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MRS. LAMSHED'S WILL CHiAPTEB, n.â€" (Continued.) Mr. Dottle««n con-sUlered the case in •11 it« b«arirgs, sad made up his mind tbat far the present bis safest policy would be one of rvmplele neutrality, while he watched for a suitable oppor- tunity to join in the game himself. He had l)««n a little at a loss to know how b« bid best receive the application Dr. T^keworlh wa« sure to make for the pictorial "mark of esteem," v.-hich he bad treated so negligently, and wasal- moet relieved when a week passed and be heard nothing about it. The young niiini had called the day after he dined at Hlakewood Square to recover posses- sion of the photograph ; but learnt with aoine dismay tbat nu one had aeen it. He waa a modest unassuming individ- ual himself, and whilst quite awaro lh>t bis neglect could hsrdly be gratifying to Mr. Dotlleson, he did not anticipate tbat it would give such offence as Kate appeared to think was inevitable. " I'apa will never forgive you for thai," she said, " But perhaps be does- n't know you left it here, fle would bave been sure to mention it had he found it, and he hasn't said a word to me." CoDBultation with Mrs. Lamsb^d d«.- termined them to let the matter drop; and Mx. Dottleaon was thus allowed to •uppoae that his gu«8t had utterly for- gotten the distinction he had receiv- ed. It was a trifle in Itself, but it gave Kate's father the feeling that his au- thority was being left on one aide, and himself ignored. It was dangerous for any on* who desired M!t. Dottleson's friendship to tamper with his self-love. It was not long before be saw a obano« of making the first movs to- wards ousting Dr. Lakeworth, and be did not fail to take advantag« of it. Al- most for the first time In her life, Mrs. LamstMid was attacked by a violent cold which settled upon her chest and de- fied all efforta to dislodge it. Charles Lakeworth came in every day, and no doubt did his best f<ir her, but, as doc- tori frequently fimd, he bad to con- tend with the patient aa well as the malady. " I never bave been ill," said the ob- •ti'n«t« old lady irrationally, " and I'm â- ct eroing to begin at my time of life. No ; I won't go to bed, Lakeworth. This drawijig-room is warmer than my room, sod I'm going to stay here," So Alira. Lamsbed remained in the drawin^room, shivsring and cough- ing, whilst Kat« and her maid added their entrssties to those of the doctor ; but they made no impression upon her; and at Isat M>. Dottleson was appeal- ed to. to use bis Influeooe. When he understood the condition of affairs, he looked grave, amd going down-stairs, •but himself up in the UlM-ary, where be wxxrksd out bis projeot before the mirror to bis own sat isf act ion. "Now, It's your obvious duty," said he to him- self. " to put Mr. Lamsbed's case in tbe bands of some one you can trust. You can't honestly say you trust young Lakeuxtrtb, fur she won't ol>ey him; so you must summon a medical man in whom you have perfect reliance. Now, Dottleson, it won't do to send round tbe corn«r of Penkwiss or Musper ; you DiU3t Hludy tbe old lady's peculia,rities and trade upon them. If she's got a weakness it's the Peerage; and it you mean to undermine young Lakewortb's position, you must shut yuur eyes to tbe expense' (Mr. Dotlle.iun gulped down b.s feelings at this point), "and get Hoiiie swell physician, Sir Alfred oludgt'l is your man ; hie has his fin- ger on tbe pulses of half the nobility; and if he will com*' here and talk to h«r about his illustrious patients and compare her case with theirs, she will take kindly to him. And once I get youi^ Lakeworth away from her bed- side. I'll make short work of bis phil- aodfring with Kate." Thiu fllr. Dottleson reasoned and re- solved. It was a cootly experiment ; but the danger of letting fitra. I,am- â- hed tbiilik he wanted to gel rid of IJr. Lakeworth must be avoided, if pos- sible, iihtei could not hut be flattered by a visit from such a man as Sir Al- fred Dlodget, and her son-in-law was right in Ijelieviog tbat her wvakness fur tbe Peerage would predispo-se her to receive him fjivourably. " Tbe bill will be something awful," sighed Mr. Dottleson as he closed his letter to tbe great man; but 1 look upon it aa a premium of iiisuranoe for llie preservation of her willâ€" 1 mean her liife/' he hastily amended. M.r8. Lamshed frowned darkly when be told her what he had done; and it required all his powers of diplomacy to avert a aionii. " I don't want to see another doctor, Montague," Ishe said pettishly. "I've told you times with- out numlier thiit Lakcwood is good en- ough for me." 