1890. 



THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER. 



237 



£ast and West Meet In Mosco'w. 



The seiiiioricutal city of Moscow 

 makes iv more etfective background for 

 the crowning of u sovereign than any 

 otlier town in Christendom. It is a 

 spectacle in itself — a strange jumble of 

 Samarkand and the most progressive of 

 western American cities. It possesses 

 more telepJiones and general electrical 

 _ plant than does London, probably, but it 

 has no sewerage system whatever. In 

 some respects it could give lessons in 

 modernity to Birmingham or Glasgow. 

 In others it could learn them from the 

 dervishes of the remotest Sudan. 



The east and west tread on each other 

 at every corner of th-e holy city. It 

 makes a fitting stage for the dramatic 

 series of tableaus which Russia has been 

 preparing for months past. The royal 

 and official guests from abroad, who 

 are to be numbered by thousands, and 

 for that matter, the young imperial cou- 

 ple, who are nominally their hosts, 

 liave as little in common with the real 

 Russia, which pays the bills for the 

 festivities, as the bishop of Peterborough 

 has with the unwashed and unlettered 

 monks who beg at the doors of the Sla- 

 vanski bazaar. — Saturday Review. 



Unexpected Retort. 



A lawyer tells the following story in 

 The Green Bag : ' ' Some time ago we 

 had under cross examination a youth 

 from the country who rejoiced in the 

 name of Samson and whose replies 

 were provocative of much laughter in 

 the court. 'And so,' questioned the 

 barrister, 'you wish the court to believe 

 that you are a peaceably disposed and 

 inoffensive kind of person?' 'Yes.' 'And 

 that you have no desire to follow in the 

 steps of your illustrious namesake and 

 smite the Philistines?' 'No; I've not,' 

 answered the witness, 'and if I had the 

 desire I ain't got the power at present. ' 

 'Then you think you would be unable 

 to cope successfully with 1,000 enemies 

 and utterly rout them with the jawbone 

 of an ass?' ' Well, ' answered the raffled 

 Samson, 'I might have a try when you 

 have done with the weapon.' " 



liaysced waiuicrc d yesterday and stooa 

 near theentranc", gazing up at the show 

 bills, reading them aloud and spelling 

 them aloud us Jie read. He attracted the 

 attention ct' the passersby, who gathered 

 around him and commenced guying him. 

 He stood it pretty v^-ell for awhile, and 

 suddenly faced about in reply to a query 

 as to what be was doing and said to his 

 questioner, "I've jist bin waitin to see 

 how long a gentleman could stand here 

 and mind liis own business before some 

 durned fool v^'ould ask him what he was 

 a-doin. ' ' Pie then quietly walked up the 

 street. —Louisville Commercial. 



Well Said by Royalty. 



The queen regent of Holland, mothei 

 of little Queen Wilhelmina, who is a 

 beautiful woman, of royal distinction, 

 is very simple in all her habits. On one 

 occasion, when she visited the Empress 

 Eugenie, the latter V\-as surprised at her 

 quiet, imobtrusive way of traveling, her 

 entire suit consisting of an aged cham- 

 berlain and a lady of honor. ' 'We al- 

 ways travel second class, ' ' she explained, 

 "because the people one meets there are 

 so much more interesting than the more 

 elegant, more selfish' and often less po- 

 lite travelers who go first class." 



Social Life Xiong Ago. 



The stately dames cf the court of Ed- 

 wai'd IV rose with the lark, dined at 

 1 1 a. m. and retired to rest at 8 in the 

 evening. Heniy VIII went back to 10 

 in the morning for dinner and had 

 supper at 4. In Queen Bess' days her 

 maids of honor began the day with a 

 f'ound of beef or red herring and a flagon 

 of ale for breakfast at about 6 :30 and 

 dined at 11, and then went to the play- 

 house in the afternoon, not later than 

 M, sometimes as early as 12:30, accord- 

 ing to the order of the play and the day. 



What He Was Doing. 



Into an alley on Fifth street, between 

 Jefferson and Market, a young fellow 

 who had the appearance of a country 



ThoB* Mouotouous Sonnets. 



She (gushingly to the literary lion) — 

 Oh, Mr. De Reitre, I did so enjoy that 

 last volume of yours — that ' 'Little Book 

 of Sonnets, ' ' you know. 



He — Thank you. I am glad that you 

 enjoyed them. But haven't you any 

 helpfiil criticism for me? 



She — Well, don't you think if you 

 had made them different lengths tkey 

 wouldn't hove looked so monotonous? — 

 New York Journal. 



