bright red was preferred, then a pale 

 pink or rose color came into fashion 

 and now the red seems to be most in 

 favor again. Tlie color, whatever it is. 

 should be uniform to make a piece of 

 coral of the best quality. The forms 

 into which coral is cut include beads, 

 buttons, ear-ring drops, cameos and 

 carvings of various sorts. Polished 

 pieces of branches an inch or two in 

 length are often worn in bunches either 

 as brooches or in the form of bracelets 

 and necklaces. These were supposed 

 in former times to act as a charm to 

 ward off bad luck and evil spirits. Coral 

 is especially prized, by dark-skinned 

 people such as the Italians, Moors, 

 Persians and Hindoos, because its color 

 harmonizes M'elT with their complexion. 

 The Chinese also use immense quanti- 

 ties of it, although the effect in color 

 as contrasted with that of the wearer, is 

 less favorable to them. Precious coral 

 seems to have been known and prized 



in earlier times by the Greeks and Ro- 

 mans. The Greeks called it gorgeia and 

 believed that it originated from the 

 blood which dripped from the head . of 

 [Medusa and which becoming hard was 

 planted by sea-nymphs in the sea. In 

 the Middle Ages precious coral was used 

 in medicine as an astringent and was 

 given to newl}' born infants^ To this 

 day the Brahmins and Fakirs of the 

 East place it upon their dead to prevent 

 evil spirits taking possession of the 

 corpse. Coral is imitated in celluloid, 

 also by a mixture of marble dust cement- 

 ed with glue and stained with vermilion. 

 Beads of bone and of gypsum are also 

 stained so as to imitate coral. These 

 imitations can be distinguished by 

 chemical and physical characters, true 

 coral having a specific gravity of 2.6- 

 2.7, and a hardness of nearly 4. It also 

 effervesce? with weak' acid, which 

 would not be the case with any but one 

 of the above imitations. 



Oliver Cummings Farrington. 



BLESSED RAIN. 



Dear heart, dost thou complain 

 When the kind God sends rain? 



Think of the thirsting crops 



That drink the beady drops — 

 Think of the flowers, unfolding all their sweets — 

 The city's burning streets, 



The famished flocks upon the mountain tops — 

 The windless casements, where the sick in vain 

 Cry for the cool, sweet rain ! 

 Think — and thank God 

 For ever}' drop that quivers on a clod ! 



Fr.\nk L. StantoNj in "Up from Georgia." 



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