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ABYSMAL DEPTHS OR BLINDFOLD ON THE BRINK OF PRECIPICES^--^- [ up into my room, opened my desk, | took out all the money I had. saved (nearly ten pounds), and, while my i grandfather was taking his after-j dinner nap, stole out of the house --not thinking, in my haste, even to put a hat on. It was quite dark, I and no one observed me. The i , I i side the CHAPTER XIX. After a while I asked her happened upon the fatal night that we lost her -- h separated from u She told me that a rush of people had suddenly impelled her forward, and that by the time she could turn her head to look round, she found that she had been carried out of sight of Mrs. Wilson. At that moment a young man, evidently the same who had delivered Montgomery's message to me, touched her upon the shoulder, and said that I was waiting for her in a cab a little way down the street, that he would just show her where, and then run back and fetch Mrs. Wilson. "He was hurrying ine along all the time he was speaking," she went on; "and I was too bewildered by my situation to offer the slightest resistance. There was a long line of cabs and carriages; the one he pointed out as ours was the last of all, and stood up an unfrequented side street. He opened the door and pushed me in; at the same moment a strange man jumped in past me, the door was slammed, the windows raised, and the horses were off at full speed, before I could recover my From her description I discovered that this man who accompanied her was Montgomery. "I am such a poor, nerveless creature -- so utterly destitute of all presence of mind -- that I could only crouch in a corner and sob After a drive, which seemed t excited fancy to endure for h they stopped before a tall iron which, after a time, was o; from within. They drove ove long, winding walk, at the end of which was a large, gloomy-looking house, before which the vehicle stopped. Then, assisted by Montgomery, she was suffered to alight. A female servant conducted her to apartment in which I iound her. "She was very kind to me," Clara over again that no harm would be done to me -- that I friends, and whatever I liked to ask for I should have, but that could not permit me to leave that room. But no entreaty could wring from her who her employer -- have been here now nearly night -- everything I have expressed a wish for has been given me, and I .was growing quite reconciled place where I am treated kindly; but this evening, just as I was wa' ' ■ the great red sun sink behind tree, I heard my door open, looking round I saw-" She buried her face in her hands, seemingly unable to proceed. I knew perfectly well whom had seen, although I asked the ques- "Those terrible eyes!" she answered, sinking her voice to a whisper. • By the aid of words I had heard spoken a few hours before, I began to understand it all now, but only dimly. I asked her what the meant. "Ah, I have never told jou!" she said, with a shudder. "I will tell you now, that vol may understand my fearful position, and that you may take me away from it." She knelt down at my feet, and nestled close to me as she told her story, speaking in a subdued voice. "I was brought up by a dear, kind grandfather, the only friend I ever knew; for my father, who was an officer, died in India when I was very voting, and my mother followed hiin within less than a year. She was my grandfather's youngest and favorite daughter; and, after her death, he seemed to have transfer-rod all his affection to me, for he literally doted upon me. I had scribe its position, although I could | easily have found it. Why grand- i father took such unusual precautions I cannot tell, unless it was to guard me against any machinations that my cousin might attempt after "Well, in some way or other, he-- I mean Cousin John -- found out, from the servant, perhaps, who had been one of the witnesses, that new will had been mado,*.and that I was present at the tipie-. - Once in an off-hand kind of but mindful of the I had received, I finding that Id elicit nothing from me, he gave up the attempt. But he be-frequent visitor to us; formerly lie had come down from London only for the shooting sea-ion. He also took great pains to ngratiate himself into grandfather's good graces, and not unsuccessfully. 'One day he asked permission to take me with him to see the Horti-iltural Show at Bury. I did not wish to go. I always had a strange lUnting almost to a dread, of being left alone with him; but I would not have mentioned it for the world. Grandfather, how-thinking that it would please ave a ready assent. I have always been a passionate who i mch older lover of flowers, and I delighted when I got. thought how kind it was of him tc give me such a treat, and how wicked and unjust it was of me to nourish ungenerous feelings against him. In the exhibition we met a verj disagreeable old lady, who was in-Mrs. Humphries, the fields wild panic, lest the influence should come upon me to compel me to return. At this time I had formed no thought of whither I was going. I was possessed by one frantic impulse to put miles and miles between me and every association of my past life. When my breath failed me I threw myself down, and crept under a hedge; and as soon as I could rise, sped forward again, until exhaustion again overpowered me. And so I went on, taking no heed of my whereabouts, until