Slow. Hold on: I consent, though you have no right here.

Sly. I think I have, anything you have said to the contrary notwithstanding; so go ahead; there's the clock, and when time's up I'll give the word.

--

Slow. Gentlemen, Mr. Nick - Mr. Nick Mr. Nick Confound it, Sam Sly, you've knocked it all out of my head. Where did I leave off? - the American eagle? No, I sa that. The constitution? O, pshaw! Mi Nick. Dear me, how time does fly! - Ah, . have it at last. Gentlemen, Mr. Nickodemus Orcutt and the American flag

Sly. (Who has been standing watching the clock, pulls him by the sleeve.) Time, Slowboy. Ladies and Gentlemen: Mr. Chairman: Sir,

Sly. (Resuming his seat.) O, that'll do; go I appear before you to night a humble Ameron, Slowboy.

stand that.

ican citizen, with a heart filled with gratitude to the noble founders of this glorious republic this free and happy republic, whose equal cannot be found; and, would time permit, I

Slow. And now, gentlemen, I turn to that symbol of the republic, the American flag that flag which has lain in the dust Sly. Hold on, Slowboy; hold on. Can't should be proud and happy to pour forth, in humble imitation of my eloquent friend here, warm tributes to their patriotism and virtue. But time flies. Let me speak of one who is near and dear to all of us, our esteemed fellowtownsman, Samuel Sawyer, who is up for selectman in opposition to Mr. Nickodemus Orcutt. You all know him. A young, talented, enterprising lawyer - a true type of Young America.

Slow. Sly, you're a nuisance. You've been the bane of my existence. Whenever, as speaker or as poet, I have endeavored to make my mark, you're always in the way. Perhaps you'd like to take my place.

Sly. (Jumping upon platform.) Thank you. I don't care if I do make a few feeble remarks. Slow. Halloo! you ain't coming up here! Sly. To be sure I am; didn't you invite me? Slow. But I didn't mean it. Come, go down, that's a good fellow, and let me finish my speech.

Sly. No, sir; this is a public meeting, and
I've just as good a right to speak as you have.
Slow. Public meeting! Pshaw! it's an ex-
hibition, and I have the floor. You've no
business here. Now, Sly, do go down.
Sly. After you've invited me here? No, sir.
Slow. You're spoiling everything. You've
upset my ideas.

Sly. Well, that won't break anything.
Slow. I've only five minutes more to speak.
Now do go, Sly.

Sly. No, sir. Five minutes? I'll tell you what I'll do, Slow: I'll help you out. We'll divide the five minutes. You shall speak one, then I'll speak one; and so on, till the time is consumed.

Slow. Time's up, Sly.

Sly. A rising man, eloquent in the public assembly.

Slow. Sly, Sly! time's up.

Sly. Genial on a —

Slow. (Pulling SLY by sleeve.) Time's up.
Sly. O, is it? Go ahead, Slowboy.

Slow. Go ahead! I should think so! Look here, Sly; you ain't playing fair; you've run over your time considerably; it's one of your regular sly dodges, and I won't stand it. Do you hear? I tell you I won't stand it! Why don't you speak? (SLY points to the clock.) O, dear! I forgot; where did I leave off? How that clock does go! Ladies and gentlemen: Mr. Chairman. - Dear me! where did I leave off? I have it: Mr. Nickodemus Orcutt and the American flag —

Sly. Time, Slowboy. Gentlemen: Mr. Sawyer, as I said before, is a true type of Young

Slow. O, pshaw! I can't do that; I've got America a progressive man; a man of enthe floor.

Sly. So have I. I don't believe in compromises; but for once I was willing to humor you; but, as you don't like it, here goes: Ladies and gentlemen, —

larged ideas, who believes in the spread of freedom, the rights of workingmen, the acquisition of territory, a patron of railroads, a warm advocate for woman's rights, universal suffrage, and the protection of American citi

Go ahead! But how can I go ahead when you A FRIENDLY game of Base Ball was played

Sly. Well, then, we'll give you another previous in Covington, Ky., between the first

WE

WE were greatly entertained with the book sent by Punch the Printer, and printed by himself, entitled "Stories for the Young, and Amusing Tales for Instruction and Five Cents." No doubt Punch will become an honor to the craft. He would like to hear from Bob-Box 642, Evansville, Ind. - Percy K. thinks he has made a "pretty good" conundrum. It's old as the hills: "Why is a man sailing up the Tigris like a person who intends to put his father into a sack? Because he is going to Bagdad."- Hoky Poky might change his mind if he were obliged to enjoy the infliction of our society a year or two. Musical puzzles accepted.

We blush excessively with gratified vanity upon reading Charlie's conundrum; but as it cannot interest any one else, we will not publish it. Monsieur threatens terrible things if we do not accept his head work; but we must decline, even if he carries out his threat. Fitz offers a good puzzle; but a bit of it would require to be engraved, so we must do without it.