'My dear madam, I don't mean to Hh^riHi Dr. Lakeworth's professional •bilities ; in proof of I his I have not sent for nn ordinary practitioner." •' Who is It thenf " " My anxiety han lieen .to gx«at dur- ing the past few days, that t am go- ink to ask you lo allow Sir Alfred Blod- get lo see you when he cjilU ; just to relieve my mind." Mm. Lamibed's wrinkled countenance EH calmer at the name nf the new tor. and tbs sagsRious Dottleson fol- e.<l up his advantage at onoe. " lie will be in to-morrow. I have no doubt that he will t.ike vour case on bis way from Marlborough Bouse, where I understnod he is now in dally at- ten/lance." 'I'he viHian conjured up this adroit remark had an Immediate effeot upon Mrs. I.«m8Ded. Ahe soared lightly to tbe social altitude n( Sir Alfred's august client^'le, and exprssssd a hope that thsre was ftotblng Infectious at Marl- buTougb House. " N(»lhlng at allâ€" nothing at all," re- •poAd^d Mr. Dottleson saslty. " Tbeâ€" aik the PrlA«es« has bssn Mnflnsd tn b«r r*&m mw a ••vers south or soaas- thing: I observed It In tbe Post this morniina." Mrs. Lamshed lay back ujwn the so- fa cushions, and tne ghost of a smile flitted across her fa^-e. There was some- thing very soothing in the thought that the same doctor wa.s to preacrilie for the B.-ime malady both for the Prin- cess and herself. A little fellow-feel- ing with Roy.ilty made the old lady wondrous kind, and Mr. Dotlle.soii saw that his point vtd^ gained. lie did not make any attempt to further his plans .ju.st now. "SlDwly, and surelv. Montague, my boy." he said pleasantly Ic himself as he \wnt (lown-.st.iirs. "You've got in the th'n enil of lh« wedgte, and you must drive it home gently, now you have iM.'tde such a capital beginning." IVrh-ips, if Mr Dottleson could have lic.ird what passed between his moth- er-in-law and daughter, five minutes nfler he had left them, he would not hive looked quite so complaoently on h's Iveglnning. "It's really very kind and thought- ful of your father, Kate," said Mrs. Lamshed. " Such a splendid opportun- ity as It will be fcnr Charley !" " Yes, granny. Why, if it becomes known that he has been in consulta- tion with one of the Court physicians, h'S fortune will be noade; he will be sent fotr by everybody after that." Kate was rather sanguine, but then she was in love, and that quite account- ed for it. It is hardly necessary to say that Mr. Dottleson had not been Influenced by any desire to give Dr. Lakeworth such an auspicious opening ; the view his mothier-in-law took with Kate bad nev- er presented itself to him, or the thir- ty-guinea, visit he bad requeated Sir Alfred Rlodget to pay would have seemed an extravagance worse than un- necessary. In fact it was dawning up- on bim 'hat be had hooked a fish which might prove unmanageable and be more f> xlly Lban he calculated on. Suppose Mrs. Lauwhed made the inconvenient discovery that this new attendant un- derstood l»r constitution, and encour- aged regular visits at the rate at, say, ten guineas for each I She would pay for all subsequent attention as a mat- ter of course ; but the expense would indirectly fall upon him. However, it was no use being frightened by shad- ows, and he consoled nimself with the thouglht that he had taken the first step towards ridding the house of Char- les Lakeworth, happily oblivious of the schemes which the ladies were plan- ning up-stairs. Sir Alfred Blodget, who bad once been aptly described by an incipient page to hkis mi.stress aa "a short thick per- son with a snuare head," came to se« Mrs. Lamshea the next day, and com- menoed his reign by sending his pat- ient to bed, witn Injunctions to remain there until be called at noon tbe day afterwards. The old lady submitted meekly ; and her first act, when the doctors directions had l>een complied with, was to dictate a letter to Charles I,iikeworth enjoining him to be present to-morrow tbat he might meet the great man " in consultation." Unfortunate- ly. I he servant who was entrusted with tpe note met Mr. Dottleson Just out- side the hall door, and bad to disclose to him the nature of her errand. " Were you toVd to take this by hand, instead of posting it in the ordinary way ?" he asked as he took tbe letter Hnd Blanced at the address. " Yes. sir. Mrs. Lamshed particular-' ly said I wai to take it myself,'" replied tbe maid. 