The leader., 1897-02-03

reflections, and imagining himself al
rvaly q cold corpse dangling under the
branches of some tree, he did not per-
ceive the approach of a little boy until
the latter stood beside him and startled
him by saying, in a timid voice;
Teacher, father sent me to ask you
to come to our house."
Dong raised his head and saw one
Of his pupils before him.
"What is IL you want?"
MY father sends his respects end
asks you TO favor him with call. MY
ing from America. lie brought home
lots of funny things. II you come, he
will show them to you"
Glad of this little relief, Dong &C.
companied the boy to the latter's house
and there received a most hearty well
come. The big brother displayed his
treasures and enjoyed Dong's curiosity
and wonder as he explained the uses
and the modus operandi of every article
to him. These were a sewing machine,
pair of opera glasses, q contrivance for
making hash out of every kind of meat
under the sun, stereoscope, a micro
scope and hundred other things be-
sides, that stamp the Yankee as the
most ingenious person in all the world.
But nothing astonished Dong so much
as the little electric machine which sent
thrill through his spare frame and
sunk his suicidal purpose in the lowest
depths of Lethe. But the phonogrnph
scared him with its peculiar sepulchral
tones. AS he stood before the talking
machine with dilatcd eyes and mouth
opened wide sweet strains of American
music greeted his ears.
Then Home, Sweet Home" annie
Rooney" "Rock-a-by-B Baby" Thou
Art So Near and Yet So Far" and What
Is Home Without a Mother-in-Law"
rolled out in rapid succession. Dong, of
course, could not appreciate them any
more than a cat, but the weirdness Of
the sounds fascinated him. When the
concert was ended, he had many ques-
lions to ask. The returned traveller
kindly showed him everything pertain
| ing to the wonderful machine, told hin
to talk to it himself, and excited his
wonder still more by making the pho
nograph repeat Dong's own words.
| Suddenly a thought struck him so
hard that he jumped up like one pos
sessed, nearly upsetting the machine
and the big brothers gravity, yelling at
the same time:
"Whoop-la, whoop-la. I have got it!
l have got it! I'll beat the old miser
yet"
"Got what?" shouted everybody i'll
the room in a chorus. What are you
talking about?"
"Got him, you know-the old skin
flint. I'll have him, by the shade OF the
great Confucius, or die in the attempt
Explain yourself" said the returned
traveller. This Dong did, after taking
him aside, by recounting his troubles
from beginning to end, closing with an
appeal for aid to defeat the wicked
plan of Ju Dun. 1t was arranged and
agreed upon that the traveller should
make the machine talk like Guam King,
the god who avenges wrongs, when j u
Dun should make his demand for pay
ment of the debt. At the same time a
dose of ctricity-Edison's best-was
to be administered to him as an alterna-
tive and mild emetic.
Word was sent to Ju Dun to meet
Dong at the latter's residence (Which
was likewise the SCHOOL, after dark,
without fail.
The two conspirators got ready their
machines in Dong's sitting-room. The
photograph was set in a corner where
it could be manipulated by the returned
tray eler behind curtain with the box
of condensed lightning beside him. The
wires belonging to the last piece OF
mechanism were so laid on the arms OF
the guests chair that anyone sitting in
il was sure to form a connection be-
tween them.