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mmmmtfrnti MRS, LAMSHED'S WILL Th» Interview which Ktte had with h*r fKther that eveoin^ waa not a vary Ions OB*< DOT ^» 't remarkable ^or any du|>lay of feeling on eitbar elide. He bkid, a« ha said, made ujji his mind, tAd notJhinv Kat« could saor had the least affect nffoa httm. •%« did her best; but wftMD bit roee frotn his chair and told blar to leave hita, »he was no OMTer giiiniDg her end than 'when she brofiched the aubjeot. "Will 70U tbliaik about it again wh^n 1M baa gfA a good {uucti(V, f«hert" "You bare had ca(j aioawerr, Kate. It is finallgr and aljaolutely No. I will not thinlc about it dow or at any time, and th^ aooner you loiiget tii» man the b«tter.- Cliearly, tliere wiaa no hoB»e of doing tbimiis in an orthodox faehiou; and bte- fora Kate west to slee(p that nigjtit, â- tte bad thought out her {iroject lu' de- tail, to lay befovB Charles LaikeworUh â- next day. "I sincerely hope I have settled that for good and all," said Mr. Dot- tloeoa to the mirnor, aifter Kate had gone. "If there's any more Uather about it, I'U aeod faeu- away into the oountry for a Vew laontbtt, and see what that wiU do." ' fle was not destined to hear any- thing moj» from Kate; they met at brealcfatit as usual, and the hated name waa not mentiouadk Hia daugltiiler'a manneu' towardb him was unchanged, and he told himaaiit that she bad oc- oititad the Inevitable at last, ajid would not trouble him a^^aio. Miias Mumbole miight have Learaad ths iiarliculara of Kate'a dev^ice and told tbam to \m, haid she been Oeoa in- t«r<Mted in a atneob w'hiob a great politician bad deliroi'ed at m garden^ liarty ube day before; but the lovers conveniod iu euoli low Uines uhat only a most attentive listener couUd have heard wihat tbety asiid. Their lai9t few woiixIm were autUble, and we are abl« to i)lu<ce them oa record. "Now, judt tell me exactly wtxatyou wa&i oie to do?" said Charles when Kate bud unfolded her (>lan. "All you have .to do ia to (go to your lodgings and paok m> at oooe; take away eveu-ythijig, and Bay yuu are nut coming back. IXm't forget to dim> a hiiat lu your landlady tliat you are go- ing abroad.'* "Where am X to go, and what's to become of my 4>attentsl" "Go aAywItiene you like, but dotn't show yuutrtMli on amy account. You'd better asrk tome utbier doctor toloolc alter your i>aUanlts ; it wall give col- our to the idea that you have left liiag- Und." "If I took lodgitogb out at Higbgate, it would dot" "Yeu; it would d<o vwy wskl. Send your udxlrerM to ALiaa iVlumbuie, ao that I can write to you." Charles reflect.ed for a fenv minutes betuiv hs ipolLe a^gaiiu; the plan pro- (Muied ti«eiu»d qui.lu teajiible, auUpiuuir ised Bucueas. Uu luul everything to Wkn, and Utile tu lune, fiui it it iirott- |iered, Kale would be 'lua with her lather's Handiuu, aud il' it failed, he would be much wiusTO be waa belure. "All rig'ht, Kate, I'll du it. Don't fur- gel to wiite." "Very well; it's settled. You'd but> tar go at once, and ba aare 'you don't leave yuuir lodguuga later loan four thks afternoon.' i By three o'clookJ Dr. Lakeworth was drivioK away irum biut olU tiuarters with all hid baggage, having asked a fneod 10 lake am pTiucUco lor a flay or two, iiaid uff his landlady, andcure- fulliy imbued that worthy wumau with the notion tuat he wa«i buund fun Ihe Coiitioent. When Mr. Doltleson came home I bat eveniug, and cu«iually aslie^l Ifor his daiigliter, he was iuiormud that she bad gone away in a cab, talcing a quuuUty of luggage with her, about an hour lie- fore, ahe ha<l <nut toUl any of the servants where ahe wiu< going, and ths >uly%<ue to lieir dnatinatiun was the Jir.iitr dbe hail lieen beard to give ths sabmuu, "To Victoria." "liid slue leave nu mwiage for. met" iskfil the astouuded iiarant. "No, sir." "Did she say wheat she v/as comina bai^kf" "No, sir." Every domestic in Mm house was ax- Itniined iu turn; Imt nut a ucra^ii (if In- formation could lie gleaned Iwhiab would throw a light ujiiiu this