Sketcher. THE RIVALS' STRATAGEM.

Waikato Times, Volume XIX, Issue 1639, 6 January 1883, Page 6

Sketcher. THE RIVALS' STRATAGEM.

UY MARY KYLK DALLAS.

" He shall not have her!" said Mr. Skivington Fink, tragically, " I'll cremate him first I" As Mr. Fink said this he stared hard at Mr. Samuel Gamble, in the latest fashion, who sat sucking a cane-head at some distance from him, a/id casting admiring glances meanwhile at Miss Evelina Speaker as she bewailed the wrongs of her down-trodden sex on the platform of the Boston Spinsters' Suffrage Association. Mr. G. was a very young man, who had money left him, and who was therefore free to amuse himself unfettered by any trade or profession —a comfortable thing to think of considering his mental calibre. How he came into the circle over which the rotund spinster reigned supreme is of no importance. There ho was, and it was very evident thathehadhis eye on Evelina Speaker, a comparatively young spinster, with fine features, and curly black hair, cut short in her neck, and who was in possession of an income of a thousand dollars a year. A great contrast was Mr. Gamble to the long-haired, big-collared, shabby-coated male followers in the procession of the strong-minded. "Well-to-do" was written all over him, from the London stamp inside of his hat, to the latest stripe in stockings exhibited by his lowcut shoes; and envious indeed were the eyes of Skivington Fink, who had looked forwarded to living very comfortably on that in come of Miss Speaker, which she would be obliged to use for his benefit when once they were married. " He's after her, Tom," repeated Mr. Fink to his neighbour, who looked much tidier than himself, as he was bald, and wore a paper collar. "Yes, he's after her, Tom; and she'll jilt me for him, for he's an aristocrat, rolling in gold. He's asking every one where she lives. He means to call, and this is what she said to me the other day: ' Skivvy, dear,' said she, ' I like you, and I meant to have you,'but if little Gamble pops the question, I'll have to have him. He's got money, and I can devote it to the cause. You haven't a cent.' Well, I haven't. What could I say?" "• Don't groan,' says she. 'My mind is made up, Skivvy.' " • You're sure his is,' said I, in a rage. " «Well, if you can call it a mind,' says she. She appreciates my intellect—but gold, gold, Tom—gold 1" " See here, Skivvy," said Tom, " if you get her through my means, will you pay my tobacco bill at Scroggs's after you have the cash?" ■ . " I swear it," said Skivvy. "Then go to him—to .Gamble, you know," said Tom. " Tell him you know Miss Speaker's re»idence—here is the street and number. Tell him she is sure tp be home Wednesday