'I Mrs. Lamshed said sol" " Yes, sir. Miss Dottleson wrote it tor her." " You may tell your mistress that I undertook to leave the note at Dr. Lake- wort h's." The woman surr<«ndered tbe letter, and returned to the bouse. CHAPTER III. Mr. Dottleson,. who had Just come tKick from the City, walked away to the park, and sought a secluded bench, whereon he seated hiinAelf, and drew out th«» letter he ha<l taken poaeession of. What did his motlier-in-law want with this young doctor now/ And why did she send her letters by band in- stead of putting them in tbe postbag? He luui a right to know what it meant, and hie intended to find out. The en- velope was carelessly gummed and came open without difficulty. He unfolded the encloGure .and bit his lips with chag- rin aa he read it : My Dear Doctor.â€" Come and meet Sir Alfred Ulodget here in consultation at mx>n to-morrow ; he is coming to see me.â€" Yours sincerely, ' Maria I^amshed. Mr. Dottleson stared at it. and a few emplvatic words escaped bim. What could his mother-in-law l>e thinking of? To ask a young man who was little more tlinn a medical student to come and "consult" with the first authority of the day! It w.i>« ridiculoiu ; it made a fanie of Sir Alfred's visit. Wliat an outrageous thing it was for the wom- an to dol' " Of course, it can't l» allowed," he aaid to himself; "and I'll just lake the nespon.iibllity of posting this let- ter in timo to t)e too late for him to keep the appo'ntnienl." He repliiwd it in his pockwt. and re- turned home, deeply vexed at what he looked upon ajj a mean attempt to take advantage of hia generosity. His thoughts flew h.ick lo the conversation he had had with Mrs. Lamshed the day before ; how be had urged his dutiful anxiety for her health as tl»e reason for calling in Sir Alfred Hlodget ; and tben. in spite of himself, he recalled how he had carefully arranged this to supplant Dr. lakeworth; and now. in- .slaad of doing anything in that direc- tion, his scheme was made use of to benefit the man. Oh, it was very dis- heartening, and enough to aggravate any one. No wonder that Mr. Dottle- son entered hi« bouse in a frame of mind which cauj^Md Kate to avoid him, ami made the servants quake in their shoes as they waited up<m him at din- ner. Everything had gone wrong, as things have a way of aoing when our little tempera get the better of tis: the soup was smoked, I he fish done to rags, end the joint as tough as leather Kate, who was skilled In reading the pater- nal barometer, took little time to dia- oover tbat tba hand vr,.ji set at "Stor- my." a«d knew lietter than to deliv- er herself of her grnnidmother'a mes- sage, asking if Mr. bottleaon waaqn'ite sure he h:td left the note for C)u' ins I<akewnrth at tbe right house ; ini ' nd, .she had a faint suspicion that the taid note knigbt hare caused the piresent dis- turl>anoe in ttwi domestic atmoaphers, and judiciously abatained from referr- ing to it. So her father, shielded by his smouldering passitm was •klk.we'l to keep it in his breast-pocket i-.m'ialurb- ed, and the untruth he had ready re- mained unspokeoi. He started for the City earlier than usual next morning; liie wanted to ev- ade Ijeing questioned aliout the letter until liiB hiid dispatched it, but Ive was careful nut to commit it to the post until ii»?arly elevion o'clock. Then he felt easier ; he had foiled the first at- tempt to make i^pital out of his lib- erality, and liad gained litne to remon- strate niiblly w-itli Mrs. Lamshed uixw tlw absurdity of her ideas. It occurred to him more than once during the day ttutt detaining the letter was not quite the best way of beginning operations ; but if tbat cropped up, as it was tol- erably Btire to do. he must