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TEA TABLE TALK.
TEA TABLE TALK. Women hold the posts of station master telegraph messenger, barber, and town criel in the village of Froissy, in the Oise. The stationmistress' husband is the statior porter. < # Married in white, you have chosen all right. Married in grey, you will go far away. MaTried in black, you will wish yourseli back. Married in red, you will wish yourself dead. Married in green, ashamed to be seen. Married in blue, he will never be true. Married in pearl, you will live in a whirl. Married in yellow, ashamed of your fellow. Manied in pink, your spirits will sink. The present Duchess of Portland is noted for her very tall, slight figure, and for hei really splendid complexion. She is a con- vert to vegetarianism, and a firm believer in the good results said to follow therefrom. Instead of that insidious early cup of tea she has a glass of buttermilk. Her daughter, Victoria Alexandrina, had the honour of having Queen Victoria as her godmother, Queen Alexander is the first lady to be decorated with ■' The wonderful diamonds owned by Lady Pirrie, wife of the Knight of St. Patrick, are hardly to be surpassed. Lady Pirrie's tiara is in the shape of a high all-round crown formed of immense stones of rare brilliancy, the central portion being set loosely to swing with the wearer's move- ments. Her necklace and other ornaments are of equally superb diamonds, and the single-row pearl necklace she often wears in the daytime represents several thousands of pounds. m Of 245 London school children interviewed by the L.C.C. Education Committee, only three possessed or used a toothbrush. Miss Gladys Storey, the charming and talented young actress, had early ideas of taking up the stage as a career. Her 'first ambition was to be either an actress, a house- maid, or a lady. And peculiarly enough she was all three at once when she played in "Angela" with Miss Marie Tempest at the Comedy Theatre. < # Queen Alexandra is the proud possessor of a very clever parrot that can hum all sorts of tunes, and every afternoon cries out fr God Save the Queen!" when her Majesty" takes her place at her own particular tea-table in the hall. Still more interesting was a par- rot, a great pet of Queen Victoria's, which lived to an incredible age, and had belonged to George IV. This bird used to say the most amusing things, and its death .was the cause of much real grief in the Royal house- hold. Miss Maggie Teyte is a talented actress who looks perhaps more like a schoolgirl than a prima donna. A few months ago M. Claude Debussy, the renowned French com- poser, expressed his desire to hear the, lady who was to be the latest interpreter of the role of "Melisande" in his opera, "Pelleas and Melisande." When Miss Teyte presented herself, however, there was an unmistakabl look .of disappointment on his face. "Are you mademoiselle Teyte?" he said." Yes," Was the reply, and then there was a pause. "Are you Mademoiselle Maggie Teyte P "Yes." Another pause. Then: "Are you Mademoiselle Maggie Teyte of the Opera Comique?" "I am, Monsieur." M. Debussy sighed resignedly, and, with. a look of mingled doubt and scorn, seated himself at the piano and suggested that they should commence to go over the work. Here is one of the favourite stories of Miss iPauline Chase, which. rhe delights in telling: A certain friend of mine who was much pestered by the attentions of people he-had Ho desire to, meet, decided at last to engage a gmall boy for the express purpose of keeping his undesirable visitors at arm's length. The experiment, however, was not at first a complete success. "Did you tell that man I had gone to America? he said to the youngster on. the seconds day. "Yes, sir," re- plied the boy. "I said you had started this morning." "Good boy! Here's sixpence for you. But—er—what did he say? The boy slipped the proffered coin in his pocket, then edged towards the door. "Well, he asked me when you would be back, sir." "Ah! he did, did he? And what did you tell him?" "I told him after lunch, sir." Brazilian parents and guardians may, be- fore ponseiating to the marriage of their charges, require a medical certificate from the bride or bridegroom certifying that he or I ehe has been vaccinated. In Norway and Sweden, before any couple can be legally married, certificates must be produced show- in that both bride and bridegroom have been duly vaccinated. In Norway girls are inelig- ible for matrimony until they have earned certificates for proficiency in knitting, baking, and spinning. In Waldeck there is a law that no license to marry will be granted to any individual who, has the habit of over- drinking •; and once identified with the habit, ah inebriate must produce sufficient proof of reformation to warrant his receiving the license at any future time. Russian law allows