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A new Nike sneaker, the Black and Tan, is offending the Irish as that was the name of a brutal British suppression. They say it's "the American equivalent of calling a sneaker 'the Al Qaeda.'" I assume Al Qaeda shoes would be very hard to find.
(The Real Story)
Amazingly, the TSA confiscate 4 handguns a day among the contraband it takes from airline customers. But in all fairness, they need a gun in their carry-on in case the airline loses the rocket launcher in their checked baggage.
(The Real Story)
Obama's campaign paid $345,353 for the 17-minute documentary on him by Oscar-winning director Davis Guggenheim. It wouldn't have cost so much if it didn't star Denzel Washington as Obama and wasn't shot in 3-D.
(The Real Story)
Urology Associates of Cape Cod has a new promo. Get a vasectomy there, and you'll get a free large pizza with one topping afterwards while you recover. Just be sure they know exactly what you're talking about when you tell them how many slices you want.
(The Real Story)
Gallagher was hospitalized in TX after suffering a heart attack before he was supposed to perform. If he gets hold of a hammer and starts heading for colostomy bags in the hospital, somebody should really stop him.
(The Real Story)
Check out Mike's alter ego, white, middle-aged suburban rapper Notorious D-A-D in his full length CD "Bumpin' in the Burbs"! http://www.notoriousdadmusic.com
(The Blog Monologue delayed 24 hours for radio clients)
©2012, The Stiles Company, LLC
www.mikestiles.com @TheStilesFiles


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BLACK BUCK Fly Fishing Lure - Vintage Sporting Bait
Click thumbnails for expanded view.
- $15.00
- Item Not Available
THE MOST DESTRUCTIVE FLY EVER MADE FOR TROUT, BASS, SALMON, OR RAINBOWS. These Flies are built by the man who knows, after many years of practical experience, the discovery was made that deer hair was the dope to fool the big trout- hence this product. On original presentation card which measures 5 3/4" x 4 1/4". Colors may vary slightly as each is hand tied. We accept VISA, MASTERCARD, DISCOVER, and AMERICAN EXPRESS payment via Paypal. We ship the same day payment is received if paid with a money order. If you make payment with a check, shipping will be delayed.
Antique Emporium
- Traverse City, Michigan
- Seller Since 1990
- View Storefront
- View Seller Website
- View Store Policies
Payments Accepted:
Shipping:Negotiated with Seller
Item Details:
- Reference #
- 16zz9468
- Category
- Sports
- Year
- 1940+
- Dimensions
- Width: 0 inch
- Height: 0 inch
- Depth: 0 inch
- Weight: 0 pound
- Condition
- very good

subset: commoncrawl


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Port Charlotte man killed in Manatee Co. crashPosted: Updated:
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Black History Trivia Game Show
Thursday, February 7 2013 12:00 PM to 1:30 PM
Contestants will be quizzed on their knowledge of Black History. Players choose from questions and categories to see who can come away with the grand prize.
Location: Cafeteria, Worthington Atlantic City Campus Main Bldg.
Contact: Cynthia Correa - 609 343-4897 - email@example.com
Open to: Students, Faculty, Staff


text: Control Union is a global network of inspection operations and dedicated laboratories. Our speciality? Independent worldwide cargo surveying and superintendence. Through innovative solutions, specialised services and product knowledge, we offer complete packages for logistics, quality and quantity management. From the country of origin to the final destination. And with an open mind towards clients' demands.


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When is American Apparel coming to my city?
Please visit our Upcoming Stores page for the latest information on our store openings around the world.
You can also sign up to receive a notification e-mail when a store opens in your area by clicking the "Notify Me" button at the top of the Upcoming Stores page and submitting the form that follows.
Does this answer your question? If not, please contact us.
Made in Downtown LA—Vertically Integrated Manufacturing


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Professional Stationery Wardrobe Essentials
Some say the clothes make the man. We like to say the stationery makes the man. And woman, of course.
There are many types of stationery that you might wish to include in your corporate stationery wardrobe. These items range from the basics, such as your corporate letterhead and business cards, to the more personal, such as correspondence cards and jotter cards.
Many professionals start with the basics and add other items as their business grows or as their needs increase. Below are our suggestions for building the perfect professional stationery wardrobe.
Monarch Sheets
Correspondence Cards
Business Cards
Calling Cards
Jotter Cards
Business Invitations
Business Announcements
Information to Include on Your Professional Stationery
Ink Color of Your Professional Stationery
Printing Process of Your Professional Stationery
Corporate Letterhead
This 8 1/2″ x 11″ sheet is the basic stationery used by most businesses. It is used not only to communicate, but also to project a corporate image. Information on the letterhead may include the firm's name, address, phone number, fax number, Web site and social media URLs. It may also include an executive or partner's name, title, e-mail address, cell phone number and social media information. Because there can be so much information on the letterhead, many companies are placing some of the information on a line running across the bottom of the page.
Most members of a firm use the universal letterhead displaying the corporate identity and the basic information, such as the address and phone number. Partners and senior executives, however, generally use the same letterhead with their name, title and, perhaps, other pertinent information added.
The company name and address appears in the top left corner of the front of the envelope or, less frequently, on the back flap.
Monarch Sheets
Monarch sheets or executive stationery (7 1/4″ x 10 1/2″) are slightly smaller and, therefore, more personal than the standard 8 1/2″ x 11″ sheets. Monarch sheets can be used as business letterhead or for personal business letters. They can be used as letterhead in businesses where a personal touch might be helpful, perhaps by designers, consultants or by executives of small businesses.
When used as letterhead, they display the same information found on a standard 8 1/2″ x 11″ sheet. Since monarch sheets are smaller, you might want to include only essential information.
Personal business letters are letters sent on behalf of the business to an individual with whom you are on a first name basis. They display only the executive's name at the top of the sheet. The company name and address appears on the back flap of the envelope.
Many business occasions and meetings call for a brief, personal note as a follow-up, or, perhaps, a congratulatory note needs to be sent. Correspondence cards are the perfect tool to meet these needs. They are flat, heavy cards (4 1/4″ x 6 1/4″) that are used to send brief notes. The notes are handwritten, letting the recipient know that you cared enough to take the time to write a personal note.
Your name is engraved at the top of your correspondence cards. Your company's name and address appears on the back flap of the envelope.
Business cards provide clients or potential clients with a means of contacting you. They should contain all pertinent information neatly and concisely and be as free from clutter as possible. Remember, they are a communication tool, not an advertisement.
Information can include the company name, your name and title, as well as the company's address, phone number, fax number, Web site and social media URLs. While the standard size for a business card, 3 1/2″ x 2″ is still the most popular, many executives, in order to accommodate so much information, now opt for larger 3 3/8″ x 2 1/2″ cards or fold-over cards with company name printed on the front.
Most business cards are white or ecru and are printed in black or grey ink, but many cards are now being printed on grey or blue stock in various colors, such as red, green, blue and combinations of two colors to reflect a company's identity.
Business cards are not generally exchanged during social occasions. Instead, calling cards are exchanged. Calling cards are small, personalized cards used to network during social occasions and contain personal details including name, phone number, email address, mailing address and social media handles. Remember that these are social cards, not business cards, so refrain from including business-related information.
Jotter cards (3″ x 5″) fit inside carrying cases and travel with you to meetings and trade shows. They can also be kept readily available on your desk in an open-top holder. Jotter cards can double as business cards. Their extra space affords you the opportunity to jot down a reminder to your clients as to why they might want to get in touch with you on a specific matter.
Your name or name, address and phone number appear at the top of each card.
Business invitations may be created for any type of corporate function from a grand opening or relocation of offices to a reception honoring a retiree or a top salesperson. They may be formal or informal, depending on the purpose of the event and the impression you want to create. Many times, a corporate logo is placed at the top of the invitation.
While it is impossible to include every type of invitation that you might use, almost any situation can be handled by looking at the samples provided and substituting your information for the information in the samples.
For example, if your company, the XYZ Company, were hosting a dinner to honor the accomplishments of your senior editor, you might follow the format below, substituting your company's name on the invitation line, dinner for reception on Event Line 1, "in honor of" on Event Line 2, and your senior editor's name on Event Line 3.
By following this format, you can create copy for any type of invitation for any event. You can even start with this format and change the order in which the information is presented. The important thing is simply to make sure that all of the necessary information is included.
Sample #1
Invitation Line: Mr. Herbert Sanders
Request Line: requests the pleasure of your company
Event Line #1: at a reception
Event Line #2: to introduce the 2012 Holiday Line from
Event Line #3: Sharon Jay Togs
Date Line: Thursday, the fifth of April
Time Line: at seven o'clock
Location Line: The Red Lion Inn
Address Line: 30 Main Street
City and State Line: Stockbridge, Massachusetts 01262
Reply Request Line: Please reply
Sample #2:
Event Line #2: To introduce the 2012 Holiday Line from
Event Line #3: Sharon Jay Togs
Invitation Line: Mr. Herbert Sanders
Request Line: requests the pleasure of your company
Event Line #1: at a reception
Date Line: Thursday, the third of April
Time Line: at seven o'clock
Location Line: The Ritz-Carlton Central Park
Address Line: 50 Central Park South
City and State Line: New York, New York
Reply Request Line: Please reply
As you can see, all of the information is the same. It is just presented in a different sequence.
Business announcements are sent to inform clients of a change in the status of a company. Announcements may be sent for any number of reasons. The most popular reasons include a change of address, change of partners, introduction of a new officer or even the introduction of a new product.
Business announcements are generally conservative, unless the nature of your business allows for a flourish of creativity. As such, they are generally engraved in black ink on ecru or white card stock.
A rule of thumb: The name of a company is a singular entity that requires the use of a singular verb. For example:
Simpson, Healy Investments, Inc.
announces that its offices
Adamson and Shelton
is pleased to announce
Info to Include on Your Professional Stationery
In the not too distant past, it was fairly easy to decide what information to include on business and professional stationery. You included your company's name, address, phone number and, perhaps, your name and title. In addition to that information, it now may be necessary to add your e-mail address, Web site, cell phone number and social media handles (i.e. @craneandco).
Ink Color of Your Professional Stationery
While most businesses choose conservative colors, such as black and grey, more and more businesses are using livelier colors like blue, red, green, gold, bronze, silver and combinations of two or more of these colors. The correct colors for your business are the ones that best reflect your company and the type of business that you are in.
Printing Process of Your Professional Stationery
Business and professional stationery can be engraved, thermographed, letterpressed or flat-printed.
Engraving is one of the oldest and most beautiful processes for reproducing images on paper. The appeal of engraving lies in the exquisite detail created by its three-dimensional impression.
Engraving is produced when the copy is etched in reverse into a copper plate. Ink is deposited in the resulting cavity. The engraving press then forces the paper into the cavity, creating a raised impression. The paper is literally raised with the ink adhering to the raised surface. The fact that the paper is raised is what distinguishes engraving from thermography and flat-printing.
It is easy to tell whether or not a piece of stationery is engraved. Simply turn it over. If there is an indentation (caused by the pressure from the engraving press), it is engraved. You can also tell by looking closely at the impression on the front. The paper will be smoother there, and there may be a little ripple to the sheet. This is called the "bruise" and is a natural part of the process.
Engraved stationery is more expensive than thermographed or printed stationery. However, much of the price difference lies in the initial cost of the engraving plate. Since engraving plates can be used over and over again, and since business stationery is often run in large quantities, the cost of engraved stationery is not necessarily much more expensive than thermographed or flat-printed stationery.
Thermography is sometimes called "raised printing," although the printing is not raised at all. Unlike engraving where the paper is actually raised, the raise in thermography is created by a resinous powder that is melted over the flat-printed ink.
Thermography is less expensive than engraving but, while quite handsome, is not quite as appealing. Since it is less expensive, it might be chosen when smaller quantities are ordered, especially now that laser-friendly inks are available.
Letterpress is also an option. It's a more casual style and has seen a recent resurgence, with independent letterpress printers popping up all over the world. Developed in the 14th century, letterpress printing involves setting type and motifs in reverse on a letterpress plate. The plate is then inked and pressed onto the surface of a paper. You can tell if an invitation has undergone this printing process by running your fingers across the paper and feeling for depressions where the letters have been — you got it — pressed.
More questions about etiquette, style or design? Email our Crane Concierge at firstname.lastname@example.com.