plead fail- ure of memory or make some excuse of that kind. He walked home to Blake- wood Square that afternoon, wondering much what the result of his manoeu- vre had been, and warning himself that be muni l)e pren.'ired for an outburst of wrath heretofore unheard of on the Diirt at his mother-in-law. The nearer lirome be came tbe more awkward he felt his own attitude in the matter to be and had he found It necessary t.o confront Mirs. Lamshed at once he would bave made out • poor case for himself. It chanced, however, that she was i<n- dulging in her customary afternoon si- esta when be came in, and he was fully posted by his daughter in the events of the day before the old lady awrobe. It •eemed that punctually at twelve o'clock Sir Alfrwl Blod^ret bad called ; hut there was no Dr. Lakeworth to meet him. At Mrs. I.,am.shed'8 earn- est request, he had consented to waste five minutes of his valuable time in waiting to be introduced to " her doc- tor." At a quarter past twelve, just OS Kate entered the room, he drew out his watch and rose to go; she dashed recklessly into the breach and .succeeded •n detaining him until nearly twentv- five minutes past the hour, but still no Charles Lakeworth appeared. Then tibe great physician had lookerd annoy- ed, and pickinig up his hat. made cau!»- tio rem.arks about the independent man- ners adopted l>y struggling practition- ers. When Mir. Dottleson beard this he felt that be had at all events sown the seeds of a good misunderstanding between Sir Alfred and Dr. Lakeworth and tbat his task with Mrs. Lamshed would be easier ; but be had not beard all that Kate had to tell him. Three o'clock broiight Charles Lakeworth to the htnise in a flutter of disappoint- ment. : he had with him the note which had been written yesterday, but which the City post-mark proved to have been HesjKitched to-day. Grandmamma had been exceedingly angry, and told Dr. liakeworlh tbat she would sift the mat- ter to the bottom as soon as M:r. Dot- tleson came home, and further promis- e<t to make anot-her opportunity of in- troduoang him to Sir Alfred Blodget. Mx. Dottleson did not feel quite so well after beariinig that ; but aa he re- ceived a summons from his mother-in- lawr almost inunediately after Kate bad finished her story, be bnd no time to prepare • brieif for his defence. Mrs. I.«nisbed was lying amongst her pillows panting for the fray ; she wav- ed her son-in-law to a seat at the bed- aide and atta<'.ked him at once. " It was a great pity you forgot that note, after taking it from Sarah. Miontague ; the oonitents were most important- most important." " 8o Kate has been telling me," said Mr. Dottleson,; " and so 1 imagined from the foot of your sending it by band." " It was wartii anything lo Charley Lakeworth to meet Sir Alfred profes- sionally. Considering how the Imy stands towards Kate, you ought to re- gret having deprived him of the chance ne had today." Mr. Dottleson was very far from re- gretting it, but did not think it ad- visable to say so ; un t he contrary, he hastened to expound his own views. "You could not have weighed the mat- ter with your usual good sense, when you asked thnt young fellow, who is scarcely more than a student, to meet such a man as Sir Alfred in consulta- tion. Sir Alfred would, I am sure, have felt grossly insulted had he seen the person you wanted to introduce to him m such a manner." It was an unhappily worded sentence; the l>ack-banded alliuion to hex "good sense," the suggestion that Sir Alfred would have l>een grossly insulted through her instrumentality, and fin- ally the careless reference to the "per- son," stung the old lady to the quick, She turned uixm him sharply and spoke with rising temper. " You're jealously careful of Sir Al- fred's sensibilities, 'Montague. You don't, see the advantage of extending a helping band lo a deserving man who wants it, do you V" " I hnve no wish whatever to im- pede his progretw " " Or to hfllp it either, no doubt; you seem to forget th-»t he is engaged to Kat.e." " He isn't engaged to Kate, and won't be. till he c-in satisfy my requirements." Mr. Dottleson was a passionate man, and was letting his feelings get the mastery of him. It irritated him sore- ly to lie taken