WHAT MOLE SIM IS AT, T ITEMS OF INTEREST ABOUT BUSY YANKEE. in THE tutaeretf ten r Hourm ,.,i Mink trmm. Ml. Bill r Krr.r* Tiu hasafemile contractor. A California prune orchard cover* 3,300 A Virginia itirl earn* a living by training Lexington, Ky., has two feminine bank officials. There are many women-riding teacher* in New York. New Orleans hasatineorcheetra of women exclusively. A New York blacksmith shop is managed by three sister*. A women carries the mail ovsr a 40- mil j Texan rout*. A locomotive engineer of th* Cairo Short Lin) is a woman. Yellowstone Park contain* an area of 3,575 square miles. At a single baksry in Boston 10,000 pies are baked every day. Kastport, Me., has fifty- nine sardine pack ing establishments. There are 10.OUO more women than men in the District of Columbia. Nutmeg hickory is the strongest wood grown in the United States. A store in Kingston. N. Y., was robbed six night* in succession recently. The Hams Medina Valley Railroad Com- pany is preside j over by a woman. The bloeaom of th* prickly pear ha* been adopted a* the (late flower of Montana. In the United State*, the rainfall of th* four stttnns is about eu,ual in each season. Dr. Annie Walter, of Mississippi, has charge of the woman'* hospital at Soo Chow, China. Bertha Fife, 13 years old.0' North Ada us, Maes.killed herself after au,uarrel with her elder sister. New York canal men fear th* new Illinois drainage channel will divert much of their freight trade. Governor Matthew i* reorganizing the In- diana minus by weeding out all member* of trades unions Peter Clinc, wanted in Iowa for theft, has been wearing female attire for three yean, to escape arrest. The largest typewriting establishment in the world is in New York, and is conducted by two sisters. Massachusetts hat appointed a force of inspector* with a view to (tamping out tub- erculosis in cattle. Last year aearly 1.000,000 bee.' of cattle sheep and pig* were received at the Balti- more stock yard*. It has been pro posed to errect n>chap*l in memory of Professor David Swing at the Chicago University. Two dog* were recently arrested in New York for following neople in the street, and two more for fighting. Secretary Carlisle proposes to induce de posits of gold by pay ing out ths accumulated souvenir half dollars. A syndicats of capitalist* is to a build ll.OOO.UUO theatre aear the corner of Mon roe and Clark streets, Chicago. In June of th* present year Itf.OUO.OOO children were found to be enrolled in the schools of the United States. Uai*y Majors a 16-year-old girl, who has acted a* posimislrees at Wampum, Pa,, i* found to nave embeuled $1,300. Brooklyn ha* *ix law libraries, contain- ing in all about 300,000 volume*. Two prominent lawyer* of New York, Judge ritxgerald and John W. Golf, began life at porters in a dry-goods store. Official* of the United Mine Workers deny the rumour that the coal miuers of Illinois contemplate another general strike. Boitot. and New York capitalists have formed a syndicate to purchase a line o newspapers from the Atlantic to the Pacibo. The Chicago paper* are crowing lustily over the fact that the total registration in that city it larger than that ol New York city. Montana's increase in gold production this yev is nearly 7"> per cent., the receipts showing an increase of 1\ 4lW fins ounces of gold. Miss Frances K. Willard suggest* a Christian theatre one conducted in a way that religious paper* could advertise and recommend. John Jacob Astor ran th* engine on a train on th* Illinois Central railroad from Fort Dodge to Sioux City, a distance of It*) mile*. A colored man named Steward ha* be- come theownerof the birth plao* of President Jam** Monroe, on the Potomac, near Mount Vernon. The U- year old ion of Justice Hamnet : ol Blaekville, S. C., who had b*n whipped by hi* father for smoking cigarette*, hanged hlBlMlf. A decrease of $U,il,5U6. of which $10, <<>,)<> i* in th* item of pensions, is shown by Secretary Smith'* estimate* for th* next fiscal year. The Boston School Board his ordered that all luncheon* told in the Public schools must he subject to th* approval of the com mittee on hygiene. General Amo* Beokwith, who wa* ahiel of the commissary department of General W. T. Sherman'* army, died in St. Lout* at th* age of Of* year*. A Virginia mother, fearing that she might forget the age* of her children. Kept a bottle