Wild Rose.—Your little story, though not good enough for publication, is very well constructed, and is creditable to a girl of fifteen. But you need to pay attention to punctuation, and to the proper use of capital letters, quotation marks, etc. We would advise you to take the advice lately given to Jennie and Julia, and cultivate your mind by reading good books, and becoming familiar with the best authors. Do not read too many stories, and wait until you are a good deal older before you try to write for the papers.
G. C. M.—The mud-turtle can be obtained in the small, sluggish streams and ditches back of Jamaica, L. I., from ponds in the neighborhood of Flushing, L. I., and also near Springfield, L. I. One of the very best fishing grounds for all sorts of specimens for an aquarium is Rockland Lake, N. Y.
Carrie M.—Pekin.—The city of Peking, or Pekin, the northern capital of China, is situated on the river Tunghui, a tributary of the Pei-Ho. It consists of Kin-Ching, the prohibited city, where the Emperor and his immediate suite have their dwellings; of Hwang-Ching, the imperial city, where many court officials reside; and of a Tartar and Chinese city. Each of these cities is surrounded by a wall, and the outer wall has thirteen gates. In Pekin are many magnificent temples and palaces. For many centuries it was closed to the outside world, but in 1860, by the Treaty of Tien-Tsin, the British government succeeded in gaining substantial commercial advantages from the Emperor. In the war which preceded this treaty the splendid summer palace was pillaged and destroyed by the French and English forces.
Anxious Inquirer.—You can present your sketch for an illustration on ordinary drawing-paper, with common ink or lead-pencil. If you wish to become a proficient, it will be well for you to acquire the art of drawing on wood. A fine, hard box-wood is preferred for this purpose.
Robert E. Cranson and Harlan C. Clark withdraw from the exchange list.