The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1869-02-13 00:00:00

niisttiincous
HONE, FOREIGN, AND COLONIAL.

IT IS AN ILL WIND, &C. The Paris " liners "
must have made a good deal out of the recent storm.
They blew a bricklayer from the scaffolding of a house
to a tree—where he happily stuck fast among the
branches. They blew a luggage waggon from the
" chemin de fer d'enceinte" into the Seine—where,
beyond sinking a boat laden only with ballast, it
fortunately did no harm. But perhaps their greatest
feat of all was blowing a sheet of lead from the top
of the Imperial Library in the Rue Richelieu with
such accuracy and force that it cut off the head of a
horse who happened to be passing along the Rue
Vivienne in a cab. "And what did the horse do?" it
may be asked. Instead of dropping down dead, this
Bucephalus—or acephalous, as he has been called—.
continued his mad career from the corner of the Rue
Vivienne and the Place de M Bourse all the way to
the Rue de la Banque, a distance of about a hundred
yards. The French liner explains the strange conduct
of the headless horse by saying that its movements
were "mechanical" and "automatic.'

ROUND NUMBERS.—The " Globe " Audiences.—
Punch.

CONVENTUAL TENDER MERCIES.—The Court of
Queen's Bench has presented us with a pretty view of
a convent interior. Who says the disclosures are re-
volting? The treatment which Sisters of Mercy are
liable to be subjected to may seem merciless. But
doubtless it is founded On principle. Its object is edu-
cationaL "She had buffered persecution," says Sterne,
" and learned mercy." Sisters of Mercy are tormented
to teach them their business. —Punch.
ANOTHER CONVENT CASE.—A convent case is
about to come before the Belgian courts. The facts
are thus stated by the Chnmigue of Louvain —"A nun
belonging to mu- of the best families of the neighbour-
hood was placed by the lady supenor in a damp under-
ground cell. She had been several days in c infinement
when, from the narrow opening by which her prison
received a little light from the garden, she succeeded
in attracting the attention of a man working there,
who consented to procure for her writing materials, and
to convey a letter to her brother-in-law. The
latter, on receiving the communication, went
to the convent and asked to see his sister-in-
law, but was informed that she was in religious
retirement and could not be seen. He returned three
hours later, accompanied by a commissary of police,
whom he left outside, and then repeated his demand;
he received a similar reply, but he insisted, and the
superior at length became evidently embarrassed. He
then opened the door to the police-officer, who com-
pelled the directress to accompany them to the cellars
underground, where they found not only the lady in
question, but also five other nuns confined in the same
manner, all of whom took advantage of the com-
missary's presence to quit the establishment and return
to their friends."

A PROPHECT.—A Paris correspondent writes :
M. About tells a very extraordinary story in connec-
tion with the illness which carried off Marquis de
Moustier, and one which, for fear of being an accom-
plice in a medical puff, I should scarcely have cited
from a writer of less repute. He says that one of his
friends, M. Marcy, a professor of the College of
France, who was invited to the Compeigne last
autumn, is inventor of an apparatus which he calls a
aphigmographe, and which marks upon a sheet of paper
the beatings of the human pulse. He has an analo-
gous machine for recording with unfailing accuracy
the movements of the heart. The Emperor and
several of the guests submitted to experiments. Dr.
Marcy told M. About (who himself has been a guest
at Compeigne) that certain statesmen whom he had
examined were destined to long life, and that certain
great ladies had a defective circulation, indicating a
short one. But he was especially struck by the state
of the Marquis de Monster. That minister," he
said, "who has not the least suspicion of his alarming
condition, has an affection of the aorta, which must '
inevitably lead him to the tomb shortly. I do not
give him two months to live." M. About now thinks
it useful to make this prophecy, which has been realised,
known.

