402 
THE 
JUNE 49 
1 failing for t|f Joiing. 
THE MEADOW LARK. 
Sweet, patient watcher on thy lowly nest. 
Thy meek head peering o’er the meadow grass: 
“ All motherhood iB in that tender breast" 
Ah near thy secret bower my footsteps push. 
The deep, deep blue of .Tune's delicious sky, 
Can tempt thee not to rise and soar away; 
Love-taught, thou canst resign without a sigh 
Freedom and song upon this summer day. 
Unconscious teacher! may we learn from thee 
The holy JeBBon of unselfish love— 
That adding patience to our faith, we be 
Made meet for the inheritance above. 
Laura S. Hagnek. 
THE CHILDREN’S ACRE. 
J. E. Me. C. 
Every one of the Graham family was a singer, 
from the oldest boy Albert, down to the baby who 
sat up In her cradle and hummed •* Home, Sweet 
Home" before she eould speak a word The con¬ 
certs they used to have around the evcnlng-lamp, 
when the day’s work was done, were belter than 
a great many you pay money to hear. They did 
not shell corn In the evening at llielr house. The 
father even took the pains to make himself a 
musle-stand to hold his singing-book more con¬ 
veniently. 
Now, It Is no wonder that such a musical family 
should take a notion to buy an organ. The chil¬ 
dren talked and wished a good deal about It, and 
finally one evening Sophie asked, 
“ What will you give us, father, towards an or¬ 
gan ? Mother could teach us to play, and we will 
all save up and deny ourselves and earn money 
until we get It paid for." 
Now, i heir father had thought a good deal about 
this himself, but had not said anything lor fear it 
would not be done, and he did not wish to make 
the children uneasy and dissatisfied, lie worked 
hard himself so that he could educate his children 
well for ho felt deeply the force of the truth, that 
children can grow up but once. Hut tf the chil¬ 
dren were willing to take hold with a will may be 
the Instrument eould be bought, 
“ Bu , Sophie, It must all be paid for, cash down 
In the start. No paying by installments for me. 
I have been bitten that way a time or two, and 
have had enough of the busl uess. I suppose you 
are willing to take tbe commodity I have the most 
of, and turn It into cash.” 
“ Oh yes sir,” said Albert, his mind running on 
grain. “ We’ll turn anything on the rann Into 
money that you wlllglve us towards It." 
“ Well,” said the rather with a twinkle of his 
gray eyes, 1 will give you an acre of ground.” 
The children exchanged glances and looked a 
little caught, but Sophie answered with enthu¬ 
siasm. “ l ts a bargain just get the ground ready 
and 1 will take my portion and set It out in onions. 
I have always thought 1 should like to try my 
hand at raising something on my own hook.” 
Sophie was a born farmer’s daughter and loved 
the out-door work of the garden full as well as 
washing dishes. Indeed, she could not well see 
why It was not quite as interesting to cultivate 
rows of fine vegetables, which looked beautiful 
when growing and “ came to something,” as It was 
to drag Into the house In the fall and drag out 
again In the spring great, crocks of green tntngs 
which did not even blossom very often. Any way, 
you could not convince her that the one kind of 
work was any less lady-like tnan the other. 
The ground was duly prepared, and the chil¬ 
dren set to work with a will; even six-year- 
old Kate had her corner, and there was not a weed 
to be seen there all summer. Whenever the mar¬ 
ket wagon went to town there was almost, always 
something to sell from the children's acre, and ihe 
little savings box ntled up with small coins, it 
was rather alow work, but. when the last fall crop 
was taken off they had three-fourths enough 
money to buy the most coveted instrument. Now 
mother came down handsomely with her summer 
savings from the poultry yard, and when all was 
again counted and the eyes of the happy children 
feasted on their riches, father said to Ueorge: 
“ Take the spotted call over to M r. Hall's to- morrow 
morning, lie shall have It, and mat will make 
out your sum 1 guess It will do us ail more good 
In that way than w any other." 
So It all came about In very a easy, natural way, 
and nobody felt the poorer. The children had 
worked hard over their acre, but they had learned 
a good deal also, aud nobody can estimate the 
worth of such a lesson in thrift and economy and 
Industry. There was a pleasant reminder of their 
efforts always standing there lu the cozy east- 
room, ready to cheer and brighten the dullest day. 
