Boys Own Paper 5th April 1913

8/9/2019 Boys Own Paper 5th April 1913

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418 The 'Boy's Oban Taper.

expected to go to sleep till after twelve ;

tongues wag ceaselessly and wit flows freely,

much to the amusement of the Scout-

Master, who, from the silence of his tent,

hears every word that is spoken. Tent No. 1

is particularly rowdy, No. 2 effervesces like

ginger-beer, No. 3 is only a little less

excited.

One or two old stagers, who have beenpreparing the camp for several days, having

i;rown accustomed to sleeping under canvas,

are very cross with the new-comers, who have

no thought of going to sleep themselves and

will not let others do so. Bobbie Brandram,

who in spite of his threat to Rona ld, had been

one of the fatigue par ty (a name they had

well earned by their hard work), was ready

and anxious to go to sleep, only Jock Tucker,

in intervals between his wrest-

ling bouts with Sammy Steer, |

would keep singing " Yip-i-

addy-i-ay " at the top of his

voice.

" S h u t u p ! " g r o w l e d

Bobbie from his roll of

Mankets. " I want to go to

sleep."

" Well, us don't then," re

torted Jock, going on with his

song—

" I don't care what becomes of me

When he sings me that

Ow ! you brute ! "

The latter exclamation was

called forth by one of Bobbie's

boots hitting him on the nose.

" Perhaps that will teach

y»u to be quiet," said Bobbie.

" I shall come and punch your

head if there is any more

noise."

" W h o ' s on gu ar d to

night?" asked one of the boys.

" The Mongooses," said

Jock. " That new boy from

London is one of them. I

heard Mr. Landor saying so."

i " W h a t ! P o l l y ? " said

Sammy Steer. " I bet he'l l

lie afraid. I know I was the

(irst night I had to go on

sentry duty."

" I tell you what," said

Bobbie, sitting up. " If you

chaps don't want to go to

sleep, I have a fine idea.Why don't you later on creep out of the

camp when Polly's on guard, and come

up and surprise him ? It will be great

sport ; I bet you anything he'll show

the white feather."

This idea struck Tent No. 1 as being

decidedly funny, but no one seemed anxious

to join the attacking party. This stung

Bobbie into action.

" I'l l go for one ," he said. " Who else is

coming ? "

" I will," said Jock.

" And I," added Sammy Steer.

" Three's enough," said Bobbie, to every

one's relief, for most of them had never

spent the night in camp before.

Half an hour later three shadowy forms

crept out of tent No. 1 and wriggled in a

truly scout-like manner along the ground

till they were well outside the boundary of

the camp, when they rose to their feet and

scampered away into the darkness.

By now the boys were settling down to

sleep and all was quiet, save for the low

voices of the three in the guard tent, Ronald,

Paolo and Seth Leverson. Leverson had

just come to.the end of his watch, and it

was Paolo's turn to take his place for another

two hours. Ronal d had offered to put himon for one of the easier watches, but Paolo

indignantly refused, saying that he was no

longer an invalid and in tended to do the

thing properly.

The night was divided up into four

watches, namely : (1) from 10 P.M. to 12,

(2) from 12 to 2 A.M. , (3) from 2 A.M.

to 4 A.M. , and (4) from 4 A.M. to 6 A.M. The

first and the last were the least trying, so

W A R S H I P S O F O L D E N D A Y S .

M od e l of the "Roy al Sover eign ," 17th century.

(Royal Naval College, Greenwich.)

" The Sovraigne of the Seas ," or " Koyal Sovereign," was built at WoolwichDockyard in 1637, her designer being the celebrated Master Shipwright, Peter Pett.He r dimensions were as follow s:—Length, 167 ft. 9 in. ; breadth, 48 ft. 4 in .;depth, 19 ft. 4 in .; tonnage, 1,683 tons. She was most elaborately carved andgilded at prow and stern, and along the sides. Her figure-head represents KingEdgar riding over the heads of seven kings, and on her stern may be seen the royalcoat of arms. After the " Great Harry " the " Royal Sovereign " was the ne xtBritish ship of any note, and was larger than any vessel that had preceded her.

they were usually taken by the same boy,

while the other two boys took the two middle

watches. The night guard had to be always

ready to turn out if the alarm should be

given ; but the two boys who were not

actually on sentry duty generally managed

to get some sleep.

It was Paolo's duty then for the next

two hours, i.e. from 12 to 2 A.M. , to walk

round the camp and keep on the alert,

challenging anyone who might approach.

Some boys are more at home in the dark

than others ; but night sentry du ty is

nervous work at the best of times for a boy

of thirteen, especial ly one of Paolo's imagina

tive temperament. Paolo, however, was onhis mettle ; he had decided that camp life

was an excellent opportunity for show

ing his comrades he was worthy of the

name of scout . So, with a cheery

"Good nigh t" to Ronald, he started off

on his rounds.

" Won't you take the lantern ? "^called

out Seth Leverson.

" No," said Paolo firmly. " Mr. Landor

said it really wasn't proper for the sentry to

carry a lantern."

" But he doesn't mind," said Leverson.

" We all do it."" Well, I'll come back for it if I want it,"

said Paolo. " I rather want to see what

the dark feels like." In another minute

he was gone.

How still it all seemed and how dark !

Only the faint glimmer of the guard lantern

behind the canvas and the red embers of

the dying fire remained to break the gloom ;

but above in the sky the stars blazed as"if

defying the darkness. Paolo

looked up at them and took

courage. It is a grand thing

to be alone with the stars !

How silent everything was !

Only the soft breathing of the

sleepers could be heard in the

camp, and now and then a

rustle in the grass or the far

away cry of some night-bird.

It was so stil l, i t seemed as if

one had suddenly entered a

church and some one had

whispered " Hush ! " Paolo

started at every sound he

made as he stumbled over a

stone or a twig cracked be

neath his fe et ; but he knew

there was nothing to be afraid

of—nothing at all.

As he walked slowly round

the camp, now and then stopping to listen, to gaze at the

sky or to trace the outline of

the dim distant hills, Paolo's

thoughts were very active.

He was picturing an attack

ing force approaching the camp

under cover of darkness. They

would come up silently through

those black woods he could

just discern yonder, then,

spreading out across the fields

or in single file along the bank

of the river, taking cover in

the patches of gorse on the

hill-side, they would gradually

come nearer and nearer, likethe coils of a great snake closing in around

its prey. He saw in his fancy the men

passing from bush to bush, stealthily cross

ing the open and taking cover again;

soon they would be within ear-shot and

he would hear the rustling of the short

grass or the " pad-pad " of their footsteps

on the soft turf.

Hark ! What was that ? Surely there

was some one crawling round the camp !

But no, it could only be his imagination,

that power both he and his father possessed

of picturing things so vividly that they

often seemed real. Yet there it was again !

A distinct rustling in the grass barely twenty

yards away to the west of the camp. Paolohalted and listened, his nerves all tense and

quivering.

There it was again ! Should he challenge

the intruder or call out the guard ? What



The Son of an Anarchist. 4 1 9

to go and wake Ronald first, when he heard

on the other side of the camp a low whistle

four times repeated, but so softly as to be

scarcely audible; at the same moment the

figure vanished with a slight rustling. This

was enough for Paolo and he decided to

wake Ronald.

Ronald was dreaming of the anarchists

in London; he thought they had captured

Paolo and that he was hot on their trail.Suddenly he heard Paolo's voice calling

" Rona ld ! " and awoke to find his friend

bending over him with a lantern in his

hand and a very pale face.

" There are people walking about round

the cam p," Paolo said. " I saw one—a man,

against the sky and another whistled over

there by the river. Fm so sorry to wake

you ; but I'm afraid they're up to no good."

" I was afraid you 'd find the second watch

rather trying," said Ronald. " You would

have done much better to let me take it."

" You think I imagined it," said Paolo,

rather hurt. " It's as true as—as a scout's

word of honour. Bobbie heard them too."

(To be

Ronald jumped up, and, taking the lantern,

walked round the camp with him. Then

they went to the c lump of furze bushes

indicated by Paolo and poked about with

their staves, but there was no one there, so

Ronald was inclined to think that Paolo's

nerve had given way and that his fertile

imagination had done the rest. Even so,

he could not blame him, for many a bo y of

coarser fibre had felt " ju mp y" in the

dark, and there was every excuse for Paolo

to feel nervous after his experiences in

London, weakened as he was by his illness.

" Go and lie down," he said to Pao lo

kindly. " You've done quite well for a

beginning. Night sentry-go is nervous

work if you're not used to it."

Paolo, who was really rather frightened,

was not sorry for an excuse to leave his post,,

so he obeyed his patrol-leader and went back

to the guard-tent, while Ronald took the-

rest of Paolo's watch as well as his own.

But neither he nor Paolo, who soon fell

asleep from sheer exhaustion, heard any

thing more of the midnight prowlers. continued.)

it P i p ' s " D i a r y :B e i n g a R e c o r d o f P e r c y I g n a t i u s P o c o c k ' s

B i d T o r T a m e .

By FRANCI8 MARLOWE.

if it turned out to be only an old horse 1

Would not Bobbie and all the troop laugh

at hinv? No, he must find out what it

really was before giving the alarm. So he

moved a few paces in the direction of the

sound.

This time he heard a little cough from a

clump of bushes. There was somebody

there, but the rustling had ceased. It

must be some tramp who was sleepingamong the bushes. Paolo could not bring

himself to go any nearer to the place whence

the sound came, nor was it his duty to do

so ; so he decided to walk round the ca mp

again and then listen once more for the

mysterious intruder.

