snuff mull. "No, I never touched paper. When I saw the thing was settled, I left them to their coortin'. They're to tak' a look at Snecky Hobart's auld hoose the nicht. It's to let."

A HOME FOR GENIUSES.

From hints he had let drop at odd times I knew that Tammas Haggart had a scheme for geniuses, but not until the evening after Jamie's arrival did I get it out of him. Hendry was with Jamie at the fishing, and it came about that Tammas and I had the pigsty to ourselves.

"Of course," he said, when we had got a grip of the subject, “I dount pretend as my ideas is to be followed withoot deeviation, but ondootedly something should be done for geniuses, them bein' aboot the only class as we do naething for. Yet they're fowk to be prood o', an' we shouldna let them overdo the thing, nor run into debt; na, na. There was Robbie Burns, noo, as real a genius as ever—"

At the pigsty, where we liked to have more than one topic, we had frequently to tempt Tammas away from Burns.

"Your scheme," I interposed, "is for living geniuses, of course?"

"Ay," he said thoughtfully, "them 'at's gone canna be brocht back. Weel, my idea is 'at a Home should be built for geniuses at the public expense, whaur they could all live thegither, an' be decently looked after. Na, no in London; that's no my plan, but I would hae 't within an hour's distance o' London, say five mile frae the market place, an' standin' in a bit garden, whaur the geniuses could walk aboot arm in arm, composin' their minds."

"You would have the grounds walled in, I suppose, so that the public could not intrude?"

"Weel, there's a difficulty there, because, ye 'll observe, as the public would support the institootion, they would hae a kind o' richt to look in. How-some-ever, I daur say we could arrange to fling the grounds open to the public once a week on condition 'at they didna speak to the geniuses. I'm thinkin' 'at if there was a small chairge for admission the Home, could be made self-supportin'. Losh! to think 'at if there had been sic an institootion in his time a man micht hae sat on the bit dike and watched Robbie Burns danderin' roond the -"

"You would divide the Home into suites of rooms, so that every inmate would have his own apartments?"

"Not by no means; na, na. The mair I read aboot geniuses the mair clearly I see as their wy o' living alane ower muckle is ane o' the things as breaks doon their health, and makes them meeserable. I' the Home they would hae a bedroom apiece, but the parlor an' the other sittin' rooms would be for all, so as they could enjoy ane another's company. The management? Oh, that's aisy. The superintendent would be a medical man appointed by Parliament, and he would hae menservants to do his biddin'."

"Not all menservants, surely?"
"Every one o' them.

Man, geniuses is no to be trusted wi' womenfolk. No, even Robbie Bu—”

"So he did; but would the inmates have to put themselves entirely in the superintendent's hands?"

"Nae doubt; an' they would see it was the wisest thing they could do. He would be careful o' their health, an' send them early to bed as weel as hae them up at eight sharp. Geniuses' healths is always breakin' doon because of late hours, as in the case o' the lad wha used often to begin his immortal writin's at twal o'clock at nicht, a thing 'at would ruin ony constitootion. But the superintendent would see as they had a tasty supper at nine o'clock — something as agreed wi' them. Then for half an hour they would quiet their brains readin' oot aloud, time about, frae sic a book as the Pilgrim's Progress,' an' the gas would be turned aff at ten precisely."

"When would you have them up in the morning?"

"At sax in summer an' seven in winter. The superintendent would see as they were all properly bathed every mornin', cleanliness bein' most important for the preservation o' health."

"This sounds well; but suppose a genius broke the ruleslay in bed, for instance, reading by the light of a candle after hours, or refused to take his bath in the morning?"

"The superintendent would hae to punish him. The genius would be sent back to his bed, maybe. An' if he lay lang i' the mornin' he would hae to gang withoot his breakfast."

"That would be all very well where the inmate only broke the regulations once in a way; but suppose he were to refuse to take his bath day after day (and, you know, geniuses are

said to be eccentric in that particular), what would be done? You could not starve him; geniuses are too scarce."

"Na, na; in a case like that he would hae to be reported to the public. The thing would hae to come afore the Hoose of Commons. Ay, the superintendent would get a member o' the Opposeetion to ask a queistion such as Can the honorable gentleman, the Secretary of State for Home Affairs, inform the Hoose whether it is a fac that Mr. Sic-a-one, the well-known genius, at present resident in the Home for Geniuses, has, contrairy to regulations, perseestently and obstinately refused to change his linen; and, if so, whether the Government proposes to tak' ony steps in the matter?' The newspapers would report the discussion next mornin', an' so it would be made public withoot onnecessary ootlay.