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Watch the SuperKombat WGP This Weekend and Win a Trip
- Written by Dave Walsh
So we'll have the details on you ordering the SuperKombat WGP from us shortly, but you will be able to order the SuperKombat WGP through LiverKick and not only support SuperKombat for just $5, but you'll be supporting us fine folks at LiverKick as well. How else can Rian support his ice cream habit, Sam keep his direct feed from Japan, Chad pay for his ticket to Thailand or me afford my debilitating faberge egg habit?
If you need some incentive to purchase this weekend's SuperKombat WGP event, like somehow you aren't swayed by the swagger of Lungu or getting to see Bogdan Stoica and Benny Adegbuyi back in action, how about the chance to win a free trip to the next SuperKombat event? This is the kind of thing that we'd all like to win, but can't, so we want you to win it. A three-day, all-inclusive trip to the next SuperKombat WGP event is an awesome prize. All you have to do is plonk down a measly $5.


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Last week we left you with a little game for a chance to win one of Margot Languedoc's Designer Select bundles. Are you ready to find out if you are the winner? Let's get to it!
1. I love florals and use them in many of my quilt patterns.
-----> LIE 2. I never design quilt patterns with my own fabric collections.
3. There are 21 prints in Blushing.
And our lucky winner is...
Deb@asimplelifequilts said...
#2 is false... I mean who wouldn't design quilts with those beauties?
Thank you for playing! Deb, please send your full shipping address to chelsey[at]fatquartershop[dot]com to claim your prize! We hope you enjoy the bundle! Everyone else, pick up one of Margot Languedoc's Designer Select Fat Quarter Bundle right here!


text: The other day I was looking at an old Kenner catalog and was reading the description of some of the vehicles and playsets. In the description of the snowspeeder they say "[The] harpoon is removable and comes with a two foot string to capture the AT-AT." Now the string on my snowspeeder is far short of two feet. Because it's not originally mine my question is how long was the string for the snowspeeder and what color was it? Any help would be much appreciated.


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Elecom Hybrid Sealed High Resolution Corresponding Canal Earphone Black Ehp-r / Hh1000abk
"-- Elecom is an electronics manufacturer. [www.elecom.co.jp/global/] The EHP-R / HH1000A is their flagship earphone. ~ All Photos Taken By Me ~ [Product Link] (in Japanese):..." --BloodyPenguin
Sunrise Audio Xcited
" (This is my first review ever so, if you see something you don't agree with, it's a free country. Voice your opinions. But this is only one person's thoughts. Take it with a grain of salt.) I've been hearing about this IEM for the past year now. I was most intrigued by the reviews. It was hard to see a review about the Xcited (and its older brother, the Xcape IE, which our brother Spica,..." --amzies01
" Impressed with the sound overall, balanced throughout the frequency range (bass is tight, medium to high frequencies not bad but I still think my Shures are better in the mid to high). That being said, the build is very worrisome - the right shell came apart exposing the tiny speaker and had to be glued. The cord is very flimsy and appears it won't take much of a yank to break the cord...." --jlopes89
Sunrise Xcape Impressive Edition
The SW-Xcape is a more balanced IEM with a sweet midrange and nice bass, yet never compromises detail anywhere in the spectrum, notably the highs. Highs are neither in the forefront or in the background; they are balanced with the rest of the spectrum and are present as the recording dictates. There is a slight emphasis on the midrange, which is great for strings, vocals, and rock, but is still...
Elecom Ear Drops Series 3 Canal Type Stereo Headphone Ear Buds (Red)
Elecom Ear Drops Noise reducing earphones are the perfect companion for your iPod, mp3 player, laptop, portable DVD, MD, radio, or other audio devices, combining sleek design, premium sound quality, noise reduction, and maximum comfort. The soft silicone earbuds fit perfectly inside your ears, allowing you to comfortably enjoy your music while blocking outside noise. The new ear buds give you a...


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Faith, culture and history come together at the Western Wall in that special blend that makes Israel unique. Revered as the last remnant of the Second Temple, the Western Wall is Judaism's most sacred site. But thanks to King Solomon's "invitation" for everyone (1 King 8:41-42) to turn here in prayer, visitors of all faiths and cultures can feel a special bond.
You'll find worshippers here day and night, but on Bar Mitzvah days (Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays) families from around the world and across Israel crowd the plaza to celebrate their sons' first public Bible reading at age 13. Mingling here with Jews from every continent, each with their own customs, music, dress and liturgy becomes a colorful and unforgettable cultural adventure. For many visitors, placing a traditional prayer note within these ancient stones is a memory to treasure.
The nearby Western Wall tunnel is a treat for archaeology and history buffs, who are astounded to discover that as massive as the open-air portion of the Western Wall is – at over 180 feet long and over 60 feet high – most of its nearly 1,700-foot original length lies beneath today's Old City.
The tunnels are those that have been created by numerous arches side-by-side supporting staircases going from the city to the Temple Mount. In ancient times there was a shallow valley called the Tyropaean running along the Western side of the Temple Mount (now filled in due to constant demolition and rebuilding) that separated the rich Herodian quarter from the Temple, and it was the need to bridge this that cause the arches to be built. These pathways still hold up the streets today, and the tunnel goes directly underneath the Muslim quarter.
Reach out in the tunnel to touch portions of the huge arches that supported Jerusalem's streets over the millennia, the homes later built among them, and of course, the Western Wall itself, some of whose building blocks are the most massive ever discovered. You will re-emerge in present-day Jerusalem with a new appreciation for the magnificent and moving site.


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In "Decision Time," Editor Brian Lovett will share a scenario from his 20-plus years hunting turkeys. Each hinges on a critical decision. Post what choice you would have made, and then see how things actually turned out.
Disconnect at Dead Dog Ridge
During Missouri's heyday, it seemed like you could walk along any hardwood ridge and at least strike a turkey. That even held true for spots like Dead Dog Ridge, a winding, oak-studded spine that received its name, cleverly enough, because the odorous remains of a dead canine lay at its base.
Of course, striking is one thing. Working is another. And closing the deal is quite another.
And that's where two buddies and I found ourselves late one pretty April morning — set up on Dead Dog Ridge, trying not to think about the smell and attempting to do something with a gobbler we'd located down in a hollow. I was set up about 20 yards behind my friends, trying to float-call. At first, the gobbler had responded pretty well. After 10 minutes, however, he'd cooled off somewhat and hadn't moved closer.
Typically, I would have assumed that the bird had hens or was just being obstinate, and I'd have given him a heavy dose of silence. But every time I shut up, my buddy would start yelping like mad. Sure, the turkey gobbled, but it was apparent he wasn't coming.
That could have gone on forever, but Missouri closes at 1 p.m., and the clock was pushing noon. I had to make something happen, and I figured I had two choices: I could crawl to my friends and suggest that we shut the heck up for 30 minutes, or I could walk away from my buddies, calling all the while to sound like the hot little hen was leaving the area.
Which path would it be? Time and turkeys wait for no one.
What would you have done? Post your decision below.
Click here for Lovett's decision.
Click here to get more "Decision Time!"