A Bo Y MURDERER.—An extraordinary murder
has just been committed near Digne (Basses-Alpes) by
a lad, named Borel, aged 17, on a boy Morard, of 14,
both of whom were shepherds. While minding their
flocks together they were accustomed to play at chuck-
penny, and on the day in question the younger had won
50 centimes. The other paid the money, but a quarrel
having arisen shortly afterwards about a previous debt
of two sous, Borel left the spot greatly irritated, and
shortly afterwards crept stealthily behind Morard, and
stunned him by a blow on the head with a large stone,
and then beat out his brains with the Caine, and after-
wards carried the body a distance of nearly a quarter of
a mile to throw it into a reservoir. The yo-ang
criminal then washed the blood from his hands and
face, and returning home with his sheep, ate his
supper as usual. The corpse was found on the following
day, and Borel, who had been arrested in consequence
of information of the quarrel given byanothershepherd,
afterwards confessed his guilt.
TEE AsetaaTE.--In the Victoria Legislature a
member, whose education had been neglected, was
reading out a document to the House and vainly en-
deavouring to decipher an obscure letter. On turning
to a friend he anxiously asked—"ls that a hem or a
hen?" "Oh ! "replied his friend, "Call it a hen, and
move that it lay on the table."

BY A SIBERIAN CAPTIVE.—Why is a man who
lives in Russia certain not to be the same man who
lives in South America? Why, because he's a-norther
person.—Punch.

LIMITING OP THE STOMACTI.—The following
curious statement is taken from a Canadian paper :
M. MiMat, in France, introduces into the stomach glass
tubes of small calibre, connected with a strong battery, and
containing the electrodes necessary for producing a brilliant
galvanic light. Tumours or ulcers In the abdomen can thus
be observed through the skin, and the interior lit up as
when the feeble light of a candle renders the finger
translucent.

EXTRAORDINARY BEHAVIOUR OF A DOG. —A
correspondent resident in North Wale, sends the follow-
ing account of the extraordinary antics of a dog. He
says

I have frequently been compelled to ride—also, as a matter
of choice—in the guard's van from Ituabon to Pala on
several occasions I have noticed a half-bred sheep dog plung-
ing down the embankment just in time to miss the last
carriage, after which he nine and barks most furiously.
This he has done for over three years, and the guards
whom I have spoken to say he never misses a train, and he
is so constant in his attention to his duties that, while they
are sorting their letters and parcels, they involuntarily say,
"There's the dog !" there are his regular tracks to and from
his kennel, literally worn ; far plainer than a sheep track.
Ile never exceeds Isis distance, and never starts but from
the one point. line of the guards told me that one day the
doc was out with his master shooting, and more than a
note from the rail, but when the train was due he set off
in spite of whistle, coaxing, and threats; he met his train
as usual, punctual to the moment' and then returned to his
master. This scene may be witnessed every day close to the
Teeter station.
SUICIDAL.—The most ludicrously inconsistent
thing Punch has beard of for a good while was the
attempt of the Ritualists to get into the Committee of
the Society for the Promotion of Christian Knowledge.
What on earth have they to do with Christian
Knowledge ! The more they keep out of its way the
bete., for them. We shall hear next of blackheetles
insisting upon getting into scalding water.—Punch.

POOR FELLOW !—A Washington correspondent
writes :
Would you like to know the moat uncomfortable man on
earth? His name Is Adam Belleau. He is General Grant's
confidential secretary. For six months he has spent four
hours per day in tearing up applications for office. Grant
never sees the letters—hence his jolly health. Barleso is a
martyr; but he fights well. You see him at noon grinily
grinning over (bushel of letters, of which three pecks are
asking for Cabinet ollicea At one o'clock you can see his
shoulders: at three the heap is finished, awl possibly ten out
of 5,000 notes are reserved for Grant's opinion.