extraor- dinary proc^ing of Kate's. There was only thing lu be done, and Mr. Dolllwum diiid it. He sont foT< a han- som, and dnive as fast m he t'^ould to Victoria titatiun. Tlieni he made iu- qulriee of thn lumkingMitfice clerks; and hiis heart Imuhded with exoiteineot M<h<<n one of the men lui>l{e<r round fpoin hid desk ai^i said thaa ho Im^ol- leUfcl serviflg a yining lady answep- ing thts dea»ri|*t:ioa with liokets ^ar Dovar< With tin*et«l" ejaoubited Mr. Dot- tli>«(in. "How intiuy did ebo take*" '"IVo f|.nitH)la«s singjes," nydiedtbe man jjiromptbr. That loofce/l iKgHjr; fche faAnt suapi- oions he had diamiasad tla iridioUlous, returned and took a very definite shape. f 'when doiti the next trailn leavs for Dovsrf" •â- Rtprrof «t 7|0, air." HXt. Dottlcso Inlooknd lA. Ma watdh: It wa» nearly six now, ao ha (had an hour and a halt to wait. He twould •KUtlojr the time (xrofttably by gsing to Ur. LaluMoM-th's lodgings and mak- ing inquiri«» tthers. ^lis Dr. I.slwwx>rtih int" he asked the woman who oMnad th« door. "No, sir: liut Dr. Lakeworth he set •s Dr. Wllmot " "I don't want Dir. WSlmot. Whlan k Or., liakiswojih ex;pected homel" "He (ila't pxiiected; but Or. ,Wil- Im^s was teo |i«reotoUi to be fritter- â- d Mnajr like tMh bs (NiaheA past' the woman Into tU? paaeaigte and toU}- her to call ths landlady. The landlady took some time to answer the sum- mono, ami when »be did, she proved to be but One degree more intelligent than the aervaiit. Mr. Uottleson aiwed- ily discovered this, and took her in hand with a firm patience which would have done crerdit to a Queen'sCoun- Bel. Was Dr. Lakeworth at home? No, but Neveor mSnd that. When did he go away? Go oAvayf It might have been three o'clock, or half-past, or even four; the clocks was Neiverr mind about the cloolm. Wao Dr. Lakeworth comiiOg liaokf He wild as how he wasn't; Imt them medical gentlemenâ€" Never mind medical (gentlemen just now. Did hie say w^Nere he was going? The landlady^ countenanoe lit up with intelligence, and M(he '(fairly beamed with superior knowle^de. She knuwad exactly where Dr. L<akewortb had gone. Mr. Dottleson almost jump- ed otf. thA table upon which he <waa seated, but ohakfed down his eager- aeas, and repeateid the question. The doctor was gone to fiurin parts; to the Continong, h« tsald. There was a certain amount of latitude in th)e ad>- dire»3, but it iwaa quite fenougOt to harden suspicion into certainty. It was as clear as da^liglht. The two were off to the Continent by way ot Dover. Kate and bar loviar hud left their, re- spective homes at ithe same time; the former had taken their tickets, and the latter hod disclosed the direction they intended to take. . Mr. OottleBun did not stand on cere- mony; he was out of the house and back in hi|t hansom before the land- lady couHd turn round. Kate bad el- oped with Qtiarles ILakeworthl A thousanid pouuda sterlin^j per annum was trembling in the balance! O the wiickodneMs, tUe detail of the human hjjartl O the shortsighted, unfathom- aljje fottly of old lai£e» iwho made wills like thati •"Double fare if I ca »h the T.SOfrom Victoria!" They must be stopped. He would search every hotel in Dover. He would put on detectaves to watefti, the Calais boat. A tiiuuaand pounds a year! Cen- tral Ajsua Good heavens! was there ever such a anaal in harness before! vv eire tha London utreets ever so crowded eui the(y were now? This was all the outcome of that call for\ (smugr gles's partner; the words were ring- ing in hlis eans wUien he got) out at the station ami paid uff his cab. H« was iiD time for the trodo, and lay l>ack in his seat panting aud breatlUeiis; he was Ured, l/ut ati umawarvii^ as ever in aja purpose. Dover at last. He waJlkled out 08 the station and hailed a cab; he had had no dinner, but hunger was forgotten. "Take me to all oto Jiutejs rn the town oiiB afte*- Ubte oClrtr," he said to the dumbfounded Jehu, the duiufouuded Jehu. "U will take taie whole night, sir," "I'll make it worth your while." Whatever