Ethel found him lying on the porch, in the sun, and-singing! Yes, very low, but decidedly a purr! Ethel had decided to call him about a fortnight after his arrival, eye fell upon Smyke, who was curled up contentedly beside Ethel. "Ah!" said he, with a knowing look, "a cat! I see!" You know how doctors say "I see." And then taking Mrs. Rice aside, he poured into her horrified ear a learned homily on the evils caused by the association of children with cats-the microbe "fake," you know. Then he pocketed his fee and left. Smyke, after Dickens's hero, "for," she said, "he is so thin and poor. But I hope he will outgrow that meaning to his name. And of course he did. In a few months you would never have recognized him. "Persia" had been discussed at first, for Ethel admired the Persians for their respect of cats. But it was abandoned after she read "Nicholas Nickelby." And Smyke he remained. One day he was seen dragging a rat almost as large as himself to the house. And this feat was remembered and inscribed on the roll of his clever deeds. Oh, Ethel could tell you some stories of his cute little ways! And the best of it was, he never lost his youth. He is an old cat now, but he still frisks about like a kitten. But Ethel fell ill. The doctor was called and saw at once that her illness was due only to her rapid growth, and must take its course. It was nothing serious; but she was weak and pale, and her appetite was gone. But you know that the aversion of doctors -shall we say of doctors of the old school?-to telling the truth, professionally, is proverbial, and this one was no exception to the rule. So, as he was casting about in his mind for something to prescribe unhappy moment! his Alas for Smyke! his fate was sealed. That evening, when Ethel had fallen asleep, he was taken away and carried far down into the other end of the city. If Mrs. Rice had not been so alarmed for Ethel's safety, and had taken time to reflect on the best way of separating the friends, she would never have done such a cruel thing. But-poor Smyke and poor Ethel. When Ethel awoke in the morning she wondered that Smyke had not found his way to her room, and finally she asked her mother for him. Gently, Mrs. Rice told her. How Ethel sobbed! How lonely she was all day, and all the next day; and at last, from her fits of crying, and her loneliness, she became much worse. The doctor was again called, and this time said that something was troubling her, and must be remedied. But how? The doctor was obliged to admit that his prescriptions dis agreed with each other, and with his patient. All night Ethel lay in a burning fever, calling in her fits of delirium for Smyke. Poor Mrs. Rice! what would she not have given to have him back? The doctor had said that unless something was done, Ethel's condition was critical. He had even hinted that Smyke himself was the only cure. All night long Ethel raved and cried for Smyke. All night long Mrs. Rice watched with Ethel and longed for Smyke. Morning came and Mrs. Rice, as she went through the hall for some cooling drink, sat down on the stairs and cried. Oh, how she wanted Smyke! Just then she thought she heard a faint "mew" beside her, and looking up, there was Smyke, a little disheveled after his long tramp, and hungry no doubt, but Smyke! When Mrs. Rice returned to Ethel's side she brought something better than an iced drink. She placed a soft, warm furry thing named Smyke, down beside the little girl, who, when she felt his soft pressure, grew quieter, and stroking him and murmuring incoherent words, she gradually fell' asleep. Of course she recovered. You have heard of such things before -of the "cat that came back;" but this story has one advantage it is true. For one of my bestfriends used to be a little girl named Ethel, and Smyke was her cat. The Ladies' World.. JOHNNIE'S CHECKER STORY. Paw he got th' checkerboard, An' says, "Now, come here, son, We'll spread th' pieces on th' squares An' show you how it's done." So I set down, an' he moved first, 'Nen I give him a man. 'Nen he jumped me, and chuckled out, "Jest beat me ef you can." 'Nen I moved one, an' he took that, An' said not to feel sore. Jest then I seen a zigzag line, 'Nen jumped-an' I took four! My paw-he rubbed his chin, an' thought. 'Nen paw he moved another man, I took that, too, while maw looked on, But 'fore he knows where I am at, I says, "Paw, crown that king." 'Nen I jest moved the way they do 'Nen paw gits up, an' slams the board! 'Twas somepin' 'bout "smart Aleck kids." W. D. Nesbit in The Woman's Home Companion. IN Edited by N. Y. SCHOFIELD, F. A. 1. P. N LINE with the special aim and appointed mission of this magazine to be what it claims-a character builder-it is proposed to publish each month, with other appropriate matter, a scientific deliniation of some noted person whose labors and success have distinguished him in this direction. These articles will be specially written with a view of imparting some of the many useful and practical lessons that may be drawn from a study of these worthy characters, and that will, as we believe, stimulate others, especially the young, to intelligent effort in that particular direction for which nature has specially fitted them. It is proposed not merely to show what these shining lights have accomplished, but to take pains in explaining how it was done. We shall ask our readers to examine with us in each instance the physical and intellectual ma chinery, to ascertain