It was not the last ol then - earnings. They said 
they had just learned how. Many more comforts 
and luxuries were added to the house from time to 
time as the result ol their Industry. Father and 
mother never grudged them the means, and en¬ 
couraged them to the extent of their ability. The 
additions were commonly made about Christinas 
time, so that festival always passed off most de¬ 
lightfully, and they felt almost like ileh folks 
when they surveyed their treasures, ihe Gra¬ 
hams had found out the secret of making a little 
go the larihest, and getting the greatest amount 
ol comfort out ol their resources as they went 
along. 
-- 
A CROP OF CORN. 
A traveler In one of the Now England States 
recently passing by rather a sterile field planted 
with corn, observed a white-headed, well tanned 
freckled-laced boy, leaning thoughtrully over his 
hoe handle In its midst, with his right, bare foot 
braced firmly against the calf of the left leg. 
Stopping his carriage In the road, opposite the 
boy, he bid him a “good morning,” to which he 
fiUSSAL MEW-YOBKER. 
was smilingly responded, and said: “ You seem to 
have rather sman corn growing here, my lad.” 
“ Wa-a-1, yes,” he replied with a lODg drawl, 
“ that’s sartln true, but recollect, mister, It’s 
dwarf corn." 
“ Exactly,’’ Bays the traveler. “ Yet don’t you 
think the stalks are looking extra yellow ?” 
“ Of course," answered the boy, settlDg down 
bis right, foot on the ground from its resting place 
against his left leg, “ for we planted i taller corn.” 
“ Pray, now,”continued the traveler, “doyou 
expect to get more than half a crop from such a 
poor field, and especially as you do not seem to be 
working very hard at It, with your hoe Just now ?" 
“ No, sire," replied the boy with a broad grin, 
“ for we plant lr on shares, so ye can’t expect more 
than half a crop, could ye?” 
Here the traveler subsided and drove along. 
LETTERS FROM THE COUSINS. 
A Letter from Hawaii IVel. 
Hawaii Nki has again favored us with a long 
and welcome letter. The cousins will remember 
that she wrote us last fall, but until now nothing 
has been beard from her since. It Is pleasing to 
know that she has not forgotten her Rukai, cous¬ 
ins, and It is to be hoped that we shall hear rrom 
her more trequently In the future. Here Is her 
letter: 
Honolulu, May 9th, 18S0. 
Dear Uncle and cousins It. is some months 
since last I wrote, and many things, both sad and 
Joyful, nave happened during the Interval, Be- 
rore 1 proceed further, let me ihauk you, Uncle 
Mark, lor the seeds you so kindly Bent me. I was 
real glad to receive them; I began to rear that 
you had forgotten me, A lew days ago 1 had pre¬ 
pared a box with some rich earth, and planted In 
It some or all the seeds, except •* sweet .Mignonette ” 
ana “Surprise Musk Melonthe former I planted 
In a small box, the other In a nice corner of our 
garden that Is fenced off from the chickens. Now 
I patiently wait for their *• up sprouting,” and 
hope they will thrive; will report progress next 
lime. 
Let me see; 1 believe my last letter was printed 
Nov. 22d. l miss a leaf of that paper aud shall 
be sorry If It contains my letter, for at the end of 
Ills quite a lenghty response from Uncle Mark. 
The missing sheet was lost during my absence. 
Aha! Tell you about my trip? Certainly, lr Uncle 
Mark will grant me space for a condensed descrip¬ 
tion. As my lamer wa3 suffering trotn Ill-health, 
a sea vogage was proposed. On the lsili of Feb¬ 
ruary we left Honolulu, on the bark “ Kalakana,” 
for nan Francisco, our passage of seventeen days 
passed very pleasantly. Very early on the morn¬ 
ing of March 7th we sighted Farellones. on the 
largest of these islands, as perhaps some of you 
know, is a revolving light which can be seen at a 
great distance. A tug took us in through the 
<• Golden Gate ” to the *• Golden City of the West.” 
Here let me suite that this was my first visit 
to your great America. I have been to Germany, 
but we traveled around Cape Horn. We had a 
lour mouth’s passage going, and were within three 
days of a six months' passage on our return. How 
Is that lor a voyage? 
The day of our arrival In San Francisco It blew 
very hard; that night we had a “ norther.” our 
ship rolled worse than when we were at sea. 
