492 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
ftttos of tjje Wttlt. 
MISCELLANEOUS. 
Monday, March 17th, 1878. 
The event, that excited the greatest Interest here 
during the week was the contest among pedes¬ 
trians at Gilmore’s Garden for the Astley belt, 
typical of the championship of long-distance walk¬ 
ing. O’Leary, of Chicago, Kurils of the same city and 
ilarrltnan of Boston, tried to keep the belt In tills 
country to which the first of them had brought it 
not long since; while Rowell, a little Englishman 
sent over hy the donor. Sir John Astley, to fetch It 
back, was pluck!ly resolved to obey orders, and 
easily managed to carry out Ills resolution. The 
first day of the six during which the struggle last¬ 
ed, the Britisher got a start of 95 miles, and this 
he steadily maintained to the end, occasionally 
Increasing it by a few miles whenever he wished to 
do so. O’Leary broke down on the third day, much 
to the disappointment of the public with whom he 
was the favorite, and not a little to the loss of his 
host of mends many of wnoin had bet heavily on 
his success. Ills two former successful struggles 
for the belt, had greatly Injured his constitution, 
and want of proper training and care of himself 
had increased the damage. Besides Ills share of 
the gate money, he Is reported to have lost $ 2,000 
In bets owing to his failure, on the ex-cham¬ 
pion's collapse, the hopes of those who wished 
Rowell’s defeat hung at first upon Harrlman, but 
on the fourth day he covered only 50 miles, showed 
marked signs of distress, and continued very 
shaky until the end. Ennis, who had hitherto 
been taking matters easy, now took second place, 
varying from 23 to 30 miles behind the Engllsuian, 
and hung on at this distance to the close of the 
contest. The following table will be of interest to 
those of our readers who prize tests of manhood 
and endurance: 
THE COMPLETE HECORO. 
The following table shows the number of miles 
made each day during the walk: 
Harri- 
Howell. Ennis, man. O'Learv. 
First day. 110 95 WO Wi 
Second day. HI 78 86 7u> 4 
Third day. 86 7 7 84 51 
Fourth day. 77 85 65 — 
Fifth day. 67 7U 65 — 
Sixth day. 73 8(1 60 
Totals. 500 476 430 315 
HOURS OF REST EACH DAY. 
Harri- 
Rvicetl. Ennis, man. O'ljenru. 
Dai/. H.M.S. U.M.A U. M. "s'. 
First. 3 58 39 4 3 1 i>4 3 31 64 6 06 .52 
Second. 6 39 22 7 in 97 4 16 03 6 27 o4 
Third. 6 5 7 50 5 62 20 6 48 59 4 11 21 
Fourth. lU 16 59 6 20 14 12 00 29 
Fifth. 9 22 36 7 35 34 7 37 42 
Sixth. . ... 2 27 24 8 65 24 5 17 34 
Totals. 38 43 50 85 25 33 38 31 41 15 45 17 
ACTUAL WALKING TIME. 
//. Jf. S- H. M. S. 
Rowell. lo2 la 15 Hurriman. 102 13 69 
Ennis. lod 31 27 O’Leary. 48 15 43 
AVERAGE TIME PER MILE. 
XI. H. M. S- 
Rowell... . 13 16 llarriuian. 13 32 
Ennis. 18 30 O’Leary. 13 35 
it will Ik* seen that the winner traveled within a 
veiy final I fraction of live miles an lidtr the whole 
l ime In was on the track, lie did a great deal of 
trotting and It is generally conceded that the 
walker will ha ve no chance with a runner In su-Ji 
contests In future. During the week, the attend¬ 
ance at the building was very large, although 
the price of admission was raised on Thursday ri o.u 
sue. io $l. Vanderbilt charged $6,800 rent for the 
week; lire, gas, attendance, etc, would add say 
two more to expenses. At present It ts estimated 
that the gate-money amounts to at least $50,o.io, 
leaving $ 40 , 01 x 1 to be divided as follows among Hie 
three contestants who covered 450 miles or over: 
Hu well.4) per cent. $20,0110 
Kunla ...30 •* ‘ 1-'. 0 
ILirruuan.. .iU ” 8,000 
It Is very probable that these amounts will be 
somewhat Increased; but in any event each con¬ 
testants feet have won him In a week more than 
hlo head would be likely to earn In a lifetime. 
