Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1900-12-18
Something Really New.


II have an idea for a storyw exclaim-
ed the young author enthusiastically.
Something really new?" asked the
publisher doubtfully.
''New! cried the young author. "Well.
1 should say SO! Listen! Married couple
living happily, not cloud in the matri
monial sky. Husband goes on trip. fails
to come back, search made, nothing
that, time passes, everybody gives him
comes out again, grief dulled by time
"Oh, that's oldv' interrupted the pub.
Usher. THAT'S 'Enoch Arden all over
again."
"Oh, it is, is it?" scornfully retorted
the young author. "Well, that's all you
know about it. Finally she marries
again."
II told you So" broke in the pub.
Usher.
MAN comes back Is years later" went
on the young author, ignoring the inter.
ruption. "Wife sees him and cries,
ALAS, l have married again! Man an.
swers, so have T. Now, there's situa-
ton for you."
"Bigamy," commented the publisher.
"HuhY
"Bigamy; double case Of it. How arc
you going to get them out of that
scrapeT'
"Confound it!'' calculated the young
author. II never did evolve the plot Of
a good story yet that some prosaic old
duffer didn't come along and knock the
tar out Of it. tell you genius isn't ap-
preciated in this world."-Chicago Post.
Sir Robert Hart ON China.
The London Fortnightly Review, cop
les Of which have just reached this
country, contains long and exhaust
i've article on the Chinese situation by
Sir Robert Hart, director general Of
the Chinese imperial maritime customs.
BY virtue Of the intimacy with the az
fairs Of the empire and it's ruling forces
which his position gave him and bis
many years. residence in China he IL
thoroughly competent to speak on the
Chinese question, and all students Of
the situation will listen with eagerness.
In speaking Of the origin Of the Box
er movement Sir Robert says it was
really the result of foreign solicitation
and propaganda. He quotes Wen Hsi-
ang, the celebrated prime minister Of
China during the sixties, as saying to
foreigners, "You are all too anxious to
awake us and start us on a new road,
and you will do 1t, but you will all re-
greet it, for, once awake and started,
we shall 60 fast and far, farther than
you think, much farther than you
want" "His words" adds Sir Robert,
"are very true" Following the Euro
pean advice that "China must grow
strong" and taking a lesson from her
overwhelming defeat by the Japanese
there came a revival of the military
spirit which had been discouraged for
centuries. Hence" says Sir Robert,
'the Boxer association, patriotic In
origin, justifable in its fundamental
idea and in point of fact the outcome
either of foreign advice or the study of
foreign methods"
Referring to the solution of the prob
lem, Sir Robert says there arc three
courses open to the western world
partition, change Of dynasty and patch
ing up the Mantchoo rule" The first
and second Of these courses he briefly
dismisses as out of the question. Fall
ling back upon the third, he points out
that we must not weaken the govern
ment. the strength Of which is our own
only security, that ut must be made to
lose face rs little as possible" In
other words, the integrity of the exist
ing government should be maintained,
and the reparations exacted from It
should not be so humilating rs to
weaken it's power Of keeping order in
China.