remuneration the calb- driyer received he fairly earned it. Ws took his lartB from one hotel to an,- othea until his horse broke down, and hie passed Mr. Dottleson on to a be- luled "gi-owjor" who was crawling noma. At foujr o'clock iin' the morning he ilrove uji to the StaUoM Hotel aiui draKged UiinneU to bed; he had exam- ined the visitcws" l)«ok in eve«7 hotel in thiB pla«^e. auil hu,d qufationed the hall porters b«»si<loB; but not a trace littd Ite found of the fugitive*, 'He aioitt imtil nine o'clock from Mluter fatigue; but ois soiuk lut he awoke, he rose, swalluwod Uis breaklfast, aikd went to the iiHiLice office wlnens he siu;(ieodt*l in obtaioiog the servioosuf men to watuh the Ixiuta, who werw to telegrajnh to hfiu if the pair weffeseen. I hien lie took the tram liaok to town, and went direct to Starbone and Smug- £16418 office tu see Mr. Siimo*. whom B found in his room looking as gaunt and sorrowful as ever. "You made a must euihaustiveseartih at Dover, Mr. Dattleoon? " he eaidwlUen he had heard ( he whole story and the manner in wlhiah bis client had passed toe praeeeiliug niglht. "Most thcroiurh. I HIGH EXPLOSIVES. WeTcr lafe to reel Wllb Tkem-A Nlser** liCUOS. "As you May, I am extremely cau- tioois about ha.iidUlng high explosives," admitted Drifter, "and, for a maa who has mixed in the mi'ning business, I ooiaf«i<ia I am unique. Wlhy, I actual- ly avoid fLrerworks displays, except at a ante distajnoe. "I wa.vi't BO easily scared when you first knew me. 'Dbat's true. May be I can explain how the .^care developed in me. Ome day while tramping along OTer a ivnty read down Eastâ€" there being no ntage lime to my detiinatiou â€"I was overtaken by a jolly young ohop wlio WB.S driving such a wagon as cigar and candy peddlers. He gave me a lift sad put the whi^ to hU Iinrses. He went at a hot pace, and puffed oMlay at a cigar from my case. I enjcyed my smoke, too. That, ia un- til we reacihed ihe village. Then the driver towed his stump in the road aaid said: '"Young fellow, fire that cheroot. Your're riding 00 a powder wagon, and the bo« wx>uld bounce me if he caught us smoking. I'm used to taking dhanoes. .Wasn't ham to be blown up." "Tlhe verj next do^ an expuMion slhook the country. A powder plant went up in the twinkling of an eye, and that corelev driver â€" well, he was too widely aoattered to need a fun- eiial. "I wan rattle-braiined wlhea I made my first trip to tlie miming region now famouAi as tim Lake of the Woods min- eral belt. We had to pack all the sup- plies to our camp, and when we came to a portage I took my abare of the wurk. I picked up a box weig*hiing about 50 pounds aud toted it half a mile. I wanted to fiill BEIIISH NAVAL HISTOfiT, GREAT CHANGES WHICH HAVE TAKEN PLACE SINCE 1837. Her Majesty't Marine Hlrenglhâ€" Seaie In lercslisc rariiCBlara Abenl Her War- *hlp«â€" iiresi AdvBsce la EaeleBcr. Mr. Archibald S. Hurd. editor of "The Naval and Military Record." writes as follows about the Queen's navy from 1837 to 1867: During the Queen'.s re- cord reign the BrUi^ supremacy at aea has been the UKiet potent factor for peace. This supremacy has been so undoubted that it hai been practically unquestioned, and over our mere hand- ful of plucky soldieoB who from time to time have been engaged in various ports of the world baa always been the shadow of the great British' fleet, even when tbe active oasiatanoe of a naval brigade or a detaabiment of Royal Ma- rines has not been given. As a mili- tary ponrer Great Britain oaonot hope tu compete with the great armies of France, Russia and Germany, but on the .seaa Britannia still holds sway. Among the most noticeable features of the latter part of the Queen's reign has been the gradual recognition by the "man in the street," that the navy ia in fact as w«ll as ia name, our first liive of defence, and that the fall of the empire must date from the deca- dence of our sea power. EVOLUTION OF THE NAVY. According to tthe latest return, we have 57 battleships with a displace- ment