for each one into which she dropped a pea on each birthday. Mr. and Mrs. Nelson Turret, of LitchfielJ. Mich., have just celeureted their ruby wed ding, marking th* sixty-fifth anniversary of their marriagt. Colonel J am** H. Ch urch, pf Toud Conn *y, Kentucky, dreamed that he was to die at a certain time and dale. He was corpse to the minute. Joseph T. Field, of Rsd Bank, N. J.. i* just 102 year* of age. He hat three child rea,bora since he wa* 74. and he i* men tall) a* bright as th* youngest. Workmen engaged in excavating for a ilroa.l track at Hingham, Mass.. unearthed five skeletons over *ix feet in length, with aw bone* o' uuusual size. Mr*. Julia Josephine Irvine, acting prtt lent of W*;ie*ley College, was graduaMd from Cornell University in 1875 and was for several year* a teacher in New York city. She afterward* became a student of Leipsic .'Diversity, and in 1890 wa* appointed pro e*or of Greek in Wellesley. Mr. Maxim is having a curious controj versy with the United Slates Patent Office, which declines to allow a patent for hi* fly- ing machine on the sole ground, as he claims, that it i* a flying machine. He con patent the separate inventions of which it is made. >nt that would cost *-J,UOU and would give ndilferent protection. Mrs. Elizabeth Heilman. postmistress of \Villiimsbndge, N. Y., is, in addition, a real estate operator, a notary public anl wliticol boss of the town. She doesn't vole lerself, but the ticket she favors "goes." She is said to have done a great deal for the raprovement of the place, where *he is mown a* "Vueen r h/sbeth. ' HEALTH. For Erysipelas. Would it come ami** to any one or lu family to know how to cure themselves uf the distressing complaint known u eryaipe- i ? Here is the cure : W hen first at- tacked, take an emetic of ipecac, then emnet thorough cathartic. Make a strong decoc- tion of the bark of spotted willow, which te the whistlewood we knew in boyhood ; wet cloths in ihB and bathe -the part* affected a* often a* they f.eh or barn. T. C Coo. SLAIN BY MALAY PIRATES. I Calam* Veeeel Back i Pert WMa Most r Her Crew s>raa ea Beck. There came into Singapore recently one of the most ghastly tights that have come into the port for very many years. A Jhinee* tongkang, which had left Singapore on the oih or 7th insc with a -Tew of eight men, returned to port in charge of three men only. Four bodies of the other members of the crew, fearfully mutilstod, were lying oa the dock, just as they had been killed by Malay pirate*, whom th* poor Chinee* bad generously ottered to assist and were assisting. Anothsr member of the crew had jumped overboard and wss drowned. It appears frwtn the story gathered from three men left of the crew that their boat, named Kim Hock Km, look her clear- ance from Singapore on the bth lust, with a cargo of 400 picub of rice, 50 cases of petroleum, and several hundred dollar* in cash, for Linggi, a Dutch itland near Rhio. They had a crew of eight. Short- ly after they left Singapore they were SMI by a Malay prahu, on board of witch were three Malays from one of the neigh boring islands. TKewi three men uked if the tongksog would tow them, at .hey were tired. The I 'bioamen generous- ly gave them this concession and cast out a rope, taking the prahu in tow. Everything went well, and in the night time the wind fell slack and all the crew were, asleep on deck except the man at the helm. Th* man at th* helm elate* that, before he wa* aware of what wa* doing, th* Ma- lay* had pulled their boat up alongside and had jumped on board. They mad* on* rush for th* sleeping crew, and succeeded in despatcQing four of the poor wretches Mr* they lay. cutting tuem up in a shocking fashion. Resistance was hope lees ; indeed, before they scarcely Bad their eyes open they were sent into elera. ny. < >n* man of th* crew Became so frightened tnat he jumped overboard and h* was drowned, unless possibly he has been picked up by a pasting boat, which U extremely doubtful. The other three mm begged for mercy, and, seeing that they had all in their power (although on* " the men war afterward badly wounded on the arm from a kri* cut), th* Malay* listened to their prayer*, and did nothing else in the way of attempting to take human life. They plundered all tne money they could find in the boat, and manage- 1 j to gel altogether something like SoOO. They never touched the