to task like this by Mrs. Lamshed, and he lost sight of his own interests in the anger of the moment. Mrs. lamshed paused for a few sec- onds, and then pro<luned the card she always had in her sleeve, when she wanted to crush her son-in-law; but this time it failed utterly. " Must I remind you again that there's still plenty of time for me to alter my will, Montague f" " I have no control over your inten- tions, madam ; you are quite aware that ray daughter Kate is dependent uixm me, and will ultimatelv inherit ail I possess." It was a very gentle hint that if he were rut out of Tier will in favour of Dr. Ijikeworth, Kate would be tbe real sufferer ; hut it had its effects upon Mra. T.«mshed. " I don't think Kate would lose much, those two will be faithful to each oth- er, however long you may keep them apart. In your greed." " I will never raise a finger to thwart Kate's happiness it she marries a man of whom I rna approve." " Thfln you don t approve of Charles Lakeworth f" "No, MxB. I..omsbed ; I do not. As things stand noiw, I most emphatically dl8.ipprov« of him ; and there's an end of it." There was • dead silence for five min- utes ; until Mrs. TiSmshed spoke again calmly and quietly : " Please ring the the bell, Montacua." (To he Oontlnund). A TERRIBLE EXPERIENCE. PLUNGING DOWN A MOUNTAIN SIDE ON A LOO. Thrllllog Josrner or John Swertwe<id la the AlUxhaa) MuanlHtart-Ntrsculssi Kucape trom Ueutb. A lieiiefontaine correspondent of the Philadelphia Times says: In these days of uodern app.iancps an d perfected taeans of travej. by steam and electri- city, mutilating distani* at the rate of a mile a minute, or even more, is con- sidered nothing so startling, but tbe rapid transit and live nodus operandi thereof participated in by John Sweet- wood, a Lumberman in the wJJs of tbe A-leg'hany Mouniains, one day recent- ly, corners the market on fast travel- line. 6weetwood Is a young man about 22 years of age. He is the son of a far- mer from one of the most rural distr'u>ts of this country, big, rawtioned, and fear- less of anything on lop of earth- As with all farmers, so with this one; work during tiie winter season is slack, and John, thinking to earn an extra penny for himae^f, determined late in the au- tumn of 1896, and wiib the opening of the lumbering season, to go into the woods and spend t<he winter "logging." In ixiimbering, aa in every other kind of employment, experience counts for a great deal, and tbe inexperienced, or "greeniea" as they are termed in the lumbermen's camp, are not deemed cap- able of performing tbe woi<k of an old hand at tbe business, and so are gene- ra.ly piU at work on something more 8iin|).ie. iVifteen and twenty years ago tuunber- in^ was vastly indifferent in tbe Alle- ghanies from what it is to-day. Then VIRGIN FORESTS oov«red tbe enlire range of mountains and tbe lumbermen bad only to select the timber nearest to some stream, and the work of getting the lOgs to water to float down to marlcet was a ques- tion of minor improuwce. Now, owing to the fact that a,l the tiiiuber along the large streauns has been out, tMget- tiog uf the logs to waieir is one ofl the gravest questions oonfronting the iumb- erman. Where practicable, what are termed "log drives" are erected for this purpose. A "iog drive" is simply oonfltrucled by laying two hewed logs alongside each other in a trail out from tbe camp to the nearest stream, some- liinaes five, eig-ht or ten miles away. These drives are usually prepared early In tbe auttmin and when the first fail of snow comes t1»ey are put in condi- tion for use by bau.ing a drag along between them, which paoka down the â- now. On this w»tar is poured and al- lowed to freeze, the resiUt being a rude trough of ios, over which the logs glide down grade with start. ing swiftness. Hut these drives are not a.l down grade. Perhaps half the distance will be up grade, and to get the logs up the moun- tain teams of Itorses are used. After tbe logs are rolled into the drive a learn is hitched to a ,ag with i>erhaps 100 ahead of ti, according to the steepness of the incline and in ihis way the whole string is pushed to the lop. It was whi.e working in one of these drives that Swe»twood met with the following