of 634.110 ton^ against 53 ships of Ru'sia and France combined, with a tonnage ot 514.972. Our cruisers number 150 vessels with a displace" n UIIIC. J. waot^eu to lIH my pipe, 30 rrnz. cee , â-  _* I.10~_.:..j 1 carelessly tumbled that boxâ€" con- h"*^* «* 706,565 tons against 122oruuj" tainiiig canned goods for all 1 knew ! ers with a total tunnage "' ari oi» of 464,213 ,. - igh. I cannot think they are there, though they were too late to otttch the afternoon boat." "It may be that taking the tickets was a mere blind. Why should Miss Dottleson not bave booked tihrough to I ana or wherBuot, if she actually in- tendoil going}'' Mr. DottlsBon had not thought of that; It was a little strange. Kate had often lieen b«-«xss Ihe Channel with him, and knew the saving of trouble booking "thirouKh" implied.. "What course would you suggest, Mr. blio^f i'lie consequeiices of such a marriage would Iw ruinousâ€" simidy ruinous," "^ Mr. Slimp stroked hix hair up the wrong way and thouight hard. "We imisi advertise, Mr. Dottleson, and at oQue. Blazon the wroUthed scandal to the world through the Agony Golumna of tine penny paperel That it should come to thisl He laid his head uiion his arm tlT' *^'""*^- "^"Idn't detectives do "They're too slow, Mr. Dottleson; an<i the partim haven't committed and crime." , Uladn'l committed any tVime! And they were throwing oway Twenty Thousand Poun.bil No oriiiiel Howrould any reiiaonable man ait there and talk like that? 1 leave the matteir in your hands. Mr. Sliiup; I Xeel myself unequal to the task of dealing with it. My daugh- ter uiiwt 1.0 brought bock, and Mrs Lamshad's money must lie saved to ua. Uo whateveir you think most sld- vjsatde." ( •I. will do najr bent," said the meU sncholv man wiith a sigh, "Imt it's a duffu'ult cate." M.r Slimp ha«l ttiat a reassuring way w;lth him, but he was an energetic man enough. He put the busliness in hand at once, and dlid what he thought wna rnoBl efficacious. Mr. Dottlraon wiw the rcHult next morning in tbe Times; here it IK "Mr. M. D. of Blakwwood Square. Kensington, earnestly requeata his daughter to oonimuuioate >vnth him im- meflately He nereby undortakas to oonalder her wish if sUe at once retutna to his care. Mr. 0. ij. id also invited ta return. ' (TVsbeODttUittuad.) SHOHLD VISIT THB COUNTRY; Some of the Bofcton aohoolmarms n«o<l an occa3ional rural outing. One of them placed this problem on ths blaokboard: "It a hsn lays three egga a day, how long will it take to (ay thirty eggsf" " â€" down on tiie ground. Jaok Brown, the foreman 0/ the outfit, lounged back to tiieir trail and .said quietly; " 'Drifter, don't be so kJHtenish- with that box. it's full of dynamite. Luoky for you and tbe lot of us that 1 filled it at the wint'ur oaohe near Rat Por- tage and it's frozen. "I didn't talk alwve a whi>iper dur- ing the reit at the trip. The next sum- mex I went up the mine and did my turn on one of the drifts. One day J proposed a fishing trip. Mike, the day engineer, laid uff and wvnt with me in our coniue. The pickerel didn't ahow up to suit Mike, so, paddling to a rook entirely lare of vegetation, he stretched tiimself and said: " 'Now. Mr. Drifter, I'll show you bow to oatch fish.' He bad a dynamite cartridge in a Ixittle. He inserted a fu«e. packed the dangerous stuff tightly in toe neck of the bottle, and .said : 'I'll touch this off. toss it in the lake, and heaven help the fi.<dies. 1 argued agaio^t sucti uusportsmanlike slaugh- ter, and Mike gut rattled. We were standing on a nuked rock. Mike's foot slipped that infernal bottle dropped from h'is hand und we â€" "No, we wexe «*ji blowni to kingdom oome. fur Mike just grabbed tihe bottle an inch or no from the rock. He threw it out in tbe Lake. 