He had reached the opposite side of the

camp, when he heard the sound of several

people running and three dim figures loomed

against the sky. Paolo gripped his scout's

staff tightly and stood his ground, though he

felt very frightened.

" Halt ! " he cried. " Who goes there ? "

" Friends," answered the voice of Bobbie.

" Give the pass-word," said Paolo, greatly

relieved.

" Be prepared."

" Pass, friends," said Paolo with dign ity,

and the three boys from tent No. 1 came up.

" Did we frighten you ? " asked Bobbie,

seeing Paolo was trembling.

" Yes, a little," confessed Paolo, who was

always truthful. " I didn't know who you

were."

" We intended to have given you a much

bigger fright," said Bobbie, " only we heard

some one moving down by the river in the

dark."

" And I heard some one coughing in the

bushes over there," said Paolo. " There

must be people about—tramps, I suppose."" Anyhow, you didn't run away," said

Bobbie, who, much as he disliked Paolo, was

fair-minded enough to acknowledge that he

had scored a point. Moreover Bobbie and

his friends had been scared themselves by

the noises in the wood and the spell of night

time was still upon them. In the light of

day they were very brave and could afford

to laugh at Paolo for being afraid in the

dark ; but at present they were not inclined

to chaff, so they said " Good night " and

crawled back into their tent, leaving him

once more alone with the darkness and the

stars.

The time had begun to seem very long

to the little sentinel . His eyes were aching

with straining into the darkness and his

ears with listening for sounds which never

came. Once he actually went back to the

guard-tent for the lantern. But, changing

his mind, he put it down again and walked

round the camp. Every now and then he

came back to the guard-tent to look at the

clock. How long the time seemed ! Why

do the minutes pass so slowly in the

night 1

Paolo was beginning to wonder if he had

been mistaken in thinking he heard a cough

in the bushes, when, looking in the same

direction, he distinctly saw silhouetted

against the star-lit sky the figure of a littleman standing quite still. He was some

distance away and Paolo could not tell

whether he was looking towards the camp

or away from it. He was debating in his

mind whether to challenge the stranger or

[EXTRACT VI .] •>.

THE British Schoolboys' Provident and

Defence Association looks like beinga huge success. Our income on Monday

morning was five shillings and sevenpence.That was for the first week that we started.

We put away two shillings and sevenpenceas capital, and that gave Rowley and methree shillings to divide between us. Wegot several new boys in, on the Monday andTuesday. Then, to-day, we had two claimsfor impositions to pay and, of course, when

we had paid out sixpence each to two fellowswho had only paid us a halfpenny each, andthe news spread, we got a lot more fellowsto join.

But the two claims for imposi tions, so

soon after we had started, made us a bitcareful. So we made a rule that only those

boys who had been insured with the BritishSchoolboys' Provident and Defence Association for at least three weeks could come

down on us with claims for impositions.I wanted to make the same rule apply toeverything, but Rowley said we had betternot ; that we'd see how we got on, and if itturned out that any new rules were wanted,we'd make them as we went along. Thatsounded rather funny kind of business to me,but Rowley seemed so certain that it wasthe best way of doing things that I coulddo nothing but agree with him.

When we came to make up our accountsthis evening, leaving out the sixpence thatwe paid Wicks for his black eye, as that was apiece of advertising business that we didbefore we had really started, we found thatthey stood like this :

Capital, 4s. Id.; income, 7s. Id. a week ;liabilities, £3 9s. 3d. ; claims paid (amount),Is. Our Table of liabilities showed that wehad—

Seventeen members at a penny a week insured for 5s. each against canings.

Twenty-five members at \d. insured fordd. each against impositions.

Thirty members at Id. insured for 2s,each against loss of half-holidays.

Thirteen members at \d. insured for fid-each against rain on half-holidays.

Fifteen members at \d. insured for 6d.

each against losing footer matches away.Seven members at \d. insured for 3d.

each against losing place in class.Eight members at Id. insured for 2s. each

against failure at exams.

We've only got fifty members up to now,but we quite look forward to getting anotherfifty. In fact, Rowley says we'll be sure to

A smal l , excited- looking b oy c ame rushingon to the gro und. "

get them as soon as he settles down toadvertising properly. He says he feelshe has a special gift for advertising. Any

how, I think we have done pretty well up to



420 The "Boy's Otorn Taper,

now, and I am quite satisfied with ourbusiness so long as we don't have too manyclaims.

. . . Rowley has just started " AnAdvertising Cam paign" for the British

"I t took me some t ime explaining."

Schoolboys' Provident and Defence Association, but I must say that I don't quite likethe way he's doing it. For instance, thismorning he gave every boy in the school alittle card, with the name of our businessneatly written in red ink at the top, and

underneath it was this :

FREE INSURANCE.

The boy who is first in each class at.

the end of each week will receive Free Insurance in the B.S.P.D.A. against caningsand loss of half-holidays for a period of

three weeks, provided he has taken out

some other form of insurance in the

company.

That was all very well when Rowley cameto explain it to me. He pointed out thatour risks against canings and loss of half-holidays were heavy enough now, and thatwe didn't particularly want to increase them;and that our offer of Free Insurance, which

looked pretty generous, was really a veryfine move on our part, because when boyswere working hard to get to the top of the class they were not running much risk of getting caned or losing their half-holidays.

At first I objecte d, because it seemedto me that the Free Insurance offer wouldmake the boys who were paying againstcanings and loss of half-holidays drop out;they wouldn't see the fun of paying forsomething that they had a chance of getting

for nothing. But Rowley said he was prepared for that; that, if necessary, we couldmake a rule preventing boys, who stoppedpaying for what they had entered for, fromgetting advantage of our Free Insuranceoffer. That seemed to make it all right,so I didn't raise any more objections, especially as our offer brought us in seven newmembers who wan ted to get the benefit

of it .

But in the afternoon Rowley tried anotherpiece of advertising, which he couldn 't per

suade me at all was a good thing for ourcompany. He'd got a stack of yellowenvelopes from somewhere, envelopes likethose that telegrams are sent in, and whileall the fellows were out in the footballfield this afternoon, instead of being withthem as usual, playing some sort of gameor another, he was sitting at his desk writingon slips of paper as hard as he could go.He was working like a nigger if ever any

body did. He wanted me to stay and helphim. I was to have addressed the envelopesto all the fellows that hadn't joined ourInsurance Company, but, though he said itwas a great scheme to get new membersthat he was working on, I couldn't stay.I simply had to play in a footer matchthat was on that afternoon.

At first he wanted me to throw over thematch, and when I told him I couldn't,he got quite hot and accused me of nottaking a proper interest in our business.But after a while I made him see that hewas being stupid; then he apologised andsaid that he'd get a couple of kids whoweren't playing to help him out. I don'tthink he gave them anything to work forhim. I really believe he persuaded themthat he had invented a new game and thathe was doing them a special favour inallowing them to be the first to play it.Anyhow, he got two kids and set them t owork, and I'm sure he had no reason tocomplain of them as workers.

The match had been on just about aquarter of an hour when I saw the first

effect of Rowl ey's work. We' d got a veryhot side against us, that after keeping usawfully busy round our own goal for quiteten minutes wound up by sending a smashingshot between the posts that completelybeat our goal-keeper, which was me. Well,that was a pretty bad start and we saw thatwe had a tough game ahead of us, but, of course, we bucked up and did our best.

We'd just got out of a nasty mess in frontof our goal, and after a beautiful trickypiece of work, our back had just takenthe ball from the toe of the other side'scentre-forward when a small excited-lookingbo y came rushing on to the ground, holding a yellow envelope over his head andshouting " Wi nt er " at the top of hisvoice.

Winter was our back, so it's easy toguess what happened. Instead of using alovely chance to clear our goal-line andget the play into the other end of thefield, he go t his eye off the ball when heheard his name yelled like that, got flusteredand stopped dead when he caught sight

of the yellow envelope that was being heldout to him, and in that instant—it all

seemed to happen in an instant—the ballcame into me with a terrific drivingkick that I couldn't have saved if I'dbeen half a dozen goal-keepers rolled into

one.

Of course, the game was stopped forWinter to read his telegram, as everyone,except me (and it was no use me sayinganything then), believed it to be. Itwas a jolly good thing for the small boythat he had cleared off directly he hadhanded Winter the thing. I never sawa fellow pull such a terribly angry face.Knowing what I knew, I felt that I' dlike to be thin enough to hide myself behind one of the goal-posts. But somehow Winter didn' t seem to connect mewith the rotten business; I suppose hedidn't know I was Rowle y's partner. He just glared round savagely for a moment,crumpled the yellow envelope and its enclosure in his hand, muttered somethingunder his breath as he chucked them intothe net, and then stalked sulkily to his

place in the field without paying the slightestattention to anyone's questions.

I got my foot on the crumpled envelopeand paper, and as soon as play got up fielda bit—as it soon did, for our fellows, withtwo goals down, were playing up for allthey were worth—I opened the paper tohave a glimpse at what Rowley had writtenon it. This was what it was :

DO IT NOW !

Insure with the British Schoolboys'Provident and Defence Association. Youmay not have another chance. LIFE IS

SHORT.

That was a nice thing for Winter to get, just at the moment he did. Do IT NOW !In spite of feeling so mad with Rowley, I

could scarcely keep a straight face when.Iremembered just what Winter was going toDO when he got the " telegram."

Before we'd got half-way through thematch, Rowley and his " telegrams " hadmade a nice mess of practically every gamethat was going on in the playing field. Itseems that he had given his messengers instructions to give his messages straight intothe hands of the persons whose names were

on the envelopes, no matter what they weredoing, and his messengers did their part of the business in the most faithful way possible.I wonder they didn 't get killed, and that aparty didn't set out to capture Rowley andhang him to the goal-post.

