The Washington critic., 1889-05-03
MArTER WORTH REAp1Na.

opposite the Ardmore Hotel on Nicol-
let avenue, this morning. A gentleman
came hurriedly around the corner from
Ninth street, when gust of wind struck
the back of his neck and savagely lifted
the new spring derby from his head
The hat went bosbing across the street
at lively gait. with the owner as close
after it as he could get A young
woman with rosy cheeks and carrying %
lunch basket in her right hand was an
observer of the hat incident, and she
smiled tantallzingly at the efforts Of its
owner. II pleased her so much that she
turned her head to watch his ungraceful
antics just as she reached the crossing.
II was great mistake on her part. She
made misstep and fell forward almost
on her face. Her grip on her lunch
basket was loosencd, and away Il went
into the street. Some Of the contents
rolled out, and big gust of wind took
unwarranted liberties with her skirts
The man picked up his hat Just In time
to catch glimpse of the little affair on
the corner. He hastcned to the young
woman's side and helped her to arise.
Calamity he picked up her lunch
basket and other trinltets.
Are you hurt ?" he asked, as he re-
turned the young lady's property.
Not Bit" came the reply, 'but I
am ashamed, for laughed heartily at
your discontinue. However, | was
well paid for it. thank you ever so
much for your assistance"
Then they parted. Il Minneapolis
Journal.
John Chinaman as n Linguist.
Our Chinese population are said to be
making more rapid progress in their
knowledge of English thun few years
ago. but though the Chinese have ex-
ccllent capacity for languages, their
attainments in our tongue are hardly
equal to their opportunities The rea-
son seems to be John does not expect to
live here permanently, and he cares for
English only so far us II aids him in his
quest of the mighty dollar. When John
settles in some of the Pacific islands he
expects TO be q permanent resident, as a
rule and he assiduously applies himself
10 the task of mastering the dominant
tongue. In all the Spanish colonies,
for instance, John talks Spanish even
with his own people. On his arrival he
sets about learning Spanish with all the
| enthusiasm of u linguist, and often he
SttS " utcp uii'i lnOIDupu iilSipll lulD
the language John would certainly
improve his chances in this country II
he would take more kindly to the study
of the vernaculor.- New York Sun.
An Eccentric Hen.
Judge G. G.. Garrison of Merchant.
vile, N. j., is the owner of remark
able hen, whose pucuiarity consists in
| the fact that from the time she began to
lay her first egg she selected the little
angle of the hall behind the front door
of the house as the place of her choice.
| As regularly as the family seated them
| selves at the breakfast table she would
| fly up to the window sill of the dining
room, repeat the gentle tapping of
| Poe's raven, and when the window was
raised betake herself with cluck to her
favorite nest. When the egg was laid
| she would cackle until she was fairly
out of the house. She then invariably
ran as hard as her legs would carry her
to the barnyard and awaken the echoes
with her triumphant notes.
A Bear in "A Barrel.
Some maine lumbermen, who were an
noyed by bear stealing their molasses
out of the camp store.room, put up
/ JOb VII DiulH. ihtl gOt uu ciuDtN
molasses keg, filed the sides of 1t full
of sharp pointed nails, inclined toward
the bottom, poured q little molasses into
il and set the whole arrangement out in
the bushes, near the pigpcn. The
novel trap worked nicely. The next
morning 1t was found some distance
from the camp. The bears head was
inside. He had stuck II in and couldn t
| Il A al a., LnI l..
misery and his thieving
A ToothIess Wolf.
AT Reshford, Mimi, the harvest of
the wolf crop has Just commenced. II
is reported that Norwegian living on
forty-acre bluff farm on the Badgers,
in Houston County, took in forty four
wolf scalps, for which the county of
Houston paid $30S On Saturday Lit
tie Gunderson took some young wolves
to Preston and obtained $40. 1t Is
said that at Pilot Mound the boys have
an old she wolf that have bred one or
two litters year till she is so old that
her claws are nothing but stubs and she
has not a tooth in her head. The boys
feed her, and she is so tame that she
goes for her food.
A Homesick Dog.
A cOlored woman at Birmingham,
Ala, removed to Memphis last fall She
determined to leave her dog behind.
Just as she was starting the faithful
animal came bounding into the car
| where she sat. When she returned to
Birmingham she did not feel able to in
cur the expense of dog fare again and
so left the animal in Memphis. Last
month the dog, footsore and half
starved, came bounding into his old
home. He had travelled POI miles to re.
join his old mistress.
Baseball and Snakes.
A game of baseball at Long Branch
was suddenly terminated on Thursday
by the centre fielder, in fielding ball,
falling headforemost into nest of
thirty-two garter snakes He picked
himself up, but again sank to the
ground almost prostrated by fright and
It was fully half an hour before he re-
covered sufficiently to walk His com
panions, with their bats, succeeded in
killing twenty-six of the ugly reptiles,
some Of which measured three feet in
length,
Almost Five Feet of Beard.
Mr. Samuel Fries, residing near
Steinsyille, Lehigh County, Pa, is
happy in the possession of a beard
measuring four feet nine inches in
length-the same extending consider.
ably below his knees, He is man n
years of age, well built, weighing 235
pounds, and has been cultiyating his
whisker crop for twenty-eight years
straight along with success that prob
ably stands unsurpassed.
Where Opium Comes From.