ACTION AGAINST A MAGISTRATE—An action
for false imprisonment against Mr. French, a stipen-
diary magistrate, has been tried in the Court of Queen's
Bench, Dublin. Mr. Maloney, an assistant in an
apothecary's establishment, and a friend named
M 'lntyre, were arrested at the last Punchestovni raoes
on the charge of stealing a watch from a gentleman
named Irvine. They were brought before Mr. French,
who, without taking a sworn information, ordered
I them to be sent to Naas gaol. There they were con-
fined from Thursday until Monday, when a bench of
magistrates discharged them, Mr. French dissenting.
Mr. Irvine, the person who had made the charge, had
discovered his mistake, and apologised to the young
men whom he had wrongfully accused. The jury re-
turned a verdict for the plaintiffs—l2oo damages.
A REPUBLICAN MARQUIS IN AMERICA.—There
I was married in New York, a few years ago, a gentle-
' man, whose name Is associated with very interesting
historical associations. This is M. de Alontcalta, the
great-grandson of the marquis of that name, who
vainly, but with great bravery, resisted the conquest
of Canada by General Wolfe. His bride was Aldlle.
Krolikowska, a Polish lady, who has resided in New
' York for several years. M. de Montcalm is the only
representative of his race. In his youth he was an
associate and friend of Louis Napoleon, but he enter-
tained socialist and communist views, which prevented
him from retaining the confidence of that ruler after
the revolution of '4B. He incurred the displeasure of
the French Government after the establishment of the
Empire, and WM thrown into prison. He was at
length released, hut placed under surveillance, which
he evaded, and escaped to Germany, and thence to
New York, where he has remained for the last three
years, supporting himself by giving lessons in mathe-
matics and the languages. He disdains to bear his
title of marquis, and is one of the most crimson of red
republicans.
EXAMPLE AS WELL AS PRECEPT.—The other
Sunday, in the course of his sermon, the Rev. W.
Bradbury, vicar of Skerton, Lancaster, made the fol-
lowing proposal to his congregation :—" If fifty of
you men are willing to sign the pledge after this
service, I am willing, if you wish it, to do the same.
It is a simple pledge—' I promise by Divine assistance,
to abstain from all intaricateng drinks as a beverage;
and if fifty of you women agree to do so, my wife, Mrs.
Bradbury, and my brother minister (the curate) will
do the same." Nearly fifty persons of both sexes
signed the pledge that night.
Eves A PPLE-TREES. —The botanical curiosities
of the island of Ceylon are replete with varied interest.
The Right Hon. Sir Alexander Johnston, while in-
quiring into the history of the country, had drawings
made of a great many of the trees, plants, and other
vegetable productions, to which any religious, poli-
tical, or moral interest was attached by the native
Hindoos, Buddists, Mohammedans, or early Christians,
One of these is "the forbidden fruit. or Eve's apple-
tree," the Tabernumontana dichotoma of the "Horton
Kewensis." Its native name is duct kaduru, kaduru
signifying "forbidden," and dust" tigers." The
flower of this extraordinary production is said to emit
a fine scent. The colour of the fruit, which hangs
from the branches in a very peculiar and striking
manner, is very beautiful, being orange on the outside
and a deep crimson within ; the fruit itself presenting
the appearance of having had a piece bitten out of it.
This circumstance, together with the fact of its being
a deadly poison, led the Mohammedans, on their first
discovery of Ceylon—which they assigned as the site
of Paradise—to represent it as the forbidden fruit of
the garden of Eden; for although the finest and most
tempting in appearance of any, it had been impressed
—such was their idea—with the mark of Eve's having
bitten it, to warn men from meddling with a substance
possessing such noxious properties. Its effects are so
poisonous, that two European soldiers, shortly after
the capture of Colombo, in 1795, being unaware of
the nature of the fruit, were tempted by its appearance
to taste it, and very soon sickened and died. —The
World of Wonders.
COUNT BISMARCK THREATENED WITH ASSASSI-
NATimr—The New Prussian Gazette of the sth says :

According to a communication made to the Prussian
Cabinet by one of the great vveniments desirous of peace,
the life of Count de Bismarck has been again menaced by the
hand of an assassin. A student, born in Hanover, had been,
it was declared, named as being charged with the execution
of the attempt. This news, although alarming, does net
surprise us, for alter the malevolent statements, abuse, and
calumny lavished on Prussia by the Guelph and republican
organs in Germany and abroad, there cannot be any great
wonder felt if a fanatical haml should be armed to commit a
work of hatred .•r vengeance.