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Rowan GeoLab students prepared this panorama of the buildings on Rowan Boulevard under construction. Rowan Boulevard is an ambitious $300 million redevelopment project leading from the east edge of campus to the borough's business district. Upon completion, the 1/3 mile Boulevard will be a walkable, mixed use communi...
Bunce Green at Rowan University. Bunce Hall, home to the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, is at left. Bole Hall, which houses the President's Office, is at center. Rowan University is in Glassboro, NJ.


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The thing about creating an album yourself — from the performance, recording, engineering and producing — is that if it tanks, there's no one to blame but you.
In the same way, if that album happens to get nominated for an East Coast Music Award alongside the likes of Bruce Guthro and Tim Chaisson, there's only one person to take credit for it: you.
"It's a bit scary, really. It's like you're in a workshop with a chunk of wood and you just start chipping. You look around and it's like, whoa — there's no one else here but me," said singer/songwriter Larry Foley, whose latest solo record, the first he produced and engineered himself, is vying for the 2013 ECMA for Roots/Traditional Solo Recording of the Year.
Called "Free and Easy: Songs From Newfoundland, Ireland and the Sea," it's the second solo album for Foley, who has been making music for about 20 years and fronts bands such as The Punters and the 8 Track Favourites. His last record, self-titled, saw six original Foley tunes; "Free and Easy" was meant to be a collection of local folk songs, right from the beginning.
What ended up being included in his definition of local and folk grew a little abstract, with a version of country musician Steve Earle's "Gulf of Mexico." Earle wrote the song in light of the BP oil spill in the Gulf in 2010, said to be the largest accidental marine oil spill in history.
"Well my granddad worked the shrimp boats/From the time that he was grown/And he scrimped and saved and bought himself/A trawler of his own/He was rough and he was ready/And he drank when he was home/And he made his family's living on the Gulf of Mexico," go the song's lyrics.
Foley heard the tune and felt it was the ultimate folk song, and thought it would resonate with Newfoundlanders.
"It's about the grandfather, the father and working on the sea, and the oil industry," he said. "I thought it was a song we could all relate to, but I hope it's a song we never have to write about here.
Foley's own grandfather, William Foley, served as a major influence on the record, though he died in 1987. Foley has just one self-written song on the album: "Spyglass," about an old brass possession of his grandfather's Foley remembers from his childhood.
"I was fascinated by it as a kid. It was hung up on the wall, and I was never really allowed to have it," he explained. "When I was working on this CD, my father and I had a conversation and I said, 'Where did that old spyglass ever go? Where did it come from, anyway?' I sort of brought that spyglass to life in a song that wrote itself in about five minutes. They always say you should write about what you know, and as I started talking about this spyglass and my childhood memories, it came out. The song tells the tale of where it is now."
Foley's grandfather is featured on the album, his voice taken from a tape of "Sweet Forget Me Not" that Foley remembers being recorded in the kitchen. He remembers, as a child, desperately wanting to take part in the recording. On the album, Foley used the tape to create a duet of the song with his grandfather.
"The tape ran out at the end and it always bugged me that it wasn't finished," Foley said. "I contemplated singing the last verse by myself so it would be complete, and as I got into it, I made a duet out of it and added instruments to it. I intended it to be a Christmas gift for the family — I felt it was a little too personal and not something I really wanted to put out there for mass consumption, but people really identified with it. I ended up putting it on the CD.
"When 'Sweet Forget Me Not' came out, he and I went to the record store and bought it and listened to it all afternoon. I swear, I never, ever had to learn the song because it was just up here," Foley added, tapping his head. "For him to be on a CD that's nominated for an award is pretty cool."
Other tracks on "Free and Easy" include "McClory," "Island Lady" and a self-arranged version of the iconic Ron Hynes' tune "Sonny's Dream," which Foley admits was a daring song to include, but one he loves and has been asked many times by audience members to record.
When he's not performing with his bands, Foley is dad to a two-year-old, and hosts three radio programs: "Potluck" on KIXX Country and "Homebrew" and "Cabin Party" on Big Land FM radio station in Labrador. Because the shows are request-based, it's almost like doing market research into the type of music audiences like, Foley said.
He'll head to the ECMAs in Halifax in March, and is looking forward to it.
"I'm most happy about that nomination for my wife, really," he said, laughing. "Living and putting up with a musician is not an easy task. I think being nominated is as good as winning, because at least it acknowledges the work, and shows that I'm doing something sensible with my life."
"Free and Easy" is available at Fred's Records, O'Brien's Music and other local stores.
To see a video of Foley performing "Gulf of Mexico" in The Telegram's studio, visit www.thetelegram.com.
Twitter: @tara_bradbury
Free & Easy - Larry Foley's latest


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About the Masters in Public Health
Public health is an essential function of modern society. It is, in the words of the Institute of Medicine, "What we as a society do collectively to assure the conditions in which people can be healthy."
Public health professionals must deal with myriad issues:
- Prevention and control of disease,
- Access to quality healthcare,
- Environmental protection,
- The health needs of special populations,
- Data analysis and evaluation,
- Policy planning and administration, and
- Health promotion.
While some positions require specialist training, most demand a strong interdisciplinary foundation for practice.
Our Mission
The UIS Department of Public Health prepares students to become productive members of the public health community to help accomplish the Healthy People vision of healthy people in healthy communities at the local, state, national, and international levels.
Our Goals
- Prepare students with analytical skills, cultural competence, scientific knowledge and understanding of social justice necessary for practicing the core functions of public health: assessment, policy development, and assurance.
- Build public health capacity through instruction and service to the university and community and profession.
- Work within the teacher-scholar model focusing on translating research into evidence-based public health practice.
- Work toward social justice to improve health equity and eliminate disparities through a diverse public health workforce represented by faculty and student diversity.
For assistance or information email or call 217-206-6720
Are you ready for MPH Graduate School? Apply Now


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Community Information
We know there's more to life than studying. When you're ready to take a break from the books, you'll find plenty of recreational, cultural and sports opportunities in Alameda.
Alameda is one of the most desirable cities in the East Bay. Jobs and cultural advantages are accessible.
Take a look at the current weather information.


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LG 3.5mm QuadBeat 2 In-Ear Monitors
"The sound in general is quite sparkling, open and well balanced for a single driver IEM. The first thing i notice is that the bass is a little flat and lacks a bit of depth compared to high-end multi-driver IEM's. It doesn't have that good punch, warmth or layered experience most high-end IEM's possess. Update: the bass does seem to be better now, could also because of a better fit..." --Xstream
Lg Hss-f530/B Earphones Quadbeat2 Built-in Microphone for Smartphone Black
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Dong Son culture
collected Sangeang Island, Sumbawa, Indonesia
Makalamau, heirloom kettledrum
1st century BCE-2nd century CE
83.5 (h) cm 116.0 cm (diameter)
National Museum of Indonesia, Jakarta
The Dong Son culture developed in Vietnam's Red River delta from the middle of the first millennium BCE. Dong Son bronzes were highly valued and traded throughout Southeast Asia. The Makalamau, as it was known to villagers on the small island of Sangeang near Sumbawa, was one of a group of drums recorded by Dutch officials in 1937. At that time the drum was in active ritual use, valued for its efficacy in attracting rain and causing fire in enemy villages.
It is possible that in Dong Son cosmology, the frogs around the drum's tympanum were associated with rain and fertility while the central star denoted the sun. The intricate depictions of ceremonial and everyday scenes include boats manned by figures in extravagant headdresses and houses of a type which, 2000 years later, remain popular in many parts of Southeast Asia.


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By Brandon Speck/NEMS Daily Journal
Jimmy Carter was president the last time Oxford and Starkville faced each other on the football field.
However, the head coaches know each other well. The teams will get familiar after they meet Friday in Starkville in the MHSAA Class 5A quarterfinals.
Starkville coach Jamie Mitchell was Oxford coach Johnny Hill's offensive line coach when Hill was the head coach at Tupelo.
"This is a neat game, kind of a mini Egg Bowl. I think it's amazing that these teams have not met," Mitchell said.
Starkville (9-3) won its playoff opener against Saltillo behind the legs and arm of Mississippi State quarterback commitment Gabe Myles. Myles threw a pair of touchdown passes to Stanley Higgins, one a 75-yarder, and ran in one of three touchdowns in the first quarter.
Oxford sophomore Courtland Barnes scored a pair of touchdowns against Provine last week. He rushed for 92 yards on 15 carries.
"The quarterback, he's a tough one to hem up. The tailback is a good runner. The tight end, (Higgins) … and defensively they get after you and they're good on special teams," Hill said. "So there's really not a glaring weakness. We're going to have to play well."
Balanced chargers
The Chargers (11-1) present a balanced attack with 6-foot-3 quarterback Parker Adamson and running back Jarius Barnes. Adamson has thrown for 2,188 yards, 17 touchdowns and 12 picks.
"He's one of the top two quarterbacks in the state, if not the best," Mitchell said. "He makes all the throws."
Barnes has rushed 122 times for 741 yards and four touchdowns. Nick Brown has 41 catches for 723 yards and 10 scores.
Lineman Xavier Pegues is one of three Chargers with double-figure tackles. Pegues has 110, sophomore linebacker Mike McGhee 106 and linebacker Jarquis Adams 100.
Starkville finished 5A runners-up last season, losing to Picayune. Oxford didn't make the playoffs after a two-round run two seasons ago.
"I think (experience) is good but it still comes down to blocking, execution and tackling," Hill said. "We've got to do what we do well and keep them from doing what they do well."


