a tifully poetic. but if those tombstones killed by too much mending, and sewing, and baking, and scrubbing, and scouring; the weapon with which she was slain was a broom,.or a sewing lowly off his coat, there went a sob e school. They saw then d not want to remove his oat, ahd they saw the S ad almost cut t I stout, healthy b t . - and anxieties of the household should comTB The man of the house is dead, 11pon you for one week, you would lU3 and his widow is taking charge of the fit for the insane asylum, The half* premises, This is the widow, Martha rested housekeeper arises in the mornead. m a t , is iit any woncler that the con- nna, Michigan, won distinc- ments are torn; what if they do not that spirit! God give us that selfknow their lessons; what if they have denying spirit, so that whether we brushed back, ancl the dresses are ad- lost a hat or sash-they must be ready. are in humble spheres or in conspiciijusted as well as,‘in SO short a t ~ m e , Then YOU have all the diet of the day, BUS spheres we may perf or^ our who:^ and perhaps of several days, to plan; utcher has sent meat the grocer has sent as plain Hugh MChas been more than a Mason. He has been a cooper, farmer, banker, lawyer-and politician t o a limited degree. For almost half a century he has been inside Masonic ranks. HOwas given his ~ntroduction ingham lodge No. HQ if Some piece of silver be go favorite chalice be cracked, or the roof leak, or the plumbing fail, or any one Of a t h o ~ i s a nthings ~ occur-you must be ready. pring weather comes, and there mugt be a revolution in the fambe ready. Spring weather comes, and YOU must shut out the northern blast; but what if the moth has preceded YOU to the chest; what if, during the year, the children have outgrown the apparel of last year; what if the fashions have clianged. Your house must be an b k , although they may not have always had on their best, for none o? US always has on our best; if we did, our ---best ~ ~ o ~‘not i l d be worth having on. They throw open the door, and greet Christ. They say: “~ood-morning, Mzster; come in and did not come alone; lreep qiiestionab~ec h a r a c t e r s ~ friends with him, a of city visitors would tilro~vany country home into pertur~ation*I suppose loosen the croup, something to cool the also the walk from the city had been burn, someth~ngto poultice the innama good appetizer. The lritchen depart- m ~ t i s~on~ e~t h i n gto silence the jumpcable, but of its pop~ilaritywith the ment that day was a very i ~ p o r t a n t ing tooth, something to soothe the earpeople at large there can be no doubt. department, and I suppose that Mar- ache. You must be in m l f a dozen tha had no sooner greeted the guests p1N.w at the same time, or you must hy restrict immigration? Our po- than she fled to that roo~ii. Mary had attempt to be, If, uiider all this wear ice courts help us to ans~verthe qties- no w o r r ~ ~ about e ~ t house~oldaffairs. and tear o f life, Martha makes a n imion. A professional beggar, who patient rush upon the library or drawcame from ~ n g l a n da few years g o , ing-room, be patient, be lenienf? Oh, woman, though I may fail to stir up an appreciation in the souls of others in regard to your household toils, let me assure YOU,from the l c ~ n d l i n ~with ~s which Jesus Christ met Martha, that he appreciates all your work from garret to cellar; and that the God of Deventive of some new pastry, or discov- borah, and Hannah, and Abigail, and ering something in the art of coolrery Grandmother Lois, and Elizabeth Fry, and Hannah More is the God of the houselree~e~! Jesus was never married, that he might be the especial she has no time to attend to friend and confidant of a whole world of troubled womanhood. I blunder; Christ was married. The ,Bible says that ch is the Lamb’s wife, they had divided and es me know that all the work, and then they could have Christian women have a right to go of t h e community i s advanced divided the opportunity of listening to to ~ h r i s and t tell him of their annoyincrease of its materia Jesus; but Mary monopolizes Christ, ances and troubles, since-by his oath while arth ha swelter^ a t the fire. It is sworn to symwas a very i thing t rt, the Christian should have inner t Christ was nd