cargo ; and they seemed satisfied with th* money. They then packed up the money into their prahu and left. Th* three Cbinamen left alone decided on returning to Singapore. Th* chief boarding officer went down and. with as sistance, brought the boat to the landing tag* near the Mailer Attendant * office, with its ghattly burden oa board just at the men had be*n cut down. Th* Chinere remaining of the crew were particularly atktd if the Malay* were from Singapore, and they replied in the negative, saying that they bell, ved they came from tome of the islands clot* to Singapore . Amenities of War. Archibald Forbes, in an article In Scnb- ner'i Magazine eay* 'that the abstract theory of the " amenilie* of war " is pre- posterous. You (train every effort to re- duce your adversary to impotence : he fall* wounded : whereupon, stool. 1 he come into your hand*, you promptly devote all you' exertions to saving bit life and restoring him to health and vigor in order that he may go home and *well toe rank* of your nemv. Thi* is no doubt humanity, but it u supremely illogical. Marbot recounts in hi* memoir* perhap* the must absurd application ever mad* of the theory of the " amenities." In the battle of Austerhu a body of beaten Rus- sian*, about five thousand ttrong, ttrove to escape across the ice on the S*tschau Lake. Napoleon ordered hi* artillery to fire on the ice, which wa* shattered, and men and hone* slowly nettled down into the depth*, only a few escaping by means of poles and rope* thrust out from thor* by the French. Next morning Napoleon, riding round the positions, taw a wounded Ruasianoffi cor clinging to an ice-floe hundred yard* and entreating help. The Kmperor became intensely interested in the succor of the man. After many failure*, Marbot and another officer (tripped and (warn out, gradually brought the ice-floe toward ih* shore, and laid the Kuasian at Napoleon'* feet. The Kmperor evinced more delight at this rescue than he hd manifested when assured of the victory of Auslerliu. He bad no co.npunclion a* to the fate of the unfortunate* whom hi* artillery practice of the day before had sent to their death. Proving It Briggs (emphatically) " I tell you that frllow Strawber knows the value of a dol- lar." Griggs " You must have been trying to borrow tome money from him," Cotton Wool for Burns- A writer on health matters my* : Cot- ton wool bid* fair 13 supersede many of the common remedie* in the treatment of burn*. The cotton should be applied to the burnt part* a* soon a* it is possible, and if blister* have formed they should not be opened. When it can be done without incurring coosi<ier*l>!e delay, the cotton khonld bo carded lulo thin flake* before it* applica- tion. Those flakes should be lail on the injured part, and piled one on toe ether until they form a soft covering, which, un- der high pressure, should be about an men in thickness. A bandage should then bo pawed around the patient to prevent the -olton falling off; but care mutt be taken not to draw the bandsge tight, or allow it to press the body. It* object i* simply to retain the cotton in it* place. Nettle- Bash. Nettle-rash, hives, or urticaria, is an af- f-ction of the tkio, generally known K. b harm lets, and hence often considered of very little importance, both by the family and the physician. A* it i* rarely mistaken for acy contag' ion* disorder, this inditfereoce i* perhaps partially justified ; but if it is remembered that nettle-rash is usually the manifestation ol tome cause remote from the skin and hidden from the eye, it will be seen that it may be a ianger-tignai of tome disorder likely to follow unless the nettle-rash ilsel: reciives attention. The occurrence of nettle-rash ha* in some instance* led to the discovery that the patient wa* su Jermg from intestinal worm*. At other urn is it may be the precursor of an sithmatic attack. In individual cat** the eating of inch simple and, to must persons, nourishing foods a* ti*h, eggs, strawberries or pine- apples invariably causes nettle-rash in an aggravated form. The question of the freshness or want of freehnee* of the articles eaten does not enter into these case*, and the cause of too disagreement is not wholly unknown. The warning is not to be disregarded, however, since persistence in a:mg the prohibited article result* in profound disturbance of the system. In all