One of his boys had the cheek to makeanother sally into our game, but he ranfor his life when he saw our back's face ashe made for him. It was a lucky thing forme no more " tel egrams" were deliveredamong the fellows I was playing with, or Iam sure I would have got it hot from some

of those who knew of my connection withthe company that Rowley was advertising.

" He read over the list of names ."

He managed to spoi l a hockey game withtwo messages, one of which read :

You WILL BE CANED TO-DAY, perhaps.

Pay a penny to the British Schoolboys'



" Tip's " Diary. 421

Provident and 'Defence Association, andget five shillings if you are. Do not lose

a moment. It is always the unexpectedthat happens. LIFE IS SHORT.

He made poor Leckie lose a hundred yardssprint, which he said he was sure he wouldhave finished half a second quicker than hehad ever run the distance, by a " telegram "which told him to

HUR RY UP ! It may be raining to-morrow. Pay a halfpenny to the BritishSchoolboys' Provident and Defence Associ

ation, and you will get sixpence to make

up for a spoiled half-holiday. Do IT NOW !LIFE IS SHORT.

In the end the two poor little kids thatRowley had employed as messengers werescooting like scared rabbits for theschool-house, with practically everyonefrom the playing field shouting like madmen at their heels. The kids were caught,but they looked so frightened that no one

had the heart to do anything to them,except make them say who gave them themessages. If Rowley had been caught then,

I believe he would have found out how truewas his favourite maxim, " Life is Short."But he, having finished his work, had gonehome. I had a very narrow squeak of getting home safely myself; it took mesome time explaining that the whole thing

was just one of Rowley's ideas of advertisingour company. I suppose, as advertising, i twas pretty successful. Everyone was talking

about our company. But I don't think Rowley would have liked to hear all thethings that were said about it.

. . . The British Schoolboys' Provident

and Defence Association is quite ruined.I was afraid we were doing too well to last.The ruin of it was due to more of Rowley's

advertisement. When the first fellows gotto school this morning, they found the

Head standing in front of the big blackboard in the main class-room. Rowley waslooking at him a bit dismally. On the boardwas chalked in Rowley's handwriting the

words :

The British Schoolboys' Provident andDefence Association has now got fiftymembers. It wants to get fifty more before the end of the week. The B.S.P.D.A.

insures against every misfortune whichcan occur to a schoolboy. Two claimshave been paid this week. Two boyshave each received sixpence for a half

penny. You may have the same luck.Hurry up ! LIF E IS SHORT.

After the Head had read this over carefully,he made Rowley take a duster and wipe itoff the board. Then he took Rowley verysolemnly with him into his study. WhenI arrived at the school, I was given a messagetelling me that I was wanted in the Head's

study. The Head looked at me very sternly,but he didn't say much. He said, " Iwant you to tell me if you are associated

with this thing that Rowley speaks of as anInsurance Company."

I told him that I was, and I believe I wasgoing to try and explain something about

it when he put up his hand and said, " Ihave learned all I want to know aboutit from Rowley; I just wanted to knowthat you admitted association with it."

Then he led the way into the main classroom, where all the fellows were assembled,looking expectant and excited.

The Head, who never makes long speeches,motioned Rowley and me to stand a littlebehind him, and said in a pained and weary

sort of way : " I learn that recently a largenumber of boys in this school have associated themselves with an enterprise startedby the two boys Rowley and Pocock which,though it had been given a very grand-

sounding title, is nothing more than anexcuse for gambling. I see no differencebetween it and the business of a commonbookmaker who bets odds against a horsewinning. Rowley and Poeock bet oddsthat it would not rain on bank holidays,that a boy would not get a caning, and soon, and other boys took these odds. I have

a list here of the boys who have taken theodds. I shall read out the names, and if

any boy can say that his name should not beon the list, let him tell me so."

Then he read over the list of names whichhe had made Rowley give him, and no boywas able to deny that his name ought to beon the list.

The Head was silent for a moment afterhe had finished reading. Then he said: " Iam going to make no distinction betweenthe promoters of this gambling enterpriseand those who joined in it. Rowley andPocock, and all those boys whose names Ihave just read out, will lose their nexthalf-holiday. I think that will be quitesufficient to put an end to a very stupidbusiness."

It's a terrible business for Rowley and me.We were both afraid to talk about it as wecame home from school. Of course wecan't pay the three pounds to the thirty

fellows who insured with us for a pennyeach against loss of a half-holiday. I suppose the only thing to do is to return themoney we have taken and trust to thefellows' generosity to let us off the bargainswe have made with them.

As far as I'm concerned, it will meanleaving me penniless and owing most of mynext week's pocket-money. I don't quiteknow how I 'm going to get along. Iwanted to buy a new diary, because I'vecome to the end of this one, and now I can'tsee how I am to do it. I expect I shall haveto do without one after all.

[THE END.]

FAMOUS CRIPPLES IM FOOTBALL TEAMS.

P l a y e r s w h o P e r f o r m minus a n A r m o r L e g .

LTHOUGH it

may appears t r a n g e ,there have

always beensome well-

known football clubsin various parts of thecountry which haveincludedin their ranksone at least who was acripple in such a waythat the very last clubyou would have ex

pected to find him in would have been afootball club ! And these players we speak of, greatly to their credit be it said,areusually far from being the worst performersin big games with their clubs ; nay, one

might affirm truly that they often seem toshine more than many players who certainlyare not cripples!

As it may serve to encourage many ladswho, by reason of want of perfect physical

fitness, or even by loss of this or that organor limb which most folk would consider

absolutely necessary to those who wouldexcel in games, might otherwise put asideall thought of joining in active and vigorous

By GEORGE A. WADE.

sport, I propose to give here a short butinteresting account of boys and men of moreor less renown whom such loss or defect aswe are referring to has not kept from makingexcellent footballers of themselves, often asmembers of famous clubs too . And their

splendid examples should certainly act as astimulus, not only to other cripples, but evento us who, thank God, are sound in wind

and limb in every way.

Would you believe it possible that a manwith only one leg could become such amagnificent Soccer player as to be selectedto play for his country in internationalmatches ? The very notion appears soridiculous as to make one laugh right ou t!Ye t it isn't ridiculous at all, for it has actually happened ! And this is surely the mostastounding of all such cases of crippled

players belonging to big clubs attaining thevery highest honours at football.

It was the celebrated Arthur Lea whowas the hero of this wonderful feat. Leawas chosen, and he turned out, for Wales

against Scotland in 1891. He was a memberof Wrexham Club, and for several seasonsdid magnificent work for that organisation,his play often earning the highest praisefrom comrades and committee. Accordingly

there was immense satisfaction when this

man with but one leg was chosen to do dutyfor Wales in the historic match referred to.

Though many regular spectators of thewell-known Leyton eleven were not awareof the fact, yet Nicholls , the young player

who was brought into the team to take theplace of Kingaby, when that well-knownfootballer migrated to a bigger club twoyears ago, could only boast of one eye whose

sight was of any use to him. You mighthave watched Nicholls for season afterseason, however , without detecting anything

different in him from other men, so satisfactory was his play. And Nicholls promised in time to become quite a first-ratefootballer, as he developed in physique andin experience of important matches.

Leyton, by the way, would appear tohave had a sort of fancy for crippled players,which is not usually found in clubs of itsstanding. For those who used to pay tosee the games on the Essex ground a littletime back may remember how astonished

new spectators often were at seeing a goalkeeper with a cork leg there, doing dutyfor Leyton. And excellently did he do thatduty, too. Indeed, it used to be a saying

amongst the spectators thi,t nobody they



4 2 2 The "Boy's Otvn Taper.

had ever seen between the posts at Leytoncould stop and turn high shots at goal as

well as this man could.Aston Villa and its tens of thousands of

supporters do not fail to tell you the storyof Albert Evans, which is really uncommonand weird. Alber t broke his leg in playingfor the Villa, and it was assumed that thismisfortune would settle his career in first-

class football. But it didn 't! For whenEvans recovered from the injury he again joined the Villa, but, after playing for sometime with them, once more had the ill-luck to find himself with a broken leg ! Now itwas certain that the plucky fellow couldnever return to the first-class field, folk

declared. Yet, after his recovery from thisbroken leg, Albert became a member of theWest Bromwich Albion organisation. He

took a very active part in their matches, andcertainly did not play like a man whose leghad been twice broken. But misfortunestill dogged him, for a third time his leg wasbroken in playing footb all! And it wouldappear to most folk that this must effectivelystop Evans from further participation inthe game, at any rate with the biggest

clubs. But those who know Albert bestfeel most sure it won' t!

That famous Scottish club, Baith Kovers,possesses in Jimmy Mackie a reserve goalkeeper whose misfortune is quite an uncommon one, though not one so apparentlylikely to incapacitate him from active sportas that of Arthur Lea or Albert Evans.Mackie is quite deaf and dumb, which,although not such a handicap as being minusa leg in Soccer or an arm in Rugby, Wouldstill form an insuperable obstacle for manymen who might desire to play in big matchesat football.

But the defect hardly seems to troubleJames Mackie at all when he is on the field.His eyes are too quick, and all his othersenses too alert, for Jimmy to miss muchof the game, or to fail at the critical moment.True, he never presumes to question thereferee's decisions, nor to cheek and defythat important official in the way manyfamous players occasionally do. Indeed,it is said that one referee, who was muchbaited and worried on one occasion by someof Jimmy's comrades, expressed a piouswish that all the team had been like thewell-known goal-keeper, so that he mighthave a quiet game to supervise !