CUSTOM-HOUSE WASTE.—The other day the
Customs' authorities of Greenock, finding themselves
in possession of nearly sixty boxes of tea which the
previous owner had been unable, or unwilling, to
redeem from bond, chartered a tug steamer with orders
to convey the tea to the tail of the bank and there
commit it to the deep. The tea, it appears, was of an
inferior kind, known in the West Indies as "Coolie
tea," from its being supplied to the coolies there in
lieu of a more fragrant and stimulating article ; and,
not being able to get a speedy market for it in Greenock
or Glasgow, the owners found that to pay the stowage
would be to pay more than the tea was worth, and they
therefore, allowed it to fall into the hands of Her
Majesty's Customs' authorities, who could hit upon no
other expedient of disposing of it than the simple and
effectual one of burying it under the waters of the
Clyde. The tug was accordingly paid to carry the tea
to the middle of the Frith, where, along with the boxes
in which it was packed, it was duly sunk. The tea
was of no great value, but it would have fetched a few
pence per pound, or might have been handed over to a
poor-house, or to sonic of the mission associations, to
distribute among the destitute classes of Glasgow or
Greenock. As it is, the tea and the boxes have been
destroyed, and the authorities have paid for destroying
them,

To A CORREAPONDISNT.—" A Civil Service Clerk
a Fortnight Old" is ageored that the Controller of the
Stationery office eigned his real name to the circular
about quill pens, and did not 11881.1111 C a nom de plume.
—Punch.

TAR ART OF LIVING TO NINETY.—LOIVI Pro-
vost Chambers, writing from Mentone to Professor
Simpson, says :

. _
I do not need to remind you, Sir James, how many of
our best citizens perish before they are sixty years of age
through sheer hanging on too long to their professional avo-
cations. They teniporise by going annually out of town for
a month or two, which no doubt carries them on, but the
weight of business is still on their mind : and at length,
through sundry entanglements, their day of safety is gone.
A cold November finishes them, and about two o'clock on a
wintry afternoon, they are, in the pomp of hearse and
carriages, decorously conducted to the burying-ground. A
celebrated French writer on hygiene has A theory that dying
at anything under a 100 years of age is all a mistake—that it
is people's own blame, or the blame of their progenitors, if
they she earlier. I would allow a handsome discount of ten
per cent., and take ninety as a fair thing. The art of living
to ninety In, however, I fancy, not very generally understood;
or, if understood, is neglected. Lord Brougham was up to
it. He went off at the right time every year to Cannes,
cheating alike the winter and the gravedigger as long as flesh
and blood could do so."

PRECIOUS " REmcs."—The church inventories
in Madrid have been concluded, except in one or two
places. They reveal some curious facts. Deception
and superstition seem to have gone hand in hand.
Even royalty itself seems to have been as much
"gulled" as any of the ignorant and illiterate of the
masses. For instance, we are informed that the valu-
ables found in the chapel royal of the Queen's palace
at Madrid have been deposited for safety in the Bank
•of Spain, after the taking of the inventory prescribed
by the recent decree. Amongst them are upwards of
three hundred "relics," which have been palmed off
upon the sovereigns of Spain, and for which countless
sums have been paid. Saints' garments, bones,
finger and toe nails, some of our Saviour's drops of
blood and of sweat, some nails from the cross, and
even a piece of the manger of Bethlehem. But it is
remarkable that the dates of acquisition of every one
of these articles are all subsequent to Charles 11. cf
Spain (1700). Most of them have been purchases of
the ex-Queen.

A CALL To CONVERSION.—We hear a grea
deal about conversions such as that of the Marquis of
Bute, and in the meantime our Volunteers are armed
with unconverted Enfield rifles. If we were invaded
by troops fighting with breechloaders, what would
become of our national defenders? Mr. Cardwell,
pray have the Enfields instantly converted into Snider&
Let not conversion be delayed until it is enforced by
the wonders wrought on our Volunteers by the Chas-
sepot rifle.—Punch.