a man to marry only four times, and he must marry before eighty or not at all. It is a custom in Hungary for the groom to give the bride a kick after the marriage ceremony to make her realise her subjection while in Cratio the bridegroom boxes the bride'a Ears. u » » A story is told by a Greek paper which throws an amusing sidelight on the uses of 'advertisements. A little while ago Princess Andrew of Greece decided that she would like an experienced English nurse to look after her two little children. So she commissioned a friend of hers to secure one. The friend was an American, and had, of course, an .abiding faith in the newspapers of her own country as an advertising medium. So' she Inserted an advertisement in the "New York -Arnerican." There were no less than 7,228 Replies to that advertisement, all purporting to come from "experienced English nurses," and the Princess's friend was kept hard at Work for six weeks interviewing the most likely applicants, which she did at the rate Qf Rbont twenty a day. At length the choice fell upon a Miss Evangeline Graty—who may have been" English, but iti all probability belonged to the land of, the Stars and Stripes. She was duly engaged-much to the mortifi- cation of the other seven thousand two hun- dred and twenty-seven applicants. But her triumph was short-lived. Three days after- wards she had a disagreement with her Royal mistress as to what time the children should- be put to bed, and now she is looking round for apother princess who wants an English nurse # On the ground that she would never be able to dance again, and that she would, for the rest of her life, be unable to kneel in prayer, Miss Angela Breeze, a popular musi- cal comedy actress, receiitly recovered X2,000 damages from the New York Central Rail- Way. One of the most beautiful and valuable handkerchiefs in the world belongs to the Queen of Italy. This particular handker- chief is an example of the earliest Venetian point lace, dating towards the end of the fif- teenth century. The piece is in perfect pre- servation, and it is valued at X4,000, although it is stated on good authority that two American millionaires have offered three times that sum for it.
BOOKS AND MAGAZINES
BOOKS AND MAGAZINES A DIRENTURES, OF A HAT. The Rev. Silas K. Hocking tells in. the "Christian World" a capital story of a Roman Catholic dignitary who was one of the party representing the Churches of this country who recently paid a visit to Germany. The cleric in question decided on arrival at Hamburg that his silk hat was not new enough for the recep- tion by the Kaiser, and invested in a hat of the shiniest and most fashionable style. He left the old hat at the railway station. He had reckoned, however, without the Berlin committee, which had organised a de- partment for the collection, conveyance, and delivery of the guests' baggage. An attendant with the abandoned hat traversed the train on the journey to Berlin, and insisted on the mon- signor retaking possession of it. He left it again at his Berlin host's, but again it re-ap- peared in the train on the way to Eisenach. At Eisenach the hat, stuffed with torn-up letters and papers, was thrust into the hands of a. be- wildered porter on the platform, who was implored to keep it. But, with the fear of the Berlin committee before his eyes, the porter handed it over to the baggage department, and the monsignor found it awaiting him on his chair at the next banquet. He left Eisenach on his way to Switzerland, believing that'-at last he was rid of the hat, but his Romanish brethren waggishly had it packed and despatched to Fula, where he was to break his journey at the Seminary.
C A NATION OF GAME-PLAYERS."
C A NATION OF GAME-PLAYERS." In the final chapters of "Leaves from an Old Cricketer's Diary (Blackwood), Mr. W. E. W. Collins has some serious reflections upon the increase of athleticism. We are (he says) growing accustomed to being called a nation of shopkeepers, and we seem to be going the right way towards earning the still less enviable title of a nation of game-players. The thew and the sinew, the ready eye and the ready hand, the fortitude and the endurance, characteristics of the Anglo-Saxon race which have won us our place in the world, may in part be due to our sporting and game-playing pro- clivities, but they are things which we may as well be without if they are to carry us no further than to our cricket or our football fields. Not by such arts as these has the greatest Empire the world has ever known been built up. Let us remember while there is yet time that an empire almost as great tottered to its fall when the citizens of the mother-city grew too serious over their amusements. Never was England more formidable in the eyes of Europe than when she was Puritan; and that was an ascetic Rome whose legions bore down all opposition.