During our visit we met many friends we had 
no idea ol meeting, and made many new and 
pleasant acquaintances, who made our three 
week’s stay pass swiftly and pleasantly, with 
drives through Golden Gate Park, visiting the new 
conservatory (where I saw many beautiful and 
rare exotics), and fiom there to the Cliff House to 
hear the seals roar, then along the hard sand 
beach to the “Ocean House," to Woodward’s 
Gardens, etc. In fact we visited all places of note; 
nor must 1 omit my drive through East and West 
Oakland, where 1 saw many beautiful homes, on 
to ilerkely, and through the adjoining grounds of 
ihe Berkefy state University. If l was a boy 
wouldn't 1 study doubly hard, If 1 could go to a 
school where me surroundings are made so pleas¬ 
ant for the scholars. Rural cousins or both sexes 
as well asall readers of the Rural, let me advise 
you, one aud all, to learn what you can In your 
youth, anti learn it well, so that when you grow 
older you will not regret misspent days. I sincere¬ 
ly pity children who crave lor knowledge and 
cannot have the opportunity of an education, but 
much more so do I pity those that have the chance 
and opportunity and da not Improve It. Those 
misspent days never return, boys and girls, take 
“ upward and onward ” for your motto, and act 
up to it. “ Where there’s a will, there’s a way," 
you msy be assured; then strive to find It. but to 
return; It was rumored at the *• Golden Gate 
Academy” (In Oakland} that a Hawaiian girl 
would visit there that day, and 1 tell you truly, 
by me stares j received I began to wonder If 1 
was an ogre. Every room we passed a head would 
bob out, and, for excuse the owner would ask my 
companion, who attends the academy, a question. 
As we lert I turned aud saw two windows, with 
little else to be seen but handkerchleis waving. 
1 dare say those young fellows would have stared 
with eyes opened a little wider, had 1 but spoken a 
few senteuces In native, as 1 did In ban Francisco 
one evening. While out ror a walk we passed 
through a store, and In answer to all the clerks, who 
came forward aB we passed their counter, my com¬ 
panion aud 1 would turn to each other, speak na¬ 
tive, and pass on. l do not mink they understood us. 
1 n this manner the days glided by. our visit over, 
we returned home on the “Kulakaua," feeling very 
much recruited by our trip, and arc again busy at 
our dally duties. 
The fever that has been visiting us lor the last 
six months, has 1 am glad to say left at last; but 
oh! It has left many a vacant chair in loved homes 
and many an aching heart; loved ones have passed 
to the other shore, where we shall meet them 
by-and-by, bappy thought, consoling balm, one 
of the first to succumb to the dread lever, was a 
young and lovely girl, lovely in disposition and 
love In name; I think hers was one of the saddest 
deaths Honolulu ever witnessed: the oldest mot 
only) daughter of the family, beloved by all who 
knew her and her sweet winning ways. She was 
my most Intimate friend, 1 having no sisters or 
brothers, and hers being much younger tnan her¬ 
self we were as twin sisters, and shared each oth¬ 
er’s joys aud sorrows. Intimate friends, school¬ 
mates, Sabbath school scholars, and later on 
teachers, side by side we walked for seven 
years. Yet God took her from this world. She 
Is free from care and trouble, and we remem¬ 
ber ber as a well beloved friend, lent to us for a 
little while, then taken home; her image will go 
with us through life, the remembrance of her 
often keep us from wrong doing. 
But I tear i hat I am tiring you, so thanking all 
tor your kindness In listening to me, and Uncle 
Mark for not looking at the waste basket, I will 
bid you good-night with Aloha nul to all. 
Hawaii Nki. 
P. S. Our crater Mokuaweawea (summit crater 
or Mouna Loa) on Hawaii is very active; so much 
so that people at Lalhalna Manl can see to read 
a newspaper at night. How wonderful are God’s 
works! A like brilliant, eruption has not happened 
since 1868. In consequence of the eruption we 
have rather warm weather. h. n. 
Dear Unlk Mark:—I guess that you think that 
we have forgotten you In spite of the many re¬ 
minders we have had In the shape ol corn, grape 
seeds, and also a large package of seed from your 
Free Seed Distribution. If we do not have good 
gardens and fine shrubs and llowers it will not be 
your fault; and here let us thank you for all. but 
how can you afford to do It? That is a query that 
we should like to have answered. We are going 
to have a gardeu all our o wn this year, with flow¬ 
ers and vegetables. Our grape seeds are coming 
up. The corn you sent us the frost cut down, but 
we have a little left to plant. With love to your¬ 
self and all the cousins we close. 