Moore, the York full-back, in the NorthernUnion League, had a year or two ago anextraordinary experience in a match atHuddersfield. Right from the start of thegame the weather was most intensely cold,

and Moore found much difficulty in using

his hands and arms. They seemed absolutely stiff, but he could not quite understandwhat was wrong with them. In the secondhalf he found them get worse , and he failedaltogether once or twice in trying to pick upthe ball, though still neither he nor his surprised comrades grasped the reason for it. Aperfect blizzard raged during the first partof this half, and later, when the ball came tohim and he could not move his arms at allto touch it, the full-back was led off the field.

On his being examined by a doctor inthe dressing-room it was discovered thatMoore's arms were absolutely frozen stiff withthe awful cold, and that for the time being hewas as much a cripple as if perfectly paralysed. With careful tending and rubbinghis arms soon began to recover their usual

state, but it had been a nerve-trying experience for him enough whilst it lasted !

There can surely not be many well-knownclubs which boast the honour of having aone-legged referee in their ranks. Butthis is what Aberdeen does. For it possessesMr. Patrick Begrie, one of the most famous

of Scottish referees north of the Tweed,who always moves about the field oncrutches.

Yo u might think that it would be impossible

for such a referee to follow the game properly,seeing how quickly the ball moves from oneend of the field to the other in every match.But Mr. Begrie finds no difficulty in this,and you may take your affidavit that,

however fast the players move, Mr. Begrieon crutches, doing duty as referee, movesequally fast, and is near the ball quite asmuch as they are ! Mr. Begrie's onlytrouble is when, the ground being unusuallysoft, his crutch or stick contrives to getstuck in the mud, and hence delays hisprogress.

When Blake, of Newcastle United, brokehis leg badly whilst playing in the forwardranks of that celebrated club, the injuryproved so serious that many folk expressedthe opinion that Sid's football days were

over. But, after he had recovered from theworst effects of the accident, Blake thenfound himself with little worse than a slightlimp, which, however, might perhaps haveacted deterrently against his keeping up

that fine standard as a forward which he hadattained in times past. However, he hadno wish to be ruled out of Soccer footballaltogether, even in first-class games, so heasked the Newcastle Club to sign him on asa goal-keeper, where his slight stiffness of leg would not hinder his doing excellentwork. Newcastle United therefore did so,and to-day Blake still serves as a registered understudy of the still more famousLawrence for big matches of the Black-and-White organisation.

Of course, there are many instances of where the poor cripples belonging to thisor that particular school have actuallyformed football and cricket clubs, and played

matches, sometimes even against teams notpossessing the same disqualifications, notalways to the disadvantage of the crippledside, either. Some few years back it was nounusual sight for people passing KensingtonPalace Green to stand to watch a team therewhich hailed from the " Cripples' Home "in the neighbourhood; and the wonderful

way these lads, all minus something—a leg,

an arm, an eye—or moving on crutches,ran after the ball, fielded it, and kicked itabout, when playing matches betweenthemselves or against other elevens, was aperfect marvel.

Equally astounding has it always beenfor visitors to see the extraordinary cleverness that is displayed at football andcricket by the blind students of suchfamous schools as the " Worcester College,"when enjoying the sport. Yo u cannot fof amoment imagine, unless you have actuallyseen them, the marvellous manner in whichthese young men play the game simply bythe use of their hearing and touch, aided byan inward and extra sixth sense whichappears to compensate them somehow forthe loss of sight.

These instances, then, serve to prove thatmen and lads who are crippled, if they havea real genius and enthusiasm for football,need not be at all debarred from playing itregularly in the best company. Nay, more,

that they need not despair even of attaininginternational honours should their excellence

of play, their genius, their superlative skill,catch the eye of those in authority. Thefamous cripples whom I have mentionedhave been but pioneers who have pavedthe way, and so made it easier for thosewho come after them in this same manner.

Labor omnia vincit, said the great Latinwriter. And we might add to this " So doesstern determination."

O U R " B . O . f * . " D R A U G H T S C O L U M N .

Problem No. 132.

B Y GEORGE COAN (Norwich).

BLACK

SOLUTION TO PROBLEM NO . 131.

B Y D. EXETER (Dartford).

Position : Black men on 2, 3, 6, 10 , 1 9,2 5 ; K 26. White men on 11, 13, 15,20, 22 , 27 ; K 1. White to move and win :

2 0 - 1 6 , 2 6 - 1 7 , 1 3 - 9 , 6 - 1 3 , 1 5 - 6 , 2 - 9 , 1 1 - 8 ,

3 - 1 2 , 2 7 - 2 3 , 1 9 - 2 6 , 1-5, 1 2 - 1 9 , 5 - 1 6 . White

GAMES.

GAME No. 73.-—" SWITCHER."

Played in America between Alfred Jordan,the English and Scottish Champion, andanother. The former has recently settledin the States and has challenged the world.

A fine game with a sensational finish :—

WHITE

White to move and win.

ATERMINATION of a correspondence game

which is virtually won by the key-move.The neat and forceful character of the keyresults in a pretty "shot." After this clue

our young solvers ought to be able to veryeasily see the solution, and send it to usona postcard for the honour of acknowledgment.For a correspondence ending it is rather acurious oversight for black, who had asafe draw. We will show the game in ournext column.

11—15 29—25 22—25 10 — 6 25—2921—17 18—22 24—19 1—10 18—15

9—13 25—18 25—29 5— 1 11—2525—21 10—15 31—26 25—29 20—16

8—11 28—24 4— 8 1— 6 8—1117—14 15—22 23—18 29—25 16—12

10—17 32—28 2S - 25 6—15 7—1021—14 6—10 27—23 3— 7 12— 8

6—10 24—19 25—29 26—22 11 -1022—17 10—15 18—14 25—29 19—2313—22 19—10 29—25 19—16 10—14

26—17 5— 9 23—18 12—19 8— 315—18 14— 5 25—29 15—24 14—17

24—20 7—21 14—10 29—25 23—26

2— 6 28—24 29—25 24—19- 15—19

And now continue : 3 - 7 , 1 9 - 2 4 , 7 - 1 0 , 2 4 - 2 8 ,

1 0 - 1 4 , 2 7 - 3 1 , 1 4 - 9 , 3 1 - 2 2 , 9- 13 . White

wins.







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A T A L E O F A N E V E N T F U L P A P E R - C h iA S E .

(Brawn for the " Boy's Own Paper" by A B T H U R GILL.)



426 The "Boy's Obun Taper.

Jack took a bicycle lamp from the swag.

It had a strong acetylene light, and having

lit it, he took his heavy navy Colt's

revolver from the holster; and with this in his

right hand and the lamp in his left, held well

in front of him, he cautiously entered the

cave. As he did so, the powerful light

showed streaks of shining metal on the damp

sides; but Jack kept a bright look out for thedangerous enemy, and had not to go far to

find it.

From a fissure of the rock on his left was

issuing the body of a large black snake, the

glitter of its wicked-looking eyes being

intensified by the light of the lamp.

Jack was a good shot with a revolver, but

he would take no risks, as a miss might be

fatal. The snake was evidently startled and

dazed by the strong light in its eyes, so

Jack advanced upon it. Its body was now

almost clear of the fissure, its head raised to

within a couple of feet from the lamp, when

Jack looking steadily at its small gleaming

eyes dropped the muzzle of his revolver on a

line with them and fired. A deafening

JERSEY, Guernsey, Alderney and Sark

—so we were introduced to theChannel Islands at school, but among " the

lesser islands," as they are styled, there is

one at least which has peculiarities entirely

its own, and curiosities of undoubted interestunclaimed by any of the others in thisarchipelago. Herm, one of the

" Happy Islands set within the British Seas,"

as Drayton calls the Channel Islands, lies

about three and a half miles due east of

Guernsey, and measures roughly one and a

half miles by half a mile in extent.

As in Guernsey, the island on the north

and east is flat and sandy, and steep and

precipitous on the south and west. Like

Guernsey, too, it is surrounded by a vastfield of rocks, a death-trap for the unwary,

and respected by the most experienced of local navigators. But once inside thisnatural barrier, wo have a veritable paradise

of rest and seclusion.

Herm is leased by a German Count, great-grandson of the famous Field-MarshalBliicher, and in his mansion in the centre

of the island he resides for some months

during each year. The small population of

about two dozen is composed entirely of his

employees, most of whom have been brought

up to regard the sea as their natural home.

Interesting people they are—far more so

than they imagine—full of simple humour,

happy in their quaint world, and free from

the strife of politics and the grip of taxation,

British and decidedly loyal.

Their spare time is fully occupied with

their flower gardens—in which they are

encouraged by both the Count and the soil—

with their lobster pots and fishing and other

hobbies that go to relieve otherwise idle

hours : and yet there is never a trace of " hustle " and the days never seem too long.

This can be well understood, when, as one

said, " We often sleep fourteen hours in

the winter nights to save the o i l " ; and

another, on being questioned as to what

he had to do that day, replied, with

explosion followed in the confined space, and

Jack, without waiting to ascertain the result

of it, dashed out of the cave on to the ledge,

where he stood with his pistol ready for

another shot if necessary.

Maloo waited in breathless silence, but

after an interval of a few minutes Jack

ejaculated the words " Got him ! " on which

Maloo said :" Don't hurry, Boss ! black snakes hab

muchee life in um, take plenty kill."

" Possibly, boy, but I don' t think he will

do much harm with his head blown off, as I

guess it is ; however, as I didn't stop to see

what happened we'll give him time to die,

and in the meantime I'll take a quiet pipe."

As he spoke, Jack lit his briar-root.

After he had been puffing calmly at his

pipe with enjoyment for a few minutes,

Maloo suddenly started up, crying out :

" Look out, Boss ! debbil-snake him come

out ! "

Jack sprang up with his revolver read}',

when down the channel from the cave came

the writhing body of the black snake carried

(To be continued.)

