AUG, 7 
5M 
THE BUBAL WEW-YOBMEB. 
pairing for tbt fjomtg. 
REMINISCENCES OF A LITTLE GIRL. 
MRS. M. J. GALFIN. 
CHAP. XI. 
A KIRK AT SEA. 
One lovely day when the ship was making good 
time, and all on board seemed to partake of the 
lreshness and beauty of sea and sky, suddenly 
there arose a long column of flame from the roof of 
the cook-house, and simultaneously burst forth 
that terrible cry of Fire: Fire! from every throat. 
Dismay and terror were depleted on every coun¬ 
tenance to think of perishing far from home on the 
mighty deep, as death, either by flie or drowning, 
seemed Inevitable to all. But the “ Manilla man,” 
of whom I have already spoken, rose equal to the 
emergency. Seizing the burning material he 
heaved It overboard, while giving his orders to the 
excited crowd, who seemed thereby panic stricken. 
The Are originated from some clothes which the 
women had hung on a lino to dry, right across the 
flue of the cook-house, where they took lire and 
were the cause of the mischief. By the united 
efforts of passengers and crew the fire was at last 
subdued, but the cook-house and part of the rig¬ 
ging were completely demolished. After a few 
days, when the carpenter had all tilings " ship¬ 
shape ” once more, there came a fearful storm, 
which raged with unabated fury for 24 hours. The 
passengers had about concluded that the “shores 
of America they ne’er would see,” but a guiding 
hand willed It otherwise, for about daybreak on 
the second morning the wind lulled, and in a few 
hours naught could be seen save sunshine, and 
the foamy breakers chasing each other In wanton 
play. But the ship, how she looked! Battered 
and torn, with masts and sails down, and another 
leak had sprung In the huli which required Inces¬ 
sant pumping all day, until the carpenter succeed¬ 
ed In closing the Assure. 
About a week after the storm two large sharks 
could be seen following the ship, to the utter con¬ 
sternation of tne sailors, who say that they never 
leave till some one on board dies and Is thrown 
overboard. In this case they were right, for there 
were two children on board sick at the time, and 
after a few days' Illness they both died. The 
heart-broken mothers pleaded to have their re¬ 
mains kept till land was reached, but that was an 
Impossibility, as they w ere In mid-ocean with no 
Ice on board. The burial service was read at sun¬ 
down on the day they died, and then the little 
bodies closely se wed up In stout sacks, were placed 
on an Inclined board and gently sllded off Into the 
fathomless ocean. A wall of dismay arose from 
the hearts or the parents who thus saw their pre¬ 
cious loved ones disappear forever. The know ledge 
that the sharks were following In the wake of the 
ship had been kept from the bereaved ones; but 
strange to relate, the morning after the burial 
the sharks had disappeared, and were never seen 
again during the voyage. 
All through these varying scenes the little 
Therese was filled with wonder and awe; but she 
at length became so familiar wltb the roar of 
the ocean that its surges never disturbed her rest. 
When about three or iour weeks out on their voy¬ 
age, they came in sight of some of the Islands of 
the archipelago, and while passing the Island or 
Montserrat, Uncle Tom made a crayon drawing of 
It, which Is still In his family as an heirloom. He 
also sketched the Bridgewater, the only vessel 
that had passed them during the whole trip. 
Drawing was a natural talent with Uncle Tom, 
and If In early life he had devoted his time and 
energy that way, he might to-day, If living, have 
rivaled our best artists, sometime after passing 
those Islands the ship was “becalmed,” that Is 
she floated Idly on the water with not a breatn to 
stir her canvas. The sea looked like glass and 
not a cloud could be discerned in the azure dome 
above them for days at a time. The heat became 
oppressive, and to give the lower deck passengers 
pure air, the captain had a large flue made out of 
cauvas; this was letdown through the hatchway, 
so that a current of air would be put In circula¬ 
tion from below. 