Some rowdies tried at one time to create a riot to 
prevent the plucky little Englishman from win¬ 
ning, but respectability chiefly by mea ns of police¬ 
men’s clubs vigorously wielded, proved too strong 
for rowdyism. 
Already about 33,ooo applications for pensions 
under the late law, have been received at Wash¬ 
ington. It is estimated that more than half of 
them will be allowed on Investigation which com¬ 
mences next month, and that they wlU average 
about $900 each. AU this Is mere guess-work, 
but It Is not guess-work that they must cost 
the Treasury upwards of $80,000,000 and possi¬ 
bly twice that sum. As no appropriations have 
hitherto been made to meet this outlay, prompt 
payment Is hardly probable. There Is likely 
to be a lively scramble for office In the 
next Senate. Twenty-seven places In Its gift are 
worth not loss than $ 2,000 a year each for about live 
month’s easy employment—not work. Altogether 
it controls nearly loo offices with salaries ranging 
from about #800 to $ 6,000 for the yearly session 
averaging less than six months. The consent of 
vice-president Wheeler, however, Is necessary for 
the removal of most of the present employes. In 
that Hives’s embrogllo In Va., It Is said the In¬ 
dicted State Judges will decline to give ball; but 
will go to jail if necessary, and apply to chief Jus¬ 
tice Waite for a wilt of habeas corpus so as to 
get an early decision upon the constitutionality 
of Judge Hives’s action and on the Civil Rights 
Bill under which he acts. Like the nation In¬ 
diana must submit to an extra session of Its Leg¬ 
islature, because political legislation prevented 
the passage of necessary appropriations. The ex¬ 
pense entailed on the State by this little trick 
will be from $ 25,000 to $50,ooo. Judge Blodgett 
of Chicago has been veudlcated from the charges 
made against him by the old whiskey ring. Capt. 
Eads has been paid the $ 750,000 voted him by Con¬ 
gress for his improvements of the southwest-pass 
of the Mississippi. How long will the Improve¬ 
ment last despite the vast quantity of mud and 
debris brought down by the Father of Waters, 
and the shifting bottom of his mouths, for he has 
three of them? 
The report of Gen. Crook’s court of inquiry con¬ 
cerning the late massacre of Cheyennes at Fort 
Robinson, gives a complete history of the affair, 
points out certain errors committed by the officers 
in charge of the troops, but attaches no blame to 
anyone In the military service and recommends 
no further action. Gen. Crook approves of the 
findings. In the U. 8. Court at Louisville, last 
Monday, Samuel McKee, a well-known republican 
lawyer. In defending some counterfeiters, showed 
three dies for the manufacture of spurious coin 
and said he could prove that the government de¬ 
tectives who arrested his clients, had themselves 
manufactured and sold counterfeit coin and used 
those dies. It Is estimated that, there are in this 
city now 11,393 men compulsorily Idle, against 25,- 
400 in 1873, 
The Butter, Cheese and Egg Association assem¬ 
bled last week at Chicago, elected James F. Joyce 
of this city as President, R. M. Settler of Iowa as 
Secretary aLd Treasurer, and John A. Willett, ot 
Massachusetts as first Vice-President. Bayard 
Taylor’s body arrived In this city last Thursday, 
In charge of hls wife and daughter. The llags on 
all public and many private buildings, were half- 
masted, and many other tokens of respect paid 
the dead traveler, author and Minister. Next 
day It was taken to Ills old home at Cedar- 
croft, near Philadelphia, and burled. The Fltz 
John Porter board of Inquiry recommends hls 
exoneration from the oltl charges on which he was 
condemned In the heat of late “ Onpleasantnoss.” 
The California Republicans, while conceding hon¬ 
esty of intention to the President In vetoing the 
anti-Chinese bill, declaim all responsibility for It. 