^0

the suspicion of a smile playingaround his answer, " I have a spade to look

for." What would not some give to be

able to live in such a place where worry

cannot ki ll, and where time is of quite

secondary consideration ?Letters and telegrams must be fetchedfrom Guernsey by the boat, whenever any

of the people happen to be going across on

a market day " to town " as they call i t,

but during stormy weather weeks must

elapse during which there can be no com

munication with the sister island. For

children, too, attractions are held out—

along by the current, and as it passed they

saw that it was minus its head, though there

was still apparently life in the body, which

in another moment reached the edge of the

precipice and then, by the force of the water,

was dashed over into the depths below.

" Which ends the tale of that snake," said

Jack with a smile of satisfaction.

They made their way cautiously into thecave again, and soon were hard at work

hewing at the rock, Jack with a pickaxe

and Maloo with a steel hatchet, and having

succeeded in extracting a piece of the ore

Jack took it into the light and found it to be

apparently pure gold. Its weight seemed

to warrant him in this supposition.

They then both fell to work furiously and

after an hour had obtained a quantity of the

precious metal, which Jack put in a small

strong sack, after which they stopped for a

short spell. This plan of worldng and

taking rests they kept up for some hours,

until the declining sun told them that it was

time they made the descent of the mountain

if they wished to do so with any safety.

a natural, playground with the sea the onlylimit, no policeman, no " keep off the grass,"

no one even (except the parents) to compel

a child to attend school; and even school

itself, when it has to be reached by at least half

an hour's sail across the Little Bussel Straitsto St. Peter Port, has its compensations !

A little harbour opposite the Guernsey

shore holds out an arm to welcome and

protect the visitor, but at certain stages of

the tide this is inaccessible, and then theonly landing is at the " White Steps," reached

by means of a small boat, among the rocksto the southward. Brimful of interest to

O n e of the Isl anders.

"HERM, C.I."

A L i t t l e - k n o w n I s la n d P a r a d i s e .

By F. G. RUSSELL.



"Herm, CI." 427

Shell Beach, H e r m .

(This is awhite line of beach composed of shells for nearly amile in length ; over 40 generaand 200 varieties of shells can be found here.)

the botanist, conchologist, curiosi ty hunterand others, like most things worth having,the island's main features of interest mustbe sought for to be enjoyed.

There is their "Smallest Cemetery in theWorld," a half-hidden mound among the tallbracken lining the western coast-path, witha wooden cross marking the spot where twoquarrymen were buried who died on theisland about fifty years ago. Across " the

Common " to the north-east side lies the bestknown feature of Herm—the Shell Beach, along white ribbon of nearly amile in length,where upwards of forty genera are to befound, with about 200 varieties. Ormers,cowries and limpets abound in endlessshades of colour and size, while very little

sand and few pebbles can be seen, the shingle

itself being mainly composed of minutefragments of shell.

Along awinding path lined with the gorseand bracken and the hedgerows redolentwith honeysuckle, past the little BelvoirBay, through copse and brake, with Sark lying a few miles eastward, " a Pearl set insapphire," Jersey a shadow on the southernhorizon, the little sugar-loaf Jethou almostwithin a stone's throw, and Guernsey lyingaway to the west, something of interestseems to arise with every bend of theway.

Incorporated with the out-buildings of the mansion are the ruins of a formerchapel and hermitage dating from aboutthe sixth century, for Herm was once

a refuge for monks. Farther on towards the

southern end of the island is a splendid" creux," through which the incoming tidegurgles and foams, throwing up its hissingspray on every side. All around are to beseen the regular sea-bird visitors, andoccasionally the plover, quail, snipe andwoodcock; while around the shores theconger, crab and lobster are to be caughtin large numbers, and find a ready sale inthe Guernsey market.

It may be that, taking a stroll along apath one comes across an unexpectedvisitor from the Antipodes, in the form of a kangaroo. A few were brought to theisland many years ago and have bred soprolifically in their congenial surroundingsthat of late years it has been found necessaryto shoot several of them on account of depredations they cause among the crops.Hiding in the thick undergrowth, however,they are seldom to be seen till dusk or inthe early dawn, and many a visitor comesand goes entirely unaware of their presence.

In the eighteenth century the island wasused as a warren for stags and pheasants,but the two last of the former were killedin 1773. An interesting note is given in a

history of the islands about this period,of how the Guernsey Governor's agent onHerm complained of one Peter Gosselin,"whose nonsensicall sheepe grassing tradehas caused yor hearde of deare and eyes(i.e., neyes, or broods) of phesans to belessened above halfe." No such complaintsare made nowadays.

The " Seamen's Mission " attends to thespiritual welfare of the Islanders, and whenweather permits one or two of their staff sailover in the mission boat Olive on a Sundayafternoon, and hold a short but heartyservice in one of the houses above the beach.

Such is this little island of 320 acres—sheltered, select, comparatively free fromthe trippers' profanations, a little world of its own. And where can one find a shorter

postal address than "Her m, C.I." ?

<r <r nr

ATHLETE, SHIPBUILDER, PHILANTHROPIST.

T h e L i f e S t o r y o f / n r . A r n o l d F. H i l l s .

THE name of Arnold F. Hills has become

very familiar of late to the world atlarge by reason of the closing down of the well-known Thames Iron Works, whichbuilt many fine ships, not only for theBritish Navy but for nearly every nationin Europe. The marvellous development

in the iron and coal fields of the Clyde basinhas made it almost impossible for theThames to make shipbuilding a payingindustry.

To see Mr. Hills as, in an invalid chair,he was wheeled into the court, where theappeal of his Company was being heard,one would never think that he had been oncea famous runner and athlete, yet such isthe case. He was educated at Harrow

school, and while he early won a reputationas a hard worker with his brains, he excelledat all sports, especially running, footballand cricket.

When he left Harrow he went to OxfordUniversity, and there won great fame asa runner and footballer. His crowningtriumph came in April, 1879, at the Lillie

Bridge Grounds, when, in the Universitysports, he won the three miles for Oxfordin the wonderfully good time of 15 minutes14J seconds. The third man was F. R.Benson, since greatly distinguished in other•i alks of life. For two years previous to this,Mr. Hills had also represented the Dark

Blues. In this first year he was third in themile race, and in the second year he held thesecond position. On this last occasion the firstthree positions were taken by Oxford men.

Mr. Hills was also a representative of Oxford in the Inter-University footballmatch, and he appeared at the Oval in 1877

when his university won by the only goalscored in the game. His fellow-players onthat occasion included E. Waddington, whoafterwards became so celebrated in theFrench diplomatic world, and the Hon. A.Lyttelton, who made his fame, not only inthe athletic world, but at the bar and inmatters that concern our citizenship.

Cambridge, however, took revenge in 1879,when the Dark Blues, among whom wasMr. Hills, were beaten by five goals to one.Here again Mr. Hills played with rare skilland struggled very bravely, and it waswith many regrets that his active athleticcareer soon after closed.

Of late years, Mr. Hills has taken a greatinterest in sport. He was one of the foundersof the celebrated Thames Iron Works

Football Club, now so well known as WestHam, and gave them the splendid MemorialGrounds. The early teams were of workmenwho were total abstainers, and the Chairman'sgreat idea was that the man who workedall the week should be able to play on theSaturday.

West Bromwich and other clubs wereinvited to play football at eight o'clock inthe evening when the experiment was triedof playing by electric light in order topopularise the game, but although theventure roused a great deal of interest, itdid not produce very good results and was

soon dropped.The perseverance that Mr. Hills showed

on the running path was a fit prelude to theheroic determination that he has manifestedon behalf of others. In philanthropic andreligious work he has long been prominent,especially among the poorer classes of theEast End. Temperance work in Londonwould have been almost at a standstill but

for the money and devotion of Mr. Hills,who founded the London United TemperanceCouncil. From his headquarters at Farring-don Street, he also formed a great associate nto encourage people to see the importanceof a vegetable diet, and every winterthousands upon thousands of free mealswere distributed among the hungry childrenof London.

A generous champion of the weak andoppressed, he is now paralysed and can nolonger work with his hands ; still, from hisinvalid couch by the aid of the telephonehe has continued to direct the work of thevarious departments of the huge concern

over which he has long presided.



428 The Hoy's Otvn Paper.

A T a l e o f a V e n d e t t a .

By A. F E RGUSON ,

Author of " The Singing Kettle" " Held as Hostages," " Up the Essequibo," etc., etc.

CHAPTER v. (continued)-—THE MAN WITH THE FINGERLESS HAND.

JT seems that, when Barto Barbuzzi had

reluctantly made up his mind that Fran

cesco Cazale was really drowned, he and

Maso had gone to find work in a gold-mining

district farther up the coast. Their presence

on board the barque on the point of starting

for America was, we learned, purely casual

and momentary, though it had misled

Francie's cutter mates into believing that

the two Italians had left the colony.

The brothers seemed to have worked for

some time in a gold mine, but, when they

had fully convinced themselves that gold

nuggets were not to be had—as they had

expected—just for the digging, they returned

by steamer to Northport, as the first step

towards working their passage back to their

native land.

As the steamer passed Scarred Cliff

Island, a man was waiting in a boat to hand

on board some letters to be posted in North-

port. Barto Barbuzzi , peering from behind

a group of passengers, learned from his own

eyes that Francesco Cazale was still alive to

suffer his vengeance. For he knew the man

in the boat to be Francesco Cazale, though

the latter had been a child when he last

saw him—knew him because Francesco was

the living image of his brother Ciccio, whom

Barto had killed !