tbri.lliig experience: With a cant book he was to follow the first log as a sort of .steerer, whose duly it was to see that a.i was well. If the log caught fast on any protruding ice, snow or wood, with hts hook he. would loosen it, .so that the trail would come on. IVVben tbe drive is in a bad condi- tion tbe steerer a. ways finds plenty lo do to kefp bim tjusy, but if there is Iota of snow and cold weather tbe slide is usually all that can be drsired, and the steerer invariably has only the mo- notony of TRAMPING AIX)NG.SIDE. and watching the logs glide along. This was the eas" diirlng the lale cold weath- er, and Sweetwoods evidently tired with so much tramping, determined to use the logs a,s a means of more easily get- ling up the mountain. '.Vilh the driv- er of the team away baiVk put of sight, Sweet wood eiimt>ed on the foremost log and congratualted h-iiisilf Ikjw much nicer it was than trudging along in the snow. In this pleasant nmod he either for- got that when tbe .ogs reached tha top of tbe incline and began to descend the grade their transit suildenly in- rreassd, or else he was so al>8orl;ed in the pleasure of his ride that be for- got where he was. He that as it may, oweyer, when the first .og went over the incline and began going down Sweet wood was still on it, and before he could dismount the log was going at such a speed that to even try to get off meant dratih. In this dilemma all that oould be done was to hold on like grim deaih and await the worst, which to all in- temts st-emed death in some form or other, and most lilkely a most horrible death. Ta k of express trains, electri- city or ropid transit in any ,ot its vari- ous forms, they are not in it' with the way that log trai'l went down the moun- tain side. From lbs siuuiuit lo the west branch of the Susquelianna, where tbe drive ended, and was at leastr six oailes, and in most places thei drive was quite steep. Gathering momentum with every foot of its descent, the Log with Sweet wood on it sped as If SHOT FROM A GUN. Trees and rooks were passed with such starting rapidly that they seemed as one solid tifurred wall; the snow was onlv a glare of white, the log drive it- self seemed only a diminutive line only faintly discernibl •, winding in and out like a hugn snake. Sweet wood early in his ride lost hU bat, and bis hair streamed out behind bim iiike the tail of a bob-taU tiorse; the wind sang deaf- ening tunes In his ears and almost blinding him with its velocity, while the frost in th« air seemed like hail peUetji at ri king him in the faoe. There was little time for thought, but even in tbe few seconds there was, Sweelwood wondered what the end wouud b». Fortunately for Sweelwood and ths only reason that he is alive to relate his experience, the log in which ha was i>ero'bed, was a large, smooth one, anil gl.ided along comparatively easy, with little turning, and never once .snag- ging on any protruding suLisianoe. Down, down went log and rider, and In less time than it takas to tell It tha glim- mering expanse of the Susquehanna biyst into view. Although nearly un- conscious Sweelwood remembers givina one hasty glance towards tbe river and noted the met that it was comparatively olear of logs at that point, and the next thing he knew he was pl'unged Into about eight feet of water. Contrary to bis expectation of being crushed to death, he was unhurt, save the sicken- ing sen-satlon of the thrilling ride and the shodk sustained by his auddea plunge into the river. When be struck tbe-water he was stUl on top of the log, and went under with it, but when he arose to the surface be was alone and within a few yards of the opposite shore. With some littU dilfictt'ty he pulled himself out of th« water, and after recovering to some ex- tent th euse of his fac,ultie8,viewed with wonderment the scene of bis ride and shudderingly thought of HfS NARROW ESCAPE. In his descent he supposed the entlr* trail of 100 logs was following swiftly after tbe one he was on, and when p.uoged into tbe river be expected to be ground to pieces with tbe logs. Now, as he stood on the bank of 11m stream and looked not another log was in sight, and his wonderment increased. Gathering himBe.f together as well as possib.e, he