evening at eight^o'olock — and leave the rest to me." |§ " What are you going to do !" asked Skivington.' " I'll' tell you. Do what I say first," replied his friend. " I say," said Skivington Fink, leaning over Gamble's shoulder, " I say, I heard you inquiring for Miss Speaker's home address. Here it is. You'll find her in at eight o'clock Wednesday." " Oh, thanks awfully," responded Gamble, putting up his eye-glass. «• Obliged no end." " Don't speak of it," growled Skivington, as he departed. " Number 800 Spraggin's-lane," said young Gamble, examining the dirty bit of paper. "Spraggin's-lanel" I'll go Wednesday eve, and I'll offer before I leave. Wonderful mind! Glorious creature 1 I don't know what the governor and the old lady will say, but it can't be helped, you know." And Gamble put the bit of paper into his pocketbook, and left the hall with the departing crowd. Wednesday evening came. A little before eight o'clock anyone who chose to look might have seen Mr. Gamble peering through his eye-glass at the dingy numbers in a narrow street, and finally, approaching a door that looked aa if it had been scratched all over by wolves, ring the bell daintily. It was instantly opened by a tall man, bald, and wearing a paper collar, and with a calico apron pinned about his waist. "Miss Speaker? Oh, yes. Miss Speaker lives heie. She's my wife's sister. My sister-in-law, you know," this gentleman replied to Gamble's inquiries. "Do walk in." And he led the way into a shabby back room. " Everything is quite upside down. It's been a busy day — all the things to mend for the wash, dinner to get, and wife didn't come in until it was cold. You know what women are. Then some of the children seemed to be croupy. I'm Miss Speaker's brother-in-law. Wife is her sister. These are our — our dear infants. Say, How d'ye do? to the gentleman, my dears." A group of small children, who were scattered about the floor, turned their heads and stared at the stranger as the man spoke, and Gamble stared at them and said : " Miss Speaker won't be long, you think ?" " No. She'll be in soon with my wife," said the man. " You won't mind my finishing the dishes, will you? I've got to wash our children's things to-morrow, so I must get breakfast early, you know." 11 Oh, 'dear me, don't apologisle, I beg," said the bewildered Gamble, putting up his eyeglass and gazing about the room. It was a kitchen, and a very dirty kitchen at that. Nine small children were scattered about the floor, and the gentleman of the house was washing up some cups and saucers in a battered tin basin. "Sister-in-law is speaking somewhere," continued this singular man, " and wife is speaking too. It is surprising how Evelina (that's Miss Speaker, you know) does take after wife. Wife has a very fine mind, and I rather think sister-in-law's must be finer, for she's not at home even as much as wife is ; and wife has only spent half an hour a day here, since electioneering began this term. I wanted her to stay in mornings when the children had the small-pox, because that made the work heavy for me. Washing, ironing, baking and mending, and no help ; but she said, • The great cause first, and children afterward,' So did sister-in-law." •< why — a — a — why did you not insist upon your wife's obedience?" gasped Mr. Gamble. " Why didn't I what ?" shrieked the father, dropping a spoon with a crash. " Why I daresent. Don't you know, sir, when you marry ft suffrage lady, you always have to promise to obey her, and you have to do it to. Anybody that marries sister-in-law will have to do it the society sees to that you know. Children, take off your stockings, all of you. I've got to darn 'em to-night ; tomorrow is wash day." "Gwracious goodness! I never saw anything like this," sighed Mr. Gamble, under his breath. " How