It was while gazing down this hatchway and 
wondering at the big “ cotton chimney ” that our 
heroine met with her first mishap of the voyage, 
if it had not been for an overruling Providence 
that guards our every action it might have been 
fatal. While looking do wn very intently through 
the opening, Bhe lost her balance and fell on the 
door of the lower hatchway that led to the bottom 
of the ship, where they kept the ballast. Halt of 
this lower trap-door was open, and If she had fall¬ 
en six inches nearer to the edge she would have 
gone down among the ropes and stones, and been 
dashed to pieces. Great was the consternation 
over this mishap to the ship’s favorite. O’Hara, 
the first marc, carried her up to the cabin In his 
arms, and Uncle Torn was almost powerless from 
the shock, as he thought his darling was surely 
killed by the fall. But little ones will sometimes 
bear severe knocks, and in a rew hour’s Therese 
was all right, save for some ugly looking bruises. 
After many days of idle, weary, drifting and wait¬ 
ing, a breeze at last apnrng up, and with renewed 
hope and vigor they once more sped away to that 
“ laud Of promise ” which seemed so far away to 
their longing eye. One day when the ship was 
making good headway, the little Therese, who was 
sitting on the guuwale of the boat, lost her white 
sunbonnet, and as It danced away over the crest 
of the billows, she Involuntarily arose to go after 
It The captain was near by, and seeing her In¬ 
tention, he seized her or she would have fallen 
overboard. 
There was a fascination for her In looking down 
Into the deep, blue-green water and watching the 
fishes as they dashed to and fro lu their play. 
And once while thus gazing down, a large “ gram¬ 
pus ” rose close to the ship’s side with a tremen¬ 
dous snort that startled her so much that she 
was ever after somewhat afraid to sit there 
alone. 
The day passed slowly by with little variation. 
But at length flocks of sea-gulls became visible, 
which the sailors averred was a sure indication 
that land would soon appear. Their surmises 
proved correct; for In a few days, tufts of grass 
and pieces of floatlug wood swept by to the In¬ 
tense delight of the passengers, who were In 
hopes that this long Journey would soon be ended. 
The ship was most thoroughly washed Inside and 
out, painted and put In good repair. A steam-tug 
was sent out from New Orleans to tow them up 
the Ballze, and just seven weeks after they left 
their native land tney reached the hospitable 
shores of free America. They had escaped ship¬ 
wreck by storms three times, and were freed from 
destruction by Are. Talcing all things into con¬ 
sideration, they had ample cause for thankfulness 
and rejoicing In thus safely reaching their des¬ 
tined haven. 
There Is but little shipping In these days at New 
Orleans, La., hut then It was a port almost as 
much used as New York. All along the wharfs of 
the “ Crescent City ” the sails could be seen flut¬ 
tering In the breeze, while now such an appear¬ 
ance would be the cause of much wonder. 
I have at last crossed “ the deep, blue sea ” with 
my heroine, and In my next I will tell you her 
story, as the years rolled by and she developed 
Into a noble woman. 
Marshall Co., Kan. 
--- 
LETTERS FROM THE COUSINS. 
Dear Uncle Mark Perhaps I do not clearly 
understand your regulations for admitting mem¬ 
bers to the Horticultural Club. When first or¬ 
ganized my Impression was that only the wry 
“young people ” were invited to enter. Recently, 
however, I have thought even the " hoary head ” 
might be found In the band of nephews and nieces, 
is this correct i If so, then, since I enjoy as to 
age the “ happy medium ” between these ex¬ 
tremes, perhaps you will favor my application for 
membership. Am l “ eligible ” In other respects, 
you may wlsu to know ? If a deep-rooted love for 
flowers, which dally grows upon me, a persever¬ 
ing hand-to-hand conflict with the many odds one 
encounters In their cultivation can make me 
“eligible,” then 1 am sure to be numbered with 
you. My yard would, no doubt, be considered by 
many of the coustns too small for much enter¬ 
prise, but therein are many lovely plants. My 
little cottage home is embowered in vines tot my 
own planting, the past live years,) and sur¬ 
rounded by verdure, and bloom. Most of the 
year the parterres and hedges are brightened 
by the flowers of a great many plants. 1 think 
that by taking an Interest in the matter each of 
us might help Uncle Mark materially In his ad¬ 
mirable plan of beautifying the world. Yours 
truly, Mrs. Virginia S. Hau.ru. 
Smyth Co., Va. 
