The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1869-01-02 00:00:00

7 0 !crept was also made on New Year's Day, to blow
up the Worcester Town Hall, while three or four
hundred persons were assembled in it. This was
supposed to be by Fenians. There have been also
cereal outrageous acts committed by Fenians, but the
VI retched conspiracy gradually died out as the year
progressed, cowed and crushed by the rigour of the law
and the loyal spirit that was everywhere evoked. But
Fenianism was still a terror through the memory of
previous events. The attempt to blow up the House
of Detention at Clerkenwell was made on the 1:1th of
I December, 1867, in order to release Burke and Casey,
two Fenians who were imprisoned there. These men
were on the 9th of January in the past year committed
to Warwick gaol, hut afterwards removed to London
sad in April were found guilty of treason-felony; the
former being sentenced to fifteen years, and the latter
to seven years' penal servitude. Just previous to this,
several men had been placed on their trial for the
Clerkenwell explosion, but the evidence brought the
crime directly home only to Barrett, who was found
guilty and executed. Among other facts directly or
indirectly connected with Fenianism, we may recall
the renewal of the Habeas Corpus Act in Ireland (from
February 1886, till March 1869) ; the couviaion of Mr.
Sullivan and Mr. Pigott for seditious Itbels on the
Government, and their sentence to six and twelve
111..11E11s' imprisonment respectively ; and the sentence
Captain Mackay to twelve years' renal servitude.

In several towns, and on various occasions, great
excitement was caused by the "No Popery" lectures
of Mr. Murphy. Ills statem-nts were so strong, aml
his animus so bitter that wherever he appeared he
exited intense feeling, and in some cases there was
rioting to a more or less serious extent. In April and
May there were disturbances in many northern and
midland towns, suvesal people were killed in the
uproar, anti many metre were injured, besides which
property was in some cases wilfully destroyed.

The harvest ef 1863 was on the whole a bountiful
one. Some crops fell short, but the wheat was con-
siderably above the average, and, in spite of the hot
and dry slimmer, the green crops, thanki to a glorious
autumn, were not deficient. Mr. CaMI reckons that the
yield of wheat in the United Kingdom is nearly as
much above an average ati the crop of ltla was below
it, atd he reckons our last crop at 32 bushels an acre,
being five bushels over the average.

Earthquakes have been remarkably frequent during
the past year. From the 13th to the 10th of August
several shocks were felt in Peru. Ecuador, Quito,
Arequipa, Callao, and Lima suffered severely, and in
some districts enormous damage was 4lone. Ships were
carried away from their moorings, houses were thrown
down, property destroyed to a considerable extent,
and life sacrificed in many cases. At Gibraltar, the
very name of which suggests stability, there were two
stocks of earthquake on the 18th of the same month ;
and about the sawe time shocks were also experienced
in Hungary, though in neither case was much damage
done. At San Francisco, on the 21st of October, a
heavy shock was fe:t. Several buildings were thrown
down, and many others severely shaken. At San Josei
also, awl in other places, the earthquake was felt ;
houses were thrown down, and in B.lme places water
suddenly gushed aut of the earth. On the 30th of the
some month shocks of earthquake were felt in many
places in the 'Wet of England, and in South Wales,
but no damage was reported. Shocks trf earthquake
are also recorLied at Cologne, Bucharest, and other
places.

The past year has not, perhaps, been remarkable for
its crimes, lu.t, the full catalogue would be a very long
one. Not to dwell on this painful feature of our
recent history, we will but record briefly the attempt
to shoot tie driver of the Edinburgh express train,
cant dningthe Prince and Princess Trek, (in January) ;
the murder of a lady named Milbourn at Birmingham,
by three burglars; the attack by Miles Weatherall on
the Rev. Mr. Plow with a hatchet, the rev, gentleman
being severely wounded—subsequently dying—and the
shooting a housemaid dead, as well as beatin: Mrs.
Plow erectly with a poker —a complicated crime for
which Weatherall forfeited his life ; the " roasting a
baby alive" by a woman named Manning, who was
sentenced to five years' penal servitude ; the murder of
Mr. Walsh, station-master at Dover, by Wells, a
railway porter, who was condemned to death, and exe-
cuted at Maidstone on August 13—this being the first
1., :este execution under the new Act; and we might
1,1.1 many other murders aml crimes of violence which
—sad that it should he so—are not marked with ex-
ceptional atrocity.