THE GROWTH OF GARDENING.
THE GROWTH OF GARDENING. Mr" Frederick Boyle, in an article in the Corn- hill for July, says it is certainly remarkable that this country should have taken the lead in garden- ing, for th$science was already advanced in Holland, Flanders, France, and part of Germany when it was only recognised here by a few gentlemen who had gained their knowledge on the Continent. Simon Hartlib, Milton's friend, writing in 1649, declares that old men in Surrey still recollected the advent of the first "gardeners" established there. They found intense prejudice among the landowners, who believed that spade-work injured the soil. "Even now," Hartlib proceeds, "garden- ing is scarcely known in the north and west, where a little of it might have saved the lives of many poor people who starved in the last few years "— he is referring to the cultivation of vegetables. The English imported even plants that grow wild in the hedgerows because they would not take the trouble to gather them. As for orchards, they had actually gone back of late4:
JAPANESE AND JU-JITSU.
JAPANESE AND JU-JITSU. Writing in, the July number of "Travel and Exploration,"on Life in a Mexican Mining Camp," Mr. F. L. Bcnsusan relates an experience Which shows the value in tight corner of iL-, icnowledge of the principles of Ju-Jitsu. A large earth dam had to be built, and to assist in this work some eighty Japanese were hired. At first the Mexicans thought that the Japanese were the same as China- ,men, and that they could be teased and tormented with impunity- They enjoyed this belief for about a week, for the Japanese are very patient, but I was fortunate enough to be there when the end came. The head man of the Mexicans, a large, powerful fellow, was ragging the Japanese head man, a quiet and inoffensive little fellow, and at last the Mexican, footing perfectly sure that the Japanese would not try to retaliate, got hold of him with the intention of throwing him for the oenefit of his countrymen. The men were at grips for about three seconds, and then the Mexican shot through the air and came down to the ground with a heavy thud. His countrymen at once drew their knives and moved towards the Japanese head man, but in an instant he was surrounded by his own fellows armed with picks, shovels, and crow- bars, and quite prepared to die fighting. With one iccord the Mexicans put their knives back, and work was resumed with a certain measure of good feeling that lasted uptil the dam was finished. I found afterwards that every one of those Japanese knew the principles. of Ju-jitsuu
A MUNICIPAL EXAMPLE.
A MUNICIPAL EXAMPLE. Birmingham, The City of Mr. Chamberlain," is the subject of a well-written and well-informed article by J. P. Collins in the Pall Mall Magazine." The article is illustrated by a number of remarkable photographs by Alvin Langdon Coburn. Mr. Collins says: Whether one considers Birmingham in the light of its public men and undertakings, its ordered growth, or its commercial resource and enterprise, one ceases to wonder why it has Fo long, been favourite model for the planning of Colonial towns and the reform of older centres at home. Year after year its matter-of-fact municipal reports have been studied at the other ends of the earth as a vindication of the representative principle carried into local administration. If these present notes were a study in sociology, I could entertain the reader with the story of the giant undertakings which have drained the best faculties of famous business men for the benefit of Birmingham, especially its Improvement Scheme, which turned a nest of slums into a lucrative area of handsome streets or again its daring project for bringing water out of Wales. The first scheme (and these are only two of many to be cited) is already thirty years old, and when the l.eases it created lapse in a generation or so, Birmingham will be one of the richest Corporations in the world. The other scheme drains an enormous area in North Wales, seventy miles away, and yields a daily supply of 75,000,000 gallons, whether the season is dry or not.