I found myself in the streets of Bury. "Then, for the first time, I began to think about what I would do London was the place I had heard and read most, about, and thither I determined I would go. While I was thus cogitating, I had crept under the old Norman gateway, where you saw me. I remembered that I had once chanced to see the London Road pointed out from a spot very near to where I had stood. When you left me, I took the road. Then I suddenly remembered that I would have to pass through Slopperton -- actually retrace my steps. That I did not care to do; so I struck into the first by-road I came to, hoping after a time to get into the right track again. That night, or rather toward morning, I slept in a wood. For a long time I dared not inquire my way;" nor, until I was half dead with exhaustion, did I venture to buy food. "After terrible hardships I reached Ipswich, for 1 had got entirely out of the direct road. There I purchas-:w clothes, and took the train London. Although I had still flowed her untrammeled masses c red hair, her glittering eyes full up on our faces, stood Judith! (To Be Continued). ind who i id ted t th her. She was accompanied by a young lady with remarkable red hair and strange-looking eyes, whom she called Judith. "We went, Cousin John and I, home with them to a large brick house in a retired part of the town. After dinner, Cousin John and the young lady whom he called Miss Porter began to talk abi greatly j eight pounds in my pocket wl and I arrived, I began to think of how I should get my living." "But did you not think of writing to your grandfather -- of telling him all "you had suffered?" I interrupted. "Oh, no; I dared not. In the first place I felt what a wicked creature they had made of me -- how I had betrayed his confidence -- how I had almost become a thief; and I knew that if I went back to him to-morrow, the same thing would begin over again. For while they knew my whereabouts no earthly power could protect me from the influence of those awful eyes. My grandfather would think me dead -- my cousin would inherit, all his wealth, and I and so I resolved I had never heard of it be-j that henceforth I would live fore--did not know the meaning of j known, and that not even my name the word. Suddenly she turned to ! should ever pass my lips, me and asked me how I should like j "I had much difficulty in keeping swered that! my last resolve; people \v< cloak. Upo: suspicious, and I was always moving my lodgings, to escape questions, and sometimes insults." "And how did you obtain employment?" I askerd. "Well,'people had always prai: my drawings and paintings, a needlework very much. When I fii came to London I used fond of wandering through the streets and looking at the grand the table in front of! shops. Seeing such things exposed which was fixed : for sale suggested the idea of offer- I did not know ts it's the strangest world,' said John. 'This young lady :s very clever at it." "After some little persuasion I consented, but very unwillingly. Then they took me into a dark room. Miss Porter sat down in a ohair. On the wall at the back was hung a black curtain, and around shoulders was draped a black I found > I have gone on iw you know my of my a ready sale, and ever since. And history." "Have you seen your Cousin John since you have been in this house?" I inquired. "Yes," she answered, shuddering. "This evening, as I was sitting at the window watching the sunset, I heard my door open, and there, glo-Saxon face. During all th standing upon the threshold, I turn-! since the early eighteen-fifties, ed and saw him and that awful wo- full beard has been the excepti man. I screamed with terror, and ' ther than the rule. The FACING TYPHOID FEVER. London Has Reached Limit of Growth With Safety. What is bound to become one oi the greatest problems of the twentieth century has suddenly confronted London," England, in a peculiar form. It consists of one of nature's warnings that the limit has been reached, beyond which it is impossi-crowd a greater population than is now comprised in the world's metropolis. Dr. Collinridge, the chief medical officer of London, has issued a report in which he announces that all of the Thames fisheries, including the estuary, are contaminated with the bacilli of typhoid fever. His condemnation includes tho famous Whit-stable oyster beds, where 20 per . of the oysters examined were found to be infected. A ban has also been pronounced against white-xit, shrimps, smelts, and cockles. SEWAGE FIFTY MILES AWAY. Contamination by sewage was found fifty miles away from London in the drainage outfall, while an even worse state of affairs exists at other points on the English coast, from which shellfish, etc., are plied to the markets. The infection in these cases was due altogether bad local sewage. There have been other fatal wa ings since the terrible Winchester banquet, where the eating of oy; it was claimed, spread death in that neighborhood. These include three deaths from enteric London family, due to the eating of cockles. It is not going too far to say that the shellfish trade has already been seriously crippled by the effect these fatalities, and it will probably be practically destroyed by Dr. Col-lingridge's report. The whole matter will have prominent place in the attention of parliament when it meets next month, but it is difficult to discover any