ones*) ef nettle- rath attention thoula be Riven to the diet, though in tome in- ttances the strictest regimen will not be followed by any improvement. In oat lain of the latver caat tome local irritant, such at chafing of clothing, or bites or t tings of insect*, will account for the trouble. The separate w heals, or raised spot* which constitute the rash are caused by a locnl congestion, followed by an escape into the the nssiiss of Ice serum the watery element of the blood. It u the pressure of this watery fluid upon the minute nervwa supplying the skin with sensation which occasions the tingling, burning or itching symptom* whieh are to familiar to the many surierers from this complaint. Nervous influences cause hive* in tome instances. Emotions, such as anger. te*r or excitement of any kind, are known to produce ib Thoss who are subject to hives, beside* guariiog against extremes of any kind, should particularly avoid exposure to cold and dampness of the extremities, since *uch exposure is prone to affect unfavorably the normal (unctions of the stomach and liver. It mast be remembered that derangements of theee org%n* cause the majority of attache of nettle-rash. Overloading the stomach, especially with unripe or over-rips fruits, should alto be avoided. Aches and Pains. The meaning of ache* and pain* will be better understood if we consider for a mo- ment the exact significance ot pain. Every body knows that pain i* associated in some wy with nerves, and people are often heard talku-g learnedly about nerves when in reality they know very little about them. Every part of the body is abundantly supplied with nerves, which ars jof two kinds motor nerves, which carry message* from the brain to the muscle*, and thereby enable us to move : and sensory nerve*, whioh convey impression* to the brvn from the ssBSory organs, tuoh a* the tye.the ear. and the skin. The brain receives the impressions and interpret* them, turning them into what we call seusations. and according to the nature of the sensation we call it pleasurable or painful We thus eee that in many casis the nervet them- selves have only a subsidiary share in the matter: they correspond merely to telegraph wires, and transmit message* from one part of the body 10 %noiher. It tie o* nectiou be broken at any point, messaag can no longer travel for example, if the nerves of the arm kre cut, we should feel no pain, 4ven it the hand were completely burned and destroyel. W* are now in position to understand how pain may originate. It may depend upon an uu healthy *t*>t* of the brain, upon injury or disease of a tense organ, or sometime* it may depend upon the condition of the nerve itself. In many instances the difference between pleasure and pain depends simpiy on V 11 amount of stimulation which is _ ,khwi . There may be only a eompara lively (light diosreace between the h*al which warms) us pleasantly and that whieh scorches no, givipg ri-r to a distinctly painful sensation. The eye is especially silive to such differences. Iti**timu- ated by light, and when the light is toe nten** or glaring, ss when the sun shine* irightly alter a recent fall of snow, we soon begin to suffer from aching and pain in the ALEXANDRA. DAGMAR AN ALIX He IS DOING PENANCE u rsjr to sw seery 'or Two Cusriaa's a*, a Cesnlac ) ef Lac La a*. The pathetic totne which is bsing eaact- ed in Russia must perforce draw sympathy from all aatiuns ; but for as it seem* to nave a specially sad in barest, owing to the twofold cord* which bin-1 our royal family to that of Russia, say* a London letter. Fint'y, there i* to* done lie between th* Cxanna and our Pnacatn of Wale* ; and uodly . tha near kiaahip of th* Princess Alix, whoae marriage SSSPI* likely to laks place under each terribly mournful cirvum- incat Piinussi Alix has spent a great of deal time in England sine* th* death of her mo ther. Sne it on* of th* favocit* grand daughters of ths tauten- When one thinks el th* terrible shock and troubles which have told so heavily on tne health aad spin** of the Cxanna oae cannot restrain a feeling of pity for th* bright and winning girl who U called to a position which la at once of supreme importance and magnifi- cence and of nearly overwhelming anxiety. With ur sympathy for th* sorrow ol the Russian royal family is mingled, mo.