I HOME HINTS.-,'
I HOME HINTS. < Fire-lighters are easily made by filling an old biscuit tin with waste paper crumpled into balls, and pouring paraffin over. Use a couple at a time for lighting the fire. To clean a copper kettle in two minutes, take one teaspoonful of salt, one teaspoonful of vinegar; mix together, rub lightly, and then finish with a damp cloth. To clean black cloth dissolve one ounce of bi-carbonate of ammonia in one quart of warm water. With this liquid rub the cloth, using a piece of black cloth for the purpose. After doing so clean the cloth well with clear water, and press with a dry cloth and a heated iron. When this is done, brush the cloth well in the direction of the fibre. The easiest and best way of cleaning a1 bath is to use whiting and turpentine, rubbing it on as you would soap. Tiles on a hearth and at the side of a fire- place can be kept clean and bright by rub- bing them occasionally with a rag moistened with paraffin. It is well to clean the tiles before lighting the fire, since paraffin gives off fumes which are of a very inflammable nature. To remove grease spots on carpets, make a thin paste with fuller's earth and water. Spread this on the spots, cover the fuller's earth with paper and place a hot iron on it. Let it remain on until cold, but do not brush off the paste for some hours. Save old tea-leaves for a few days, pour boiling water over them, leave till nearly cold, strain, and use the water for washing paint. To prevent milk from sticking to a sauce- I pan, put a lump of sugar in with the milk when putting on to boil., To take coffee stains from table linen make a mixture of the yolk of an egg and glycerine; wash this out with warm water, and iron on the wrong side with a hot iron. When the hairs of your handbroom. are worn at the end, and you are unable to sweep properly into corners and creviced, saw from one to two inches of wood from the end near the head, and your brush will do as good duty as a new one. FLOWERS FOB THE SICK. When sending flowers to an invalid, don't I choose white roses unaccompanied by any other flower, nor an abundance of unrelieved white flowers of any kind. You might just as well order a floral pillow. The sick are I often inclined to be morbid, and nothing but cheerful suggestions should be presented to their imaginations. Instead, select always unusual flowers, a little btmch of old- fashioned blooms that nobody else would trouble to take; these will be rejoiced over when more costly popular flowers will only be glanced at. TO KEEP SILVER BRIGHT. First rinse in clear hot water, to remove all grease. Afterwards wash in hot water, to which enough, soap and borax has been added to make a nice lather. Let it stand a few to make a nice lather. Let it stand a few minutes in this:, then rinse in clear cold water and wipe at once, giving a final polish with a leather, into which a little jeweller's s rouge has been well rubbed. Wash your silver in this way every time after using. FOR MOIST HANDS. Moist hands are a great source of discom- fort and annoyance to some girls. A good method of dealing with them is to add a tea-; I spoonful of. sulphate of zinc to a pint of hot j water, and keep the hands immersed in this for three or four minutes; renewing the hot water as it cools. Then dry and dust the hands with a powder consisting of zinc oxide (half an ounce), french-chalk (one ounce and a half). Is IT ISR VAIN? Love wore a threadbare dress of grey, iArid toiled upon the roads all day. Love wielded' pick and carried pack, And bent to heavy loads the back Though meagre-fed and sorely tasked, One only wage Love ever asked— A, child's white face to kiss" at night, A woman's smile by candle-light. HAPPY BEDTIMES. 1 Do not reprimand or punish the children' late in the day; never just before bedtime! Send them off to their beds happy. Com- mend them for the good they have done, for- getting, for the time at least, anything Ithat has been remiss in their conduct. Tell them a story when there is time—there should always be time-and let it be a bright and cheerful one. Kiss and tuck them in, leav- ing them happy, to the sweet repose that is the inalienable right of childhood.
Advertising
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LONDON AND THE CZAR.
LONDON AND THE CZAR. The Court of Common Council of the City of London has decided to offer the Czar of Enesia an official welcome, and to ask to be allowed to present his Imperial Majesty with an address in a gold casket. The proposition was moved at the sitting of the Court by Mr. Gunton, who said that the Czar and Czarina were to be the guests of the King and Queen, to whom they were bound by ties of close personal relationship. The visit, too, was an official one, in the sense that both Governments were participating in it. The presence of the members of the Duma in Eng- land at this moment, and the attention which had been paid them on all hands, showed that there was genuine sympathy existing between the people of the two countries. In the event of the Czar not coming to London the presentation will probably take place at Cowee.
CHEERS FOR WRONG COUPLE.
