136 



THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER. 



ciiinarcs. cut tnis we may ac Jeast al- 

 firru, that it seems quite possible for the 

 different influences we have named to 

 go a long way toward neutralizing the 

 contrasts that the climates of these 

 globes would otherwise present in con- 

 sequence of the different supplies of sun- 

 beams tliat they receive at their actual 

 solar distances. So far as mere climate 

 is concerned, it seems quite possible 

 that appropriate atmospheres and land 

 distril^iuns might be adjusted on the 

 earth ^d Mnrs, Mercury and Venus iu 

 such a manner that certain organic 

 types might be common to all the four 

 globes. — Sir Robert Ball in Fortnightly 

 Review. 



BISMARCK CONSENTED. 



He Was the Final Arbiter of an English 

 Love match. 



Apropos of the marringe of the third 

 son of the Duke of Argyll it is related 

 that when his atiections became attach- 

 ed to an untitled woman he felt bound 

 to ask the olfl gentleman's consent. The 

 duke answered that personally he had 

 uo objection to the match, but in view 

 of the tact that his eldest sou had es- 

 poused a daughter of the' queen he 

 thought itright to inquire her majesty's 

 pleasure on the subject before express- 

 ing his formal approval. 



Her majesty, thus appealed to, ob- 

 served that since the death of the prince 

 consort she had been in the habit of con- 

 sulting the Duke of Saxe-Coburg on all 

 family affairs. 



The matter was therefore referred to 

 Duke Ernest, who replietl that since the 

 unification of Germany he had made it 

 a rule to ask the emperor's opinion on 

 all important questions. The case now 

 came before the kaiser, who decided 

 that, as a constitutional sovereign, he 

 was bound to ascertain the views of his 

 prime minister. 



Happily for the now anxious pair of 

 lovers, the "Iron Chancellor," who 

 was then iu office, had no v»'ish to con- 

 sult anybody and decided that the mar- 

 riage might take place. — Kate Field's 

 ■Washington. 



Hideous Animals In Death Talley. 



Many, many years ago Montesquieu, 

 the great Freuchphilosopher, emphasized 

 the influence of climate upon human 



nature. J-;ie enect oi nature itself upon 

 animal life has been most strikingly re- 

 vealed by Special Agent H. B. Martin 

 of the United States land office, who 

 has just returned from a perilous trip 

 through the "Death valley" in Nevada. 

 His report pictures this weird, unfinish- 

 ed spot of creation as a region of hor- 

 rors. Even the fauna are uncanny and 

 in almost diabolical accord with the in- 

 ferno nature of this vast realm of sand 

 and salt. 



That hideous and loathsome reptile, 

 the Gila monster, flourishes in this fit 

 retreat. Lizards, rattlesnakes, huge 

 scorpions and tarantulas and toads, all 

 abnormally venomous, writhe and hop 

 across the heated waste, but they wq 

 nothing in comparison to kangaroolike 

 rats and mice that feed on scorpions. 

 One of these curious mice is known as 

 the grasshopper mouse, from his curious 

 leaping, aiul his chief delicacy is a 

 wriggling centiped. The women might 

 be excused for jumping upon chairs if 

 such kind of mice infested the house- 

 holds of the land. — Philadelphia Rec- 

 ord. 



The Difference Slight. 



"What's this?" demanded the guest, 

 pointing to one of the side dishes the 

 waiter had Ijrought. 



"Sausages, sir, ' ' answered the waiter. 



"I didn't order any." 



"I thought you did, sir." 



"I ordered sauce. Can't you tell the 

 difference between sauce and sausages?" 



"Yes, sir," said the waiter, gather- 

 ing up the rejected dish with unruffled 

 dignity. "Between sauce and sausages 

 there is merely a diff'erence of ages. 

 Wish coffee, sir?" — Chicago Tribune. 



Fish We Have Learned to Eat. 



It is hard tor the younger people to be- 

 lieve that so good a fish as the halibut was 

 consideied unlit for eating not very many 

 years ago, yet many old fishermen yet live 

 who remember when it was first offered in 

 the market, selling then at 4 or 6 cents a 

 pound It was many years since that that 

 the swordfish first found its way to the 

 frying iian and the table, and a Rockland 

 fisheruKin recalls the time when haddock 

 were aljout as highly esteemed as sculpins 

 are now. — Lewiston Journal. 



Many pairs of sandals have bean re- 

 covered at Pompeii. The soles are fas- 

 tened with nails. 