'Hiare was a con- vulsioo, a vast jet olf wuter shot up in the six .and bundredt of flutter- ing dead and dying fi'tb lay on the sur- face. I oouldn't have touched one to savt^ me from faangiag. and though Mike simply said t liat was close enough,' he suggested returniag to tbe camp, and tu* was tbe auietest man in toe outfit for the next month. "From that do^ to this I have Iwen just a triflo (liHcreet, as you might say. I duu't uusi^ oxouud powder mills or try to investigate olmmicoJ works, and wthen I go buck tu mining tbe miner wlho triers to thivw out a dyroamite car- tridge by t.hie fire in our shack will get out of the camp l>ffore he's a min- ute older, if I catch him." TRIUMPH OP SURGERY False T«(tk Utmrnyti rresa a Olrl'ii Ihreal With Ihe iiuir«. Tbe long missing plate of false teeth swallowed by Stella Burke last Wed- nesday night 'was fdund lo<lged in the girl's throat after several hours' work on the pari of Dr. Cam and the staff of physicians at the Bmeirgenoy Hospital, says a Washington di-spatob. Owing to tbe irrilatod condition of the girl's throat, hovkiever, the plate could not be renxoved. Dr. Oarr and the physicians located tbe teeth by meana ot a probe. Stella bare the intense pain incident t«» the attenxpt very bravely. At the en<l of about half an hour's work Br. Carr announced that he had found the olMta«le. and. after the in- strument (rtvudied aliout six inches down the thioat, a faint click could be heard as it tuiuched against some hard â- ulNtaive. l^ocainK was then sprayed down to rerndor the throat leas sensi- tive. After this bad been done thoroughly a pair of long foriieps were inserted and an atteuipt made to draw; the teeth out. But the throat was still too sen- sitive, and t hb forseps could not be pushed fair enough down. The rare oi>eration of e.sophageotouiyi was then i»erformMl an Stella Burke, and the plat» wa:* removed from the throat. An incision two inches long was made in the esophagus at the point where the tooth-plate had l>een Ioc^ated, and the plate removed with ease. It ha<l lodged Hide>vaya, and "lie- ing thin hail not interfered seriously with tbe swallowing of food awl liquids. The throat was not ladly swollen, but as a precaution the woman will lie ftnl by nutrient enema for aoime days. The ttooth-plate waa abcnt the aiit of s half dollar, and contained one tooth aa large as a liean. NOT TO HB TRIFLED WITH. Ko one ha.s a mora solemn tims in tbot wurld than the profewoiMU mak- er of jokeH. One suoh man tells how the "humnrist's wiife " called away her little bory {rem bis iiapa'a door. You must not trouble your papa just now, dear, she said; in his present mnnd he i.s not to Iw trifled with. Wliot i<i tie doiing, mammal He is writing things to make people laugh, and he'.s awfull/ oroaal tons, owned by France. Russia and Germany combined ; while we still have a practical manofioly of torpedo- boat destroyers, those delicate fighting machinea ol which such deadly work is expected when the long antlcipatedl great war occurs. Of course, such % mere "counting of noses" ia apt to convey a fallacious impression ; but the fact remains that during the past 60 years, the Queen's navy has lieen built and practically rebuilt, and. on paper at least is to-day able to meet tbe naval forces of any other two Euro- pean powers with every hope of vic- tory. It is almost impossible to fully ap., preoiate the evolution which the navy has undergvme since 1837. It fiads no place in the history books in our schools, and is almost unrecognized by the public. The Admiralty is ofteni referred to as an abode of fossils; yet there are few administrative offices which have qeen greater and more rapid changes. .Some of the old officers! who ocoationally haunt the stately building's at White Hall can carry back their memories to the accession of Queen Viotoria when the wxxxteD walls of EiigUnd were still the pride of the nation. They can rememliex the intruductijon of steam into the navy, the gradual banishment of ails, the adoptiunof armour plating for our lattlesbips. the disappearance of woodi and tbe ounstruction of vessels entirely ofirvn; and they can call to mind the oiianges of armament and means of' propulsion w1i|(;h have resulted in thei gradual growth of the great iron aud steel iMvy