CHEERS FOR WRONG COUPLE. Some extraordinary scenes were witnessed outside St. John's Church, Stratford. The story had got abroad that Goes, a Crimean veteran, of 78, was to marry an old sweetheart, and a large crowd gathered to see the ceremony. Disappointment awaited them, however. The clergy and officials had just told the people that no such wedding was to take place, when a strange thing happened. An army veteran named Borret, proudly displaying a row of medals, walked up to the church, accom- panied by his wife, and the crowd, making cer- tain that this was the bride and bridegroom they had come out to see, cheered them heartily and followed them into church. The people de- clined to accept the assurance that Mr. and Mrs. Borret had come on the same mistaken errand as themselves. The old soldier and his wife were taken into the vestry, and after a while left by a side entrance. Once outside, they were surrounded by the excited crowd, who, thinking that the marriage had actually taken place, clapped the old man on the back and cheered loud and long.
ATTRACTED BY THE LIGHT.
ATTRACTED BY THE LIGHT. The white glare from an engine's head- lights attracts most birds that don't g6 to roost early, just as a lighthouse lamp attracts sea-fowl, and a candle a moth. roost early, just as a lighthouse lamp attracts sea-fowl, and a candle a moth. 'in Sometimes an owl, sitting on a tree branch near the line, his round eyes on the look out for prey, sees a locomotive come tearing along. The bird gets confused and silly, and like as not runs up against the engine. An owl once charged the windows of the cab of an engine. The glass was pretty thick, but the train was going at a mile to each minute, and the owl cut clean through the pane! It was picked up alive, but it was not sur prising that one of its legs was broken.
MANY KINDS OF HORSESHOES.
MANY KINDS OF HORSESHOES. In Iceland horses are shod with sheep's horn in the Soudan a kind of sock made of camel's skin is used for the purpose. A Ger- man not long ago invented a horseshoe of paper, prepared by saturating with oil, tur- ) pentine, and other ingredients. Thin layers of such paper are glued to the hoof till the requisite thickness is attained; and the shoes thus made are durable and impene- trable by moisture.
| DOMINION DAY.
DOMINION DAY. Canada's Dominion Day was celebrated at the Imperial International Exhibition by a dinner at which Lord Strathcona presided over 500 guests and proposed the toast of "The Dominion of Canada." Earl Grey in responding said never in the whole history of this Empire had there been a more common or a more perfect conviction that Canada and the other self- governing dominions and the Mother Country were necessary to one another. It was admitted in every part of the Empire that without the self-governing dominions the Empire would fail to pieces. j The protection of the British Navy was neces- sary to enable Canada to maintain her national expansion and her national development. But there were some who feared that in spite of the protection ef the Fleet the recent large Ameri- can immigration might create a desire on the part of some people in Canajda to be incor- porated into the United States. (Cries of "No:") They were told that 80,000 Amercians, with 80,000,000 dollars of capital, were going to en- rich the Dominion of Canada. They were glad to receive them all, and they would probably welc-ome a still larger number.
DARTMOOR CONVICT SHOT.
DARTMOOR CONVICT SHOT. A Dartmoor convict named James Henry tvas shot down in an attempt to escape. He was working with a party of convicts on the prison farm, when he made a sharp run for the boundary wall. The warder in charge shouted to him to stop, and fired over the man's head to give the alarm and to frighten him. Henry, however, still raced on, and a second officer, after calling on him to stop, nied another charge over his head. Still Henry took no heed, and a third officer, after shouting to him three times to halt, fired at the convict, who fell wounded in the thigh. He was carried to the hospital, where his wounds were found to be of a slight nature. The attempt to escape was practically hopeless, as the day was beautifully bright and clear.
DOCTOR'S STRANGE DEATH.
DOCTOR'S STRANGE DEATH. Found dead in bed in a house in Bayewater. London, a man, whose identity is shrouded in mystery, was stated at the inquest, when a ver- dict of "Suicide" was returned, to have had only a penny in money in his possession. Mr. K. E. Gould, a solicitor, said he had known the man for about six weeks by the name of Dr. P. St. Paul. On his card he was described as a canine specialist, and there was a reference to the elixir of life. The man said he was a Hungarian count, and had relations in Austria. The police-surgeon said one of the bottles found in the man's room was labelled "Elixir of Life." Another bottle contained enough cyanide of potassium to kill forty horses.
NOT WITHOUT REASON.
NOT WITHOUT REASON. It rs a. strict rule with the big Trans- atlantic steamship companies that the wife of the captain shall not travel in his ship. The company strongly prohibits its captains from taking their wives aboard with them. The supposition is that if anything should happen to the ship, the captain, instead of attending to his public duty, would devote his attention mainly to the safety of his wife.