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also red lobster/olive garden
also red lobster/olive garden
it's progress dontcha know.
"I'm gonna lean up against you, and you lean up against me. That way we don't hafta sleep with our heads in the mud"Forrest Gump, 1994
There are employers that hire all employees as part-time so they don't have to offer benefits. Cabela's is one that I know of personally. People work 50 to 60 hours, get overtime pay, but no benefits nor vacation. Been happening for years.
CPR HRCH Scott's Sweet Brandy
HR UH Scott's Little Pistol JH (Annie)
Kankakee River HRC
NRA Life Member
"I'm gonna lean up against you, and you lean up against me. That way we don't hafta sleep with our heads in the mud"Forrest Gump, 1994
The reason they do that, like the casinos do here is because once you make them full time, you are forced to give them hours to keep their full time status, even if the business doesnt warrant it...Cabelas is seasonal, makes no sense to keep their staff at full time status during the doldrums of summer....it cost employers more money to put employees on insurance plans one month, have them drop off after a couple of months, then reinstate them again
I see this all the time where I work...people start believing that they are "guaranteed" 40 hour work weeks and they will milk the clock to get "their hours" even though we are clearly on 32 hour work weeks..so in essence they are stealing hours from the employer..We have many on staff that know how to time their work and will slow down and go through the motions but lo and behold they sure know when the shift is up and its time to go home


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Getting all decked out for Christmas
This is a full size replica of Columbus' ship. It's moored in the waterpark at West Edmonton Mall along with the submarines (left) Note: This is only a test for exposure, perspective and composition. I had trouble with vibration on some frames during the 1/10 sec. exposures, also with the sun darting in and out of...


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oPt: ERC Amos calls for violence to end in the West Bank and Gaza
ERC Valerie Amos visited Ramallah, East Jerusalem and Area C of the West Bank on 15 May, a day of violent protest in the occupied Palestinian territory.
In Ramallah, Ms. Amos met with President Mahmoud Abbas and also with Prime Minister Salam Fayyad. The ERC reiterated the determination of the United Nations and the humanitarian community as a whole to continue to assist those in need in the occupied Palestinian territory, particularly in areas where the Palestinian Authority cannot fully operate. She expressed her support for the Palestinian Authority and reaffirmed the United Nations' commitment to the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, statehood, sovereignty and freedom from occupation.
Ms. Amos visited a school in Khan Al Ahmar, in the Al Jahalin Bedouin community in Area C. Area C comprises 60% of the West Bank but is still under full Israeli military and civilian control. The Al Jahalin school is scheduled for demolition, because the community have not been able to obtain a building permit due to restrictive and inadequate planning policies. Ms. Amos stressed that there can be no justification for depriving children of an education.
"Palestinians are utterly frustrated by the impact of Israeli policies on their lives. They can't move freely around their territory. They can't plan their communities. They are evicted from their homes. Their homes are regularly demolished," said Ms. Amos. "I don't believe that most people in Israel have any idea of the way planning policies are used to divide and harass communities and families. They would not themselves like to be subjected to such behaviour."
Also visiting the East Jerusalem neighbourhoods of Sheikh Jarrah and Silwan, she met families evicted from their homes to make way for settler communities and saw first hand the impact of restrictive planning policies and the growing Israeli settler presence in the area. She also heard reports of increasing settler violence. With more than 1,000 Palestinian residents in Silwan currently threatened with displacement, people are living in an atmosphere of constant friction and tension. Silwan has been the centre of violent activities in recent days.
Commenting on Sunday's events, Ms. Amos said, "I am extremely concerned at the level of violence today, and at the number of deaths and injuries in the region. The situation cannot continue in this way. It is innocent people who are losing their lives."
More>> OCHA Press Release - OCHA oPt webiste - Report: 'East Jerusalem: Key Humanitarian Concerns' [English - Arabic - Hebrew]


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Radio guy here.
Radio guy here.
M&K's HR UH Tucker of Texoma JH
M&K's SHR Prime Black Angus
M&K's Miss Jessie Girl JH
Sir Jacob of Lakeview-Jake
Freeway JYD
Mike Whitworth
I am a mini van moderate, the new American center, so they say! It was interesting as was the in depth description of their results.
"Feetdown Beatdown Razr's Edge"
I look at all of us that are "radio talking heads" and we are as diverse politically as they come...would be interesting if we could go line by line and see how we all answered the individual questions and how the answers were weighted
I don't buy the premise that this poll is remotely accurate. The so called 14% is probably much larger than NBC wants to believe. We shall see during the 2014 elections.
And from what I can see, moderates to this poll (and NBC... Are flaming liberals to the rest of the known world)
Just my take...
Bill Davis
I am one of the Righteous Right. I am not part of the new American Center. Socially Conservative, religiously devout, torn over government regulations.
Hebrews 11:3 By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.
What if all we have today is what we gave thanks for yesterday?
Let the views of others educate and inform you, but let your decisions be a product of your own conclusions. (Jim Rohn)
Minivan moderate here. I am sure this is surprising to some but also demonstrates how far right the Republican party has moved.
The fact that most of the rest of you are on the far right is not surprising at all. The posts questioning the validity of the poll, that the center has moved, and suggesting that the right wingers here have "diverse" points of view illustrates just how out of touch the radical right is these days.
Go Ted Cruz!
Good Lord, it says I'm a "Mini-van Moderate." After hanging around here so long, I figured I HAD to be a flaming liberal. I'd have thought the thing was rigged, except that it has you all pegged!
"For everyone to whom much is given, of him shall much be required." -- Luke 12:48
Raven - Moneybird's Black Magic Marker***
(Esprit's Power Play x Trumarc's Lean Cuisine)
Mick - Moneybird's Jumpin' Jack Flash***
(Clubmead's Road Warrior x Oakdale Whitewater Devil Dog)
Peerless - Moneybird's Sole Survivor
(Two River's Lucky Willie x Moneybird's Black Magic Marker)
The related article on the "center" of the political spectrum may be of interest. It is available at http://www.esquire.com/blogs/politic...an-center-1113.
Developed by Romney and Obama pollsters.
Last edited by Henry V; 10-15-2013 at 09:27 PM.


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by HP
Dec 01, 2013
IT has been bombarded with data in the last few years. Within the last five years, IT events have increased by 300% and the average data center has over 30,000 resources. If you don't have visibility across the spectrum of activities, you can't tell symptoms from causes. This infographic reveals the future of IT and how to best prepare for the massive growth ahead.
Sponsored by:


