TRANSFER FROM C. O. APR 1924 CONTENTS PAGE Champion Checker-Player of Ameriky, The St. John Honeywood 166 66 Deacon's Masterpiece, The; or, The Wonderful One-Hoss ....O. W. Holmes 9 James Whitcomb Riley 29 John Philip Sousa 183 . Joseph I. C. Clarke 214 ..... FOREWORD· EMBODYING A FEW REMARKS on the Gentle Art of LAUGH-MAKING. BY MARSHALL P. WILDER. Happiness and laughter are two of the most beautiful things in the world, for they are of the few that are purely unselfish. Laughter is not for yourself, but for others. When people are happy they present a cheerful spirit, which finds its reflection in every one they meet, for happiness is as contagious as a yawn. Of all the emotions, laughter is the most versatile, for it plays equally well the role of either parent or child to happi ness. Then can we say too much in praise of the men who make us laugh? God never gave a man a greater gift than the power to make others laugh, unless it is the privilege of laughing himself. We honor, revere, admire our great soldiers, statesmen, and men of letters, but we love the man who makes us laugh. No other man to-day enjoys to such an extent the close personal affection, individual yet national, that is given to Mr. Samuel L. Clemens. He is ours, he is one of us, we have a personal pride in him-dear "Mark |