he strike a serious blo often have a luxi~riousentertainment. of t h e ballot an AIas me? if the duty had devolved upon Makes drudgery divine: a repast that would have o a room, as somet~iingwent mroiig in ~ h sweeps . Perhaps the fire would ~ a k e sthis the action not burn, or the bread would not bake, A young woman of brilliant educaor Martha scalded her hand, or something was burned black that ought to tion and prosperous circumstances was i r s in the.kitchhave been made brown; and Martha called d o ~ n ~ ~ ~toahelp lost her patience, and forgett~ng the en in the ,absence of the servants. The ~ she went to open it proprieties of the occasion, with be- ~ o o r - b e iringing, nd found a g e n t l ~ m a n friend, wlcro sweated brow, and perhaps with pitcher i n one hand and tongs in the said as he came in: “I thought I heard m ~ s i c was ; it on this piano o r OR this to the presence Chr~st, saying: ter hath left me to serve alone?” Christ scolded not a scolding, I should scolding than anybo There was no thin^ acerb. arth ha had almost death to get him something to eat, and so he t h r ~ w sa world of ten to his i n t o n a t i ~ nas he see “My dear woman, do not wo d ~ n n e rgo; sit down on this ottoman beside Ma~Y, y o ~ r y o u n g e ~ sister. Martha, arth ha^ thou art careful and txoubled about many ~ h i n ~ but s , one thing is needful.” As ~ ~ a ~ throws t h a Ireeper. She worked very hard, and he constantly clambered up the rungs when we would come in from s ~ ~ m eofr the ladder, until, in 1893, at Denver, play, and sit down at the table at noon, 1 remember how she used to come in he reached the top. He was elected a c o n v e y ~ n most eminent grand master of the along tlic? grand with beads of pers~~iration encampment of the Knights line of gray hair, and how sometimes Templar of America. Mr. McCurdy she wou:d sit down at the table a n 3 started a Masonic lodge in Corunna in put her head against her wrinlnled 1557. Six times he was cgosen i b mashand and say, “Well, the fact is, I’m ter. R e received his chapter degrees too tired to eat.” Long after she might in Flint, Mich., and in ~ e b r u a r y ,1864, have delegated this duty to others, he became a Royal Arch Mason. In she would not be satisfied unless she 1873 he was unanimous~yelected grand attended to tlie matter herself. In fact master of the grand lodge of Michigan. we all i~referredto have her do so, for someliow things tasted better mlic~i she prepared them. Some time ago, in a n express train, I shot past that old lioniestead, I loolrcd out of the window, and tried to peer through the darlrness. While 1 was doing so, one of my old schoolmates, whom I had not seen for many years, tapped me on the shoulder, and said, “De Witt, 1 see you are looking out at the s c e n ~ s of your boyho~d,” “Oh, yes,” I replied, “I was looking out at the old place where-my inother lived and died.” That night, in the cars, the whole scene came back to me, There WBS the country home. There was the uoonday table. There were the children 011 either side of the table, most of them gone never to come back. A t one ecd of the table, my father, with,a smile that never left his countenance ever1 when he lay in his coffin. It was an eighty-four years’ smile-not the smile of inanition, but of Christian courage of Christian hope. At the other of the table was a beautiful nignant, hard-working, aged Chri h o ~ ~ s e k ~ e my p e rmother, ~ She was very 1868, when a funeral kept him away. I am glad she has so good a As head of the order in the state, he laid the corner-stone of the state capho die in the Lord; they rest ital a t Lansing, October 2, 1873 from their labors, and their works do 1875 he was grarid generalissimo of the follow them.” grand commandery of ~ i c h i g a n . Two years later he was right eminent grand c o ~ i n a n d e r . In 1873 he had become a t~iirty-thirddegree Mason and a n honorary m e ~ b e rof the s u p r e ~ ecouncil the century near Vilno, Russia, recalls the dreadful fate of ~ a p o l e o n ’ sgrand army and its d~sastrousR u s s ~ a ncampaign in 1812. After the destruct~on o$ ~ o s c o wthe bold conqueror was compelled to seek safety, but his return to the frontier was not the retreat of T J ~ ~ t eStates. d one of the