text:
"GOLD! What is Gold?" So we ask scornfully in the days of our ignorance. "Gold! What is Gold?" We ask it derisively.
King Gold sits on his throne and laughs secure, for well he knows that sooner or later, if he withhold his cold light, the proud knee will bend and the stubborn hands will rise and the old prayer of humanity will come from the derisive lips:
"Oh, Gold, thou art King and Lord; if not the God, yet a God forever, in whose hands lie health oftentimes, and joy oftentimes, and the desire of the heart and of the eyes. Pour down upon us the light of thy countenance we beseech thee, O Lord!"
But the God of Gold is growing old and deaf now, like the other gods, and he often lets our prayers rise and die unanswered.
"Gold! What is Gold?"
Undine had asked it and laughed her glad mocking laugh in the frosty lane years before. She had thought it with a bitter heart and envy, as she looked in at the broken window of the wicked woman who page: 243 had her baby. She had asked it of herself, when two months before she had thrown it from her and made up her mind to wander free over the world and enjoy life and learn. And she was wandering free and learning, but the enjoyment was still yet on the hills before. Yet she had not bowed her knee to King Gold—only thought that a purse heavier, a little heavier, were an improvement.
She was walking through the streets of Port Elizabeth, her head bent down to preserve her eyes from the rain of sand and fine stones that fell on the flat roofs with a sound as dismal and disheartening as the fall of sand on a coffin lid.
She had sat in the hotel till she thought it was better to go out and face it than sit there listening to its dreary music. Moreover, no work or any other good thing would find her while she sat there, and her money was surely taking wing at the rate of twelve-and-sixpence a day; so she went out into the street to escape the tap-tapping and to seek her fortune.
Africa, as it appeared in that desolate and sand-smitten seaport, was not the Africa of her memory. The old Africa with its great grass and karoo flats and rough rock-crowned mountains, unridden and un-man-defiled old Africa, was little like the sand-smothered town in which she stood, which might have been in any country in Europe but for the ragged niggers slouching about the streets and the page: 244 dark, dirty, half-clothed fish-boys who dragged their wares along with tails draggling in the sand.
One thing was certain, here she would not stay; though how to get away remained as yet an unsolved problem. One of her pounds was already gone, and four pounds take one nowhere in a country where all locomotion is at the expenses of muscle and sinew. She was attracted, like all others who were near enough to feel its influence, by the great magnet that draws to itself all who are good-for-nothing vagabonds, wanderers, or homeless—the Diamond Fields. 1 Three hundred miles of bush flat and karoo are not to be bridged over by four pounds, however. Cobb and Co., as it tore past her as she laboured up the street, made thicker, if it were possible, the thick cloud of dust around her; but it was not for beggars with four pounds to enter its red swollen body or perch on its crowded roof. Presently she stopped to take breath in front of a large store, before which was standing an ox waggon with a long span of red oxen. She stood resting and considering what was next to be done.
Why should a woman not break through conventional restraints that enervate her mind and dwarf her body, and enjoy a wild, free, true life, as a man may?—wander the green world over by the help of hands and feet, and lead a free rough life in bond- bondage
1Kimberley. The distance is 485 miles. Cobb & Co. was the line of horsedrawn coaches.
page: 245 age to no man?—forget the old morbid loves and longings?—live and enjoy and learn as much as may before the silence comes?
So she had asked herself on the first morning of her freedom, the morning after her husband's death, as she lay back in the velvet armchair of her boudoir while the maid stood behind her combing out her hair.
Now she had broken through conventional restraints and was free—free to feel that a woman is a poor thing carrying in herself the bands that bind her. Now she was free, but how to extract enjoyment from the present state of things was more than she could accomplish at that instant; and how long would she be able to maintain herself without getting under some one's thumb?
If she had been a man she might have thrown off her jacket and set to work instantly, carrying the endless iron buckets and coils of rope and wire with which the waggon beside which she stood was being laden. She might have made enough in half an hour to pay for a bed at one of the lower hotels, might have wandered about the town, seen something of life, and enjoyed herself in a manner. As it was, being only a woman and a fine little lady with the scent not yet out of her hair nor the softness rubbed from her hands, she stood there in the street, feeling very weak, bodily, after her illness, page: 246 and mentally, after her long life of servitude and dependence—very weak and very heartsick.
Two men passed her carrying a large packing-case, and even through the dust that descended before them her eyes could distinguish the "New Rush Diamond Fields" 1 that was painted in great black letters on its lid. She stood still a moment to consider, and then stepped up to the back of the waggon, on the back of which a small tent was fixed. Between a gap in the closed sails a woman's kappie 2 was visible. Undine raised one corner of the flap and looked in.
The part of the waggon occupied by the tent was not more than six feet square, and was one great bed covered by a vel-kombaars 3 on which were seated the owner of the kappie and two fat children. The former held in her arms a great baby whose clothes she pulled quickly down to hide its not over-delicate feet. It was a shrewd, bright face that was concealed by the kappie, the face of a woman of about thirty-two, which would not have been without its claims to beauty had it not been for the marvellous display of stumps made visible whenever her thin sharp lips moved. She was dressed in a black-and-white print, as was the fat
1The Kimberley mine of "the Diamond Fields" was, on discovery in 1871, called "Colesberg Koppie," then "New Rush," before the town was officially named Kimberley in 1873.page: 247 and dirty baby at her breast. The two children were busy wrangling over a brown paper of sweets which their father had just thrown in for them, but they stopped as soon as the strange face presented itself under the sail.
"Is this waggon going to the Diamond Fields?" inquired Undine, while the woman, not best pleased at being found in her waggon trim by a stranger, was busy pulling down her sleeves. She answered in the affirmative graciously enough, but stared curiously at the intruder and wondered what could bring a lady to the back of her waggon on such a day with such a question.
"Do you know what the owner of the waggon would charge for taking a passenger to the Fields?" Undine asked again, with no hope that the contents of her purse would be sufficient, but thinking hurriedly that her shawl and one or two good clothes might bring her something.
"The waggon belongs to my husband," answered the woman, "and I'm sure he can't take anyone. You see, there is me and the three children, and the tent is small, and I could not undertake to care for anyone else. I would rather try and get some one to help me."
"I would do all I could to assist you," said Undine, "and I have very little luggage. If you could make it convenient to take me I would pay four pounds and should not mind doing anything."page: 248
The woman looked at her very shrewdly now. There was nothing visible except a pretty pale face and a little black velvet hat, but they were scrutinized closely. She could not quite make up her mind, so resolved to solve this difficulty as she did many others by finding what view her husband took of the matter. She poked her head out in front, between the tent and a great box, and hailed him.
Mr. Snappercaps, a huge, sluggish English Africander, with mild light eyes and a red beard, approached, and she proceeded to inform him of the offer.
"You don't mean to take her, do you? You don't know what sort of a character she may be," said Mr. Snappercaps. "If she's dressed up it does not say much for her that she's knocking about by herself and wants to go to the Fields. Is she married?"
"I suppose she can mind the children just as well if she's married or unmarried," said Mrs. Snappercaps, "but you never think I need any help."
"I don't expect it's much help you'll get from her, but do as you like," he said, and walked off to his work. His wife drew her head in, and, it being evident that he was decidedly opposed to her accepting the offer, all hesitation on the subject was at once put an end to.
After plying her with half a dozen questions, Mrs. Snappercaps informed her that, if she would have page: 249 her box there and be ready to start in fifteen minutes, she might come.
The tone and manner in which this information was conveyed contrasted somewhat sharply with that of ten minutes before; but when first the little black hat made its appearance she could not tell that its owner was not possessed of a phaeton and a score of silk dresses; now she was wiser, and acted accordingly.
In the middle of the afternoon a day or two after, the great buck waggon, with its long span of red oxen and heavy freight of wires and buckets, was creeping slowly along the sandy road. It was a sweltering day, and the small oven-like tent at the back of the waggon was buzzing and alive with little black flies of every shape and a pair of droning blue-bottles.
The oxen, reluctant as they were to lift their weary feet only to put them down again on the burning road, and leisurely as they ploughed up the heavy sand with the great waggon wheels, yet raised a cloud of the finest dust which, covering hands and face and clothes with a thick red coat, seemed to enter the very windpipe. Undine was seated at the extreme edge of the waggon, Mrs. Snappercaps having declared that under any other state of affairs she could not possibly find room to extend herself. She lay now with her arms and legs stretched out, her head on one pillow and another on her face page: 250 to keep off the dust. Very fast asleep she was, if judged by the periodical snorts that at regular intervals proceeded from beneath it; but in truth very wide awake, with a small cylindrical curve made in the pillow straight from her eyes to the little black hat, now fast changing to a reddish brown.
Ferdinando Shakespeare and Algernon Sidney were fast asleep, the former with the piece of fat mutton still between his lips which he had been engaged in consuming when overpowered by the heat and the motion of the waggon. It attracted to his countenance a score of black flies and one of the blue-bottles, making it, if possible, a more interesting scene of animal activity than that of Master Algernon Sidney, whose infant charms were totally concealed by a coating of syrup, coffee, sand and flies.
The baby, otherwise Master John Wesley, was not asleep, however, but awake and endeavouring with furious kicks and struggles to precipitate himself into the road, or at the best on to the "trap." 1 It seemed hardly impossible that he would ultimately succeed, for he was fat and powerful and there was not much strength in the "bits of paws" that held him—"bits of paws" being Mrs. Snappercaps' designation for those useful appendages in the object of her scrutiny.
1(Pronounced "trop.") "Trap": the little movable stepladder at the back.page: 251
The baby was dirty, astonishingly dirty, several days of ox-waggon dirt having accumulated on him. Mrs. Snappercaps saw this, and saw that some one else hated dirt, was always washing her hands and trying to rub the grease spots off her clothes; and so, by way of bringing down the things that are mighty and do exalt themselves exceedingly, Mrs. Snappercaps ordained that no ablution should be performed on the person of Master John Wesley, and, moreover, that except when absolutely necessary, he should never be out of the "bits of paws" for a moment.
Now also Mrs. Snappercaps was desirous of ascertaining whether her employee would, when thinking herself unobserved, maintain that serene urbanity of manner which irritated and exasperated her yet more than her constant ablutions and her good English. Would she still keep her leg curved in that most awkward posture, to prevent it from touching Ferdinando Shakespeare's face? Would she yet do her best to keep the baby from bumping its head against the bottle bag, though it was clearly to be seen that she loathed it to the tips of her fingers?
