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t, :_j ; OR, THE HERITAGE OF MADAME YALTA. J 'countess, than he began to gcsti- rulate and Ulk to himself like a lunatic or a p«et, the two classes of men whom lovers most reaennble. I This time lio was captured by the heart as well aa the head, and if j Madame Yalta in saying farewell lad commanded him to throw him- self into the Seine, he would have hastened to obey. Happily she had contented herself with sending him to Madame Piriac's, but there wag some merit to be attached to Max- »<»'»<»»0»0»0»0»0-»0»0»»f»» On the Fann C^APTEIl I.-(Cont'd) has been I do not know whether he is free, but I know that he is in Puris, or at l<^a8t he was the day I waited lor him on the route des Bouleaux. He may have concluded to cross the frontier." "I do not believe it. I believe h? has been put out of the way to '"^i^^r,"' **^â„¢ ^'''"" vindicating him- "What! you think ho killed?" "I hope not, but he may have fallen into the hands of those who •wern interested in his disappear- ance." "The real rogues? You suppose they hare sequestratedâ€" confined him 2" "Perhaps; but if he is alive I •hall find him. Do you see now »hy I wish to know Mile. Dorxc- rest" * "Not very well, I confess," said Maxime, timidly. "You do not see that I have IMedged myself to break off a mar- riago which wUl be the misfortune of her life, for sooner or later the innocence of M. de C*rn«el will U recognized, and I count on your aid to establish it." •'Mine I" cried Maxime. "You wish me to second you in this im- possible enterpriseâ€" I, who am ful- ly oonvinced that M. de Carnoel it guilty ! ' i^our conviction will ohaage ; I •4U certain of it," replied the eountess, unmoved by this pro- t«itation. "I hope BO, with all my heart, for I beg you to b«lievo that I have no feeling of personal hostility to- ward M. de Carnoel. At the same time I must confess that it is not my wish to break off the marriage of my cousin. I cannot forget that her betrothed is my best friend." -« "But would you not better prove jrour friendship by averting a mar- riag.; which would prepare for him everlasting regrets? Would not his â- ituatif.n be frightful if, after this nuirriage, M. de Carnoel should a turn completely justifiedâ€" M. de irnoel, whom your cousin has loved with all the ardor of a first love? Do not deny it. If she has renounced this love it is because â- he believes him dishonored, but she has not forgotten him. The image of hor fomier lover is still jiresent to her thought, and it is to drive It away, to save herself from revert- ing to this past, that she hastens to bind herself irrevocably. I am a woman, and know the heart of "woman. Rest a.ssured that Mile. Dorgores, weary of the struggle against an inclination which dis- mays hor, takes refuge in marri- age, berau'e she hopes to find there tranquility an.J peace. If she should recognize too late that bhc has been dcseived, she will curse for the rest of her days the tie she is now im- patient to contract." The countess spoke so earnestly, her beautiful eyes so full of elo- quence, that Maxime felt her emo- tion gaining upon him. Ho was not convinotd, far from it; but ho was pcrplcced, like a judge who has just heard a skilful lawyer plead for a criminal. At the same tiific, he had the inor.tiJlif.)tti(5rrTo^a3eerta)' heâ€" an earth worm in star- -ht Id a very insignilitr, it place in Madame Yalta's thoughts. If she had set her heart upon see- ing him it was that she might speak of de Carnoel, and the discovery astonished as much as it distres.sed hire, for ho could not conceive why had suffered a wrong which it rest- ed with him to resist. Friendship has its limits, and in order to serve his friend, Maxime could not go so far as to refuse to face the truth. At any rate he must reply t-> this countess, whose captivat- infr tongue had well nigh converted him. "May I count on you?" she re- peated, after allowing him a mo- ment's reflection. "Absolutely!" he exclaimed, car- ried away by an irrepressible en- thusiasm. "Tell me what I am to da and your orders shall be obev- od." ' "First, I beg you to assist me to find M. de Carnoel. "There is nothing I should de- sire more, but how can I go about such a search?" ^ "I will tell you. Y^ou spoke of the child whom I placed at your uncle's. Gcorget is very bright, and was devoted to M. de Carnoel. I feel sure he would liave been able to tell us what had become of him if he had not been the victim of some mysterious accident. He is on his feet now, but his memory is not yet restored, and in order that it may bo, I thought of you." Maximo opened his eyes wide in astonishment. "I know you are not a doctor," she resumed, laughing, "and I am not expecting to have him treated according to the rules of the fac- ulty. M. Villagos has already done in that way all that could be done, but his task is now ended and yours begins. Georget is attached to you, is he not?" "I believe so. He proved it re- cently. He saved me when I was pursued by villains." "Well, you could not show