The constitution lately framed and adopted by 
that Slat*, If constitutional, is so hostile to our 
almond-eyed visitors tha t they are pretty certain 
soon to abandon the “ extraordinary due climate” 
of the Golden state, ft Is not Impossible that our 
treaty with China may soon lie so modified as to 
restrict Immigration from that, overteemtng coun¬ 
try. Yet, after afi, the exact figures with regard 
to Chinese immigration at the Man Francisco cus¬ 
tom House, show that the not Increase last year' 
was only 604—5,075 having arrived and 6,071 having 
departed, 
Chicago ts to have an elevated railroad lo miles 
long. Canada spent #177,044 In promoting Immi¬ 
gration last year, and 11,220 of the Immigrants she 
enticed, slipped across t.he line Into the United 
(States. As a prool that business la reviving, It 
may bo mentioned that, according to the bank 
clear]tigs, the total business represented by pay¬ 
ments in 22 cities (luring February last, Was 11.8 
per cent, greater than iii Feb isis, though lately 
prices have been 10 per cent, lower. There is some¬ 
thing tangible in this proof. Archbishop Purcell's 
Indebtedness and the consequent hardsl .ps of hls 
jXMir creditors are still prominent topics before the 
public. The ltomau Catholic body generally seems 
Inclined troth an esptn•it-de-wirtm to help him in his 
difficulties by subscribing towards the payment or 
partial payment of at least the most pressing or 
hls debts. Hls own available assets arc said to be 
so trilling that they wouldn’t pay more than from 
one lo ten cents on the dollar, according to differ¬ 
ent accounts. At a meeting ot 60 priests, held 
lately In Cincinnati, some very ugly stories were 
told about Father Purcell having been guilty or 
some very discreditable breaches of trust in appro¬ 
priating funds placed with him merely for safe¬ 
keeping d) towards paying hls own Indebtedness, 
and a criminal prosecution. It is said, eau only be 
withhold by charity, other reports exonorate 
him iron) everything, except gross carelessness 
and disregard of the interests of those who placed 
implicit fallli In him, mules surely criminal enough. 
Several have taken legal action civilly against 
tlie Archbishop. 
FOREIGN. 
A terrible disaster lias overtaken t he Hungarian 
town of b/.egedln, containing about 80,dim hiUabl- 
tauts. The town Is situated on a plain, aud the 
river Thelss which flows through It Is confined by 
huge embankments, larger than the levees on 
each side of the lower Mississippi. The late thaws 
and rains rapidly incited the snow ail along the 
river and on the mountains among which It hikes 
its rise, and poured an immense body or water 
Into Its channel. The Inhabitants of the city, 
aware of the danger to which this unusual inllux 
exposed lhe embankments, hastily Strengthened 
them In every possible way ; but despite their ut¬ 
most efforts the vast body of waters swept them 
away hast Wednesday and the city was completely 
inundated. An official statement shows that 9,700 
buildings were destroyed and only 201 left stand, 
lng. 'The estimates ot deaths range from 2,1100 to 
6 , 000 , and now epidemic dlptherla and other fatal 
diseases are appearing among the homeless In¬ 
habitants who throng the neighboring country. 
Sixteen thousand horses and cattle and 90,000 
sheep, together with vast stores of grain and other 
farm products have been destroyed, and a broad 
reach of country swept bare by the torrent. The 
Emperor of Austria Is now at the scene of the dis¬ 
aster, and has contributed 20,000 norms towards 
relieving the public distress, other contributions 
are flowing in from all quarters, the panic-stricken 
fugitives are hospitably treated so far as the means 
and accommodations of the surrounding country 
allow; hut still the suffering is appalling. 
Herman. 
THE CONNECTICUT MUTUAL. 
This model life Insurance company issues to-day 
Its thirty-third annual statement, and, as Is usual, 
In the matter of Its regularly published report, 
shows advantages gained in the right direction. It 
has Increased Its amount of assets, lessened its ra¬ 
tio of expense, increased the amount of payment 
to policy-holders, and lessened the amount of In¬ 
terest deferred. Against the Item •• net. premiums 
in course of collection ” It writes a3 In the report 
of last year, *• none.” Its economical administra¬ 
tion Is shown in the low ratio of expense of man¬ 
agement to receipts, 6.57 per cent. 
The Connecticut Mutual was the first, In fact,the 
only company that at once, upon the proposal of a 
New York company to sell Insurance at a discount, 
publicly advertised Its purpose to do business as It 
had ever done, upon the safe accredited plan, un¬ 
derstood by all the leading actuaries and experts 
of the country to be a true one. Acting always 
upon the only established principle that, looks to 
financial results, which in life Insurance teaches 
that a life Insurance company to be safe must be 
more than safe, the management of the Connec¬ 
ticut Mutual lias always conducted Its affairs to 
the entire discredit of speculation. The showing 
of the statement to-day Is the best proof of the 
wisdom of such action. 