To discover all this Mrs. Snappercaps snored and breathed hard and looked out from under the pillow, only to see that, as far as any desired result was concerned, she might as well have saved herself the trouble. Ferdinando Shakespeare's face was not pressed nor the baby allowed to knock its head.page: 252
She was just about to throw off the pillow and declare that she didn't know when she had had such a sound sleep, when Mr. Snappercaps, who was engaged in putting a new lash to his whip, dropped behind the waggon.
He was a great, good-hearted fellow, though he was fond of a glass of brandy and water when in pleasant company; so, when he looked up and saw the pale little woman endeavouring to manage his great baby and sitting on the very edge of the waggon and looking worn out and weary, his good nature and his ignorance led him up to the back of the waggon, and he said, "Expect you're pretty near done up; not used to riding in an ox waggon and minding babies."
These were the first words he had ever addressed to her, and, his conversational resources being exhausted by them and his whip being needed, he stepped out in front to try it on the backs of his oxen.
Mrs. Snappercaps threw the pillow off her face, sat up and rubbed her eyes. John W. had screamed himself stiff by this time, so she took him and, having pacified him, proceeded to loosen the comb-and-brush bag and, putting its not very delicate contents into the "bits of paws," remarked that there was nothing so wretched as having nothing to do and that Undine had better clean them. "It's miserable to have nothing to do," said Mrs. Snappercaps, asserting a fact the truth of which she had had ample page: 253 opportunity for verifying during the last few days, during which the sum of her own labours had been to eat, sleep, and slap the children. Truly, Mrs. Snappercaps had underestimated her own ability and womanliness when she imagined she might fail to extract her bread-and-meals' worth of labour from her passenger. Not that she was a hard woman, or a cruel one. Mrs. Snappercaps was looked upon among her female acquaintances as an exceptionally kind-hearted and generous woman, better than the run of themselves, and no doubt they were right. She shut her eyes and ran away screaming if she heard they were going to kill a sheep; and she used to call Mr. Snappercaps a cruel beast when he lashed his sticking 1 oxen—except she were very anxious to get on, when she sat still in the waggon and thought he did not cut half deep enough.
No, she was not a hard woman, only a woman, and she envied her white-handed soft-voiced little dependent as one feminine thing envies another. She was the daughter of a Lower Albany farmer who had sent her to a Grahamstown boarding-school, where Miss Sarah Jane had taught her to play the piano and make slippers and caps and use long dictionary words without the slightest idea of their meaning, and long words that are not found in any dictionary and whose meaning was known only to herself.
1When the waggon "sticks fast" (in mud or deep sand, for instance), it is said to be "sticking."
page: 254 When she went home she was regarded by her elder sisters with mingled awe and envy and by her mother with unfeigned admiration. She reigned supreme, and only in her own mind was there a dim perception that, after all the money that had been expended on her, she was not quite the lady, not quite the genuine article.
Her mother never let her make bread or salt the meat, her sisters ironed her petticoats, and her father gave her an extra pound whenever they went into town, yet she ended by marrying Will Snappercaps, who rode transport and was the son of a neighbour. When she met in the street any of her old schoolfellows who had since married attorneys or merchants, they always looked up into the sky, onto the ground, or at the houses, at anything but the particular spot of earth on which she stood. They were out of her reach, that upper ten who talked good English, dressed in taste, and went to balls; she could never retaliate on them. But now, good fortune had put into her hands one of the order, soft-voiced, white-handed, and refined as any of them, and for many stiff bows and for many clear cuts Mrs. Snappercaps had to indemnify herself. Her heart rejoiced as the heart of a homeopathic quack might do who held under his thumb a licensed practitioner. Mrs. Snappercaps' faith in the efficacy of vicarious atonement was not stronger than in other uncultivated minds, so she did not allow her joy to page: 255 express itself clearly in her own mind, but it was there all the time as she sat on that sweltering afternoon watching the "bits of paws" at their comb-cleaning. She was certain, she remarked inwardly, that there was something wrong about her; there always was about people who were so agreeable and never got out of temper, never got savage with the flies, never were ruffled or put out by the jolts or the grouty 2 coffee or any of the innumerable evils attendant on an ox-waggon journey. And then, to be sure, as her husband had remarked, would a woman who was good for anything be knocking about in that way by herself? No, there was no doubt of it, she was a bad character, a very bad character; and her own—Mrs. Snappercaps'—great goodness of heart had prompted her to do a very foolish thing in taking her. If she were not a sinner, where did she come by that diamond ring? If she had friends of the right sort, rich enough to give it her, would they not have looked after her? And a nice story this was about her husband being dead and her having no relations. Mrs. Snappercaps was not a child and she was not born yesterday; no, not she!
"You had better leave the combs alone," she said; "you don't seem to understand it; you sprang a tooth again without cleaning it. If a thing is not well done I would rather it wasn't done at all." With which remark, the combs being now fully cleaned,
2 Grouty: full of coarsely ground coffee grains.
page: 256 Mrs. Snappercaps seized them and the brushes and with great energy put them into the bag and hung them up; while Undine, her hands empty for the first time that day, sat watching the deep oscillating track of the waggon wheels in the red sand.
After a time Mrs. Snappercaps found the heat and closeness becoming something really unbearable, and she was about to direct Undine to loosen the front clap by way of producing a current of air, when that individual proceeded on her own responsibility to roll it up. Mrs. Snappercaps instantly discovered that her neck was stiff, that she had neuralgia in all the teeth on one side of her head, both of which complaints would be infinitely aggravated by such a proceeding; so the clap was carefully fastened down again, and Mrs. Snappercaps endured suffocation for the rest of the afternoon with a martyr's fortitude.
But even Mrs. Snappercaps must sometimes really sleep, and so it came to pass that night that she and her three children were snoring in chorus, while Mr. Snappercaps plodded along at the side of his oxen, calling out to them every now and then drowsily as they stepped on steadily in the cool night air.
Up above the still stars glittered and gave out just light enough to make visible the great round clumps of bush through which they passed.
Undine crouched down in her corner at the back of the waggon and listened to the rink, tink of the page: 257 tin coffee pot and mug that were tied to the roof and the tom, tom of the great iron kettle and gridiron that were fastened on the trap, and the creak, creak of the waggon. She could rest her head on the wooden blackboard and look out and feel herself again a little child, Socrates curled close in her arms. Frank's clear light-hearted whistle came from the front box, her mother's voice sang the evening hymn as they rode home in the starlight from the town, and the loves and passions of her womanhood looked strange and unreal to her in the creaking waggon, under the light of her childhood's stars—the still, unchanging stars that shine on unaltered while our poor little systems go to ruin and desolation—the silent stars that can hold so many memories, which but for them would be forgotten, that we sometimes dread to look up at their white, faraway lights, for fear of hearing whispers and feeling the touch of fingers that can bring only coldness now.
Yes, the old faiths and the old loves, they are written up there; and when we have put them from us and buried them deep, the night sky gives them all back to us.
About eleven the waggon stopped, and Mrs. Snappercaps, by no means in the best of humours after being roused from her slumbers, allowed Undine and Mr. Snappercaps to spread a skin counterpane at the side of the waggon and make as page: 258 comfortable a seat as might be with half a dozen pillows against the hind wheel. Here she bestowed herself and her baby, while Undine took out of the back box the coffee, bread and ribs of mutton that were to form their repast.
Mr. Snappercaps, worn out with his day's work, flung himself down at full length on that part of the counterpane which his wife had not appropriated, and in five seconds was sound asleep. Undine, when all was finished, sauntered off to a little distance among the bushes, where she could have a good view of the waggon as it showed in the light of the blazing fire.
It looked picturesque enough, the great red waggon with its little white tent and rows of iron buckets that glittered in the firelight. A little further on the tired oxen were dimly visible, lying down just where the yokes had been taken off their necks, too weary to look for food. Even Mrs. Snappercaps, as she sat in her spotted print and white kappie hushing her baby, added to the scene; and her husband also, lying close to the fire with his hat drawn down and his head resting on his crossed shirt-sleeved arms. Among the bushes, a little to the right, the driver and leader had made their fire. The driver, a great heavy Basuto, lay in his master's fashion on the ground; the leader, a sprightly little Hottentot, sat watching the meat on the roaster with his wicked little black eyes. He had a more than usually apish page: 259 appearance as he sat there with his knees drawn up to his chin.
After some time, when the meat was ready and the coffee made, Undine returned to the waggon.
"I thought you were inside," said Mrs. Snappercaps.
"No," said Undine, "I was walking about."
"Walking about?" said Mrs. Snappercaps. "What on earth for?"
"It looks so nice at a little distance, the waggon and the fire," said Undine.
Mrs. Snappercaps gave her long flexible lips a little screw.
"I should think you had seen enough of ox waggons and fires by this time," she said, and looked upon this proceeding as an additional proof of the badness of her employee's character; though why she did so she could not very easily have explained to herself. She could hardly fancy that Undine had made love to the green bushes, or galavanted with the dry stumps even in the dark. But Mrs. Snappercaps was unable to assign any reason for her walking off in the dark, and the story about the beauty of the waggon was on the face of it a lie; and, as there must incontrovertibly have been some reason, she felt sincerely persuaded it must have been a bad one.
Undine's wandering about in the dark proved her a bad woman; and that being proved, one did her page: 260 no injustice in suspecting her of evil, even though there might be no harm in her wandering about.
Mrs. Snappercaps' logic was conclusive, so she gave the coffee-pot an energetic shake as she poured out Undine's basin, by way of winning her disapproval. She could hardly drink her own cup when she saw with what apparent unconsciousness and exasperating indifference the contents of the basin were drunk, grounds and all. "All put on. What a hypocrite! That's the worst part of her," thought Mrs. Snappercaps, as with her stumps she tried to masticate a piece of tough mutton. "It's worse than her immorality; I could get over that. Thinks she looks beautiful now, with her head on her hand, staring into the fire, and her hair flying about like a mad thing's."
Whether she thought so or not, great good Mr. Snappercaps, as he sat drinking his coffee, thought she looked tired and sad, and felt sorry for her, as he did for his Hottentot leader when he thought he was overworked.
When he had finished he rolled himself up in his blanket under the waggon.