sought a sheltered spot, and with dry matches found in an insida pooket kindled a fire and dried himself and sought composure after his thrlU- ing experience. Several hours later be made bis way down stream unlLi he found a place to cross, then retraced his steps to tha drive and started back to camp. AtxnU half way to tbe mountain he found an explanation of tbe missing logs. Tb« log next to the one on whiob he had bein perched had evidently snagged on sooiethiiig In tbe drive, and its sud- den stop had tumbled the whole strinff of ninety-nine in one promiscuous heap on tbe mountain side, breaking th« drive and tearing small trees out bj, the root. CAREER OF THE CORSET. Fashion and (M:i«noe have joined hand* lately on the subject of women's waists, and now tbat a belt may safely mea»- ure one, two, or even three inches mora than it did a few seasons ago, it looks as if the time-honored corset was grsd- ually being sent into semi-disgrace. ' Many and various are tbe different patterns of w»jets offered to the wom- an wibose health or whose advanced ideas urge a larger waist, and, aa a mat- ter of course, deeper breathing. But although all these compromises between •lays and no stays are winning wida favor, iit does not follow by any meana tboit the day of the corset, pure and simple is over. It has had a varied career since it first appeared in Italy during thei ex- travagant gorgeousnees of the Ranaia* aanoe. Catberime di Medicis took it with her as part of her trousseau whaa she went to B'ranoe to wed Henry II., and. In spite of its crude ugliness, most of the fashionable ladies in Paris ad- opted it. The fair Queen of Scots and 'Diama of Poitiers refused to don tb« tortuous combinations of iron and vel- vet, but theix sinuous charms freed them from coaventiona/iism and ezou*- sd them for many things. Uncomfort- able as tlhe corsets unquestionably were, most of the fair dames bravely! boxed themselves up in them, and the Eliza- be thum belle in her stiif ruff and endr le:t3 length from shoulders to hipa waa not so very different from thei fashion plates of the pa^t few years. 'However the inventive artisans soon substituted smnelbing more ii.ialde than co.d iron witn which to encircle tha fair ones of tbe hour; tbe days of Louis XIV. dawned, and the irould of fash- ion which p. eased tbat la.stidious mon- arch's eye was that which permitted no hint whatever of pliability in the fem- inine former ease in posture and move- ment. But when Louis XV. arrived Boucher his court painter, introduced the damea of the Oeil de Boeuf as coy shepherd- esses and rural beauties, and for a lima stiff wnists became obsolete; but Bou- cher died, and the tenacious corset again was in favor until Marie Aniolnetta posed as s country maiden at Ijttia Trianon, and once more easy lines wore in vogue During the Directory tbe waist line was entirely c<mcealed, and Roman and Grecian scandals and togas held their graceful sway. The empira gowns brought the waist immediately beneath the bust; but tbe empirei fell, tbe waist dropped with it, and the mod- ern steel whalebone and satin corset come i^ with the century, to la.st in undisputed favor until Khis latest move- ment against it took shape. For tAie first time in itst history the arguments against it are fortified by pleas for health rather than beauty, and it may be that ita final doom boa come; but t.h«^ "ways of manikind are warioiis, but those of womanikiud wari- ouser," ajnd no one can .say, after wa have had an era of subslantiaii women and unfettered bodies, whether it wiU not be followed by the irrepressible cor- set in all its pristine stiffness. SiVCRKD DOMAIN. The rooms of a Korean woman aro as sacred to her as a shrine is to ita Image â€" indeed, the rooms of a wife or mother are the sanctuary of any man who bre.iks the law. UiQleaa for treas- on or for one other criime. he cannot be forced to leave thbse rooons, and so long as he remains under the protec- tion of hia wife and biji wife's apart- ments, he is .secure from tbe officers of tJie law and from the penaltiiea of hia miademeMiora. WHERE CONFIDENCE ENDS. la Jeniks a man you can tTUst, papat asked tbe fair daughter of the housa. Not if you expect to get your mono]'. « i