EVERYBODY TRUSTED.
EVERYBODY TRUSTED. In certain parts of Sweden, where the most absolute confidence is reposed in the honesty of the people, a very informal postal system is in vogue. As the mail steamer readies a landing-place a man goes ashore with the letters, which he pla-ces in an unlocked box on the pier. Then the passer-by who expects a letter opens the box, turns over the letters and selects his own, without being questioned by anyone.
SUPERSEDING PIGEONS.
SUPERSEDING PIGEONS. A Russian officer has been making experi- ments, with very successful results, in the u?e of falcons instead of pigeons as carriers. It is said that they can fly much faster. A pigeon covers t-en or twelve leagues in an hour, whereas a falcoln can do fifteen. It can also carry with ease a fairly heavy weight, while a pigeon can only just manage a letter. Above all, there is not the danger that a falcon can be caught by some bird of prey on the road, or even shot, for it flies so high that he must be a very good marksman who can reach it.
[No title]
I A foreigner entered uninvited the Dover Town Council Chamber, and explained that he had come to study English ways and manners. The London County Council approved the report of the General Purposes Committee in favour of the reconstitution of the Stores Com- mittee and the appointment of a director of etores at £ 1,000 a year.
THE OPPORTUNITY OF A LIFETIME.
THE OPPORTUNITY OF A LIFETIME. Apropos of the preseht craze for engineering in all its branches, which has a subtle attraction for men of all ranks of society (says "The Lady's Realm ") a good story is being told of Lord Rosse, brother of the Hon. Charles Algernon Parsons, who helped not a little to invent and perfect the now ubiquitous turbine. Lord Rosse, who is himself a practical engineer of exceptional skill, is said to have entered the engine-room of a large manufac- tory one day, and by his interest attracted the attention of the chief engineer. "What's up?" he asked the peer. "What are you shaking your head for and pulling out your watch ? Got any fault to find? No," said Lord Rosse; I'm waiting for the boiler to burst." The boiler burst ? Why, you're crazy "Well," retorted the Earl, "if you work ten minutes longer with that loose screw there, the boiler is safe to explode." The engineer, gazing in the direction indicated by Lord Rosse, paled, and jumped to stop the engine. Why the devil didn't you say so sooner?" he blurted out. "Why should I?" answered LordR.osse; I have never yet had an opportunity of seeing a boiler explode."
..'USEFUL RECIPES. :/ I
USEFUL RECIPES. I RHUBARB WINE. — Ingredients for one gallon: Six pounds of rhubarb stalks, cut as for tarts, then add to such a quantity one gallon of cold water, place it in a tub or vessel, where it may remain six days, taking care to stir it well up two or three times a day, then strain it off into another tub or vessel, and add one lemon sliced very thin, and four pounds of loaf sugar. TEA SOONES. Half pound self-raising flour, one ounce castor sugar, one egg, two ounces butter, two ounces currants, and sufficient milk to make, a soft dough. Rub the butter into the flour, add the sugar and currants, and mix with the egg (well beaten) and milk. Knead well, and roll out rather thickly. Stamp out into rounds with a paste cutter, and place on to a greased baking tin, brush over with egg, and bake in a fairly hot oven for about fifteen minutes. CURRIED RABBIT.-—Put two ounces of butter or dripping'into a stewpan over the fire, and slice into it an onion, and fry till the onion is brown, but not burnt. Add a dessertspoonful of nice curry powder, and stir well. Then add the rabbit (cut in joints), and keep stirring, adding more j butter if necessary. Throw in a little salt and white pepper, and add gradually a tea- cupful of milk; stir all well over the fire, then set it at the side of the fire to stew gently for an hour or an hour and* a half. If it appears too rich, skim off some of the butter and add more milk. Directly the rabbit is done, take it up, thicken and flavour the sauce, add a squeeze of lemon- 1 juice, and stir while it boils for a few minuts.Then return the rabbit to the pan, and simmer all together for ten minutes. j Serve in a border of nicely boiled rice. GOLDEN .PUDDING.—Required: Four ounces of fine breadcrumbs, four ounces of finely ■ mixed suet, two ounces of brown sugar, and a quarter of a pound of marmalade. Put all into a basin and mix together with four well- beaten eggs. Pour the mixture into a well- buttered mould, cover with a wetted cloth and tie securely with a piece of string. I CREAM CHEESE IN ICE.— Boil a quart of cream with some sugar, a stick of cinnamon and a couple of yolks of two small, fresh i eggs well beaten. While boiling, throw in the zest of a lemon and stir in two table- spoonfuls' of orange flower water. It is im- portant that it should be well sweetened When quite cold, put into moulds and set them upon ice and salt mixed. Cover the moulds also with ice and salt. ;1,"J 1.1