-eover, a sincere regret that U-e peace ol miad of th* Princes* of 'Vsle* should be once more to rudely broken. The Princes* wa* taoeh attached to tier brother-in-law, tor whom the had also a greet, admiration and re*. pact : but her sorrow is inunticed by tne Although he is fact that tr.e blow '..* on tne sister to ' - wbom she i* to devoted. The two Pnn- cestes of Denmark were ijuite inseparable m their youth : they drosseti i like, snared each other's joytand sorrows in particular- ly close union. Th* cloud which had shadowed the Princess since her great trouble t wo aad a hsJfyeanago, seemed to be slowly dispersing, snd th* Princes* had re- gained much of hir natural health and pints. It is'to be f*ared that tot* fresh shock will undo much of th* good tha* change of *cene and a quiet life have wrought. Th* Pnnoeae ha* gone back to SanJriogh*m, feeling ever so much better for her long visit to her daughter ia the Highlands, and hat been full of vigor aad in excellent health. She aad her daughter* have cauxat th* fashioaabl* cycling fever, which is likely to become ten times more fashionable now that it is under royal patronage, and have learned to bicycle. Of course, their cycling expeditions are con- fined to their private property, for u would nanily oe dignified for oar future vjueen to be seen riding a bicycle la public. si laoufih u is quite a fallacy that a Knickerbocker cos- tume is a siaa qua son: a fairly short skirt, aad the abeenot of befnlled petticoat* is ail that is required. Ike Thi* Chines* person deserves no sympa- thy, though he is suffering physical psua miKctod by his own desire and donbtlaas for atoaey- making purposes. A loag bodkin bat beea thrust through both his rassks. His eye* are aearly closed, aad th* largo photograph from which thi* picture was) mad* plainly shews to* torture that is depicted in '.he man s face. He u volun- tarily doing penance for hi* sins, and the story ol hi* various enormities' u to. t n large characters oa tne board b*h.n4 mat. a TOT WICUD Tor*; pleasure immolation, lose* thi* _ he derives both profit from thi* act of self- The> public heart is Itaehael to see this young man so very, very sorry for the evil he has done, and the public pocket heek flies open and coppers are showered on him. for, of course, he cannot do anything U support himself while he in mailing heir* advertising his wickedness. On thin side of the sea we would probably call him an impostor and a mendicant, and lock him up. But in China his action is looked upon a* very oommoexiabl*. He na> probably been ^raited into the Chines* ay before this. A CURIOSITY OF LUNACT WILL ALWAYS BE A DESERT. The senetrtt Ceneralljr Akeve tne Irvet of Ike ftM-ue Chaste* or flu finer One-fifth of the whole African conti t* deceit, the area being estimated by Mr. Ravenstoin at over 2,290, OUU square mi Us, of which all but small traction i* coo Lam- ed in the tract oi land popularly known a* the Sahara. Except for some school children who know better, and school teachers who are instrumental in that Ming to, the miscon- ception nf the SsJura, which is widespread- would be practically universal. The average man picture* the Sahara a* a vast sea of s*nd. for the moat part below th* tea lev*!, across which th* camel I before the poison blast of th* simoon oasis to o*j is. Scheme*, tor flooding the Sahara hav* com* before th* public occa tonally, aad w* have rwa-i account* of th* vast inland tea which might be formed. rivaling th* Mediterranean in sue, giving a southern coast to Morocco and Algeria, and admitting steamers directly to the wealthy states of the Soudan. * Th* Sahara, at known to th* geographer, correspond* badly with thi* conception, for, in fact, there is no risk oi th* "ship of the deeerl" ever being supplanted by the stiip* of the see. Few parts are below sea level, sad they are small and ax-aiterec*. In th* interior the deesrt is a plain high above sea level, covered with vast dune* of red eani m many part* : in o'.iteru it i* an elevated plateau with lofty n.ountain ranges of bare rockt intersected by stony vallsy< It it nd. save where s spring bubbles up and gives nee to a small oasis of grass aad palm tree*. Th* Sahara proper is unknown except for a tew trad* routes regularly lrav*r**d by Arab* aad occasionally by Adventurous Karapsan*. Thee* utilue the oasts ss reeling place*, stepping stones, a* it were, and keep up communication be tweeu the