The casualties and disasters of the year have been
very numerous. Noting the principal of these
calamities, in the order of time, we may remind our
readers of the terrible wind-storm in Edinburgh,
Glasgow, &e, in January, during which several houses
were blown down, and at least five persons killed; a
more destructive storm, on the Ist of February, in
various parts of England and Scotland, much pro-
perty being destroyed, and eighteen lives being lost in
Ii onion alone; the destruction of the Oxford Music-
ii, London, by fire ; the alarm of fire at a Man-
chester music-hall, resulting in the death of twenty-
three persons, awl injury to many others ; a serious
'evident during some sham shire operations at Chatham,
one wan being killed, and several severely injured;
the colliery explosion at Techon, near Llarielly, re-
sulting in the death of four men ; the explosion at a
powder manufactory at Inverston, nine men bring
killed ; the terrible railway disaster at Abergele, the
Irish limited mail coming into collision with a Cools
train containing petroleum, which caught fire, result-
ing in Lord and Lady Farnham, and about thirty
other persons, being burnt to death ; an explosion at a
firework manufactory, at Barnsley, by which twelve
persons met their death—the jury finding it was caused
by the carelessness of a girl, named Cooper, they re-
turned a verdict of " MiamdanAter against Maria
Cooper, as to all the parties dead, except herself
a terrible explosion at Rim' Iley Green Colliery, rcselt-
ing, ultimately, in the deathof sixty-two persons, as well
SA injury to others, and destruction of property; and an
immense number of maritime disasters in November
and December', no fewer than ninety-one wrecks, for
instance, being reported in the week ending December

The Law Courts have contributed their full quota to
wards the history of the year. The principal trisls
which have attracted general interest have been the
following: the action brought by the Countess
d'Alterac, who had lived with Lord Willon,hby de
Eresby as his wife, a4iiilist that nobleman, for a resti-
tution .d property, money, &c. —a cause which was
ultimately settled by arbitration ; Cr.*lsley v.
Elworthy, plaintiff being a merchant, and defendant
manager of the London and Colonial Company—an
action for false representations inducing the plaintiff
to invest moneys, the jury giving him a verdict of
£35,000; the judgment in the Court of Arches in the
Mackonochie (ritualist) case, by which the use of
candles at the altar was declared legal, but wherein in-
cense and certain vestments were condemned ; the
judgment of the Committee of Privy Council, on air
peal in the same matter (Martin r. Mackonuchie), the
result being, as The 'Jima puts it, that "ritualism
was fairly challenged in the highest court of law,
‘nd was completely &Irate I •," the case of Lyon
r. Home, which resulted in the Vice-Chancellor
ordering the latter, the celebrated spiritualist,
to return MAO which the former had made over
to him ; the Rachel case, an action brought by
Mrs. Borrodaile against Madame Rachel for ob-
taining large sums of money on false pretences, result-
ing in Use wily Jewess being sentenced to five years'
' penal servitude:but being subsequently released ',end-
! ng a new trial on a writ of error ; the action by Rink
Allah Bey against the Daily Teleyraph, the proprie-
tors of which journal were cant in damages to the tune
' of L'96o ; and the action (Johnstone v. Cothani)
' brought by one clergyman against another for false
imprisonment in a lunatic asylum, resulting in a verdict
for the defendant.

Among the minor stiscellaneous events of the year
we may mention Mr. Charles Dickene's reading tour in
tic United States; the mysterious disappearanceof the
tb•v. Mr. Speke, for whose recovery a large reward
was offered, and who was ultimately found in Corn-
wall ; the deaths of several persnns by sunstroke
during the excessive heat of July and August; the
lbwse Show, which opened in London on the Ist of
June, the first prize being awarded to "Ropes," the
Prince of Waleis Park hack ; the annual Christmas
Club Cattle Sh•pw ; the great Triennial Handel Fe4ival
at the Crystal Paine • ; the laying II the foundation
stone of St. Thomas's Hospital, on the southern
embankment of the Thames, by the Queen, on the
13th of May; the abortive strike of the London
cabmen, in August, again 4 the privileged railway-ca)'
s,••tem ; educational conference at Manchester ; the
ere distress in the eastern districts of London at thr
I...ginning of the )ear—distre-s which has become
chronic, and has re-ameared sow that winter haa
again sot in ; the celebrated "horse" shun, at the
Longhorn Hotel, London, which has been entirely
without the effect it was intended to produce; the
conference between Mr. Gladstone and working men
on Trades' Unions; an eviction outrage in Tipperary,
resulting in the death of two policemen and the
wounding of the evicting lainf ford and some other
petsons ; the victory of the NottonAl Sunday League
in the declaration of the legality of their. Sunday
evenings for the people ; the grand banquet given at
Bristol to her Majesty's ministers, with 1,200 guests;
the news of the safety of Dr. Livingstone ; the
University boat race, Oxford again winning; the
Easter Monday Volunteer Review at Portsmouth;
the " Derby," Blue Gown, King Alfred and Specnium
coming in in the order named; the annual competition