Year: 1879

The misfortunes of man are too often the subject of ridicule by his friends. For an instance of this we note the fol- lowing. Gov. Hincks, of the Milwaukee National Military Asylum, is anxious to break up the practice of using his grounds for picnic purposes. To do this more effectually, he distributed through these grounds hives of bees. A party, oblivious of bees, was out there, and enjoying itself. But we will let the reporter tell the story in his own words:

 We'll, Severance of the band was sit ting on the ground dissecting sandwich and wondering what was in the bottle that was looking over the edge of basket, when suddenly he felt something crawling up the inside of his trowsers. He is not as demonstrative as some, but as he noticed it, and as he looked at the strange woman opposite his mind wan dered to his trowsers leg, and the ex- pression on his face was one of anxiety, He was calm, to all outward appearance, but within him there was vague long, ing to know the nature of the beast. It kept on crawling.

 Severance is not wealthy, but he would have given his note if he could have known the species of bug that was going up him with so deliberate and business like tread. He knew it was not an ant, because it was not small enough, and it was not big enough for hen, though when it stopped and scratched with its hind feet he thought it resembIed hen.

 MT. Severance was becoming nervous. He wouldn't begrudge poor bug the right of way along his shin, but when it went too far, his manhoodwas aroused. He thought, "Here I am allowing an insect to trihe with my feelings and spoil my days enjoyment. Twill rebel ''

 He laid down a sandwich that he had just bit can els track out of, and smiled. He did not feel like smiling, but he thought he would laugh at some thing that was said, and slap his knee at the same time, as though tickled, and thus kill the bug, and no one in the party would know anything about 1t. One of the women said something cun, ming, just as tho insect was going ur Severance's thigh, by easy stages, and he broke out into @ laugh and slapped his leg. His face was wreathed in No. 8 smile, his lips were parted as though he was the happiest man in America but when his hand struck his hind leg he jumped up about four feet and came down on lemon pie. The smile froze to his face, and his mouth remained open as though he had the lockjaw. He felt as though bar of railroad iron had been shot through his leg out of cannon. The women looked at him scared, the strange woman particularly whispering to companion that he was evidently ir the last stages.

 He was about to excuse himself, to gc and see man, when the strange woman also jumpe1 up, grabbed her skirts anc shook them, ran around tree and saiG "Get out," started across the road on run, and went up to one of the houses It is supposable case that there wer, just bees enough for two.

 When she went away Severance wen up behind the cook house and investi gated the matter, and Tom William said he kicked something into the ground with his boot heel and jumped on i eight or nine times. During the dance that occurred-in the afternoon there wa one violin player that played with grea animation, and strange woman danced as though she was hired to.