cast a last look upon the stony officer, with a wild shriek sprang
to the awful verge and came near losing her balance. Recovering
herself with an effort, she turned her face again to the officer,
who was clawing about for his missing club. Having secured it, he
started to leave.

In a cosy, vine-embowered cottage near the sounding sea, lives and
suffers a blighted female. Nothing being known of her past history,
she is treated by her neighbours with marked respect. She never
speaks of the past, but it has been remarked that whenever the
stalwart form of a certain policeman passes her door, her clean,
delicate face assumes an expression which can only be described as
frozen profanity. The Strong Young Man of Colusa.

Professor Cramer conducted a side-show in the wake of a horse-opera,
and the same sojourned at Colusa. Enters unto the side show a
powerful young man of the Colusa sort, and would see his money's
worth. Blandly and with conscious pride the Professor directs the
young man's attention to his fine collection of living snakes.
Lithely the blacksnake uncoils in his sight. Voluminously the
bloated boa convolves before him. All horrent the cobra exalts his
hooded head, and the spanning jaws fly open. Quivers and chitters
the tail of the cheerful rattlesnake; silently slips out the forked
tongue, and is as silently absorbed. The fangless adder warps up the
leg of the Professor, lays clammy coils about his neck, and pokes a
flattened head curiously into his open mouth. The young man of
Colusa is interested; his feelings transcend expression. Not a
syllable breathes he, but with a deep-drawn sigh he turns his broad
back upon the astonishing display, and goes thoughtfully forth into
his native wild. Half an hour later might have been seen that brawny