Clarence and Joiinie Crook. 
Shiawassee Co., Mich. 
Hidden Minerals:— 1, stone; 2, rock; 3. slate; 4, 
marble; 5, granite; 8. sand; 7, lava; 8. clay; 9, quartz; 
10, hornblende; 11, feldspar; 12, mica*. 13 . gravel; 14, 
pebble, 15, spar; 16, adamant; 17, shale; 18, trap; 19, 
lari ous. 
BRIEFLETS. 
Plant corn or other fodder crops whenever 
it is possible to do so—if you don’t, you will be 
in a “fix" next winter.First sound, 
ripe cherries at the Rural Farm June 1st. . . . 
. . The political papers are full of a glorious 
contempt for consistency—as Col. Forney calls 
it—that they may better serve their country! 
.Progress says: " If the agitation of the 
woman suffrage movement continues, its adver¬ 
saries may finally be driven into the adoption 
of the effective and complimentary argument 
based on the idea that the fair sex already pos¬ 
sesses so much power, that if the ladies were 
allowed to vote they would bo irrceistable, and 
that the only chance man has forrelieving him¬ 
self from utter aud hopeless subjugation is to 
retain a monopoly of the elective franchise.” 
. . . . Mr. Fowler remarks, in the Country Gen¬ 
tleman, that the. worst neglect in American 
farming is insufficient preparation of the soil. 
.Again he says: “ If we had no weeds in 
our hoed crops few fai mors wouldgive as much 
cultivation as is needed. Thus we learu that 
even weeds are a’blessing in disguise,’ and 
the old prediction respecting the earth, that 
thorns and thistles it shall produce for man’s 
sak :, Is fully verified.” . . . . “As tothe power 
of linseed oil to prevent pear blight altogether, 
if applied In time, I can only state tbe fact 
that I have a number of Bartlett and Flemish 
Dear Uncle Mark :—1 take my pen In hand to 
thank you for the seeds you were kina enough to 
send me. 1 got all but one package of vegetable 
seed which the mice got. We have had a very 
hard winter. In January the snow was three and 
a half feet deep. We have but a very small gar¬ 
den this year. I have a bed each or lettuce, rad¬ 
ishes and onions, t sUMy reading, spelling, arith¬ 
metic and wilting. We caunot take the Rural 
this year, but papa has found a mine, bo If we get 
rich we will take the Rural the rest of our lives. 
Now I must close, for I must feed the chickens. 
Good bye. Laura McGee. 
King Co., W. T. 
4 li t jJuiiln 
GEOGRAPHICAL ENIGMA. 
26 LETTERS. 
25,17, 4, a river In Russia. 
7, 22 , 3,14. a lake In N. Y. State. 
21.11, 25, 3, 8, is, one of the five great oceans. 
25.12, 2, 23, 2, 16, 20, 9, 7, a river In N. Y. State. 
25,17,13,14,15, a capital of one of the States In 
the Union. 
16 , 6, 21, 6, 4, 7, 26, a mountain In Europe. 
19.12, 8,22, a cape on the eastern coast of the 
United States. 
l, 23, 3,18, u>, a river lu Michigan. 
24, 23, 5, 8, 21, a mountain In Europe, 
The whole Is a familiar quotation. 
tsr Answer In two weeks. m. a. n. 
-«♦» 
GEOGRA PHICAL ANAGRAMS. 
l, M ! stew In rest; 2. Lando D1 new Pin; 3, To 
poor; 4, mad stop; 5, l stab Orn; 6, I’d dram; 7, 
Y! no, papa: 8, Gnat harm; 9, Was raw; 10, Lot 
Bon; 11, Tone; 12, Word sin; 13,1 spar; 14, No 
step K; 15, Wreak N; 16,1 scar 111; 17, Do two flee; 
18,1 saw hat; 19, Kate cut Nn; 20, Vera hired, 21, 
Nlg’s dog on car; 22, A tin car ban; 23, Be salt 
bran; 24 Repeat s, b, m; 26, Kadle scab. 
Answer In two weeks. Little One. 
-- 
HIDDEN MEATS. 