Before he reached Northport he had

learned, from a talkative deck-hand, all he

wanted to know about our island and our

selves, and Francie's connection with us.

Two days later, while he was still wondering

how he could most safely get at Francie in

his island fastness, Fate again played into

his hands.

For he and Maso were working at a casual

job as wharf lumpers, and he chanced

to be on the spot when my father landed,

from his little yacht, on one of the Northportwharves and mention was made of his

identity by some bystander. Thereupon,

Barto made it his business to follow him a

little way up the street, and so was able to

overhear him say, in a casual meeting with

a friend, that he expected to be

kept quite a week in Northport,

but that his boy was perfectly

happy alone on the island with

the nice little Italian man whoworked for them.

Barto Barbuzzi at once saw his opportu

nity and made his plans. He would steal

one of the many little private pleasure

yachts lying, safely anchored but unguarded,

in Northport harbour, waiting to be used for

the> owners' week-end trip. In her, he

and Maso would make for Scarred Cliff

Island. Once there he was certain, in my

father's absence, of finding it easy to do the

wicked murder which, in the monomaniacal

intensity of his thirst for vengeance, he

had more than half circled the globe to

accomplish.

But the man with the fingerless hand had

had to wait several nights before chancefavoured his attempts to steal a little yacht.

Then the failure of the wind had thwarted

his intention of reaching the island before

daylight. And, finally, he and Maso had

only reached the island to find unexpected

difficulties in getting within reach of their

quarry, Francesco Cazale.

No wonder Barto Barbuzzi was an angry

man ! Even the good square meal he had

made had no soothing effect on his temper,

which he vented, in all its uncontrolled

savagery, in curses upon the fog and the

contrariness of things in general, and on

Francesco Cazale in particular, who, having

scented their approach, seemingly, had,

with exasperating caution, gone and put

himself out of reach of his enemy's

knife.

" But it will be all the worse for the

pig," growled Barto furiously. " I will

make this last of the accursed Cazale pa y

for all the good Barbuzzi blood his people

have shed. For this ruined hand of mine

will I make him pay. Also, for all the years

of prison that his babbling tongue cost me.

Yes, threefold payment does he owe me, and

a threefold death shall he die ! And it is

not likely I will make his death less painful

for all this trouble to find him that he is

giving us."

I almost wished that I had not got sogood a knowledge of Francie's Sicilian

Italian. For it was very dreadful for me

to be able to understand what the ruffian

said. His insane ferocity, his relentlessness

shook my young heart and turned me sick.

Oh, how fervently I prayed that he should

never find Francie !

" Ecco 1" said Maso suddenly, " the fog

disappears."

From beneath my folded arms I stole aglance through the kitchen window. Yes,

the fog was lifting quickly, film after film

uprolling itself, like gauze screens in a

pantomime transformation scene. In a few

minutes, a sea, dancing in the sunlight

beneath a blue sky, made the completed

transformation effect.

" Now we can go to find that pig, Cesco

Cazale," said Barto, with grim satisfaction,

as he rose to his feet.

" Let us find him quickly and be gone,"

said Maso, rising too. " I do not wish to be

caught here by the boy's father."

" Bah ! Did we not hear the father say

he would stay a week in the city ? The boy

talked at random, as a boy talks, when he

said his father would return to-day. The

boy is a fool. See how he sleeps, mistrusting

us not. We say we are Cesco's friends—

ecco, he believes it."

" H e must be a fool," agreed Maso, with

heavy seriousness. " For, though he under

stands not our tongue, when you speak of

the Cazale your face, your voice, tell quite

plainly that it is not money and kisses that

you will rain upon the man when you find

him."

" Basta I " cried Barto impatiently. " Let

us be off."

" Shall we not take the boy with us to

help to find Cesco ? " asked Maso." Oh ! the boy ? " Barto seemed to stop

to consider. " No, he cannot help—he

knows no more than we where the accursed

one is. Besides, it were well that the boy

be not there while I kill Cesco. For, after

wards, when we have well hidden the body,

we can come back and lament to the little

fool that, search as we may, we cannot find

our so dear friend, and we grieve to think

that he may have fallen over the cliffs into

the sea in the heavy fog. Then we bid the

boy addio and sail away, unsuspected, from

the island." He finished, with a laugh of

savage cunning, as he moved again towards

the back door.

Then he stopped again, struck by a sudden

thought.

" It will not be safe to leave the little

rascal like this. He may awake and follow

us."

With that he shook me by the shoulder



Scarred Cliff Island. 429

" Wake, little signor," he said in English

with his horrible attempt at a propitiatory

smile. " We play one so good joke on our

dear friend, Cesco."

I yawned and rubbed my eyes, making a

great pretence of being aroused from sleep.

" We tie you so," and he snatched from

a big iron hook on the wall a little coil of

stout rope and began to wind it round me,

knotting it swiftly and securely with hisunmaimed hand as he went along. " We

make you much tied." And the rope

strapped my arms closely to my body.

" Oh, what joke ! "

" I don't see any joke," I protested angrily,

thinking it would look suspiciously un

natural if I didn't, though I knew the use-

lessness of protestation. " And I don't

want to be tied up like this. Let me go,

please ! "

" Pazienza, signorino, pazienza!" hegrinned.

(To be continued.)

And now, having completely trussed me,

he fastened the loose end of the rope to the

hook in the wall in such a way that I was

tight up against it.

" No hurt to you, signorino carissimo,"

went on the ruffian smoothly. " And you

laugh much, by-and-bye, when you under

stand the much fun we make our dear friend,

Cesco Cazale, for that he make joke to hide

himself from his so loved compatriots.Now we go find him."

THE " B .O.P." STAMP COLLECTOR.

FIG. 1.

rERE are few boys who are not familiar with tiiewild animals which form such attractions in

the Zoological Gardens;many know them by sight,

and even those who havenot had opportunities of seeing savage beasts in captivity are mostly familiarwith them from pictures.It is, therefore, a matterof no surprise that evencollectors of stamps showdelight in the pictorialrepresentations of animals,birds and fishes, which, whencollected together, make aremarkable group. Thosewho have neither time normoney to collect the stampsof all nations m ay very wellconcentrate their attentionupon securing a representative collection of stamps on

which are pictures forming averitable Philatelic Zoo.

Animals which represent the fauna of the countryof issue on its postage stamps for the most part arefaithfully represented; very different from the stiff andformal heraldic animals on some, which must not beconfused with those which are permissible into such acollection as that which boys are recommended tomake. The Uon is emblematic of sovereignty andpower, and its heraldic form is well known to allboys, although the lions on the Royal Standard of England bear very little

resemblance to the lions in

the Zoo. The lion couch-ant shown on the currentpenny stamps of KingGeorge reminds Londoners of the lions, modelledby Landseer, which flankNelson's Column in Trafalgar Square. Theyhave no place in aPhilatelic Zoo ; and boyswill no doubt be disappointed that there areso few stamps on whichthe lion appears as ananimal of the country.

Pig. 1 gives a repre

sentation of the heraldic lionearly stamps of that country,ropgh blurred impressions of 1870. The one shownin fig. 1 is the 3ch., dull-purple, of 1896. Thelion, however, still inhabits the country, the Persianlion being closely allied to the lion of Arabia. A Honis seen on the stamps of Paraguay, but that, too, isscarcely deserving of a place in the collection. Thereare several kinds of African lions ; t hat of Barb ary hasa deep yellowish brown fur; the lion of WesternAfrica is of a more yellow tint ; and then there is the

.... >

PIG. 2.

of Persia,especially

on theon the

Cape lion. On the stamps of Italian Somaliland, of

the 19 03 series, is the head of a fine lion. There are

A P h i l a t e l i c Z o o .

By FRED W. BURGESS.

five different values and colours, some being met withsurcharged.

The tiger, the largest of the cat tribe, is confined toAsia, ranging from Siberia to the Malay Archipelago.

Th e tigers of Bengal are very beautif ully striped, theircolour varying according to locality and climate, beinglighter in the more northern latitudes. Avery poorrepresentation of a tiger is seen on the native Indian

stamps of Bussahir

_ . which were firstissued in 1896,an-other series appearing in 1899, allhaving been obsoletesince 1901. In theF e d e r a t e d MalayStates are manytypes, a fine tigerbeing the type of the 16., black andgreen, of 1900, shownin fig. 2. There is aleaping tiger on the

p I G 4 stamps of Sungei

Ujong, of the issueof 189 1, and a largetiger's head on the

3 c , dull-purple and carmine, of 1895. Both these

designs are repeated on the stamps of Selangor,Perak, Pahang, and Negri Sembilan.

Fig. 3 represents a la , olive and brown, of 1907 , of the French colony of the Middle Congo. Beneath thetiger, in the centre of the design, are two elephants'tusks.

Th e elephant, who in prehistoric times roamed overEurope, is now confined to Asia and Africa. Inphilately we find examples of Indian elephants inthe stamps of high values of Perak, Selangor, the

Malay States, and the Straits Settlements, in theissues of 1895-9, the values ranging from $1 to $25,mostly in green on other colours. The stamps of North Borneo are extremely interesting to the collector of this series as they represent so many differentanima ls; the elephant being the type of the 1909issue, 5c , brown-ochre. There is a very pretty seriesof little stamps of Sirmoor, one of the native states of India, printed in 1895, on which the elephant isthe central type.

The Liberian stamps are almost a zoo in themselves ; the African elephant being th e tvpe of the lc , black and green,

of the 1906 issue. Anelephant's head is th etype of the 1 and 2 besastamps of Italian Somali-land, of the issue of 1903.