of to-day. INCREASE OF ARMOUR. Wht^ntha Queen came totfae throne the intp(Krt.iLnoe of .sea power to the em- pire waa not fully appreciated, and the .strength of the navy bad l>eooine at- tenuated. Only alaout £5,U00,O()O a year wun lx!ing devoted tu the navy, which r«mHiste<l vt less than half the number of ves.tels that vr«xe numbered in it when Nelson died on the Victory at Trafalgar 22 years before. Tlve naval construoturs ivere led toi gradually iiu^r«<a'«e the thickness of arm our, until in 1880, tb» competition be twven artillery and protective plating reached its cliniax in our pro.Heat In- flexible. whuUi mrries in partes armour H incilies thick. The intriKluction ot Harveyized steel has since resulted in thi^ thickuev of armours lieing greatly reduced. WHAT HAS BlEKN SPENT but it h altogetJuer fallacious to snp- p<ne that the love of the sea in threse islands, ao far as naval recruiting '^blJWA, is any less widespread or strong than when the Queen ascended the thrimtt Then the oXficers and aailor* numbered only altout 36,000. During the Queen's reign the numbers have fluctuated greatly from year to year; but tbe general tendency may be judg- ed by the foot that in this year ol grace, including cadets, enginsers anit boys under training and pen«ioaers ia the reserve, there are over 90.000 offi- cera men and boys ready to fall ia at the roll of tbe war drum, while the Brilinh flog waves over our eoean- borne commerce in every part of tba globe, sustained by foreign squadrons more powerful than at any previoua date in tJie hintoiry ot the Empire. COST OF THE NAVY. But if our navy is great, it must, alvt t» remembered that tbe duties and reaponsilalities that devolve upon it find no parallel in the history of tbe world. The officers and men ot the Queen's fleet nbare with tbe army the guardiaoship of over II.OOO.OOO .square miles â€" a fifth ol the whole earthâ€" with a populaition of 380.000,000 while our ocean- born commerce, valued at £954,480,591, is iin the proportion of 10 to 6 compared with that of France, Russia and Italy oombined. It has been well said that a strong navy is a luxury to the other power.s. but a necessity to Great Britain. Tbe annual naval expenditure is a national insur- ance premium, and Knglisbmenâ€" not, of course forgettii^ Scotohmen, Irish- men and Wel%iman â€" have the aatisfao- tion ot knowing that while the navy (equal to any obher two in Europe) IS costing them a large sum. their neighbours are paying very much more dearly to compete with them. This necessity to the British trade and empire costs only i^l 9s. 8d. on every ton of shipping, while for aa infinitely smaller luxury Russia ia paying at tiui rate ot £10 10s., France £9 7s. lid.. Italy £4 IBs. 8d.. and Ger- nuuay £2 5s. 6d. Any review of tbe naval progress of toe Queen's reign would be incom- plete were no mention made ot tbe notable advance in tbe training of of- ficers aud men. which has been system- atized iu accordanoe with the teach- ing of experience ; of the organization of tbe coast guard service and the Royal Navy Ri^rve ; of the milluMia sterling which has been expended in strengthening and in various â- ways im- proving our naval arsenals and coal- ing istationa; and of the iauilding up of the Royal Moxi'ne force. The British navy has shared the progressive spirit wliicb has characterized fht Vic- torian era. fi\nc« Queen Victoria came to thn throne the Britiish fleet has lieen twice practically relmilt. In IHtiO the intro- duction of armour plating rendered woiKU-n ve'wel.s obsolete and in 1886 the process of rebuilding tjhe fleet again commenced, and is still proceeding. From 1863 to April 1886. nearly £37,- 000,000 wKvre expe<aded in .ships, quite apart from the -tuiii spent in the main- t<quuice of the fleet amounting to £llK).0OO.oa). end making a total in- .surnnue of Britkdi innumerce and ter- ritory of £2S0,l)00,t)OU Hierling. From April. 