awfully awful, you know." Meanwhile, the head of the family put on a pair of eye-glasses, threaded a needle with blue yarn, took a raw potato from a pan and put it in the toe of one of the little socks which were now heaped up before him, and began to darn, making something-that resembled a window-sash, in a great hole in the stocking-toe, and saying " you're a bachelor, I suppose ?" " Yes, I on)," replied Gamble, taking a long breath. " Yes, indeed I am." " I was once," said the darner, " a bachelor, young, well-dressed, with a little money of my own — a good deal of money ; but I met Theresa Speaker. She seemed to have such a fine mind— l adored her. Ah, her sister resembles her exactly at that age, and a very fine mind also. She took my money to help the cause. It's very hard to get a penny now. Dear me, Sally is sleepy. Come here Sally, and be walked to sleep." And catching up the smallest and dirtiest of the children, he threw it over his shoulder-, and began to stride up and down, bellowing, j at the top of his lungs ; 11 By oh 1 Baby Bunting, Mamma's gone a hunting ; Gone to get a rabbit skin To wrap a Baby Bunting in." "Wcally shocking," said Gamble to himself. " How folftunatc thiB person happened to bo at home ! I should have never known these things. How dirty everything is I" And he sucked the head of his cane violently. " They're quite long awny." said the masculine nurse, looking over his shoulder : -but when ladies get out you don't know when to expect them home, you see. I've known them to be drinking and smoking somewhere at two o'clock, and me sitting up for them, half dead with sleep. You know suffrage ladies claim equal rights in those respects." " Oh ! do they?" gasped Mr. Gamble. "No, weally, I did not know they went so far. Weally !" " Sister-in-law goes farther than wife does," said the man. " She chews, and she says her husband must take her name and wear frocks when she marries him. There's a young man named Gamble, in love with her, I'm told. You don't know him, do you ? I wonder how he'll like it. She says she's going to marry him on account of his fortune, though he is a sap head." " I'm weally glad I called. Glad to have met you, you know," said young Gamble, rising. " But I can't stay any longer : must meet a man at the club. Good evening I Good evening !" " I'm very glad to have seen you," said the bald man, with a queer gleam in his eye. "I don't often get a chance to speak to another fellow. If you'll wait until I've put the children to bed, and given the cranky ones soothing syrup, and corrected the three worst with my slipper— l like to bring them up well —I'll toaßt some stale bread, and make a pot of tea, and we'll be comfortable, and talk the women over a little. I used to be able to offer my friends champagne and cigars, but that was before my money went into the cause. Ah, I'm sorry for that young Gamble that's going to marry Evelina." " I—lI — I believe you are misinformed. I don't think he is," replied Gamble. "Oh, thanks awfully ; but I must go. Good evening." "Who shall I tell sister-in-law called?" asked the bald gentleman. "No matter. Very kind of you;. but no matter," replied Gamble, as he vanished into the dingy street. • Scarcely had he gone when the bald gentleman took' off his apron, opened the door, addressed the children with the words, " Go to ybur mothers ; they want you," and opened a closet door, whence hopped, in a semismothered condition, Skivington Fink and an old Irishwoman. " Didn't you do it illigant, honey ?" said the latter. " You over-acted, Tom," said Skivington, but I tldnk you've done it.'? j ■ « I'know I have,"' wid'Tdmi " but ,it>s well I had such a donkey to deal 1 with, Now teraember, Skivvy.ten .oents.tf ■he»d/*na'bwe^s.'Mim>l>y.fift^ cents for the vie of tli'e room, and tw »s