[You are in every way eligible to membership,— 
L. M.J 
Dear Uncle Mark:—T he seeds so kindly sent 
us, by you came all right, for which accept our 
sincere thanks, our little boy was very much de¬ 
lighted to receive them. He laid off his plot of 
ground Into a small garden and planted many 
kinds of vegetables In It. For a boundary line he 
planted a row of pop corn nearly all round, and In 
the center he has a flower bed. He Is very proud 
of hts garden. Will you please tell me whether It 
Is necessary to cut the (cotton) string which 1 used 
to (le »ha graft to the stock in splice grafting, after 
the graft Is u sited to the stock Y (It 1 b). 1 put on 
345 grafts this spring, of apricots, plums, prunes, 
apples, cherries, pears and grapes, and thanks for 
your Instructions on the subject ; I have splice and 
bark-grafted, nearly all of them, some few large 
stocks l den-grafted. 1 also set 365 grape cuttings 
this Spring and last Fall. All are doing well. The 
dear old Rural Is certainly an educator In many 
ways. 1 would not miss It lor double its cost. Re¬ 
spectfully yours. MRS. P. S. Wise. 
Shenandoah Co., va. 
Dear Uncle Mark and Rural Cousins I take 
my pen In hand to ask you It you will receive me 
as one of the cousins. If It Is Dot too late, and 1 
hope not, please put my name on the list. My 
father has taken the good old Rural for a long 
time and we could not do without It If the cost of 
It were ik.iw a year. 1 have a better flower garden 
this Summer than last year. I planted lots of my 
seeds In boxes so as to have them early. Well, 
I must not make my letter any longer this time, it 
1 do l ncle Mark will say, “ What a letter ror the 
first,” and It will he sent Into that, great waste 
basket over In the corner. If Uncle Mark accepts 
me as one ol the cousins, I will, In my next, write 
you about my plants and pets. Your niece and 
well-wisher, Violet. 
Worcester Co., Mass. 
Dear Uncle Mark and Rural Cousins:—I have 
long wished to acknowledge the receipt of the 
Cuthbert Raspberry plants sent me by the Rural. 
I see you have members In the Horticultural Club 
out of their teens and perhaps 1 am not too old 
being years. If you will accept me I will be 
pleased and thankful. lama great lover of flow¬ 
ers. Perhaps some of the cousins have never 
been so fortunate as to see the graceful animal, 
the deer. Yesterday two fawns came close to our 
house; they were very pretty, but a neighbor 
killed them. You may hear from me again; 
meantime good-bye. Aunt Paioene. 
Etna Mills, California. 
Dear Uncle Mark I thought I would write a 
letter as all the other little girls are writing. 1 
live on a farm In Kansas (mamma and iny broth¬ 
ers and slaters aDd 1). We have a large orchard 
and the trees are so nice and shady, that 1 have a 
nice cool place for my play nouse In the Summer. 
I have three dolls and lots of chickens and a little 
dog; his name la Ned. I make a flower garden 
every Spring, but my flower seeds don’t come up 
as 1 want them to, and the flowers are not very 
pretty either; so I wish you would send me some 
of your prettiest flower Beeds you have and oblige 
Douglas Co., Kansas. Rosy Ashby. 
Dear Uncle Mark:—I have wanted to join your 
club for some time. My brother takes your paper 
and we all think it is spleDdld. I live on a farm, 
and would be glad to get any kind of either vege¬ 
table or flower seed. I like the Rural very much, 
especially the articles on sheep raising, as I am 
trying to raise some. 1 have two motherless 
lambs bow, don’t you think that Is a good start ? 
I wish some of the cousins would write to me, I 
would be glad to correspond with any of them. I 
think It would be good practice lor us to write to 
each other. Your affectionate niece, 
Russellville, Franklin Co., Ala. Alma Allen. 
Dear Uncle and Cousins:— I received the seeds 
that you sent all right, and send many thanks lor 
them. Our flower garden looks very pretty. The 
roses and other flowers are tn bloom. I do not go 
to school now, but expect soon to have to go about 
a mile and a half distant. We have eight kinds of 
grape vines—the Concord, Isabella, Telegraph, 
Martha, Wilder and several other kinds. I must 
close now for fear my letter will be too long. So 
good-bye, with love to all the cousins. Your affec¬ 
tionate niece, Lillie S. Babcock. 
Norfolk Co., Va. 