THE FUTURE OF Sr. PETERSBURO.—The follow-
ing interesting but apparently rather sensational piece of
news is going the round of the German papers. It is
said that in fifty years St. Petersburg will have ceased
to exist. The whole soil on which it stands is sinking,
imperceptibly it is true, but with fearful regularity,
and the examination that ha.s been made has turned
out so unfavourably that steps are being taken prepa-
ratory to removing the Court.

BIRTH-RATES OF TOWNS.—The annual birth-rate
per 1,000 of population in each of 49 large town die-
tricti of England during the quarter ending December
31, 1868, was as follows :—Chatham, 3902; Brighton,
3116; Portsmouth, 3353; Gosport, 29:34; Southamp-
ton, 3299 ; Northampton, 4040; Ipswich, 3140;
Yarmouth, 3685; Norwich, 3111 ; Exeter, 3216;
Plymouth, 3341; East Stonehouse, 3035; Devon-
port, 3107; Bath, 2757; Cheltenham, Zi11; Stoke-
upon-Trent, 4152; Wolverhampton, 3595; Walsall,
34148 ; Dudley, 3324; Worcester, 3354; Coventry,
2814; Leicester, 3818; Nottingham, 2872; Derby,
37'28; Stockport, 3260; Macclesfield, 2795; Chester,
21P61; Birkenhead, 38'09 ; Wigin, 4003; Bolton,
4245; Bury, 3299; Ashton-under-Lyne, 2982; Old-
ham, 3495; Rochdale, 3077; Blackburn, 3785;
Preston, 3711; Huddersfield, 3583; Halifax, 3650;
York, 3339; Sunderland, 4169; South Shields, 4640;
Gateshead, 4800; Tynemouth, 3845; Cardiff, 3604;
Merthyr Tydfil, 3677; Swansea, 3769, The annual
birth-rate to 1,000 of population during the 14 weeks
ending January 2, 1899, in each of 14 large townk of
the United Kingdom, was as follows :—London, 36 -05 ;
Bristol, :36-05; Birmingham, 3455; Liverpool, 37411;
Manchester, 3546; Salford, 3760; Sheffield, 3874 .
Bradford, 3518; Leeds, 41'75; Hull, 3285; New-
cristle-omTyne, 38'06; Edinburgh, 3591; Glasgow,
38'19; Dublin, 2434

PLEASANT READING.—In Berlin they have
paper which from its name must be a very disagreeable
one to read, and is, we presume, the organ of all
grumbling, c entankerons, and ill-tempered people, for
it Is called The Cross Ghzette.—Punch.

MR. MACMIRR AND MR. WHALLEY. Mr.
Whalley, M.P., writes 58 follows :

Reference is made to a correspondence between Mr.
Maguire and myself relative to the Mayor of Cork, and ex-
tracts from letters supposed to have been written and re-
ceived by me are quoted and referred to. I have to request
that you will allow me to state in your columns that I have
had no such correspondence with Mr. Maguire. I have not
had occasion to notice the proceedings of the Mayor of Cork,
nor is It my intention to do so.

HER MAJESTY AND THE EDDTATONIK LIGHT-
HOUSE.—During last week, as our readers are doubt-
less aware, a report was foolishly arid wickedly
originated that the Eddystone Lighthouse was des-
troyed, and a contemporary having published a para-
graph to that effect, the statement found its way to
Lloyda, and thence was rapidly disseminated through-
out the metropolis. Ths rumour thus reached the
ears of the Queen, at Osborne, who, with that anxious
solicitude for the welfare of her subjects when placed

in circumstances of peril which her Majesty has so
often displayed, at once caused a telegram to be sent,
making special inquiries as to the truth of the report.
Of coutse it was not long before her Majesty was as-
sured that it had no foundation.