possible escape from the danger. WATER SUPPLY INADEQUATE. This, however, is a secondary problem to the more serious one of the London water supply, admitted that while the Thames valley with its contributing streams including artesian wells, is inadequate for London's vast population, an even ordinary drought produces serious inconvenience as wei itary and fire perils. A great aqueduct to Wales at fabulous expense is the only radical solution ed, but this, however, would render the drainage problem still more si Meantime London continues grow. Nature has already begun inflict her penalties, and it will of the most interesting features the next few d< n._the banks of the le gr, ; civilization has THE PASSING OXT THE BEARD. Nothing is presently plainer ii world that loves little mysteries, and likes to keep the observer in a s' of tremulous suspense about a good many things, than the fact that is beginning to shave again. It has fifty years since beards came in s after a banishi centuries, from at least the An- I should rather say, I was always frightened of him; yet everybody called him handsome, especially all the women. Until my mother brought me home, a little girl, from India, he was the favorite nephew, and was supposed to be the heir to all his grandfather's wealth. John Rodwell hated me, and showed it, too, and that turned the old gentleman against him. When I was about thirteen, grandfather made a fresh will; and as he was never content to have me a moment from his side, it was dictated to the lawyer in my presence. In it I was named heiress to all he possessed, with the exception of an annuity of eight hun-drod a year to Johr; and the former will/by which John would have inherited all his wealth. powerful reflector, that threw dazzling light upon her face. She seated me opposite to her, and bade x my eyes upon hers. I did so. r can I forget the effect. I was taken into a wild-beast show. The glare of her wildly-distended eyes was exactly like that which I had fe-n there in the tiger's. It fastened upon mine, and held them fascinated. I had no power to shift them, and as I gazed, spell-bound, upon hers, they gradually dilated until they seemed to be two enorm- man. (lobes of fire, suspended in utter ] then t darkness. Then I lost all recollec- j round, i n. "And It appears that while in this I I asked, condition you were compelled to an- I "Cousin John pretended to be very truthfully any question put to | much in love with me, and proposed and to execute, upon waking, ithat we should marry. He said that , n, ior reasons sum ui ™. <j»»«. ict you might have promised to ! he had come from my grandfather, I one man who let nature have her perform while in the mesmeric state, j who was very angry at my flight, [ way unquestioned by the steel, there I believe that in my trance they ex- and who would never forgive me but; have been ninety-nine men who have " upon those terms; but that if I con- modified her design. Some have sented, we should at once return to j shaved all but a little spot on the Rose Cottage, and all would be for- j upper lip; others have continued the given." j imperial grown there into the point- "What did you answer?" I said, ed goatee; others have worn the pressing her closer to me. i chin-beard, square cut from the cor- "I scarcely know; the sight ofjners of the lips, which has become that woman so alarmed me that it in the alien imagination distinctive- seemed to 1 I almost fainted." at did they want of you?" been suffered to r but has be-n employed most physiognomies in the prevalent fashion, sonal caprice of the w< upon the face, where n , in disuse, in disfiguring obedience to yvery particular grandfathi When I awoke I found myself in the dining-room, lying upon a sofa, and Mrs. Humphries holding a vinaigrette to my nose. I felt very weak, and strangely dazed. Cousin John made very light of the matter -- said that I had got frightened and fainted away and impressed upon me that I must be sure and not speak of it to grandfather. And I did not. "I cannot dwell upon the dreadful story. After this, he found ways and means to subject me again and again to this terrible influence. I grew pale and emaciated; my nerves were shattered, my memory was almost destroyed, and a kind of stupefaction seized upon my brain. Night or day, sleeping or waking, those awful globes of fire glared at me out of the darkness. It was killing me, as slowly as the deadliest poison could have done. My grandfather ' oubled state of s I was restr.s ined l divulging the truth by threats IRay i Cousin John -- threats not "] I was Very much troubled | physicians were brought fr when 1 heard this, and I told grand- don; they pronounced my compli father how much happier I should be to be a gradual softening of' if he would let things remain as brain, they wore, as I was certain cousin <-in the meantii John would know better what to do with the money than I should. But ho only called mo a silly puss, and told me I did not know what I was talking about: impressing upon me, however, at the same time, that I must be sure not to mention to anybody what I had heard. "When tho lawyer had finished the will, and it was all signed, and witnessed, and sealed, grandfather opened a secret drawer canstructed in the back of his cabinet, and deposited it there. He bade me and the lawyer particularly remark the place, and how to press tho spring. 