1. Let me be, Effie. 
2. You are a knave, Allen. 
3. Philip, Orkney 1 b my home. 
4. It went off slam-bang. 
5. Put “ v " Ents on the canvass. 
6. Put smutt on your face. 
7. I hate shams. 
8. Tobac only lives. 
9. Will It bear me, Athon. 
10. Is buff a lost “ eakcr.” 
11. My health Is “middling.” 
tar Answer in two weeks. l. o. 
- 
NAME PUZZLE. 
Beauty trees, about eight years old, to which I 
have applied the oil each year since they were 
planted, and they have not as yet shown any 
blight.” This is the experience of a correspond¬ 
ent of the Prairie Farmer.We find 
the following rather remarkable statement in 
the London Farmer : “ Ostriches are known to 
be very voracious. They will snatch a bright 
button off one’s coat or swallow pipe, tobacco, 
fire, and all, it you approach too near to them 
whilst smoking. Ostrich breeders have an un¬ 
limited stock of stories as to the thieving and 
digestive faculties of the ostrich. An ostrich 
that died suddenly at Rome was a fair sample 
of this kind. It had been long on exhibition, 
and suffocated itself a day or two ago by thrust¬ 
ing its neck between the bars of its inclosure. 
A post-mortem examination took place, and 
there were found in its stomach four large 
stones, eleven smaller ones, seven nails, a 
necktie pin, an envelope, thirteen copper 
coins, fourteen beads, oue French franc, two 
small keys, a piece of handkerchief, a silver 
medal of the Pope, and the cross of an Italian 
Order.".“From nurses who know 
more than the doctor, u»d who will not carry 
ont his directions, good Lord deliver us."—Ag. 
Gazette.Mr. S. M. Pearsall says 
(Mich. Pom. Soc ) that it was many years be¬ 
fore he learned how successfully to make an 
asparagus bed, viz: prepare the soil for 18 
inches or two feet in depth aud do not cut until 
tbe third year.Select the low lands 
for celery. Mucky soil is excellent. It is a 
marsh plant by nature.So far as at 
present known, the peach tree disease of yel¬ 
lows is incurable and there seems no doubt it 
is highly contagious. \\ herever it makes its 
dread appeamuce the tree should be destroyed, 
else tbe entire orchard and neighboring or¬ 
chards may be considered as doomed. 
Grape vines planted this 6priug will be weak¬ 
ened if more than one shoot be permitted to 
grow.We often wonder why Mr. C. 
M. Hovey, whose horticultural contributions 
are frequently seen in English periodicals, so 
rarely writes for home journals. Is it that he 
is more interested in foreign horticulture than 
in our own?.We find the two follow¬ 
ing items in the N. Y. Herald under the head¬ 
ing of “ Religious 
In Michigan social etiquette permits a bride 
to be married without gloves because that’s the 
way she handles Ihe groom after marriage. 
A Wisconsin wotnuu has been married fifty- 
eight years aud has never missed buildiug her 
own kitchen fire. Her busbaud is probably the 
oldest fire-escape on record. 
Place three female names so as to form a fourth. 
tsi~ Answer in two weeks. l. o. 
DIAGONAL PUZZLE. 
1, a consonant; 2, A French pronoun; 3, A sort 
of nose; 4, Lazy; 0, a stream of water. Primals 
and diagonals form two animals. l. o. 
tar Answer In two weeks. 
-- 
PUZZLER ANSWERS.-May 29. 
Half Square : 
A L M A G It A 
L E I P O A 
M I D S T 
APSE 
GOT 
R A 
A 
Name Puzzle :—Absalom, Stephen, Alexander. Ini¬ 
tials form “ Asa." 
Mr. Rowe, of Michigan, says: “No matter 
how much care wc may give the Osage orange 
hedge, portions will die out in severe winters.” 
.Mr. Taylor says: “With proper 
plants in proper hands faun hedges can be 
made profitable. Men need to study this mat¬ 
ter as thoroughly as tree or fruit growing.” 
Mr: Gulley asks: " Are they growiug more or 
better hedges in the Eastern Hiatus than fifty 
years ago, or are they not gradually giving up 
the business?".Now 1 b the time to 
make the garden profitable.How buck¬ 
wheat before the 20th for this latitude. 
There is probably no better late winter squash 
than the Ilubbard.A new disease and 
a new remedy. We see the following adver¬ 
tisement posted up in New Jersey: “ A Jersey 
cure for Jersey chills.” 