your gratitude better than by going to see him." "I have been there three times, but his grandmother would not permit me to sec him." "She is a woman born in a posi- tion superior to that in which her marriage has placed her, and has r-reserved of that origin a pride that is almost fierce. She distrusts all the world but myself, but she never refuses a request from me in memory of my father's kindness to hoi son. You will show her this ring, which she has seen me wear, and say that I beg her to leave you alone with Georgetâ€" to confide in you as she would in myself." "Well, but what shall I say to the child?" "Whatever seems calculated to awaken his memory. You will speak to him of this sad story which he appears to have forgot- ten, of Mile. Dorgeres and M. dc Carnoel, and I am sure you will succeed in obtaining some useful hint. If I charge you with this de- licate mission it is because I be- lifvc you would execute it better than I should do. Georget is do- voted to me, but I intimidate him. With you he will be more at ease. I have, besides, another reason. Villagos is the strictest of doctors, and forbids mo everything that he considers a dangerous cscitoment.'' "I know it, iojr before permit HINTS FOR MILKERS. Remember that you are dealing ime's acquitting himself of thi8"7Tiis- n'iif'*,"^"*^ °"*!'''°* *"'' ^^"^ „:..„ Ti. r _ . . . '"" therefore kind and quiet treatment will produce more milk with less trouble than harsh methods. The machine can only work at it J best when properly handled. Kvory drop of milk should be drawn, for only by this means will the udder be induced to work at full pressure and give a supply of richest milk. It should always be bora* in mind that the last milk is the richest. Observe cleanliness in all things. Make sure that the milking uten- sils are above reproach. Cleanse the cow's udder and your own hands before commencing to milk. Draw the milk by pressure, not by the stripping method. Carry out the operation as quickly as pos- sible remembering that generally a good milker is a fast one and that the cow is liable to become impa- tient after a time. Pay attention to tha cow's health. If her teats are sore, if there is any discoloration or unusual feature about the milk do not mix it with the rest. "Take care that the buildings in which milking is carried on are well aired and free from avoidable dust. Fresh air and sunlight should be constantly admitted, and litter or food should not be handled dur- ing the milking hour. I Be punctual. The cow knews as I well as you when the hour has ar- rived for milking, and delay will not only cause a diminution of her yield but also a decrease of fat per- centage. Milk at as nearly even intervals of time as possible. A good deal of attention has been given to this question and it has been found that milk poor in fat is very large sion. It was to act precisely con- trary to the sage resolutions just formed with a thorough under- standing of the subject. Maxime was rejoicing in the morning in the prospective marriage of his friond, Jules Vignory, and in the afternoon going to work to put a stop to it. His conduct was much the same as that of a lawyer who, in the midst of a speech, should desert his client to go over to the opposite party. It was actual -treason. And still he felt no remorse. What were now to him the ties of friendship? AH such sentiments had dissolved like sealing-wax before the first fires of rising passion. After all, the affair was full of obscurity, and one might easily be m.istaken. He concluded also that a supplementary inquest would not be out of place in the interests of Alice, who did not deserve to be allowed to make a marriage like this, out of pique, if her first lover were not unworthy of her. M. Dor- geres could not deem it a cause of reproach that his nephew had sought to repair a cruel injustice. There remained Vignory who wouh! assuredly owe him no ill-will for brmging to light a rival whom the poor cashier could never have sought to supplant while he was still Alice's lover. And Vignory was of a quiet, conciliating temper ; hid love for Mile. Dorgeres was a tranquil love which time would ap- pease. Moreover, he possessed a nice little bit of consolation seeing his patron had just made him his partner. Whatever happened, this advancement which he owed to the project of marriage between Mile milK new and sweet and saves hauling a heavy load to the cream- ery each day. If a man has but one or two cows and does not patronize a creamery, it will not pay to buy a separator. With good, cold, deep setting ,tho milk may be skimmed closely and just as good butter made as with a separator. The glory of our country is its small farmers; in their homes have been developed men who have learned how to work, how to prac- tice economy. If our farmers are to remain the backbone of the coun MARVELS OF MINUTENESS. Microscopic Writingâ€"Ship Hi44cB Under Fly's Wing. There is on exhibition in the Army Medical Museum at Washing- ton a specimen of microscopic writ- ing on glass. This