"In a general way, however, you would give the geniuses perfect freedom? They could work when they liked, and come and go when they liked?"

"Not so. The superintendent would fix the hours o' wark, an' they would all write, or whatever it was, thegither in one large room. Man, man, it would mak' a grand draw for a painter chield, that room, wi' all the geniuses working awa' thegither."

"But when the labors of the day were over the genius would be at liberty to make calls by himself or to run up, say, to London for an hour or two?"

"Hoots no, that would spoil everything. ye see, as does for a terrible lot o' geniuses.

It's the drink, Even Rob-" "Alas! yes. But would you have them all teetotalers?" "What do ye tak' me for? Na, na; the superintendent would allow them one glass o' toddy every nicht, an' mix it himsel; but he would never let the keys o' the press, whaur he kept the drink, oot o' his hands. They would never be allowed oot o' the gairden either, withoot a man to look after them; an' I wouldna burthen them wi' ower muckle pocket money. Saxpence in the week would be suffeecient."

66 How about their clothes?"

"They would get twa suits a year, wi' the letter G sewed on the shoulders, so as if they were lost they could be recognized and brocht back."

"Certainly it is a scheme deserving consideration, and I have no doubt our geniuses would jump at it; but you must remember that some of them would have wives."

"Ay, an' some o' them would hae husbands. I've been thinkin' that oot, an' I daur say the best plan would be to par. tition aff a pairt o' the Home for female geniuses.

"Would Parliament elect the members?"

"I wouldna trust them. The election would hae to be by competitive examination. Na, I canna say wha would draw up the queistions. The scheme's juist growin' i' my mind, but the mair I think ''t the better I like it."

HIDE AND SEEK.

I HIDE myself behind a tree;
Wilhelm seeks his little dove-
Seeks in vain, then gayly cries,
"Where art thou hidden, darling?"

I give no answer: on he goes,
Searching every leafy bush-
Seeks in vain, then gravely cries,
"Where art thou hidden, Esther?"

Still no answer: now he fumes,
Will no longer seek for me—
"Nay, if thou wilt not show thyself,
I'll leave thee, foolish maiden!"

Then he marches off in scorn:
Out I creep and follow him,
Mimicking his stately steps,
And smiling at his answer.

SAMUEL JUNE BARROWS.

BARROWS, SAMUEL JUNE, an American clergyman, journalist, and Congressman; born of English parentage in New York City, May 26, 1845. His early education was secured at a night school, and after serving as city editor of the New York "World," he be came private secretary to William H. Seward, then Secretary of State, a position which he held for some four years. At twenty-five he entered the Divinity School of Harvard University and after he graduated studied for a year at Leipsic. From 1876 to 1880 he was pastor of the First Parish (Unitarian) of Dorchester, Massachusetts, and from 1881 to 1897 was editor of the "Christian Register," the leading weekly journal of American Unitarianism. In 1897 he entered Congress as a Representative from the Tenth Massachusetts District, but failed of re-election in 1898. His published books include "The Doom of the Majority" (1883); "A Baptist MeetingHouse: The Staircase of the Old Faith, the Open Door to the New" (1885); "The Straybacks in Camp" (with Mrs. Barrows) 1887; "The Isles and Shrines of Greece" (1890).

THE MODERN SIEGE OF TROY.'

(From "The Isles and Shrines of Greece.")

IT was Schliemann who began the modern siege of Troy. How he was laughed at for making the attempt! As if there were anything in Homer but pure fiction! His faith, enthusiasm and perseverance were based on a settled consciousness of historic elements in Homer. In spite of the wonderful imaginative drapery in which the Homeric story was invested, Schliemann could feel the force and pressure of the reality beneath. Perhaps if he had been more critical and less trustful, he would not have felt it; but he believed that a real Troy, just as a real Greece, was the foundation of the story of the Iliad. So, in his ardent faith he went to the spot where tradition said that Troy used to be. With indomitable perseverance, Schliemann began

1 Copyright, Samuel J. Barrows. By permission of Little, Brown & Co.