.schemes that are laid for sudden benefit., imag¬ 
ined or partially real, may be apparently success¬ 
ful as viewed by the sanguine man who hopes to 
gain advantage indirectly, but any departure from 
the proven path of rectitude In the administration 
of the business ol a life Insurance compauy must 
eventually lead to disappointment. 
In a mutual life Insurance company’s business 
there is hut one thing to sell, and that thing Is the 
common property ol all.Its members. For their 
respective parts of that property they have paid 
the fair, fixed, and universally recognized price. 
At the exact cost the new-comer makes Ills pur¬ 
chase. If the business has been largo and the In¬ 
vestments have been large In yield, at each year’s 
close he has returned to him the proper dividend, 
in any event the surplus, In which as In all other 
matters and prapeny he has an Interest, should he 
so great that the most positive safety can be guar¬ 
anteed. 
The Connecticut Mutual beglnB Its thirty-fourth 
year In the absolute possession of what makes a 
life company entitled to the foremost rank In busi¬ 
ness institutions. The Information, the ability, 
the truthfulness, the economy of Its management 
have been illustrated In the years past, and never 
more so than In that Just closed. The course 
marked out by its direction Is emphatically the 
same that has ever been pursued, and entitles It 
to the highest confidence on the part of all who 
would deal for future benefit with a first-class life 
Insurance company .—[Boston Daily Advertiser. 
gomrstit (fEtoitomg. 
CONDUCTED BY EMILY MAPLE. 
PEN THOUGHTS FROM EVERY-DAY 
HOUSE. 
ANNIE L. JACK. 
Early Spring Preparations. 
And now the long wiuter is nearly over, the 
strong March sun, the softening March winds, 
are slowly but surely undermining the founda¬ 
tion of the snow* drift causing the ice on river 
and lake to become treacherous and unsafe. 
We find the mornings longer ; we observe our 
afternoons give us more time, but the even¬ 
ings arc much shorter for work or recreation. 
Thus it dawns upon us that the “ winter of 
our discontent” has passed, that wc are near 
another spring with new hopes, new joys, 
with its varied work, and pleasant surround¬ 
ings—the time of Nature’s grand awakening 
is at hand. The sap already flows on the 
sunny side of the Maple, aud some day we 
shall hear the carol of a bird, to stir our blood 
to a quicker heart throb of enjoyment at its 
very sound. Let us make the best use of this, 
the last of our winter leisure, aud try to be 
what the Scotch call “ forehanded,” in our 
spring preparations. 
Lately in several houses where I have chanced 
to call, 1 have noticed the young ladies seemed 
to keep on hand u cotton stocking—some plain, 
others of fancy open work—that was taken 
up when callers came, by slow degrees to bu 
completed. In several instances almost the same 
words were used, “tine can knit and talk 
and they wear better than bought stockings and 
can be refooted.” Little. Mrs. Mackredy had 
all the summer clothing for each of the family 
overlooked and packed away in drawers, aud 
was busy making pretty little bibs for the 
baby’s summer use, Then another family 
where I visited, were intent on needle-work 
iu the shape of curtains to be put up after 
house-cleaning, while in the kitchen the men 
folks were making improvements, by planing 
and leveling the floor, filling all cracks with 
putty ready for a coat of paint. I saw a neigh¬ 
bor busy at work the other day in a shed near 
his ice-house, and lie explained to uie that he 
was building a pantry to keep tilings cool in 
in summer. 
So each in his own way looks forward to the 
future according to disposition and character, 
and makeB preparation for the busy days 
when in our different departments wc must 
‘•make hay while the sun shines.” 
In the kitchen every housekeeper has her 
work to do, and it is a go<?d plan iu tills mouth 
to look over all vegetables, and fruit, picking 
out the best for longer-keeping, aud using 
that which is likely to spoil. Apples, if care- 
fullj r picked over, can be made into a delicacy 
for June aud July by cauuiug all the quarters 
aud half apples when peeled, and filling the 
jars that have been emptied of other preserves. 
In this way they come iu when other fruit i6 
scarce, a season that overtakes most of us 
just before strawberries are ready. All gar¬ 
den lovers too are busy now, looking with 
longing eyeB at the catalogues that promise 
so many new and rare things for our beauty- 
loving eyes ; looking over seeds, sending in our 
orders, starting cuttings and seeds, and plan¬ 
ning the garden of the future, that in our 
hopeful minds knows no blight or mildew, 
and is not spoiled by drought or flood. So 
as these bright days come before regular 
work can be commenced, let us be up and 
doing ; for these are indeed the weeks of 
preparation. 