writing consists of the words of the Lord's Prayei:. and occupies a rectangular spaca measuring 1.29< by l.i4l of an inch, or an area of 1.129664 of a square inch. These lines are about l-.'50000 of an inch apart. Now, to try, it will only be by remaining in- K'*^ some idea of the minuteness ol dependent, and not by working for I tli's^^'riting: There are in the corporations, whose board of direc- ' ' ^ tors will do all their thinking for them. Times may be hard, much economy may have to be exercised, and much hard work and privation endured on small farms, but better this than loss 'if independence. One-fifty a day in a shop or factory, tending a machine, may seem easier than holding a plow, but holding a plow makes a man and not a part of a machine. MAYOR WAS A FORGEB, Was Chief of a Can: Sicily. Dramatic incidents are linked Operating In Dorgeres and himself was secured i !^ ^^^ result of allowing too long an t) him. Maxime having by this rea- lJ'*f ^^f ' *° elapse between milking. soning calmed whatever scruples he may have entertained, did not he- sitate to jump into a carriage for Rue Cardinet. Persons under the influence of passion have always at hand an assortment of sophisims which they make use of to justify the least logical of their acts. From the Avenue de Friedland to the Batignollcs is not a short transit, but it did not prove wearisome to Maxime, for he contemplated with- out ceasing the ring the countess had just placed in his hands. As- suredly it was writto.; that Maxime But whatever hours are chosen see that they are very strictly adhered tj. Observance of these rules should lead to the largest amount of milk with the greatest proportion of butter fat, at a minimum of trouble to the milker.â€" W. R. Gilbert. THE VALUE OF STRAW. One of the features of the land- scape which is sure to attract the attention of the traveller through the West, is the large straw stacks. should pass his life wearing jewels i 0' perhaps there is to be seen only that were not his. .\fter the brace- j the smouldering remains of one of let, the ring; after the turquoises, these stacks, and at once the tho amethyst. But what a differ- ! thrifty, saving traveller from the ence ! The bracelet called up only | Kast is sure to enquire if the straw disagreeable recollections; the ring i does not contain sufficient value to with the arrest of Signor Diego Cutrufelli, mayor of Graniti, near Taormina, Sicily, as chief confeder- ate in a big gang of "gentlemen" forgers. For mouths past the Ital- ian Government has tried to track the disseminators of an immense number of false bank notes, where- by hundreds of the Sicilian peas- antry have been victimized. Whenever a suspect happened to be taken into custody the mayor of Oraniti would almost invariably put in first-rate testimonials on be- half of the prisoner, or he would attend the hearing of the charge in person, and laugh at the "stupid- ity" of the police, and demand the immediate release of the accused. ,His worship has played the trick once too often, and the suspicions of the magistrates were aroused. The government, acting upon secret information, despatched a brigadier with a squad of carabinieri, from Palermo, with instructions to make a thorough search for the forger's den. In order to keep the towns- folk off the real scent the brigadier availed himself of a local tradition which says that the notorious Sici- han brigand, Castro, who ended a dare-devil career by murdering ...,,, . . Commendatore Ferrari, a rich land- i 'OR^'her by the artist that made it. Lord 8 Prayer 237 letters, and if aa here this number occupies tha 1.129064 of an inch there wou'J be room on an entire square inc-i fof 2.»,432,458 such letters similarlj spaced. The entire Bible, old and new testaments, contains but 3,666,480 letters, and there would therefore be room enough to write the entire Bible eight times over on one square inch of glass in the same manner as the words of the Lord's Prayer have been written on this specimen. Such a statement staggers the im- agination, but the figures are easily verified and are certainly correct. Along this same line of almosfc incredible minuteness is the story ol one Mark Scallot, a blacksmith, who in 1578, in the twentieth year of Queen Elizabeth's reign, made a lock consisting of eighteen pieces of steel, iron and brass, with a hollow key to it, that altogether weighed but one grain of gold. He also made a gold chain, composed of forty- three links, which he fastened to the lock and key. In the presence of the Queen he put the chain about the neck of a flea, which drew it with ease, after which he put the lock and key, ilea and chain into a pair of scales, and they together weighed but one grain and a half. This is vouched for by an old writer. Many instances of mechanical in- genuity really remarkable to us in these days, when we are supposed to have advanced in learning, are related by various ancient authors. The silver sphere, "a most noble and ingenious performance," which was presented to Sultan Solyman the Magnificent by his Imperial Majesty Ferdinand is mentioned by Paulus Jovius as showing and keep- ing time with the motions of the ce- lestial bodies in various configura- tions. It was carried to Constanti- nople by twelve men, and there put ting me *" you he made me p/or,iise not to speak of M. de Car- noel or Georget, and Heaven is my .Jf witness that it is not my fault if I have broken my word." "H shall know nothing of it, for I count on your discretion. The secret of our plans shall rest be- tween us two. And now that our treaty is concluded, now that you ahe espoused so warmly the cause ?T^; "^V •'"v, my friend, pardon me «! this young man, whom she had J^ ^ ^".