HOW FROGGY LOST THE RACE BY A FOWL.
Papa. "So, Bobby, you're the president of your bicycle club. That's very nice. How did they happen to choose you?"
Bobby. "Well, you see, papa, I'm the only boy that's got a bicycle."
A COSTLY THRONE.
At the time of the coronation of the Czar of Russia much was printed in the newspapers about the costly crown jewels and the magnificent imperial throne, but for all its magnificence and richness this nineteenth-century throne was nothing when compared to that of the Mogul Emperors of Delhi. This Indian throne was built in the reign of the Shah Jehan by a Frenchman who had been forced to seek an asylum in the Mogul empire. It was called the Peacock Throne, to distinguish it from other royal chairs, and because it was decorated with the figures of two huge peacocks. The throne was six feet long by four feet wide, and stood on six massive legs, which were of solid gold inlaid with rubies, emeralds, diamonds, and all kinds of precious stones. The tails of the peacocks were expanded fanlike behind the throne, and they too were inlaid with pearls, emeralds, and other gems of suitable coloring. The whole was surmounted by a canopy of gold supported by twelve pillars likewise studded with diamonds and precious gems, the border of the canopy being made of a fringe of beautiful pearls. Between the two peacocks perched a life-size parrot, which was carved out of a single emerald. The royal umbrellas, which are appendages to most Oriental thrones, were made of the finest silks, and were fringed with pearls, the handles being of solid gold studded with diamonds. It has been said by many writers that the famous Koh-i-noor diamond was originally set in this Peacock Throne. This story is very possibly true, inasmuch as the Koh-i-noor was at one time owned by the Shah Jehan. This throne has been valued at $30,000,000, and this figure is doubtless not exaggerated, for the Mogul Emperors were wonderfully rich monarchs. When the Persians sacked Delhi in 1739, they destroyed the Peacock Throne, and carried off its jewels. A simple block of white marble now stands in the private audience hall in the palace of the Mogul Emperors at Delhi to show where this gorgeous chair once stood.