A STORMY DAY. 
Looking out of the wiudow this morning. 
I saw that it was just such a day as I had been 
wishing for. one in which to work without 
interruption. Not eveu a tramp would exert, 
himself to come, for the snow was falling 
fast, and drifting as it fell. After doing my 
share of the housework. 1 went up stairs and 
began with the clothes-eloset, taking every¬ 
thing out from the topmost shelf to the lowest, 
and from every hook. Then our maid ”Mol- 
lie” washed the shelves and floor, while l ex¬ 
amined the mountain of buudlcs that lay be¬ 
fore me. On one side of the closet we keep 
several large bag6 for scraps of various kinds. 
The bags are made of calico, with strings of 
strong tape to haug them by, aud bits of white 
cloth are sewed on. for labels which are 
written with indelible ink. If anything is 
wanted from any particular sack, iu a hurry, 
it is a great help to know just where to fiud it. 
In one sack old cotton cloth is kept, in an¬ 
other. old linen etc. In looking over such 
articles a few times in the course of a year, 
we find a great deal that we do not need, so 
part of the liuen, cotton and flannel is made 
into a peat roll to be sent to a hospital from- 
which we often receive an appeal lor anything 
that we can 6pare. Next the cast-off gar¬ 
ments suitable for both sexes, are put aside 
to be given to the inmates of an orphan asy¬ 
lum. How much better to dispose of old clothes 
where they will be of use, than to keep them 
to accumulate dust and moths. 
Before noon the closet is dry, and each arti¬ 
cle back iu its place ; so I proceed to the store¬ 
room to sec how the supplies are holding out. 
The cellar is visited next, but there is little to 
do, as it has daily attention. The moment we 
fiud decaying apples or potatoes, they are 
trimmed, the best parts given to the horses or 
cows, aud the poorest added to the compost 
heap. We uever feed whole fruits or vegeta¬ 
bles to animals, lest they get choked, and de¬ 
cayed substauces arc not fit to offer any 
animal. It is afternoon. The weather is less 
boisterous, and the soltly-fulling snow puts 
me iu the spirit of writing. My letter is done, 
aud there will bo time before night to cut out 
6ome work that requires considerable plan¬ 
ning. The basket is piled high enough to 
furnish me with sewing for a week to come. 
Twilight is upon us, aud 1 will spend a few 
minutes of it in preparing sticks lor labels, as 
very soon we will sow seeds iu boxes iu the 
house aud hot-bud. Thu suow storm is over. 
Thu last meal of the day is finished, and I’ll 
take my place in (ho family circle for the eve¬ 
ning. I am, " with weariuess oppressed,” 
but that will soon bu forgotten, for my bauds 
will be occupied with some easy work aud I 
will listcu, while somebody reads aloud from 
the good old Rural. m. g. k. 
Lyons, Iowa, January, 1879. 
DOMESTIC RECIPES. 
1 relieve of all the cakes I make, those 
made after the following recipes are praised 
the most, aud disappear the fastest. 
dream Cake. 
One cup of sugar; two eggs; one tablespoou- 
ful of butter; three tablespoon fuls of sweet 
milk; one anil a half cup of flour; one tea¬ 
spoonful of soda and two of cream-of-tartar. 
Stir the sugar, butter, and yelk of eggs to a 
cream, then add the milk, whites of eggs, soda 
and orcuin-of-tartar. Beat fast for a minute 
or two aud bake in three jelly tins. 
Oream. 
The cream should be made before the cake 
is and put on hot. Heat oue half cup of sweet 
milk, and stir iu as soon as it boils one egg, 
one half cuj) of sugar aud one half cup of corn 
starch. Pile up the cakes with this spread be¬ 
tween. 
White Fruit Oako. 
One cup of butter ; two of sugar; three aud 
a half of Hour; whites of three eggs, the whole 
of one; one cup of milk; one teaspoonful of 
soda; two of cream-of-tartar ; over one oup of 
raisins. Other fruit may be added if desired. 
To Oook Veal. 
Roil the slices in beaten eggs, aud then in 
rolled crackers. Melt a small quantity of but¬ 
ter in the frying pau and place the veal in 
it, cover tightly and let it stew for an hour. 
Pie Orust. 
I have not had any “essence of pork” or 
lard in my house for a long time, but iu place 