1886, ti> the spriing of the pres- ent year over £46,000,000 liuve been ex- i)«<ni!e<l iu the vessels whiich to-day form the most effective portion of the BritiPdh fleet ; while an additional iEr25,- 000,000 have been required to uiain- taio Um fleet. F'or this expenditure on new aihips of £83.000.000 during the past 34 years we have to show a navy of 57 battltythips, 150 cruisers, 15 ixxast defence vassels, 85 toir(ied<« vessels, 90 torpedo boat destroyers and 101 tor- pedo lioats i'ncUuUng V'esaels now under construction at t;he Royal dock yards and by private firm* ' 1 In ix>nt«'mphitiug the expenditure on the navy, there is always a satisfao-- tian- in knowing tiutt a considerable portion, ot the annual outlay n ccn- vitfted into jKiiwerful war ve'ctels. while the remainder is used in fiuaucing and developing our great dook yards, in' maintaining tlhe efficiency of the fleet and in training officers and men. MAINNING THE NAVY. During the past few years much haa boeo heoxd nl the noanniog question,' HB WOULD GRUHBL& A. Tearlat'i Ceaveraadea Wltk aa BaglMi rralt Viewer. A ittrangar tramping in mld-JoM through "tbe garden of England." as the county of Kent Is called, sees post- ed on boards and fences notices an- nouncing that the growing crops ot fruit will be alold by auction. He ahio sees tbe fruitâ€" cherries, gooseberries, currants and strawtwrriesâ€" growing in fields and gardeno. and observes ths great bams bursting with thousands of buihel-baakets waiting to be filled witit the ripe fruit and sent to Xx>ndon. Tlhe stranger, ahould be express hi* admiration of the ore' . hop-fields and market-gardens to a oountryman will be surprised at two facts: Tbe peasant-proprietor never tha nk s of «ating any ot the fruit he grows, and the more plentiful the crops the leas plewsed he professes himself to be. This report ot a conversation between a traveller in Kent and a frui^-grower .'ihowB the fruit-groiwer a bom grum- bler, who in fain own cpinion. is a most unfortunate man. "Gvod day to you I" said the tourist, uu'eting Hodge, wifan nods hts head and mumbles : "Mom'n'l" "iSpleaidid crop rou have down beret I should think things must be going pretty well in thete parts!" "Ay. goin' duwa-hiill fast enow, I's* wttrrand." "Oh. how d'yuu make that out i" "Make it out. is it 1 Why. look a-bere at them there turmuts; d'you iver see sicb poor things t Ay, an' all the root cjups is bad's can be." "Yes, but you're all right with your fruitâ€" oherries auid apples." '"M yes, there's a dale o' fruit this year. A sight too much to please me." "But you can't have too much of a good tlung, can you?" "l^on't you, i.hii>u^h ? Look at tbe price ; liown ter nioth>uk. im you might say. U«it it for the asking." "But I didn't gt^t cherries for tbe OAking. 1 bad to pay eightpence a pound for some I lioughit at Chatham." "Oh. 1 de'iny. Wish I c'd git a penny a pound. But that's jist like them 'ere starve 'em, rob 'em and cheat 'em folks! Wouldn't ({ive 'ee ^o muoh 'a tbe par- ings o' tlieur finger-nails it they c'd bAn it I" "Th«n why don't yi-u make preserves of nofsut of your fruits?" "I'rei'serves? Whtit'a that, mister?' "Why. jam. you kuMW. Besides, sure- ly you eat .some of your own fruit, don't youf" "Fruit's to sell, noit to heat." "Well, then, if you can't .sell il, don't (preserve it and won't eat any of it, what do you do with it?" "Give it ter th* pigs, in ooorae." "Yes. but why 'not eat some of it yourself ?" 'Heat it I D'yer take me fur a bkximin' Nebuchadnezzar < Besidta it's that there ondergestuble â€" " "But NebuchadiTO^zzar didn't eat fruit. He iHutai't the chance, poor fel- low! He oould only find gra«9 to eat." as fruit. I reckon. You town folk* think a man can Wve un nothink. Now a imund or two o' .steak, a few rashert o' tat haoon, an' a few heggs fur lirrakfus'â€" that's atore my li'ne. Hex- pe<-k a Christian man to heat fruit !" "But you expect people to buy youra don't you?" "Naw. I don't ibexpeok nothink." "Tihicn why do you grow it 1" "Biynuse 1 suppose I'm a f<iol ; that's aliout the fiize o it. Good *^ I' ys. mistar I" 1 r V