Th e Liberian stampsinclude the hippopotamus on the 75c, blackand chocolate of 1906,and the 2c , black andolive-bistre of 1897 (seefig. 4). The rhinoceros isseen on the 6c , paleolive-green, of the 1909issue of North Borneo.A wild boar is shown onthe 10c, blue, of the sameissue. Wild cattle wereonce very plentiful in thenorthern part of the island,as typified by the fine bullon the 1 8c , blue-green, of 1909. Americanwild cattle

are represented on the

stamps of Uruguay . There is a fine bull's head on the 7c ,deep green, of 1895, and a stampede of cattle on the l c ,green, of. 1900, a series rich in pictorial effects. Thebull is also the type of the 5c , blue, of 1906 . In thecommemorative series of 1898, typifying prairie lifein the United States, there is a picture on the SI stampof Western cattle in a storm, and another of Indian

F I G . 5.

FIG. 6.

buffalo hunting, b oth stamps forming a part of theissue commemorating the Trans-Mississippi Ex-position.

Th e picture sta mps of

Nyassa, one of the Portuguese Colonies, form avery important seriesassociated with the zoo.There is the giraffe, thetype of several issues,the one shown in fig. 5being the 2£r., chocolate,of the 1901 issue; andthe zebra which wasselected for the type of the 20r., black and carmine, of 1910. Camelsare shown on the 2Jr.,black and violet, of thesame year. The stampsof the French Colony of

Obock are curious, beingof pyramid shape. Onthese the camel ia the

central figure. T he very curious stamps of Sudanshow Slatin Pasha riding on a camel.

The honeybear inhabits the Malay Peninsula, whereit is named the Bruang. A good illustration is

seen on the 10c , brown andslate-lilac, La buan stamps of 1902, and also on those of North Borneo. The "Roussa,"or Malay stag, is illustratedon the 2 c , blue, of the sameissue (see fig. 6) . The orangoutang is illustrated on th*

stamps of North Borneo andLabuan. The chimpanzee isthe type of the 5c , black anddeep blue, of the 1906 Liberianstamps. Th e agama lizard iaseen on th e 15c, deep greenand violet, of the same issue.Th e crocodile figures on thestamps of both North Lorneoand Labuan.

The llama and the alpaca,native animals of Peru,areshown in fig. 7, one of the

early stamps of that country, being the 10c, vermilion,of 1865 ; there was a similar design for the 20c'

brown, and a slightly varied picture for the 5 c .green, of 1866.

Although there are ma ny very interesting animalsin South Africa, the only types illustrated on postagestamps are the springbok and the gnu, shown bulowthe portrait of King Edward, in the 1903 issue of tueOrange River Colony. The largest animal in Australiais the kangaroo, an excellent representation of wmuhis given on the 1* ., marone,stamp of Ne w South Wales ;one of a series issued in1887 to commemorate thecentenary of the foundationof the Colony; the type of the "d.,blue, of the sameissue (see fig. 8), being theemu, the largest bird inAustralia. In this same seriesthere ia the lyre bird, socalled from the curioua re-semblance of its tail to themusical instrument called thelyre.

Th e swan is the type of Western Australia which wasoriginally called the SwanRiver Colony. Fig. 9 represents the type, at firstimperforate, afterwards perforate, with slight variations

continued until 1902, when for the higher values theQueen's head was substituted. The Newfoundland

F I G . 7.

F I G .



430 The "Boy's Otvn Paper.

PIG.

dog, a native jpf the count ry from which it takes itsname, is represented on the $d., rose-red, of 1887, of Newfoundland, and on subsequent issues (see fig. 10).Th e seal shown on an ice-floe is illustrated on the 5c ,

deep-blue, of 1880, in fig.1 1 , a slightly differentrepresentation having appeared on a stamp of thesame value in 1886.

Th e codfish, as typifying the importance of the fishing industries of Newfoundland, was selec

ted for the 2 c , green, of 1866 ; and again, slightlyvaried, in 188 0. A groupof seals is shown on the15c , deep scarle t, one of the series in 1 897, commemorating the 400thanniversary of the discovery of Newfoundland,

and the sixtieth year of Queen Victoria's reign. Thebeaver was very early introduced on postage stamps,having been engraved on the first Canadian stamp, a3d., red, issued on April 23, 1 851. The platypus of Tasmania is a curious animal seen on a duty stamp of 1880.

Boy s who are fond of birds will find ample opportunit y of indulging their fancy in collecting the differentbirds on postage sta mps ; among them some verycurious, natives of the various islands and countriesof which they form the chief types . Thus , in the CookIslands Federation, the issues of the \d., blue ; 2d.,brown ; 6d. , purple, and Is ., carmine, of 1898 had fortheir type the torea, or wry-neck, a bird that is alliedto the woodpeckers in England ; it is sometimes called

the cuckoo's mate, and occasional ly the snake-bird.Th e bird, so called because of its habit of turningits head round in different directions, is frequentlymet with on the stamps of North Borneo. In Tonga,a protectorate of Great Britain, there are manyinteresting native stamps, among them the 25. 6d.,indigo-viol et, of 1897 , which has for its ty pe a parrot.Tonga, it will be noticed, is spelt Toga on the stamps.

Th e hawk-billed parrots of New Zealand are verynumerous. On the Is., dull-red, of 1898 of thatcount ryare two kakas, or hawk-billed parrots . T he Zd.,yellow-brown, of an earlier issue has for its type the

4st

sacred huia birds, so called from their cry (the pronunciation of the word being " hoo ya "). The kaka(the male bird has a sharp and straight billand the female longer and curved) is sometimes described as a New Zealand starling. On the 6d., grass-green, stamp of the same year is an excellent representation of the apterix or kiwi, pronounced " kewi. "This bird also takes its name from the note it utters.

Th e quetzal of Guatemala is a very beautiful birdillustrated on quite a number of the stamps of thatcountry. It first appeared on the quarter-real green andbrown, and the one-real, green and black, of 1879 (seefig. 12). Then again in 1881 for several other values,

the frame-work of the design being slightly changed.In 1886 there was a series of stamps on which the birdfigures holding in its claw the Declaration of Independence from Spain, repeated again in 1887-94 ; in thatform becoming the const ituted arms of the country asseen on the l c , mauve and emerald, of 1902.

On the s tamps of Labuan and North Borneo is seenthe argus pheasant, with its tail erect. This bird, whichis restricted to East Indian climates, and especiallyto Borneo, is remarkable for the great beauty of itswing and tail feathers. In ancient mythology theargus was said to have a hundred eyes, placed by Junoto guard Io, his eyes being transplanted to the peacock's tail. The ptarmigan of Newfoundland is a birdfamiliar to many as it is brought over to this countryin large quantities, being good eating. An excellentrepresentation of the bird is shown on the I2 c , blue,

4 ^

FIG. 1 2.

of the commemorative issue of the sixtieth yearof the reign of Queen Victoria, the stamp havingthe dates 1497-1897, also denoting the 400th anniversary of the discovery of Newfoundland.

Th e stamps of Liberiahave already been referredto as being prolific with 1 "pictures of many animals.In the issue of 1906 the20c , black and orange,stamp had for its type thegreat egret (ardea albo),a species of heron, often

killed for its plumage. Acurious addition to thePhilatelic Zoo also comesfrom Liberia in the 10c„black and marone, of 1906, on which is apicture of the plantain -

eater, a large bird, alsoknown as the plantain-cutter, said to beallied to the cuckoofamily.

Th e king of birds is the emblem of the UnitedStates of America, and in very many forms is seen, ontheir stamps, chiefly symbolical and in heraldic form.Th e eagle with outspread wings, signifying freedom andstrength, has, however, been adopted as the chief typein many countries. It was the standard of ImperialR o m e ; France under the Bonapartes adopted it asthe national emblem, and double-headed eagles areseen on the postage stamps of Russia, Austria, andPrussia. The l c , blue, official carriers* stamp of 1851shows an excellent example of the eagle of the UnitedStates.

A collection of zoological postage stamps may, of course, be extended to include the " Turrull ," ormystical birds of the Magyars, seen on many of thestamps of Hungary, and the mystic dragon of China,which was referred to at some length in the article onChinese postage stamps winch appeared in our lastvolu me (see p. 734 ). In the arms and supporters of some countries other mystic and sometimes unknownanimals, like the unicorn, are seen. The horse is onthe stamps of Naples, and the lion rampant on thoseof Norway and Paraguay ; but these do not come underthe ken of a collec tor of a Philatelic Zoo !

New

Serial Story.

U n d e r t h e E d g e o f

t h e E a r t h :A S t o r y o T T h r e e C h u m s a n d a

S t a r t l i n g Q u e s t .

By F. H. BOLTON,

Author of " In the Heart of the Silent Sea," etc .

THE Sixth Form sat back and gasped. Yet

one would have thought that by thisthey were fairly well accustomed to anysurprise in the way of statements that theWizard might think fit to spring uponthem. True, as Hutton had once remarked,it was never safe to say where his headwould pop up next ; but then, as Kennedyhad retorted on that occasion, they knewit woidd have to p op up somewhere, andthere was no need to be always gaping wide-

mouthed, just because it had popped up.Yet they were, to a lad, proud of the

Wizard, and proud of the name they themselves had fitted on to him. It was a namesignifying to them as much of worship as of boyish banter; a name he knew himself tobear, and one they had never been at anypains to keep from his ken. There must besome things he did not know, Morris hadonce admitted, with a quiet smile ; but itwas a certainty no one else did if he didn't.Every forecast of the world's inventionswhich he had volunteered to his classes atcasual moments and in easy off-handednesshad been verified, or seemed in a fair way of so being.