the strong and weak points, to delve beneath the surface, to search for the hidden spring that has made prominent or famous the particular character under consideration, and in this practical way others may better understand themselves. The deliniations will be original for the CHARACTER BUILDER, and the central idea that suggests the publication of the sketches is tersly expressed in the well-known lines of Longfellow: "Lives of great men oft remind us By giving "honor to whom honor is due," and holding up before young people noble examples of thrift, honor, courage and intellectual effort, much good will surely result. Few subjects are more interesting than a study of human nature, and in considering the lives and labors of those who may consistently be regarded as character builders, and by paying special attention to their mental and physical endowments, by the operation of which their success was achieved, many important facts may be gleaned of practical service to the reader, and thus a double benefit derived. 8 We desire also to ever keep in mind the natural anxiety of those who have children to rear, and in their efforts to understand them, to govern and develop them mentally, morally and physically, the CHARACTER BUILDER will aim from time to time to assist parents by appropriate advice in realizing their hopes and avoiding their fears. In entering upon this practical and fruitful field, we assure our readers there will be no empty theories, vague guessing, or metaphysical arguments used to explain our opinion-only the plain, matter-of-fact and approved scientific methods will be employed, such that have been demonstrated thousands of times, and such that we now invite our readers to test for themselves. HORACE MANN, [Deliniation by N. Y. Schofield, sketch by John T. Miller.] As a character builder in the true sense, Horace Mann unquestionably stands in the front rank. It would be difficult, if not impossible, to name his superior, and certainly no more worthy subject could be chosen to commence this series. A glance at the photograph discloses in the first place a very high order of quality. This is true to an exceptional degree, and at once stamps him as remarkably sensitive, refined, moral, and finegrained. The statement that "man is prone to evil as the sparks fly upwards" (too often the case) does not hold good in this instance. His tastes, desires, thoughts, hopes and ambition are all of the lofty, ideal variety, far removed from the coarse, common-place things of this life. Such a nature instinctively revolts at anything debasing or vulgar, and while education and culture may impart polish, nature alone can make the true gentle man. Notwithstanding the wonderful results that must surely follow such an active organization and superior mind, yet it is more than probable he would die partially disappointed, for the reason that his ideals and conceptions are too high to be realized this side of the millenium. The astonishing length of the brain fibre, measuring from the opening of the ear to the upper portion of the forehead, gives the keynote to his character, which is to do good to mankind, to elevate, improve and to bless his fellowman. This would be his forte, his dream and ambition. His financial instincts are but medium, the accumulating and grasping power being subordinate to his literary tastes. To one so organized the acquisition of property or possession of wealth is desirable merely as a means to an end. The miser's love for gold, simply to gloat over its possession, would never occur to him, but on the contrary, as a result of his strong benevolence, human nature and causality, combined with weak selfish propensities, his one main object in life would be to give rather than receive, and above all to plan for the intellectual and moral redemption of humanity. He has all the qualifications of a philosophical reformer; would naturally become devoted to any scheme that promised the amelioration of his race, and his efforts in behalf of others and to further his plans would be apt to exceed his physical strength. These facts are as clear and as evident as the size and shape of the features. Physically he was not a strong, robust man, but there is evidence of considerable "wire" in his constitution, that would bend many times before breaking, and this, with his temperate habits, would insure a reasonable long life, though the photograph indicates the lungs were not near as strong as the heart. The strength of his character lies not in the force and impetuosity of animal vigor, but in the clearness and scope of his intellect, and his remarkable power to think, reason, originate, compose, analyze and grapple with social, moral, or intellectual problems. The organization as a whole cannot be considered well balanced, because the vital temperament is relatively deficient. His recuperative powers are only fair, and while he has strong mirthfulness and a keen sense of wit that enables him to appreciate the legitimate pleasures in life, yet he is by nature intense, deeply in earnest, and is so impressed with the stern realities in life, so charged with zeal to accomplish certain results that he looks at duty, or the opportunity to perform it, in a serious light and neglects to indulge the luxury and ease that is invariably demanded where the vital temperament is more pronounced. There are many other interesting points, both of strength and weakness, that space will not per |