leaders of the country. I n 1883 he was chosen grand captain-ge~era1 of the grand Knights Templar at Three years later neralissimo at St, Louis. And to steady the throne, which learn in^ how to do is work.” Well done! When will treas~re,which a t that time still con- in 1895, in which francs, and which was omen in all circles find out that it is tained 12,00~,0~0 1 am honorable to do anything that ought transferred in barrels in carr~ages praises of the appearance of ~ ~ i c h i g a n ’ s s not quite c e ~ s e dto thls drawn by picked horses, was intrusted I ~ n i g h ~have to be done? to Marshal Ney. Napoleon never saw day. tp cCurdy is 68 years old. ~ ehas the treasure again, and w ~ e it n d was born in Scotland, and ca EOW great are the respons~bilitiesop remained was kept a r ~ ~ ~ o usecret irmingham, Mich., when he was but h o u s e ~ e e ~ e r s !Sometimes a n indiges- or a long time. ~ n d e r~ t r o n gcover tible article of food, by its effect upon the transportatio~of the treasure was 8 years old. He was app~enticed to started for the frontier, but not far the cooper’s trade, but someone got a king, has overthro~vnan empire, A from Vilno the wagons s t u c ~in a delile him interested in law and he became a d i st in gu i she d says of O ~ F Elwood, his o rnow ~ ~ presii nlaw a~ and it seemed impossible to get them library of S, DOWht thousand un n there are out again. Rather than see the treasthirty-eight , and of 3110 dent of the ~ a y r i e County Savings , thousand married men only eighteen ure in the hands of the ~ u s s i a n s Field l gave orders to break open bank, who let him have i t “on tick.” are crimi~als. hat L? suggestion of ~ a r s h a Ney home influences! Let the most kc the barrels and distribute the money ~ r ~ .c C u r d ywent a t once to Corunna made of them. 1~ouselceepersby $he to the returning soldiers as they passed and hung out his shingle. It is still h legal wor by, and thus it was done. Many of the out, t h o ~ ~ ghis is what made Martha food they p r o ~ i d e ,by the couches they p r e c ~ a t i ~ nThat . soldiers threw away all their belong- by the indisposition of advancing age, The younger sister spread, by the books they introduce, by ings in order to A l l up their l ~ n a p s a c l ~ In s 1854 he became prosecut~ngattorf her older s~ster’s the i n ~ u e n c e sthey bring around their county, was re-electwith gold, but only a few of those v h o ney of Sh~a~vassee home, ing the physical, intslmen botliered with ed and at the expiration of his term carried the heavy wealth were able t o eternal destiny of the he store, and office, lectua your life is one of sac- drag the burden to the € r o n t i ~ r ,2nd was chosen judge of probate, though and shop, or coming from the StoclcEx- race. at change, say when they get home: “Oh, rifice. I know it. But, my sisters, that the very gold which was iIitended for he was tlie only successful ~ e m ~ c ron d i s ~ e ~ b e r m e of n t Chi their benefit was the cause of their the ticket. His people were so well is the only life worth living. That was y o u ~ o u g h t to be in our factory a little --suited with his services that in 1864 N i ~ l i t i i i ~ a ~ elife; ’ s that was perish in g . The story may or may not be l x u e while; YOU ought to have to manage l~lorence they sent him to the state senate, eight, or ten, 0s twenty subordinates, Payson’s life; that was Christ’s IiPe, t h a t England refuses to interfere with where his political career ended, We adniire it in others; but how v ~ r y though always Since actively interested Fill1 p a ~ t i c u l a ras ~ to ~ a u d s ~ locations, rates, etn., secure^ from I e notable things whic i economic, and literary happenings he position of .England l i e f of a patient, became saturated wit3 the poison and died, we all felt as if w e would like to grave; everybod When, in the b Louis, a young man on the Egypt. There is ~ o t h i n g ~ ~remarkore door of the room tvh.j:le I know there are housekeepers who are so fortunate that they can sit in an s sleeping, and plunged in amid snzolre aiid fire. crying, “Moth- C?:c opinions which the readers of Eatrtk CaI.--Los Anmles Record. rees not to inte though they were sixty, The falleu at Chalane, and Austeflitz, and Get- II