"There's no use to tie the oxen," he said to his driver. "They are too tired to stray tonight."
The morning came and brought woe to him who had trusted to the weariness of his oxen's legs, and double woe to him who hoped to recover them through those of his Hottentot.page: 261
The oxen had vanished and Jan was sent to look for them. He had followed on their spoor 1 for a little distance, when it suddenly came to his recollection that he had not had his sleep out. Accordingly, he ensconced himself snugly under a large stone, and in three minutes was wandering amid quids of tobacco as large as himself and brandy the very fumes of which made him merry.
From these visions he did not return till the sun, now inclining to the west, had burnt him out of his hole, when he rose and instantly retraced his steps. He appeared before the waggon with a limp and an air of extreme dejection. He had searched up hill and down kloof, but had seen no trace of them, and he rubbed his weary feet with his right hand as he spoke.
Mr. Snappercaps saw there was nothing for it but to give him a good feed and himself to set off on the search.
"The poor devil of a Hottentot must be tired," he remarked.
Mrs. Snappercaps smiled a mingled smile of pity and contempt. She was not a child, and she was not born yesterday, and she was up to Hottentots at least.
Mr. Snappercaps returned late that night after a fruitless search; and neither on that day nor on the next nor on several after that was there any sign of the oxen. It was weary work, waiting there day
page: 262 after day. Sunday morning came. It was six days since they had decamped—six days of endurance of half the plagues of Egypt: six days of flies; six days of water red as blood, alive with monstrosities of every shape; six days of being devoured by red ants if one sought for shade under the bushes; six days passed in the care and company of three wretched, screaming, sun-oppressed children.
They had wellnigh exhausted everyone's patience and had made Mrs. Snappercaps very desirous of improving others, and very virtuous. Her desire to improve others was made manifest by the copious corrections she administered to the Masters Ferdinando Shakespeare and Algernon Sidney; her virtue, by the petty but constant mortification of the flesh which she caused to be felt by the immoral person whom chance had placed in her hands.
On this Sunday morning Mrs. Snappercaps woke early and poked her head softly out at the back of the waggon to take, unperceived, a survey of her antagonist's proceedings. That individual, in happy unconsciousness, sat on the trap just below her, reading a small shabby book.
"A Bible, no doubt," soliloquized Mrs. Snappercaps, as she drew her head softly back into the waggon. "I could get over anything else, but her pretending to be religious—it's too much."
She prepared a nice little homily to be delivered at breakfast-time on the duty of serving God in page: 263 secret and unseen; and when she had finished lacing her boots, she poked her head cautiously out again.
On a second and closer inspection the book appeared to be no Bible, but, judging from its long words and dry look, she concluded it to be a volume of sermons. It was not so good as if it had been the Bible, but still, if judiciously modified, the homily might still be delivered with great effect.
At this moment Mr. Snappercaps, who had been to the top of the mountain to see if any signs of the men or oxen were visible, returned.
"Having a read?" he said, wishing to say something kindly but not exactly knowing how.
"Yes," said Undine, smiling and closing her book.
"No going to church today," he said again. "I don't mind it. I'm used to it. But I expect it won't seem like Sunday to you without."
Undine made no answer, so, wishing to be very agreeable, he continued: "What church do you belong to? Now I like the Methodists."
"I belong to no church," said Undine as she climbed off the trap and, slipping the unfortunate book, cause of many sorrows, into her pocket, proceeded to make the fire.
Now, making a fire seemed a particularly easy and pleasant occupation when watching a nimble little nigger throw a dozen sticks on one another and in half a minute produce a blaze big enough to roast a lamb by; but when once the sticks were in page: 264 her own hands it seemed a very different matter. Surely they must be wet or of the wrong kind; for after she had expended a whole box of matches, two Grahamstown Journals, and all her breath in trying to blow them into flame, they remained as obstinately cold as though there were no combustibility about them.
Undine, having blown herself red and dizzy, was about to give up in despair when Mr. Snappercaps' good nature brought him to the rescue. He handled the sticks with as much science as his own Hottentot could have shown, and in no time produced a roaring blaze.
Mrs. Snappercaps from her spy point in the waggon saw all that passed and, perceiving a weak point in the enemy, she proceeded to place her artillery accordingly.
Presently the baby cried. Undine climbed up into the waggon and took him, but he was not easily pacified. "Of course he cries, and he will cry till you take the hard thing out of your pocket," said Mrs. Snappercaps; "it hurts his leg." Undine took the book out; Mrs. Snappercaps took it up.
"'Spencer's First Principles.' Who wrote these sermons?" asked Mrs. Snappercaps.
"Spencer," said Undine.
"Spencer, of course; I know that," said Mrs. Snappercaps, perceiving for the first time that Spencer was the name of the author and not of the page: 265 book. "Of course I know his name's Spencer, but who is he? What is he? What does he believe?"
"I shall be glad to lend you the book," said Undine, "if you care to read it."
"Not unless I know who he was," said Mrs. Snappercaps, combing the hair down over her eyes. "What church does he belong to?"
"None," said Undine.
"None! No church!" cried Mrs. Snappercaps. "What church do you belong to?"
"To no church," said Undine, quietly.
"To no church, no church! But of course you don't mean to say you never go to chapel anywhere."
"It's a long time since I last went," said Undine.
"Why, surely you're not a Roman Catholic, are you?" asked Mrs. Snappercaps, putting down the comb and brush and dividing the hair that hung over her face with both hands.
"No," said Undine, and prepared to follow Ferdinando Shakespeare, who had just descended from the waggon. But her interlocutor scented a rat and was not to be thus eluded. "You must be something; everybody is something," continued Mrs. Snappercaps, fixing her dark eyes on her antagonist to make her words more impressive. "You must be something; nobody's nothing. You aren't a Unitrinitarian nor anything of that sort, are you?"
Undine very gravely disclaimed all knowledge of page: 266 or participation in the errors of so deluded and extraordinary a body as the Unitrinitarians; but Mrs. Snappercaps was not satisfied.
"Well, what are you, then?" she asked. "You are not an atheist, or a deatheist, like Shakespeare or Votter or that wicked Bishop Colso who lives at Delagoa Bay, are you? You believe the Bible, don't you?"
"Ferdinando will be getting into the fire," said Undine, quietly slipping down onto the trap, and showing her astonished catechiser that there really were limits to what she would endure in return for her bread and meat.
At night, a corner not big enough for a rat to crouch in; grouty coffee; meat which John Wesley had mauled; work to which the amen was never said:—all these she accepted with smiling indifference; but Mrs. Snappercaps had spoken with a woman's own shrewdness when she remarked that it was those very agreeable quiet people who have the devil's will and spirit in them in spite of all their softness.
"There is no need to rush away in a rage," she continued, speaking very rapidly and her lips becoming very moist. Undine, who stood leaning against the trap with the baby in her arms, might have edged in some answer, but Mrs. Snappercaps' speech was as voluble as it was energetic and carried all before it.page: 267
"Of course you'll try to get away, of course you don't like to speak about it, when you know it's true. If it wasn't true, wouldn't you be glad to disown it, wouldn't you be glad to disclaim it, when charged with it? If that book you've got in your pocket was not some monotheistical nonsense, would you read it alone on the sly, in secret when there was no eye to see you? Oh! no! no! I wonder you are not afraid to say such dreadful, terrible things lest the God you don't believe in should strike you dead. I wonder that you weren't afraid, when the waggon went over the bridge, that God would break it down and let you tumble into the water. I wonder you weren't. If it wasn't—if it wasn't that I want to act like a Christian by you, I would not let my oxen take you one step further. How do I know how you may divert my poor innocent little children. Give me the baby!" said Mrs. Snappercaps. Undine gave it, with all the more alacrity as Algernon Sidney had just fallen over the pole, to the great damage of his skin and nose.
At breakfast Mrs. Snappercaps maintained a rigid silence; she ate with a purpose and drank copiously and with energy, and her husband clearly perceived that evil was approaching. He picked his chop and drank his coffee in silent uneasiness, though in what direction the storm would burst he could form no conjecture.
Breakfast being ended, Mrs. Snappercaps climbed page: 268 into the waggon, and after some trouble produced from one of the lowest boxes a great red bible and a copy of Wesley's hymns with great shining clasps. Armed with these weapons, she again descended, and took her seat on a camp-stool that stood against the back wheel on the shady side of the waggon. Her husband, having already assumed his favourite posture, lay at full length on the ground, with his head resting on his arms.
"Mr. Snappercaps, do you intend to listen?" said his wife.
"Listen to what?" asked Mr. Snappercaps, looking up sleepily.
"To the word of God," responded Mrs. Snappercaps. When the question was converted into these terms it was impossible to reply in the negative, so he picked himself up and, leaning back against the front wheel, pulled his hat low over his eyes and wondered what on earth this new turn of affairs portended. Six years he had been married, and never yet had she used such instruments for administering to him the reward of his numerous transgressions; but today he felt a vague yet strong conviction that the books were to become the instruments of his correction for some as yet unknown dereliction from the path of duty. To Undine, who sat on the ground nursing the baby, she said, "You, no doubt, will not wish to remain; you may go. I compel no one to stay," she continued. "The worship and the love of page: 269 God flow from the inner mind, from the outer soul—it must be free—it must be like the rays of heaven. I compel no one to stay."
"If you have no objection, I shall remain," said Undine, who felt no inclination to leave the shade of the waggon and march off into the broiling sun with Master John Wesley in her arms.
Mrs. Snappercaps now seized Masters Algernon Sidney and Ferdinando Shakespeare, and seating them with great force very flat on the ground on each side of her proceeded to loosen the clasps of her Wesley's hymns. Having given out in the most approved style the whole of Hymn 1, she proceeded to sing it with great energy. Mr. Snappercaps pulled the hat yet lower over his eyes and reckoned out for the hundred and fiftieth time how much he was losing by this delay with the oxen. Nor were the rest of the audience very attentive. Ferdinando Shakespeare was engaged in counting his fingers, Algernon Sidney in catching the ants that ran up his legs, while Undine sat wondering for how long a time John Wesley might be counted upon to remain quiet. That young gentleman sat motionless, with a finger hooked in his mouth, staring with wide-open eyes and rapt attention at the marvellous display of maternal stumps made visible on Mrs. Snappercaps' upper and lower jaws during her vocal effort.
The last verse having at last been reached, Mrs. Snappercaps put the hymn-book down on the ground page: 270 exactly in front of her with great precision, and proceeded to open the red book. From its pages she made a careful and apt selection of passages applicable, she deemed, to the case of at least one of her hearers. These she read with much emphasis and many a long and ominous pause; denunciations against Pharisees, hypocrites and unbelievers she delivered with equal fervour and point. Having brought this part of the proceeding to a termination, she went on to part two of the programme. This consisted in reading the eleventh and twelfth chapters of the second book of Samuel, wherein is recorded how the amorous King of Israel walked on his roof at evening tide and beheld the limbs of the beautiful wife of Uriah the Hittite; how for love of them he caused the faithful soldier to meet his death before the walls at Rabbah; how the wife of Uriah the Hittite, when she heard that her husband was dead, mourned for him many days, and when the days of her mourning were ended went to the arms of the king.