R. C. L., Jr. sends his usual list of correct Tommy Toots sends a club of eleven new answers. - Buckeye Boy, our drawer is run- subscribers. Well done, Tommy! The sansning over with cross-word enigmas. Frank têtes shall appear. - Sagittaw is doing a good White's rebus has been used. - Alert's conun- work in New Jersey. He sends the name of a drums are bad enough to be original: "Why new subscriber. Charades accepted. - Brothis Alert like the Amazon River? Because heer Jeems, of whom poetic mention has formerly is noted for his wide mouth. What is the dif- been made, contributes the conundrum of the ference between a brakeman and a prize-fight-week: "Why is OUR BOYS AND GIRLS like a er? One breaks the nose, and the other knows drum with both heads out? Because it can't the brakes." - Musicus wishes to correspond with medical students - Box 832, Gloversville, N. Y. — Drareg's rebus was not quite good enough, and the Christmas present will keep. Yorick still receives letters at 830 North Sixth Street, Philadelphia, Pa. Rebus acceptable. Harry Hastings may expect a call when we have leisure! The syncopations have been sent before. Snooks can consult his own pleasure about the club. It makes no differ

ence to us. — Henry P. S., our Letter-Bag is

designed to accommodate those who are regular subscribers or purchasers of the Magazine. Don't lend your Magazines. Tell everybody to subscribe. - Essex, several contributions of head work have gone into the accepted drawer, and we have afterwards found they were not original, or were imperfect, or had already appeared in the Magazine, and so they were discarded.

Sancho Panza says this conundrum is not original: "Why is a hen always in the light? Because her son never sets." We accept the

be beat." This prodigy of wit would condescend to correspond with Lynn C. Doyle. Address F. J. B., Hunter, Green County, N. Y.We fail to discover the answers to Bunny's head work.

WISH CORRESPONDENTS.

El. Sol (with Polytechnic, Sylvan Grove, and others) - Lock Box 824, Cincinnati, Ohio; E. A. G., Jr., Drawer 103, Dubuque, Iowa; Frank H. West, Cincinnati, Ohio; Chip, Box 109, Brookline, Mass.

with small bulk and weight. In this respect gold is superior to most commodities. In many civilized countries it is worth some fifteen hundred times its weight in copper, ten or fifteen thousand times its weight in iron, and ten or twelve thousand times its weight in wheat.

But even here pearls, rubies, diamonds, and other gems are superior to gold. There are, however, many objections to the use of gems as money. There are not enough of them: and it would often be very difficult to distinguish the more valuable ones from those of less value, or the genuine from the imitations. Pearls would lose their lustre in passing from hand to hand. Then, too, gems cannot be easily divided into equal fractional parts; and, if such a division were possible, the loss by the operation would sometimes be very great. Large gems are much more valuable in proportion to their weight than small ones. A perfect rough diamond, for example, weighing one carat, is worth ten dollars; while another, equally perfect, weighing ten carats, is worth a thousand dollars.

The loss on the English shilling has been estimated at more than one in two hundred early. Other estimates make it much less. The average annual loss by wear and tear, on pieces of all sizes, and of both metals, has not been ascertained; and those who have given the subject the most attention are wide apart in their estimates. It is not probably above one dollar in a thousand. But that would make the loss to the world several mil-ine gold or silver coin can be distinguished from

lions every year.

The wear of iron or steel coins of the same weight would be much less. But there are too many qualities both of iron and of steel. Besides, it would require, in some countries, two or three cargoes of iron money to pay for one cargo of sugar.

Gold and silver, on the contrary, are of nearly the same quality everywhere, and the genu

the false by the ring. These metals we can divide into fractions as small as we please. The fractions can be united again with very little trouble, and the value of all the fractions is equal to that of the whole lump.

Finally, it is a fact no less important, that there is, and, from a very early period, has been, a supply sufficient for use as money -a supply which has indeed largely increased in modern times, but never so rapidly as to make any very sudden change in the value either of gold or of silver coin.

There are other and perhaps stronger reasons than these against the use of iron or steel as money at the present day. Still, iron money has been used. Within a century, bars of iron have been used to measure the value of other commodities in some parts of Africa. And Lycurgus, the lawgiver, allowed the Spartans no money except bars of iron. But the Spartans could not engage in any trade or manufactures, and might well make their few purchases with an iron currency, especially as iron was then many times more valuable than it is in our day. Indeed, in Homer's time, about a century before the age of Lycurgus, the supply of iron hardly sufficed for the rude agricultural implements of the period. Ac- Making the sixth and last of the Starry Flag

WITH the next volume, which begins with No. 79, we shall commence a new serial, entitled

DOWN THE RIVER;

BUCK BRADFORD AND HIS TYRANTS.
By Oliver Optic.

series.

New subscribers should commence with this volume.

It is estimated that one half of the British revenue comes from smokers and drinkers.

THERE are forty-four regularly ap

A convenient money must possess great value pointed postmistresses in Connecticut.