wealthy Mohammeodan state* round Lak* Chad m the south and Tripoli, Tun:*, Algiers or Morocco on th* Mediter- ranean. Between the trade route* all is a bank of saad or berrea rock. Exploration is only possible wb*o water,** well as food, can be carried, s*d thin condition has practically stopped all attempt* at discov- ery for th* present, on account of the great *x pence and th* purely scientific na- ture of the possibl* return. A railway running from the French possessions on the Mediterranean across th* i***rt to Ti buctoe, the scarcely known trad* centre near the Niger, t* talked of. Such a ha* may be constructed in the future, bat the difficulties are enormous ; much greater than those overcome by the Russian* ia th* Trantca*t>ian line through the desert* of central Asia. n>e*MT*s>e .' i > Wfcics) tfce r i ir > Live* i r. Uves. There is a special form of mental disease first described in France, whose definite character u given to it by IBS periodicity. and hetMO it is calle/i fotte circulair*. In it therw are lire* sections ol the mental circle that the pat ent moves in, viz. . eleva- tion, depression and sanity, and in this round h* spssnV* hi* lif*. passing out ef OSM into the other, for i: it, whoa fully esiab Ushed. a very incurable dies* so, The patient take* an attack of nis. during which he it joyous, rwsslew*, troubte- extravsgaot, snd often vicious. He voraciously, sleeps little, and never to lire. Hi* temperature i* a degne or so above tbe^ormal.fci* *ye :* bright and glistening, he is *nam ire>t of the other sex, be show* diminished seii-cuotrol and no com moo Thin lasts tor a few weeks, or a few monihe more commonly, and than he passe* sometiiuot graduall) and sometime* rather suddenly into a condition ol ilitristitu. during which he .iujgish, dull, looking dilfereally, dressing >ii4erently, (alia* differently. fearful, urnliant aod sedentary in habits. This stale will last a few w*ks or months sad tb,* patient will brighten up into what ints rtcovery, and is to all intents and purpose* in hi* normal state. This, again, last* for a few week* or months, and h* gradually gets morbidly elevated. Y <u find he i* pasting through *v*ry minute mental phase and habit h* did at finl : depression tollow* a* before, and then sanity; and this) round of three itateo of feeling, of intellect, of volition, and of nutrition. goei on. ciroJe after circle, till the patient die*. H* live* three lives. ARE THE PLANETS PE OPLED Bad as a Bullet Hospital Physician- - Thi* man seems to be half dead, and yet I cannot find any- thing the niattsr with him. Where is he fromT" Ambulance Driver" I gst him at the duorof the St. Fashion Assembly r'<Ul. Ther* in a ball going on there." fhywcian "Ah. leee. He probably step, ped on a lady ' <lr**t and she said, 'Sfct !" Late Thai Ta*< Sir Robert Ball, in the November aaav ber of the Fortnightly Review, *ho* how since the days of Wberwell and Brewster ine contention lhat the other planet* are inhabited has been strengthened by fresh, discoveries. K>r instance, spectroscopic rrttarch ha* demonstrated that hydrogen, carbon, od- ium, lion, calcium and other element* aec- eesvry for building up '.he framework of living beings are widely diffused through- out the universe. There i* not th* same emphatic demonstration of the existence of oxygen, because u ha* been held lhat lh well-marked line* in th* solar spec- trum attributed to oxygen are due to the oxygon in the earth's atmosphere. Hu: it all probability this life giving gas is just as abandant oa many other globe* a* oa thi* oae, Ther* have also, however, been discov rie* trading to bmit th* contention with regard to life oa other planets. The varying sue, gravity and temperature of the planet* hav* to b* considered, weight of a planet mutt stand in relation to th* framework of the adapted to dwell upon it. Sir Robert Rail conclude* . " The character of each organism has to be fitted so exactly to its environment lhat it teem* in the highest degree unlikely that any organism w* know here could live oa any other globe elsewhere. W* canaot conjecture what th* orgsuism must be which would be adapted Tor residence oa Yen is or Mar*,nor doe* any line of research at preseat known to at hoi.i oat th* hop* of more Jefinite knowledge." The >t The Turkish Government ha* appointed a commission to investigate the etjriee from Armenia.