In the St. Ives puzzle the word "a," in Question Five, should read "in"—that is, the description ought to be, not that a certain thing should be a prison, but that, it should be in prison. There is no error in Question Two, as so many seem to think.
Origin of Croquet.
Vincent Beede asks the origin of croquet. The game croquet is derived by some writers from the French paille maille, played In Languedoc as early as the thirteenth century. It was played with a ball and mallet, similar to what we now use, and two hoops, or a hoop and peg, the game being won by the player who ran the hoop or hoops and touched the peg, under certain conditions, in the fewest strokes. It Is said that the game was brought to Ireland from southern France by a daughter of Sir Edward McNaughten, some twenty-five years ago.
Carolyn G. Thorne.
A Glimpse Into a Southern City.
In a basket of fruit that was sent me some days ago were bright red apples, clear-stone peaches, Catawba grapes, pears, the damson, and scuppernong grapes. When piled on a waiter they made a beautiful study. These were all grown on a small farm in the upper section of the State.
The staple food for the negroes, in September, is the watermelon. Melons can be got very cheap, and when out walking you invariably see a trio of "darky boys" sitting on the curbstone disputing over a division of one. I went on a delightful sail up the Ashley River one afternoon last week. On one side of the river is John's Island, and on the other James Island. A good supply of the vegetables we get is raised on James Island, brought to the city by the colored farmers, and sold on the streets. An early morning walk to the wharf at which vegetables arrive is interesting. In the distance you hear the babble of voices. Coming nearer, you see colored "maumas," men, and boys, running hither and thither, selling and buying the different vegetables, at the same time laughing and talking with the usual good nature of the "island darky." Here the housekeeper can buy her vegetables for a small sum. As the hucksters get farther up into the city their prices advance.
On John's Island I noticed along the river-bank, several fields of Sea Island cotton. In some fields the cotton plant was just in flower; in others the cotton was ready for picking; in others again the cotton had already been picked and sent to market. It looked as if we were going to have an early fall, for the leaves of the trees and shrubs were already commencing to turn red and brown, and drop. One of our river excursions led to Kiawah. Our own writer, William Gilmore Simms, has illustrated this fair spot by his story the Cassique of Kiawah. It was as still, the waters as clear, the moon shone as brightly, and the rabbits and squirrels seemed as numerous as in those early days when the dark-browed Indian maiden listened to the wooing of the brave Indian chief.