Dear Uncle Mark and Cousins :—It has been a 
long time since I have written to you. Last Summer 
I did not have very good success with my flowers, 
l received the flower seeds chat you sent Die and 
they are doing well. I received my book entitled 
“ Donald’s Schooldays,” which was instructive as 
well as interesting. 1 have a darling little baby 
brother and sister which I spend the most of my 
time with. I will not make my letter too long this 
time. Wishing you all good-bye, I remain your 
niece, Carrie B. Wheeler. 
Yates Co., N. Y. 
Uncle Mark :—I live in San Francisco, but I 
am now visiting a friend of my father’s Mrs. Wins¬ 
low by name, she lives In Port Townsend W. T. 
Mrs. Winslow takes the Rural and we all like It 
very much. 1 came from San Francisco all alone 
in a ship. There were no ladles on board, nor 
passengers either. The people say 1 am very 
brave to come alone. 1 was sea-slek seven or eight 
days. We were 16 days coming here. I am nine 
years old. Gaii. H ackley. 
Port Townsend, W. T. 
Dear Uncle Mark Please may I join your 
Horticultural Club ? I am eleven years old. We 
live on a farm one mile from Roanoke. I love to 
work with flowers I have two brothers and one 
sister: Archie, Mabel and Walter. Archie and 1 
go to school three-quarters of a mile from here. 
We like to read the cousins’ letters. I hope you 
will not drop this Into your waste-basket. 
Huntington Co., Ind. Lillian E. Huffman, 
Dear Uncle Mark and cousins :— I should like 
to join the Horticultural Club If there Is space for 
my name. We have six sheep and had thirteen 
lambs, but one of them died. I have two brothers, 
James and Elbert. 1 am eleven years of age and 
go to Bchool at Frankfort. If this does not find Its 
way Into the basket 1 will write again. 
Yours truly, Ida M. Huntley. 
Herkimer Co., N. Y. 
alilratj) grafting. 
Artless Simplicity.— A lady visited New York 
city, and saw on the sidewalk a ragged, cold and 
hungry little girl, gazing wistfully at some cakes 
in a shop window, sue stopped, and taking the 
little one by the hand led her into the store. 
Though she was aware that bread would be better 
for the cold child than cake, yet, desiring to gratify 
the shivering and forlorn one, she bought and 
gave her the eake she wanted. She then took her 
to another place, where she procured her a shawl 
and other articles 01 comtoi t. The grateful little 
creature looked the benevolent lady lull la the 
face, and with artless simplicity asked: “ Are you 
God's wire ?” Did the most eloquent speaker ever 
employ words to better advantage ? 
The richness of religious thought and sentiment 
may be Inferred from the lmmenseness of Its liter¬ 
ature. ir you will cast your thought over the 
area covered by letters, you will llnd that a large 
part of the area Is covered by toe arguments and 
experiences aud reveries of religion. All along 
from the times of far-off Egypt to our own period, 
this single sentiment has said more than has been 
uttered by the sentiment of ambition or of love. 
About a year before his death some one sent 
William Cullen Bryant a picture of apple blossoms, 
in acknowledging It he wrote : *• They do not 
exactly suit the last day’s of life’s December, but 
they agree charmingly with that new spring¬ 
time of existence, my entrance to which cannot be 
far off, and wnere 1 hope to And the orchards of 
Paradise in lull blossom.” 
If there be any true religion In us, it Is much 
more Likely to he discovered and drawn Into actual 
exercise by an exhibition of the glory and grace 
of Christ than hy searching for It lu the rubbish 
of our past feellugs. To discover the small grains 
of steel mixed among a quantity of dust, It were 
much better to make use of a magnet, than a 
microscope.— a uilrew Fuller. 
Has It never occurred to us, when surrounded 
by sorrows, that they may he sent to us only for 
our Instruction—as we darken the cages of birds 
when we wish to teach them to sing t—JilclUer. 
iariaus. 
BRJEFLETS. 
If kept clean, says the London Garden, 
asphalte is undoubtedly the best pavement 
yet discovered for crowded streets. 