your bill. you'll not forget the .tobacco. You'll get*^pelina if you want her now." And as, wheneve^ Evelina Speaker appears upon a platform of }i rainy day My. W\nk is» seen seated in an humble corner, holding her umbrella and arid over-shoes, it is to'be believed that his words have come" true, and that he is now Mrs. link's husband^

FEENCH EXCAVATIONS IN ASSYBIA. (From Knowledge.) Some most interesting particulars of the exploiation of M. de Sarzec in Mesopotamia, which were recently mentioned in Knowledge, are to be found in a letter from the discoverer himself, read before the Paris Academy by M. Heuzr, and a commencement at' deciphering the very ancient texts which are engraved on many of the antiquities, has been made by Dr. Julius Oppert. The site which has proved so exceptionally rich in archaeological remains is situated on the left bank of. the Shatt-ei-Hai, a large canal excavated in pre-historic times to unite the two grand water ways— Euphrates and Tigris. The name Tello is given to the spot by the Arabs, because of the number of Tells; or artificial mounds, which cover the buried city of Sirtella (or Zirgulla.) These Tells, which are very numerous, are scattered over a space of- six or seven kilometres, the principal one being at the north-east part of the group. The largest mound- was occupied by the ruins of a large edifice in the form of an elongated parallelogram, called by M. de Sarzec a temple, but which may have been a palace, or both. The building was elevated on a massive substructure of crude bricks rising to a height of fifteen metres above the uniform level of the desert, and having the angles directed to the cardinal points of the compass. During the last two years, M. de Sarzec's researches have been chiefly confined to disinterring the edifice concealed in the greater mound, and it was in it that were prefcerved the most valuable relics that have been discovered. Almost immediately after the workmen commenced cutting a gallery into the hill, they came upon the exterior walls, which were constructed of burnt bricks cemented with bitumen. All the bricks which have been examined bear the name of Gudea.* In order to more carefully preserve, and arrive at a true comprehension of the architecture of the building, the walls were first laid bare all round, and then an entrance effected by digging away the debris from some of the doors and windows. This was naturally a tedious and costly method, but both time and expense were amply repaid by the results. In the largest hall or court, which proved to be the central one of the block, were found nine statues of diorite, also a sculptured head, nearly life-size. In one of the passages leading from this to another chamber, they came upon portions of a statue with the bust covered with inscriptions, and a small statue of peculiarly short proportions, and carved out of a singularly green-colored stone. Almost every part of the building produced something, but the great inner court proved most prolific, containing, besides the nine statues mentioned, many fragments of inscribed vases and statuettes, an exquisito small head of beautiful execution, and another nearly life-size, with curled beard. In this, as in many of the passages and rooms, numerous seals, cylinders, and other objects, were collected, and at the foot of the outer wall, on the north-east face, a mutilated statue. M. de Sarzec does not tell us whether he broke open the thick outer Avails at the corners in search of record cylinders, a process which, however, after the discovery of the splendid perfect decagonal cylinder of Assurbanipal by Mr. Eassam, embodied in the very heart of a cornet mass of masonry, seems to be necessary in Babylonian explorations. In addition to the larger mound, M. de Sarzec excavated in all the Tells of minor dimensions, finding beneath them, in every case masonry built up of crude bricks, each, doubtless, at one time serving to support an edifice now destroyed. As long back as four years ago one of these hillocks produced tsvo perfectly preserved terracotta tablets, covered with inscriptions. Beneath two of the mounds, two cavities, like tanks, were found, lined throughout with dried bricks, plastered on the interior, and cemented with bitumen ; near these lay a hemispherical block of white marble, bearing a circular inscription. At one place was exposed two fragments of a basrelief, engraved with very archaic cuneiform text, and carved with battle-scenes representing warriors prostrate on the ground, and vultures flying a^ove them with human remains in their talons. One of the most curious discoveries, however, took place on the plains, close to the mounds, where, about thirty centimetres beneath the primitive soil, lay four cubes of solid masonry, built up of large bricks and bitumen. In the centre of each was a cavity filled with fine yellow sand, and in each cavity was a bronze statuette, either of a man kneeling, or a female standing. At the base of each statue, embedded in the bitumen lining of the recess, were two stone tablets, one white, and one black, the latter neatly always bearing an inscription which was duplicated on the statuette itself. In one respect, every " Tell" told a similar story, for all bore ample evidence of destruction by fire, and many of the valuable objects forming the collection, such as fragments of alabaster, and marble vases, were found calcined and embedded in ashes. In one, among other debris, were found portions of a marble statuette, numerous clay contract tablets, and a life-size figure of a bull's horn, made of plates of copper, moulded over a wooden model, ' which was completely carbonised by the heat. Here, also, lay. the curious head wearing a turban, which explains the form of head-dress so invariably delineated in such minute size on the oldest Babylonian seals. Some of the structures, as described by M. de Sarzec, exhibit most remarkable architectural features, but it is difficult to. understand their arrangement without plans j still, enqugh may be ascertained to provide, together with an account of Dr. Oppert's translation of some of the inscriptions, a further paper which will prove of interest. However desirous one may be to elaborate a description of this ancient civilisation, and correctly classify the antiquities now collected in the Salle devoted to M. de Sarzec's relics from Tello, at the Louvre, and appoint them their position in the history of the culture of mankind, it must be admitted, that the time for doing either, has not yet arrived. The difficulty of deciphering the texts is great, and even when they can be rendered into words, the meaning of them is uncertain. For instance, it is not known, whether the Gudea, whose name is upon nearly every object disinterred, was an independent prince or sort of viceroy over this part of Mesopotamia. The signification of the title Patesi which he gives himself, not being exactly known, Dr. Oppert points out that some words in the texts require to be read vertically, and, altogether much is at present uncertain. 1 A writer in a contemporary recently asserts, to his own satisfaction, the decidedly Ugrio Finnic or Turanian type of features indicated by the heads of statues, whilst M. Heuzy tells us how surprisingly Semitic he finds them. Fortunately, this uncertainty will soon be dissipated ; the inscriptions are, when correctly understood, ample to render up the wishqdfor information, and' certainly their secrets will slowly but, surely be wrested from them. To such veterans as Bawlinson and Oppert, who, unaided by a single analogy, have , con : quered the difficulties of the three languages of the Behistun and other inscriptions, though the very sounds of the signs were- unknown, . these texts will prove but slight obstacles, and when mastered, may afford a stepping-stone to approach the conquest of still stranger scripts, that may yet be disinterredt from the teeming soil of Babylonia. , , ,>>,.. „^

**M. de'Sarzec says "bear the ' carjtouche' Jot l Gudeti" but doefe not give anycopy. It wotud bo intereiing to know' if the royal name 'Wieh;.' closed in' art oval, or' curionche, as .in' 1 Egyptian bierdglyph*. '". *' . '•*. '^> !i < •■' *<]•

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