.-.CLTJB WINDOW
CLTJB WINDOW A number of cast-off silk hats purchased recently by an East-end dealer are now being retailed by him at sixpence each to coster- mongers for use as nose-bags for their donkeys. < When a passenger pays for his dog to ride by rail, is the dog entitled to occupy a seat in the carriage like a human being ? In Belgium a man turned a dog off a seat to sit down himself. The dog's master brought an action against the individual, and the Courts have declared that the dog is as much en- titled to a seat as his master. Mr. Arthur Grenville, the clever actor, tells a very funny story about a certain per- formance of "Hamlet" which was to be given at a small provincial town. The com- pany of which Mr. Grenville was a member arrived so late, that there was only just time to rehearse the scenery with the local stage hands. Just before the curtain went up on the first act, the stage-manager approached the property-master and said: I suppose you've got the skulls ail right for the grave- yard scene." "Oh, yes, sir," replied the man; "they're all right." Shortly before the scene in question, the stage-manager shouted out: "Now then, where are those skulls?" "Here they are, sir," answered the property-master, hurrying forward, "Here they are!" And he handed to the astonished stage-manager a pair of oars. The property-master followed the calling of a fisherman, and he thought that when he had said -skulls, the stage-manager meant sculls. H.M. the King uses a very pretty white notepaper, with a fairly smooth surface, a trifle larger than that known as the "Duchess." It is in absolute good taste, no huge crests or monograms; it is only orna- mented with a small "E" in royal blue, out- lined with gold, and "VII." in gold, inside the letter, with a tiny gold crown above it. Baden-Powell tells a good story connected with his boy scouts. In Dunham Woods the other day a small disciple of Baden-Powell was discovered walking aimlessly up and down peering anxiously into the branches of the tree. This was a new phase of the busi- ness, and the scoutmaster wonderingly ques- tioned him as to the object of his search. "My mother gave me a pork-pie," he an- swered in doleful tones. "When I got here I hid it in a branch of a tree, and now— boo-hoo—T c-c-can't find the tree! A charming girl of eighteen, the daughter of an American publisher and quite a society queen in her own city, had been taken to Washington by her father, and at one of the White House receptions was presented to President Roosevelt. As her small hand dis- appeared within that of the President's, the maiden looked up at him and, to the accom- paniment of a sweetly gracious smile, eaid: "I'm awfully glad to meet you, Mr. Roose- velt. I've often heard father speak of you." » Mr. W. Louis Bradfiel-d was travelling with a theatrical company in a train making a night journey by the shore of one of the American rivers. He was lying in his berth in the sleeping-car, thinking of the horror of the train running off the lines into the water, when, all of a sudden, a cold splash on his face made him jump up in alarm. He looked ) down at--the floor of the car, and, to his dis- may, saw that it wae flooded with water. A moment later he was drenched to the skin. "We're lost!" he cried. We're in the river! We're in the river!" "No, sar, we ain't," said a darkie porter who happened to be near at hand. "They're just givin' the engine a drink, an' they've swung the tube round over die yar carriage. I guess you're a little wet, sar, but dat's all." Mr. Albert Chevalier tells an amusing "Ktbrjk against hiiraself. Some time ago the stage-door keeper went to the manager and asked for a couple of seats to see Mr. Cheva- lier's performance. The manager expressed his willingness to oblige. "I don't want 'em for niyself," the stage-door keeper explained. "I've seed 'im. It's the missus as wants 'em. She just wants to say she's seed 'im, too." "That will be all right," answered the man- ager. "Thank you, sir," said the man; then he whispered in the manager's ear. "Don't worry about the place. Put 