More than once he had assured his hearersthat the time could not be long coming when

it should be practicable to flash electricmessages without the medium of the longconnecting miles of wire; this, too, beforethe name of Marconi had become known tothe scientific world, let alone the world atlarge. And he had further taxed the faith

CHAPTER II .—A POSER FOR THE SIXTH.

of the boys in his prescience by stating it ashis conviction that the day could not be fardistant when it should be possible to seethrough matter hitherto regarded as opaqueto light; a foreshadowing, had they butknown it, of the later-discovered Rontgenrays.

Nor did his knowledge run merely in thegroove of things mechanical and scientific ;his intimate acquaintance with the secretsof flower and insect, bird and animal, to

gether with his racy way of throwing outthe most solid bits of information at one, asif of no consequence whatever, made him acompanion to court on a countn- walk.Old things were shown in new lights, newthings were brought out and treated asfamiliar friends. All this, too , with no airof forcing information, or assuming a pro

ficiency or knowledge above that of hishearers. Hector Brant, the loved teacherof science and mathematics, was the friendas well as the master; the companion aswell as the man of deep-seatedknowledge.

Yet this sunny afternoon, when the classroom windows were opened wide, and thebees hummed outside in the drowsy air, theSixth Form sat back and gasped, not becauseof the heat of the weather, but because of

their undisguised astonishment at the latestremark of the Wizard. It was two daysafter the strange encounter on the aqueducttowing-path, and Morris's face looked nonethe better for the blow he had received. Butthe others were too much engrossed with

their thoughts to smile at the curious figurehe cut, with his swollen hps parted in theastonishment of the moment.

Mr. Brant sat at his desk, looking good-humouredly at the boys. His gown, withthe purple badge of the B. Sc , hung loosely

from his shoulder, and the square " colleger "which he had removed from his head left histhick, black hair free to be ruffled by his long,nervous fingers as he leaned forward, absently passing them through it.

" Mark my words ! You will find it as Isay ! "

It was not often the Wizard showedsign of excitement. To some degree he wasof reserved manner and had his feelings wellunder control. But on this occasion theboys noticed an unusual sparkle of the eye,and an unwonted emphasis of speech. Hesmiled as he repeated and enlarged upon hisremarkable statement to the astonishedclass, whose history lesson had received sostrange an interruption.

" Here is a land, the people of which haveall the fire of youth, a young nation thatmust needs run its race at the fastest.Barely a hundred years have passed sincethe Declaration of Independence, and thegreat continent is overrun from Atlantic

shores to Pacific. Quickwitted and ingenious themselves, not one single inventionor discovery of civilised Europe but findsready reception there. They seem to liveat so rapid a rate that life itself loses itsvalue. In their feverish haste through life





The 'Boy*s Obvn Taper.

01: 3Li

G . 0 . SMITH.—Tou can generally get photographsof county Football and Cricket teams from news

agents and stationers in those towns where thematc h ground s are. Some dealers, such as Hawkinsof Brighton, could also supply them. We gavephotographs of Barnsley and Blackburn RoversAssociation teams in the November 1912 Part, andof the " Springboks " in the last January Part.

COUNTRY YOKEL.—Your letter is very welcomeand some of yo ur suggestions shall be kep t in mind.See next week's issue for article on *' Ho w toMake Stilts. " Yo u should begin the course of cold tubs with th e sprin g; a great deal, remember,depends on keeping this up regularly. Cocoahas been recommended as a good drink for longcycle runs, but individual tastes differ. It is encouraging to know tha t you ha ve found the " Ho wto Slake " articles so useful. Many readers fromall over the world write to us to say they havebuilt canoes and sledges from the directions givenin " B.O.P. " articles. See the new Cricket seriesspecially written by Wilfred Rhodes, which is juststarting.

E. B. KNIGHT.—Your suggestion shall be carried outif we can arrange for the articles in. question. W eare glad to find you are still a reader.

SULOB (ANDOTHERS).—See the articles on " Ho w toBecome a ' Wirel ess' O perat or" about to appear.The particulars you ask for will be given therein.

SEABOT.—" The Lord Nelson " as a na val inn-nameis not the m ost popular ; it is beaten by " TheLord Rodney." After the great battle off Dominicain the West Indies, on April 12, 1 782 , when theBritish squadron under Admiral Rodney defeatedthe French fleet under Admiral De Grasse, half the taverns in this country, it is said, painted outtheir " Markis o' G-ranby " signboar ds for '* TheAdmiral Rodney " or " The Lord Rodney."

R. L. J.—" The Middy and the Moors," by R. M .Ballan tyne, appeared in Vo l. X of the *' B.O.P."Yo u can only get this volume secondhand.

G . VEITCH.—See " Ho w to m ake a Simple Model

Aeroplane " in last volume, p . 59, for monoplane-

building instructions.

W . ASTON.—The spelling of the Sout h African word" veld " (pron ounced *' velt ") with an additional" t " is a common mistake. We are obliged to youfor pointing this out. 2. A George IV farthinghas little value.

E R I C B A Y N E AND G. C. MORETON.—The species of chameleon most commonly sold in this country isthe African chameleon (Chameleon vulgaris); itmay be obtained at from about Zs. to Gs. Thesereptiles are seldom stocked by the dealers exceptduring the summer months. They may be purchased from "The Vivarium," West Bromwich,from M r. Green, Bedf ord Conservatories, CoventGarden, W. C. , and other large dealers in livestock. <

E R N E S T L. JONES.—1. Yes , we shall be giving photographs of other well-known Football teams duringnext season. 2. See the new school serial, " Unde rthe Edge of the Earth ," by P. H. Bolt on.

T E D M.—Ne ither a run nor a fowl-house should beovercrow ded. If you think of going in for morefowls you mus t enlarge your groun d. A grass runis most important. We have always recommendeda portable fowl-house and run where plenty of spaceis at one's disposal.

E D W I N MOORE.—Dr . Gordon Stables died a few years

ago.

PALEFACE.—Give it up as a foolish and health-destroying habit. Smoking is not good for any boy. No

wonder your face is w hite and p imply I

A W E L L - W I S H E R . — W e have given portraits of " B.O.P." authors and artists in past volumes. If possible we will include some others in this volume,and in succeeding ones.

L. G. W . — T h e specimen of which you send a drawingis evid ently the " Garden Tiger " Moth. It is not

rare, but is pret ty generally distributed. It is outin July. The larva of this moth is the extremely

common " Woolly Bear " caterpillar. The " swallowtail " moth which you caught, flies in July mostly.It occurs in many localities and as far north as the.Firth of Fort h. See " Butterflies and Mo ths atHome and Abroad," by H. Rowland-Brown, M.A. ,F.E.S. (Fisher Unwin). Your coloured drawing of the " Tiger " is very goo d, bu t are not the u pperwings more cream tha n white in colour ?

VILLAGE.—Write to the Manager, Canadian PacificRailway Company, Cockspur Street, London, W.C.,

for the particulars. It is possible that they ma y

have a vacancy to suit you. If not, try one of theother big steamship lines—the White Star, Bibby,Cunard, &c .

V.

Our Rote Book.

TOKIO'S "FBOST-FILGBIMS."

AMONG the strangest things one sees in Tokio, Japan,during the win ter months , are the " frost-pilgrims."There are in Tokio a number of Buddhist shrinesdedicated t o a Buddha of the name of Fudo Sama,a special giver of health and st rength to his worshippers.At each of these tem ples there is a deep well of ice-cold water, and the temples are at some distancefrom each other. When the weather is at its coldest,in the period known as the daikan, or the " greatfrost," you may see at any hour of the night a figurealmost naked running at full speed through the streetsand ringing a big bell a s h e goes.He is a " frost-pilgrim." He hasperformed his devotions at one of the shrines of Fudo Sama, withshowers of cold water from the wellpoured over his shivering body.He has then put on one thin summer garment, and thus scantily cladis running as fast as h e can t o ashrine or two, where he will repeatthp operation. He visits everyFudo shrine in the city before hestops. Possibly he may die, butaccording to his superstitiousbelief, he thinks he will obtainhealth for some lovejj invalid.

tj; H? H?

A N E W BIBLE

THANSliATIOM".

THE translation of the Bible inthe language of th e Gypsies has just been completed by the Britishand Foreign Bible Society. Thismakes 440 languages into whichthe Bible has been translated.

A FT E R M A N Y YEAES.

SOMETIMES one does find the needle in the haymow.About twenty years ago a celebrated explorer spent aseason in Baffin Land. In the course of his explorations he made a long journey into the blentinterior of Cumberland Peninsula. At the head of oneparticularly difficult valley he built a cairn, and enclosed a note in it.

No t long ago he was in an American dining-car whena young man, at the next table, was describing a dog-sledge journey of his own in the far north. At afamiliar Eskimo name the explorer pricked up his ears.The young man described his route a nd named Ins landmarks ; they all told a Btory to the listener's memory.Finally the narrator began to tell how he had spentthree days in trying to find a pass across a certainmountain range.

" Young man, " broke in the explorer, " if you hadtauten the narrow vall ey on the right, one day's journeyback, you would have come out on the other side."

" I did go back to it at last," said the story-teller." But you don't mean to tell me you are the man who

built the cairn ? "

A N I M P O R T A N T

N E W S E R I E S

O F A R T I C L E S

will commence shortly in the " B.O.P." Inpreparation for the coming cricket season wehave arranged for a number of specially-contributed papers by

W I L F R E D R H O D E S ,

the famous Yorkshire and England cricketer.This series will be entitled :

"Do You Want to Play

for Your County?"

FIRST ARTICLE will appear In APRIL 19issue.

T h e C c i c U e t

Enrhusiast and the Sla ck er

N.C.EH-Uq

[Prise-winning drawing in recent Cricket Competition.)

Documents

Boys Own Paper 5th April 1913