“ Jnsticia’’ who writes the interesting Leaflets 
in the above magazine, speaking of the great 
thirst of the public for variety, says that in 
the case of melons one may see “new” kinds 
brought out year after year without the 
slightest Improvement in merit or the slightest 
difference from the old kinds which have been 
known for ages. Thus somebody raises an 
extra-fiue specimen owing to favorable con¬ 
ditions of season, and Immediately assumes 
that it is a new variety and gives it a new 
name. A certaiu number of seed houses 
must try it to know what it may he worth 
and a certain number of people order it 
for trial, and the result is that a small stock 
can be got rid of..Real progress 
is possible and desirable in many ways, but 
the christening of a melon with a new name 
because it happens to be a fine specimen has 
nothing to do with progress aud is, in fact, 
a dishonorable practice.. One 
individual from Jersey City writes Dr. Tanner 
advising him to use the water supplied to the 
inhabitants of that city, because it contains a 
large amount of meat iu the shape of insects, 
suails aud worms.While drink¬ 
ing some water, Dr. Tanner asked one of his 
watchers to take a drink with him. The prof¬ 
fer was declined and the Doctor then asked 
him it he had sworn off ?.E. 
P. Roe sends ns the following telegram : “ Come 
see Snyder Blackberry, It is wonderful—also 
Cuthbert Raspberry. ”.Bos¬ 
ton is making an effort, through its news¬ 
papers. to induce the school authorities to 
have the children of the public schools taught 
to swim. 
-- 
CATALOGUES, ETC., RECEIVED. 
The Book of Ensilage, or the New Dispen¬ 
sation for Farmers, by John M. Bailey; pub¬ 
lished by the author, Billerica, Mass.; price $2. 
This is a handsomely gotten up volume of 200 
pages, neatly printed aud bound in cloth. In 
it the author gives his experience with ensil¬ 
age during the past year, and according to the 
book it has been an extraordinary success, and 
Mr. Bailey does not hesitate to advise his fel¬ 
low farmers in the strongest terms to embark 
iu this “new dispensation." We are of the 
opinion that the author attaches altogether too 
much importance to the system of ensilage. 
He paints it in very seductive colors and makes 
some extravagant statements, which we would 
be pleased to see carried out in practice. He 
thus states that two cows can be kept the year 
round in excellent condition on the ensilage 
grown on half an acre; that mutton can be 
raised for nothing if wool costs 30 cents a pound, 
etc. Mr. Bailey may be sincere in his state¬ 
ments, hut we think they will certainly mis¬ 
lead those who unconditionally put their trust 
therein. Our reasons for this may be found in 
previous numbers of the Rural New-Yorker. 
We describe the contents of (he last half of the 
hook in the author's own words. “I have 
added a short description of the herds aud 
flocks of the‘Winning Farm’ and 'Virginia 
Stock Farm,’ together with more or Icsb con¬ 
cerning the different breeds. I confess that 
my object is not altogether a benevolent desire 
to benefit others solely, but is partly for the 
purpose of advertising my horses, cattle, sheep 
and swine.” 
Refort of Indiana State Board of Agri¬ 
culture for the year 187‘J.—This is a fine vol¬ 
ume of 500 pages bound m cloth, but printed in 
rather small type. It contains a report of the 
proceedings of the Board of Agriculture, a list 
of premiums awarded at the last State Fair, 
some able essays by professors of Purdue Uni¬ 
versity aud others, and also reports of the pro¬ 
ceedings of district and county societies, with 
doings of several associations in the State. 
The appendix contains a sketch of the Indiana 
Pioneer Association, with the names, ages and 
number of years in the State, of some 240 mem¬ 
bers, all being among the first settlers of the 
State. The book contains much valuable in¬ 
formation in regard to Indiana. 
Pamphlet. “ Manual Labor at the Michigan 
Agricultural College." Spoken at Manchester 
and Romeo Institutes. By Pres. T. C. Abbott. 
President Abbot is the best possible authority 
on the labor system, as it has been practiced 
for many years at the institution of which he 
is the head. He has been a keen observer of the 
physical, intellectual and moral results of man¬ 
ual labor upon student life, and in this lecture 
he has given ihe question a brief and impartial 
examination, from whieh only one conclusion 
can be drawn, and that is that manual labor, iu 
agricultural colleges, is both practicable and ne¬ 
cessary to fit the student for his work in after life. 
