister, Anna, and felt very well pleased with everything.

By-and-by she wanted something else to do, and spoke up promptly, in her sharp little voice, "Anna, I want to see the pictures in your Dogathy!"

Of course all the scholars laughed.

Miss Dobbs rapped on the desk sharply with her rule. "Silence!" The house became quiet.

"You must not speak out loud in school again," she said, sternly, to Patty. "I shall punish you if you do."

Patty was very angry. "What right had Miss Dobbs to speak so to her?" she thought.

She began to be afraid of Miss Dobbs, but she was sure Anna would not let any harm come to her little sister. She slipped down quietly off the seat, and sat down on the floor under the big desk. There Miss Dobbs could not see her, and she could free her mind. So again her clear voice rang out, "Miss Dobbs is drefful cross, isn't she, Anna?"

The scholars laughed again, but Miss Dobbs walked quickly up to the desk, pulled out little Patty, and boxed her ears soundly. Then sitting her down hard on the seat, she left her with a stern "Now see if you can keep still!"

Patty was too scared to cry. She found Miss Dobbs was to be minded, and for the rest of the winter she went to school and was as good a little girl as you could wish to see. M. C. W. B.

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Enigmas, Charades, Puzzles, &c.

1. TRANSPOSITION. A WATER BIRD.

Though my nest you may find swinging high in the trees, While I rock on my greenish-blue eggs in the breeze, Yet I fish for a living, and love water more Than land, though I'm careful to keep near the shore. Transposed, I'm a river, you'll see at a glance, In Switzerland starting, and running through France. B.

2. HIEROGLYPHIC TRANSPOSITIONS.

[Express exactly in the fewest words; then transpose your definition into a word or words equivalent to the definition given under the hieroglyphic.]

EXAMPLE:

A deed.

This symbol literally expressed is Cat on I. Transpose these letters, and you have _action,_ which is equivalent to "A deed."

In this way, find the answer to above symbols: 1, Is an animal. 2, A race. 3, Young ladies. 4, Immense. 5, Settled. 6, A fanatic. J. P. B.

3. THE THREE BOYS.

[Fill blanks with words to rhyme with the termination of the first line.]

A two-letter boy, whose name was Ed, And a three letter boy, whose nickname was ---, Were joined by their four-letter brother, named ---, One boy was quite spunky--the hair on his --- Was of a bright auburn, in fact it was ---, And fat too, he was, by being well ---. Another had eyes dull and heavy as ---, And his nose was so broad that often 'twas ---. It nearly all over his visage was ---, The third boy was lazy; he walked with a --- That made it appear that he had a great --- Of working sufficient to pay for the --- Which he ate, when he hadn't some meat in its ---. One cold winter day these boys got a ---, Which they found snug and dry out under a ---, And, like the bad boys of which you have ---, Without their parents' permission they --- To the high coasting hill; soon downward they ---, But upset on the way, and one made his --- In a deep drift of snow which wet every --- Of his new suit of clothes. Another one --- So much at the nose he thought himself ---, The third one, unhurt, the way homeward ---, Where for parents' forgiveness each one humbly ---. SCHELL.

4. PREFIXES.

My first is a word which signifies advantage; prefix a letter and my second is the name of a river; prefix again, and my third is an excess; again, and my fourth is synonymous with one meaning of my third; once more, and my fifth is synonymous with a second meaning of my third. E. L. E.

Answers to Puzzles in Last Number.

1. Handel. Haydn, melody, tenor, bass--MENDELSSOHN BARTHOLDY.

2. G O L D S M I T H A D D I S O N F U G U E P O E U (Central also in "Faust.") J.R.L. (James Russell Lowell.)

D A N T E I N G E L O W A B N E Y P A R K

3. D A R E D N E A R S D R E A D L A V E D D E E D S

_Diagonals--_ D, an, red, earl, dread, save, Dee, D. D., s.

4. It is a serious (cereous) matter, and a wicked work brought to light. He is making light of a serious (cereous) matter.

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A STARVING RACE.

It is believed by some persons that the Anglo-American race in this country is tending rapidly to extinction. Both the birth-rate and the mother's power to nurse her children seem to be steadily diminishing.

Many persons refer the cause to our climate; others to the overaction of the brain and nerves in childhood and youth by our schools, and by the exhaustive excitements of social and fashionable life.

We have no doubt that the latter cause, especially, has much to do with it. But, besides this, we are inclined to attribute it, to a large extent, to a lack of proper nourishment.

We are the only nation that prides itself on the whitest of white bread. Our housekeeping is based on this, and our tastes and the tastes of our children have become conformed to it.

The fine white bread we use is far enough from being "the staff of life." The elements that feed the brain, and nerves, and bones, and even the muscles, have been almost wholly eliminated from it. What is left is little more than starch, which only supplies heat. It should be remembered that on pure starch a man can starve to death as truly as on pure water. And it is this slow starving process that, as a people, we seem to be undergoing.

Our only alternative is to return to the bread which nature has provided,--that made from the unbolted grain,--in which there are about twenty different elements, and each element is essential to the vigor and health of our physical system.

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A MOUNTAIN LION.

A Montana journal tells the story of a hunter who killed a mountain sheep, and then shot a mountain lion that claimed the game:

Mr. Wesley Curnutt took his gun and started to hunt the horses. About three or four miles from the White Sulphur Springs he discovered a band of mountain sheep, and as soon as he gained a proper location, he fired upon the game.

At the crack of the gun one of the largest mountain lions we have ever seen (you can imagine how large he appeared to the bold hunter) sprang from a cliff of rocks, and landed not over thirty feet from Curnutt, in an attitude looking anything but friendly, and ready to contest titles to the game in question.

Mr. C------, being an old mountaineer and an experienced hunter, took in the situation at a glance, and saw there was no time to lose, as his antagonist meant business; so he immediately drew bead on the gentleman, and let him have a bullet before he concluded to give way, and as he ran he received a number of shots, which he carried but a short distance.

Mr. Curnutt, after dressing his sheep, which was a very large one, the head and horns weighing thirty-seven and a half pounds, returned to the battle-ground and found his antagonist dead.

Mr. C------, having procured the assistance of Col. Kent, brought the lion to camp, where they weighed and measured him, finding him to weigh two hundred and fifty pounds, and measure nine foot eight inches from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail, which the colonel (though a bear-hunter in the Rockys for many a year) acknowledges to be the "boss" of the mountains.

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"E PLURIBUS UNUM."

A correspondent of the Philadelphia _Press_ tells the history of the Latin motto, _E Pluribus Unum_ (from many, one). "The origin of the motto is ascribed to Col. Reed, of Uxbridge, Mass. It first appeared on a copper coin, struck at Newburg, New York State, where there was a private mint. The pieces struck are dated 1786.