^ y^!' not to lose a moment never seon. The statement of Dr. Villagos that her father had known the father of Robert seemed a very losufficiont reason why she should, fo the faco of everybody, espouse the cause of the son who was ac- cueed of theft. An idea suddenly occurred to bira. It was Georget who had re- counted all this to the countessâ€", Georget, whom the servants of M. Dorgeres aeeiisod. Might it not be that the odd little gamin had made ccnfesnion to his protectress, which luvolvrd a proof of the young sec- retary's innocence? This hypothe- â- is admitted, the conduct of Ma- dame Yalta appeared quite natural. Bhe would not denounce Georget, hut she owed it to herself to assist a. de Carnoel in the misfortune in- to which a fatality had thrown him, to repair the evil caused by the lit- l\f Hcamp whom she had patroniz- ed If it were so the cause of Rob- ert was just, and Madame Yalta was right to seek to save Alice from a fatal error ; she was right to say the day would come when she would curse her nuion with Jules Vignory. Notwithstanding his oddities, Maxime wttis above and before all an honest man, and he also would have had A life-long regret If he in seeing Georget Maxime rose. He understood that the countess dismissed him po- litely, but he still waited for a word, a look. It seemed to him he deserved something more than this friendly farewell. "Do you think I should hold this language if you were indifferent to me?" she resumed, penetrating his thoiight. Maxime fell on his knees, but at this moment the fenime de chambre entered just in time to arrest a premature demonstration. "Au revoir, monsieur," added the countess, with a smile full of promise ; "I hope you will not make me wait for your visit, and perhaps I may have the pleasure of seeing you soon at your uncle's, for the first day I am able to leave the house shall be the occasion of a visit to M. Dorgeres and his charming daughter. CHAPTER II. Although Maximo sueceeded un- til he had pas.ied througk the gato- ivay of Mme. Yalta's mansion in preserving the appearanrn of de-' eorum, no sooner did ho find him- self on the public sidewalk out of sighi of' the majeatlo porter of tho was nearly a promise ! Madamo Yalta had not requested him to re- turn it, and he was ready to ac- cept as a pledge of reciprocated love this talisman which was to re- duce the restive Madamo Piriac to obcdianoe. Maxime's imagination frequently played him such tricks as this. Ho easily found the old .house and entered with deliberate step. The alley was dark as ever, and through the glass door of the little lodge he saw the grandmother of Georget at her needle in the cor- ner of the fire. He concluded to i open the door and enter without i knocking. She rose up quickly, aa if with the intention of barring the passage. "Madame," he said, unmoved by this discouraging reception, "I beg you to excuse the liberty I have taken. I have been several times to see Georget, and you have not done me the honor to receive me. To-day I venture to intrude on you for reasons that I will explain if you will listen to me." Maxime was ca-eful to express himself in the most respectful tone, that he might show the ancestress of the groom that he was not simple enough to mistake her for a real portress. She guessed his intention, for she framed her reply as if she were simply the salaried guardian of a house occupied by laboring peo- ple. "But, my good sir," she said humbly, "everybody may enter my lodge, and if you have tibt seen my boy it is because the doctor has for- bidden him to see any one. He is not yet in a condition to talk." "Not even, with the Countess Yalta?" (To be continued.) warrant its use The American Farm World has this to say about the "Manuriel value of straw" : "Straw contains enough fertilizer a ton to cost, sev- eral dollars if bought in a commer- cial fertilizer. While the fertilizer elements are not so available as those found in the commercial ar- ticle, yet the straw furnishes hum- us to the soil, which is an advantage that the commercial fertilizer does not possess." The author goes on to show the composition of wheat straw and calculate its value at the regular rate charged for commercial ferti- lizers and demonstrates that it con- tains plant food to the value of 82,27, and this does not take into account its effect upon tho physical condition