Mrs. Snappercaps had just reached this point in the very appropriate narrative she had selected, when John Wesley, no longer entertained by the dental display, made the most emphatic demonstrations of disapproval and obliged his nurse to carry him off.
Mrs. Snappercaps now turned one eye on her husband, otherwise King David, and beheld him, much to her wrath, either pretending to be or really fast page: 271 asleep. Preferring to act upon the assumption that he was pretending, she addressed him thus, but in a tone loud enough to awaken him, however far gone in the land of dreams:
"Thank you, Mr. Snappercaps, thank you, but I'm not quite such a child as you fancy me, no, not by a long, long way."
Mr. Snappercaps opened his eyes.
"No, I'm not a child! I was not born yesterday! You are no more sleeping than I am, Mr. Snappercaps; but I wonder, yes, I do wonder that you can act as you do. I wonder you can act so. You can sit there still, you can listen, when even that vile, lowly, venomous outcast felt it; she could not sit still and hear it; she had to get up and go away; but you, you have no more heart than a stone, than a Kaffir, than an adamantine. When David heard the voice of the Prophet he repented, but you, you have no faith, no pity, no affection. Ho-o-o! Ho-o-o! Ho-o-o!"
This latter sound was as the whistling of the wind through a keyhole, produced by drawing her lips into the smallest possible circle and moving her head to and fro.
It was her way when she reached a climax and language failed her, and Mr. Snappercaps was accustomed to it; but waking suddenly he felt confused, and looked out over the still Sunday landscape, the clear blue sky, the hazy brown hills clothed with clumps of dark green bush, looked out and wondered page: 272 whether he were still asleep, whether Sarah Jane had taken leave of her senses, or whether he had.
"Oh, it's very nice to put on that innocent look," said Sarah Jane. "Very nice, so nice; but it won't do with me, no it won't. You think I've not seen it, do you? I've never heard you call my baby heavy, have I? I never saw you go down on your knees to blow the fire for her. I was asleep, fast asleep, of course, in the waggon. Oh yes—no, don't speak, don't try and deny it; it's no use, William, it's no use. It's not once, it's not twice; it's four times: it's four times that I've seen you with these eyes turn the chops over to find a raw one because she said she liked them raw. I saw it once"—Mrs. Snappercaps' tone was now low and subdued—"I saw it once, and I kept still. I said, 'I'll see if he does it again, and you did it again, and you did it again. No, don't speak; I don't wish you to take more guilt upon your guilty soul. That puff-adder, 1 that ringhals 2 has caused you to do sins enough without adding any more to them. Oh, William! William! how can you? How can you? How can you?"
"I don't know what you are talking about, Sarah Jane. You've gone mad," said her husband, staring stupidly at her.
"That's right, Mr. Snappercaps; say I'm mad, send me to Roben Island,3 slaughter me, murder me, as
3 Where lunatics used to be kept.page: 273 David did Uriah. There'll be no one to trouble you then. But you shan't, no, you shan't; for the sake of my children I mean to live." So saying, she raised the Masters Ferdinando and Algernon from the ground, with each arm and with as much energy as she had seated them.
"The man who stabs my body I can forgive," said Mrs. Snappercaps; "but the man who runs a sword into your soul—no-o-o! no-o-o!"
"Oh, damn it all, Sarah Jane!" said Mr. Snappercaps, rising, "what confounded nonsense you do talk!"
"Curse and swear, Mr. Snappercaps, curse and swear; that's right. They cursed the prophets and apostles, but it didn't hurt them. You can't deny what I've said; you know it's true; you love her, you know you do!"
"Oh, hang it! Damn it! Confound it all!" said Mr. Snappercaps. "I wish the woman would go to blazes, to the devil."
"There is no need to wish that," responded Mrs. Snappercaps; "every step that your oxen take they are bringing her nearer to him. What do you think she's going to the Fields for, if it's not to go to him?
"Oh, don't try and defend yourself any more, William," seeing he was about to speak; "don't, don't."
"Look here, Sarah Jane," said her husband as he page: 274 turned to go away, "if you give me any more of this nonsense I'll put the woman down at the first hotel we come to.
"No, you won't," said Mrs. Snappercaps, who had no intention of losing her drudge, and he well knew it. "No, you won't. Vile as she is, I'll act to her as a Christian should. I've said I would take her to the Fields, and I shall take her there."
"Didn't know Christians took folks to the devil," said Mr. Snappercaps under his breath, as he walked off in the direction of the muddy kloof 1 from which they got their water, to seek for a sleeping-place under some brush.
It was near evening, and as he had not returned, Mrs. Snappercaps, after dozing all day in the wagon, descended to resume her old seat on the camp stool, and took her baby. Undine, now her arms were free, sat with the children at the side of the road, making houses in the sand for them.
As mischance would have it, Master Ferdinando Shakespeare bethought him at this moment of getting a mug of water from the iron bucket that stood under the waggon, the better to moisten their sand. Stumbling over the disselboom 2 with the mug in his hand, its contents were deposited on his person, drenching his begrimed white pinafore.
"That is what comes of playing on a Sunday,"
page: 275 said his mother. "You wicked little boys! Leave that sand alone."
"It was my fault; I began the play," said Undine.
"Well, I wish you would take his pinafore and wring it out; and if you have his, it would not be more trouble to take Algernon Sidney's and the baby's and give them a rub," said Mrs. Snappercaps, loosening the pinafore as she spoke.
Undine rolled them up with a piece of soap, and was just starting off in the direction of the kloof when Mrs. Snappercaps, speaking in a high shrill voice, detained her.
"Oh yes, do go to him, go at once. I don't wish to hinder you, not at all. Go to him! Go! Go!"
"Go to whom?" asked Undine, looking round in blank astonishment, for she had been out of earshot when the little encounter of the morning took place, and imagined that Mr. Snappercaps had gone in search of his oxen.
"Oh, you sweet little thing!" said Mrs. Snappercaps. "You don't know that he is over at the kloof, do you? You never sit with your head stuck on your hand staring at the fire, just to try and look sentimental and make him feel sorry for you. You never do, do you? You would not do such a thing! And you never pretended you could not make a fire on purpose to get him to come and help you! And you don't get up early," continued Mrs. Snappercaps, speaking very rapidly, with the solitary page: 276 canine, the only complete tooth she boasted, looking very strangely like a fang; "you don't get up in the grey dawn and sit on the trap and try and look melancholy till he comes to talk with you. You would not think of doing such a thing! I'm glad to see you don't deny it; you can't," said Mrs. Snappercaps, rocking herself and her baby energetically to and fro.
The true state of affairs now dawned on Undine, who stood irresolute with the soap and pinafores in her hand, half inclined to laugh, half to enter a protest.
It ended in her doing neither, but asking very quietly whether Mrs. Snappercaps could tell her in which kloof she would find the little fountain the driver had discovered that morning.
This cool manner of receiving her attack brought yellow spots to the corners of Mrs. Snappercaps' mouth. Her only reply was a passionate and often repeated injunction to go to him, go to him, go, go, at once.
In direct opposition to these kindly instructions, Undine walked off through the bush in the direction of a small kloof where, instead of the great clumps of elephants-food 1 and coonie with which the hills were covered, a thin line of forest trees showed, at least sometimes, the presence of water.
The sun was almost setting; his rays made the great round clumps cast long oval shadows, and the
1Elephants-food and coonie are hardy shrubs.
page: 277 busy red and black ants were hurrying home with their last load of sticks. Undine killed many of them as she walked on quickly, and her heart was not very light as she passed in and out among the bushes. She had worked till she felt as though she had no head left, and no soul, and the golden glory of the sky and the still beauty of the bush said nothing to her. In her ears rang the yells of a baby; with its weight her arms ached, and her whole body too, from head to foot, for want of rest. She was tired; she was wretched; she was finding out that there are aches other than those of the heart, and weariness unutterable that is not of the spirit. May a man's soul be tapped out through his muscle? Are there things more enervating and destructive to its life than being the idle plaything of a rich man? Is it crueler pain to be pricked by a woman's pins than lashed by a great affliction? When we labour like brutes, do our hearts become like theirs, till to eat and have rest becomes all our ambition?
The busy ants as they hurried home had no answer for her question, nor the still green bushes. Only one feathery outstretched arm of wild asparagus caught at her dress as she passed by and tore it, because she would not stay to loosen it, but hurried on angrily, petulantly. She was tired, she was wretched, she was disappointed.
To rush the world over seeking for happiness is a fool's work. Is it also a fool's to look for a life page: 278 which, however hard and rough, shall be high and noble, a life worth living?
From being the useless plaything of a man, from dressing and eating and lounging on sofas, to nursing another woman's children, to making another woman's bed! Will life's changes be always so, shall we never get any higher? Oh, the things of life are very little, and the soul is great.
She walked on till, just as the sun set, she reached the little kloof and, forcing her way through the rocks and trees, came to the bed of the mountain torrent. She clambered down its steep bank and leaped on to the smooth white sand that lined its bottom. Then she paused to take breath and leaned against one of the great dark boulders that lay about on every hand. Long years ago the rushing torrent had torn them down from their home on the mountain-side, but they lay very quiet and unmovable now on their bed of white sand. Over one of them, a little higher up in the bed of the torrent, a tiny stream of water trickled. The drops as they fell down slowly on the face of the flat stones below had the soft silver sound of far-away evening bells, and everything else was very silent. The silver band of water as it crept through the sand made no sound, and the long low tremulous bank of maiden-hair fern, though it heaved and swayed to and fro in the stillness, made no sound. High on the western bank of the stream against the white dreamy evening sky, page: 279 the branches of the oliven 1 trees were visible, with pale, quivering, up-pointed leaves. All the dark trees around lay glittering and motionless, but the air stirred those pale green upward-pointing leaves till they shook against the still white night sky; and on Undine, as she stood looking up at it, a great hush came and a great joy; for heaven is not a long way off, nor the beautiful for which we thirst. She dropped the pinafores she held in her hand and knelt down on the smooth white sand, and when she rose, just above the treetops the first star was shining.
She washed out the pinafores and then walked back with them to the wagon.
Mrs. Snappercaps wondered that she sang so softly to the baby as she put it to sleep and sat half smiling in the firelight with only the remnants of their supper before her.
"She's a fool and out of her senses," said Mrs. Snappercaps as she leaned back against the wheel, munching the last biscuit.
Aye, and a fool sees more than a wise man, sometimes.