'er anywhere; but put 'er near the door, so that she can get out easy in case -she don't like 'im." —; Mr. Arthur Roberts was once engaged by a certain music-hall manager in the early days of his stage career. During an interval the manager walked on to the stage and said "Ladies and gentlemen, I always do my best to deserve jour patronage, and I get the best talent that money can buy. I've got the best comic singer in the world to-night for you, and I'm giving him a trial. His name is Arthur Roberts, and he's the best comic 6inger in the world. Bvit I've., got a better one than him coming next week In one year the German Emperor wrote no fewer than seven thousand personal and private letters. There seems to be a certain fitness in this, when it is remembered that Germany; indisputably holds the title of being the chief latter-writing nation of Europe, for it has been shown that in one fiscal year of the International Postal Union it sent a total of nearly eight thousand million pieces of mail-matter, while Great Britain and Ireland had less than five thou- sand millions to their credit, France more than a thousand millions less than that, while Russia and Italy each sent only about a sixth of what Germany did. The great American tragedian Booth was once acting in London with Sir Henry Irving, and for such a terrific combination the prices of all seats were doubled. Mr. Herman Vezin met Mr. W. S. Gilbert in the street, and of course wanted to know if he bad been to see the two. "No," was the characteristic reply. I have sometimes paid half a guinea to see one bad actor, out I certainly won't pay a guinea to see two." ° Mr. Ernest Shand, the popular comedian, relates an amusing incident that occurred when he..made his first appearance on the stage. Mr. Shand was quite a youngster at the time, and his part was only a "thinking one, but he yearned for the opportunity of shining in a speaking part, and so he arranged with a "one line" gentleman to change places. The one-line part consisted of rushing on to tell the "hero" that the b-ouse was on fire. "When the time came," says Mr. Shand, "I rushed on the stage, but the sea of faces before me put the fire out, and I stood rooted to the spot with my mouth open. The hero waited—as he put it after- wards in his coarse way—a "blamed un- reasonable time," and then said: "I suppose you have come to say that the house is on fire? Once during Mr. Seymour Hicks' early y days on the stage, he was advised by a prac- tical joker to take his "make-up" off with spirit-gum! He took the advice, and after struggling to get the stickiness off for about an hour was making to leave the theatre, when he discovered that all the other actors and actresses had gone home, and that he was locked in. There was no help for it but to make the best of a bad job, and, after wrapping himself in his overcoat, Mr. Hicks crawled into the darkest corner he could find and fell asleep. "I sometimes wondered what my awakening would have been," Mr. Hicks has said, "had the spirit-gum joker delayed i his operations until the next night, when" at two a.m. the Grand Theatre caught fire, and was burnt to the ground." b J • t •»
-,-COUNTRY HOUSE DRAMA. |
COUNTRY HOUSE DRAMA. The extraordinary drama in an Irish country house which occurred on May 20, was again described at the Trim Assizes, when Mr. J. Eden Savile, of St. Martin's, Stamford, was charged with the attempted murder of Mr. Charles Fortesque Uniacke. The story told in court was that Mr. Uniacke, after causing a telegram to be sent in his wife's name to Mr. Savile, found him in conversation with Mr. Uniacke, whereupon Mr. Savile was said to have shot at him with a revolver, and afterwards to have written a note confessing that he had done so. Mr. Savile's defence was that he was caught in a trap. He drew his revolver, he said, in self-defence, and was knocked down and brutally beaten. His confession and apologies for state- ments said to have been made against Mrs. Uniacke were written, he added, under duress. The jury acquitted him on both counts- shooting and common assault-and he was dis- charged.
FOUR MILES A MINUTE.
FOUR MILES A MINUTE. The most wonderful bird flight noted is the migratory achievement of the Virginia plover, which leaves its southern haunts in North America, and, taking a course down the Atlantic, usually from four to five hun- dred miles east of the Bermudas, reaches the coast of Brazil in one unbroken flight of fif- teen hours, covering a distance of over three thousand miles at the rate of four miles a minute.