The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1875-11-06
departments fully sustain the high standard
of excellence which has made them so i'm
potant a feature of tie magazine.


Illustrated article on William and Mary Col
lege. 1t is the Oldest but one of all our
American colleges, ard its history abounds
in endless interesting "reminiscences. Then,
after a bit of poetry, we have the opening
chapters of Gabriel Conroy,' Bret lIarte's
new novel, which ar, certainly vivid and
powerful, They contain description of a
party OF emigrants lost IN the snow, and
starving among the California sierras. The
human picture presented is striking and real
but the representation CT the storm and of the
face of Nature is more remarkable. The de-
vice of copying literally the names Of thelos
party, as they had written them on a piece of
canvas nailed to tree at the entrance to the
canon, strongly awaken's the readers inter
est Above this piece of canvas was crude.
ly shaped wooden efigy Of human hand"
OF the Notice." which Mr.. Harte prints like
playful, he says: $50 I let 1t stand, even
as it stood this 10Th day Of March, 184S half
hidden by thin film Of damp snow, the
snow.whitened hand stiff.ncd and pointing
rigidly TO the fateful canon like the finger of
Death"
The following is the description of the
storm:
"Snow. Everywhere. As far as the eye
could reach-fifty miles, looking southwark
from the highest white peak Filling ia.
vines and gulches, and dropping from the
walls OF can0ns in white shroud-like drifts,
fashionlng the dividing ridge into the like
ness of a monstrous grave, hiding the bases
ofgiant pines, and completely covering young
trees and larches trimming with porcelain
the bowl-like edges of still, cold lakes, and
undulating in motonless white pillows TO
the edge of the distant horizon. Snow lying
everywhere over the California serras on the
18th day of March, 1s4S, and still falling
at had been showing for ten days; snow,
ing IN finely granulated powder, in damp,
spOngy flakes, in thin, feathery plumes snow.
ing from leaden syk steadily; showing
fiercely, shaken out of purple black clouds
in white flocculent masses, Or dropping in
long level lines like white lances from the
tumbled and broken heavens But always
silently The words were so Choked with it,
the branches were so laden with it, 1t had SO
permeated, filled and possessed earth and sky;
it had so cushioned and mutlled the ringing
rocks and cchoing hills, that all sound was
deadened The strongest gust, the tiercest
blast awOke no sigh or complaint from the.
snow. packed, rigid files Of forest There was
no cracking Of bough nor oracle OF under.
brush the over laden branches of pine and
fir yielded and gave way without a sound.
The silence was vast, measureleSs, complete :!
"NOr could ii be said that any outward
sign of life or motion changed the fixed out.
lines of this stricken landscape. Above,
there was no play of light and shadow, only
the occasional deepening of storm or night,
Below, no bird winged its flight across the,
white cypanse, no beast haunted the confines
of the black woods; whatever Of brute nature.
might have inhabited these solltudes had
long since flown to the low lands. There
was no track or imprint; whatever foot might
have left its mark upon this waste, each sue,
ceeding sn ow.fall obiterated all trace or rec
ord. Every morning the solitude was virgin
and unbroken million tiny feet had step.
ped into the track and filled it up And yet,
in the centre OF this desolation, in the very
stronghold of this grim fortress, there was the
mark of human toll"
A very interesting article in this number
is Eugene lhompson's Curiosities of Longe.
witty, though he treats as facts many stories
which seem to have no historical support, as,
for instance, the queer relation of the Coun-
tess of Desmond's cutting three sets Of teeth,
one upon which men Of science should be
able to give decision. The Countess Des-
mond was that Irish lady who, at the age Of
one hundred ana forty five years. came to n
premature end by fall from a fruit tree to
which, in some romplng and gamesore spir-
it, she had climbed.
"Glass Sponges' reveals strange wonders of
deep sea life relating to the family of spon,
ges; The Story of Anne Maturin is more
queer than attractive; Mr.. Z. S. Drone dis.
C uses exclusively the question of copyright
in foreign plays, which has received recent
agitation in The matter OF the Two Orphans
"The Old Germanla Orchestra" is pathetic
tale of how party of German musicians of
the highest merit nearly starved in attempt
ing a professional tour Of the United States
and the "IIotel Of the Future" points out the
defects of the present system. DR.. Holland
in "Topics of the Times" discusses ably al
variety of subjects, such as The Political Out.
look, Mr.. Moody, &c, and the other editorial
departments have their usual variety.
st. Nicholas.
The November number berips the third