'For,' said he, 'it is not at all probable that it will ever again be taken out of its hiding place in my lifetime.' These words brought tho tears into my eyes, and prevented me -- very fortunately, I believe, as it happened -- from marking the spot with sufficient assiwacy to be able to de- take away the pow P"But you refused him?" I said, anxiously. "Oh, yes; marriage with him could never be--I would rather die. But suppose those dreadful eyes should fasten upon me again? Then I should be powerless -- I should be compelled to obey their will. Oh, let us fly from this place at once -- anywhere to be away from them!" "Was such an act practicable?" thought I. Might we not find some outlet unbarred; or, rather, supposing us both safely locked within our rooms, might they not have neglected to take any precautions for securing the outward doors? It was than probable. At least :' i-ould be madiM ttempt. "One questio what did Jud-- i make the i the v i the only against myself, but agai dear grandfather. What torture could have exceeded what I then endured? But I could not reason. I had not the power to make one effort to free myself from the hideous thralldom; and at last I became utterly passive. "One day I was seized with a resistless impulse to steal my grandfather's key, go to the cabinet, seek for the secret drawer, take out the will, and carry it to Cousin John. Then I know that such an act had been imposed upon me by those terrible eyes in one of my trances. All day I fought against it; but an invisible power seemed driving me on. Suddenly the thought flashed upon me that I would run away -- fly from all -- everything. The instant it occurred I acted upon it. I ran Not a word; she kept background the whole time, merely listening to what passed. But what madness it is to stop talking here," she cried nervously, "when you have come to take me away! Oh, do not let ijs lose another moment!" Come to take her away! She little thought that I was a double-bound prisoner in that home. But if an attempt at escape was to be made, there was no time to lose; the nurse below might wake at any moment and discover my absence. A night-taper and some matches were upon the table. I lit the one, and put the other in my pocket. Then, on tip-toe, she clinging close to me, I advanced to the door, turned the key, opened it, and, there- Right in our path, holding a night-lamp in her hand, arrayed in a long, loose, black wrapper, over which ly the American beard; others have shaved the chin, and let the mustache branch across the cheeks to meet the flowing fringe of the side-whiskers shaped to the likeness of a mutton-chop; the most of all have shaved the whole face except the upper lip, and worn the mustache alone. All these fragmentary forms of beanl caricatured the human countenance, and reduced it more or less to a ridiculous burlesque of the honest visages of various sorts of animals. They robbed it of the sincerity which is the redeeming virtue of the clean-shaven face, and of the dignity which the full beard imparted no less " --Harper's THE CROCUS. On mountains the crocus Ere hollows be clear In tho bed of the snowdrift Will rise and appear. Aloft the pure crocus. Born under the snow, In the sun is left trembling, All bare to his glow-Like the heart of the worn: To love i s beloi Funniman--"Now, there's your husband coming, Mrs. Candor. Let's make a little surprise for him. Mr. Funniman and I will hide behind the curtains here, and you tell him that your expecteel guests haven't come. Then we'll step out and surprise him." (Enter Mr. Candor.) Mrs. Candor (obeying orders)--"Well, Henry, our expected guests have disappointed us--Mr. and Mrs. Funniman haven't come." Mr. Candor (heartily)--"Thank Heaven !"- SHEEP AS "PROFITABLE CATTLE." "Sheep is the most profitablist ten some three hundred and seventy-five years ago, in the quaint Eng-cattle a man can have," was writ-lish of his time, by Sir Anthony FitzHerbert. His "Book of Husbandry" was probably the first published English work on agriculture. On this continent we know little of the difficulties experienced by the farmers of the old world. Here we rirgin soil, and in many lo-:ve have not yet been compelled to study how to renovate wornout and bring into successful ltivation naturally barren soils through the aid of sheep. It may not be unprofitable to look ahead at what has been done in the way of renovating practically barren principally through the means of sheep. From researches along this line le writer finds that in England many thousands acres of wild, bar-. like Lincoln Heath, which formerly was "a huge rabbit home for vermin ; so desolate and solitary that a column was erected and lighted at night to guide any belated traveller, being-let for 2s. 6d, or a couple of rabbits, an acre," lias been brought up to a high state of cultivation through THE AGENCY OF SHEEP. Where this column stood to guide the belated traveller, at "Duiystan's Pillar," through the dreary waste, is now one of the best cultivated and most noted farms in Britain, and contributes its quota of winners innumerable at the Royal and other prominent English fair grounds. In the County of Lincoln those high tablelands running east and west across the county, known as wolds, are farms which are now bringing in respectable rentals. Thus, the County of Norfolk, the eastern portion of which is probably the "poorest, naturally, of any part of England," having been nothing but a pure white, blow-away sand, pil up in little mounds. Here are n< found large, well tilled farms, and prosperous a class of farmers as any in Britain. There are also many farms of from 1,000 to 2,000 i that have from five to ten acres permanent pasture immediately rounding the dwelling, and on which only sufficient cows are kept to supply the family with milk and butter. Without cattle ! Yes, and with-it hogs. Now it is possible tc farm one thousand acres successfully t cattle and hogs. The practical answer, as exhibited on these sheep farms, is the growing of green and the feeding of them In looking at the means adopted-- of to keep up a naturally fertile )il, but to reclaim and bring into condition the waste places of the earth--we find that this has been mght, and on these farms to-day to be found the wealthiest far-England. On these same barley, quarter clover, quarter wheat, the roots and clover being consumed by the sheep. Can we noti apply this lesson to advantage ia, some portions of the new world % What the tenant has done in thai old, cannot the owner, in perhaps! a modified way, accomplish in the: new ? There are vast tracts in ev* ery State and Province, not to men* tion the "abandoned farms," which' could be brought up to a high state: of cultivation in the very same wajn --by the growing of green crops and feeding them off with sheep. ms the ENGLISH MALTING BARLEY grown to its greatest perfection ; and that it can only be grown on sheep farms successfully has been often demonstrated that any one ' with the question would try to make one believe that it be grown elsewhere so successfully. The means first adopted was large applications of artificial manures, usually bone dust ; then encouraging the growth of clover and other green crops, followed by turnips, all eaten on the land by iheep, so that by constant treading he soil became consolidated suffi-aently, and by the return of all green crops it became rich enough ;rain. Though these soils rich in plant food, they could not be kept up without sheep, to-day without them they must iut of cultivation. The rotation the familiar Norfolk, or "four se" ; quarter roots, quarter BARNYARD GUMPTION, is all right to trust a horsey but do not go to such an extent that you ask him to work in a rot* ten old harness or to stand hitched with a poor halter. Some time there will be a breakdown and perhaps a runaway, and then there may be a spoiled horse. When you speak to a horse mean what you say. Some men have at way of giving orders to their horsey in such a way that they know they are not expected to pay any atteni tion to the word. Others keep taping their horses with a whip while on the road. In a little while the horses care no more about this constant tapping than they do for tho wind that blows. Mean what you say and do. How do the cows know what time of day it is ? They will tell you that it is time for foddering anct never make a mistake. And if you do not respond it will be you who are the loser. No animal has more regular habits than the cow. To make the most of our dairies we, nust be regular, too. Most farmers spend a great deal ot time currying their horses and maki ng them look sleek and clean, bu^f hese same men utterly neglect their, :ows, thinking it a waste of time o clean thc-m off. What is the theory on which these men act ». ' is just as neat an animal horse, if she has halj » chance. Help her a little while she tied up in the barn unable to help herself. Straw used for bedding for th» dws is not wasted. It not only keeps the cows warm and clean, but goea back into the manure pile and so finally out upon the ground again*' Don't be too "close" with straw ft» the stable. Try to have the handy for use in th the cows. It may c to get it there, but ter returns. Every liquid manure you can an ear of corn. Save it all. Hang up the shovels and put the milking stool back out of the way when not in use. We have been through stables before now where one would stumble over two or three shovels, kick the milking stool a rod or two and run the risk of breaking our oeck ih the half-darkness. Put things where they belongs RAW MEAT AND BONE. The fowl demands' raw animal food. Every one knows how eagerly a fowl will chase clear across a half* acre lot to gobble up a bug or worn* When hens get such food in abundance they lay in abundance. When they are deprived of such food they do not lay so abundantly. Properly cut green bone, with meat and gristle attached, supplies this food ' i the most available form. The most important element in egg production is that group of nitrogen-substances, such as albumen, which are grouped together undef i of protein. Now raw bone and-*7neat are especially rich in pro* teih. Which does the hen prefer, a live, juicy bug, or a dead, dried-up bug i Why, the live bug every time. It ia the raw animal food which she relishes and which does her good. The protein in the raw food is more digestible, she gets more out of it, and it has a peculiar tonic effect on It makes her vigorous and and her comb red. It has the effect on the whole flock. ; gutters behind t will pay bet-drop of the 3 is worth •Say; Rastus, wc shadder ?" Gwan, nigger ! 5 er ground hog. Well, ain't er st FEBRUARY 2. ; day does de sausage cc ! out ter look at sausage wot laffkn a* isage er ground hog