ot the soil. While the above is undoubtedly true in some sections of the country applying straw to land in some parts of the semi-arid wheat belt might be a questionable practice. It might have a tendency to make the soil to open and dry it out with- out liberating the plant food it con- tained. lord, of Graniti, buried his booty somewhere in the neighborhood, be- fore his hasty flight to the United States. The brigadier explained that the carabinieri had a clue, and had come to dig' for the hidden treasure. When, however, the exploration work began to be extended to the mayor's own premises, consterna- tion was caused by the swift disap- pearance of a number of leading men in local affairs. Such of the mayor's colleagues as remained were closely watched by the police. The efforts of the diggers were soon rewarded, for, striking upon a massive marble slab that conceal- ed the entrance to the forgers' cave, they found a laboratory, well pro- vided with acida, a printing press, and engraving blocks, and, in fact,' all the usual apparatus of the pro- fessional forger. Twenty thousand pounds' worth of exquisitely-forged bank notes were ready for circula- tion. Mymecides, an ancient carver, was so proficient in microscopic mech- anism that he made an ivory ship, with all its decks, masts, yards, rig- ging and sails, in so small a com- pass that it might have been hidden under the wing of a fly. He also made a chariot with four wheels and as many harnessed horses, which took up scarcely more room than the ship. Geo. Whitehead, an Englishman, made a ship, with all things per- taining to it, to move as if it sailed upon a table. "All hands were aloft, a woman made good musi<; or a lute, and a little puppy cried in the midship, all of which variety," says the old writer, "was pleasant and diverting." FARM NOTES. A student at a medical college was under cxxamination. The in- structor asked him: "Of what cause, specifically, did the people di«* who lost their lives at the de- struction of Hurculaneum and Pompeii?" "I think they died of an eruption sir," answered the student. NO GENTLEMAN. "I'm afraid we shall never bt able to make a gentleman out of your father," sighed Mrs. Newrich. "What's the matter now, moth- er?" asked Daughter Newrich. "He still insists on having all his victuals served on one plate." CHEERFUL. "What happened to me?" asked the Chronic Optimist, when he woke up in the hospital. "A shark bit your leg off," said the nurse. "Oh, well," he mused. "I had rheumatism in that log, anyhow." Mistrr.ss â€" "Bridget, it always seems to me that the crankiest mis- tresses got the be.st cooks." Cookâ€" "Ah, go on wid ycr blarney 1" The calendar upon the wall, tho memorandum book in the pocket, the piles of bags at the depot, the all-prevadmg odor in the air, all tell the story that spring is coming and that fertilizers are for sale. Most farmers buy them mixedi ready made. Such are the easy fer- tilizers. They are quite generally bought without regard to their char acter or their fitness. The name andâ€" above everything else â€" the price are the controlling factors in the purchase. Close buying is all right, but it seldom happens in any trade that the cheapest is the best, though it almost always happens in the fertilizer trade that the be.H is the ch'Papest. Goldfinches have been noticed busily feeding upon the seeds of the Scotch, thistle, the bull thistle, wild sunflowers, cone flowers, wild let- tuce, prickly lettuce, catnip and muUion, and when killed their stomachs were found filled with these seeds. For at least three- fourths of the year weed seeds arc tho principal food of these birds. The use of tho separator on the farm benefits the owner by clo.»e skimming, makes few utensils to wash, permits the use of tho skim "No," drawled the mayor of the far Western settlement, "the hoys had some money tied up in that thar bankrupt telephone company, an' they just didn't like the way the receiver was handling the busi- ness." "Didn't, eh?" commented the tourist. "Well, what did they do about it?" "Oh, they just hung up the receiver." Most moral men would spend twenty-four hours than one hour at a pink tea. "Holla, Brown, settled in your new house yet?" "Yes. Everything is unpacked now, except the things we really need." rather in jail It's better to know more than you tell than to tell more than yoa know. No true woman will stand for the way her husband arranges the furni- ture in a room. "Whatever arc you doing to your new dollie, Marjorio?" "Cutting her hair like pa'sâ€" with a little hole on the top." 23 Feet long by 6 Feet Boatn. F.lrkanki-Mors. Marin. Double C,lindor Engln* Very strong Hull, built for heavy seas Boat '}X^ \it^ Oonboy Automatic T^^p and lanm wicker chairs. Oomplere outfit of tSols etc. iu fitted with Oonboy Automatic Tip^rnd We ,^'w P^'""^- 0"^?1«^« outfitof t?ols etc *â- - m first- class order. In use only a short tima f '^^ 1 J t e B a t a t o T e! fi 1 I This Boat is M^ M\ at a SacriOce at Alovo Price Box 28, 73 West A(felald0 St., Toronto.