A DESPERATE ErFFIAN.—A murder WaS com-
mitted about five months back at La Rocffiffiard,
France, by a man named Giraudeau on his sister and
her husband. Since that time the police had lost all
traces of the criminal, who was supposed to have
escaped abroad. He appears, however, to have been
wandering about from village to village, and a few
nights back went to demand hospitality from a miller
named Maupetit, residing at Manse, and who bad
married his god-daughter. The man was, however,
terrified at receiving such a guest, and gave notice to
the authorities. The fugitive went to sleep in a barn,
and at about five in the morning the gendarmes arrived,
and after surrounding the budding ordered Giraudeau
to surrender. The other replied by firing two pistol
shots, which wounded two men, one mortally. The
officers then attempted to enter by the roof, but were
repulsed another being shot dangerously. They then
set fire to the barn, and the murderer, finding that he
had no hope of escape, blew out his brains. Of the
three gendarmes wounded, one has died, and the others
are not yet out of danger.

CRIMINAL QUICRY.Can a prisoner who commits
himself, also form his own conviction?— Punch.
AN ECCENTRIC PRINCESS. The Princess
Bacciochi, who has just died, and who is officially
described as aunt of the Emperor of the French,
though she did not stand in that degree of relationship
to him, was a singular character. When resident at
Rome some years ago she discarded the use of bells
and of the voice in summoning domestics, but tired
pistols to bring them to her—one pistol-shot for her
footman, two for her maid, three for the coachman,
and so on. An Italian who was living at Rome at the
time she was there, tells that strangers used to be
terribly puzzled to divine what the popping of pistols
in her palace could mean. Some time after the present
Emperor was installed in greatness at the Tuileries,
she, on account of her relationship to him, established
herself at Paris, and figured prominently in Court
gaities. Then, all at once, she took Paris pleasures in
disgust, purchased a chateau and some land in a
dreary part of Brittany, and lived there for several
years excluded from society. She however, felt
interested in agriculture, and took great pains, and in-
curred some expense, trying to teach the Bretons
improved modes of cultivation. But the 'Bretons are
addicted to their ancient customs, and slow to learn;
and so they treated her teaching in the same way as,
according to Sir Walter Scott in the "Pirate,' the
Shetlanders did that of Triptolemus Yellowby.

THE CONFUSED AMBASSADOR.—A Hungarian
paper tells an amusing story about the late Prince
Metternich—a tale with a moral, such as it is. One
morning the Danish Ambassador desired an audience
from the Minister, who ordered his valet to get him
the Order of the Elephant, in which he wished to re-
ceive the ambassador. The valet looked through all
the Minister's orders, but was unable to discover that
of the elephant. Time pressed, so the Prince sent in
all haste to some brother diplomatist, and borrowed
the decoration in question for half an hour or so. This
done, he received the ambassador, his breast duly
adorned with the Danish order. The sight of this,
however, seemed to act as an extraordinary spell upon
the visitor. He could not take his eyes off the Minis-
ter's coat, hesitated in his speech, and exhibited alto-
gether such distinct signs of distress that Metternich
could not forbear at last asking him whether anything
had happened to him. "Nothing," the other replied,
greatly embarrassed, "but just this, that there must
be some extraordinary mistake in our book of orders at
Copenhagen. I had begged an audience from you in
order to decorate you with the Order of the Elephant,
which we seemed to have forgotten to bestow upon
yo:u. Excellency before, and there you wear it already."
The denouement—that is, Metternich's laughing con-
fession —comforted the diplomatist greatly, and Met-
ternich was now duly, and in all proper form, installed
a knight of the great and sagacious quadruped.
AN UNEXPECTED DIFFICULTY.—The sale of
Russian America to the United States has given rise
to a curious difficulty which promises to give some
trouble to the Governments at Washington and St.
Petersburg. It appears that underthe Russian rime
the Esquiusaux and other natives of the country who
had been "converted" to the orthodox faith paid a
tax for the support of the Russian popes who had been
sent among them as missionaries. rhe United States
authorities on taking possession declined to collect
taxes for the Russian clergy, and the people, not
being disposed to make any voluntary offerings, the
popes were left entirely without resources. They then
appealed to the synod at St. Petersburg, which decided
that they should remain under the protection and in
the pay of the Russian Government as before, and be
subject to the jurisdiction of the synod. This decision
seems to be objected to by the United States Govern-
ment, which is naturally unwilling to tolerate any
" protection " by a foreign Power of persons residing
in its dominions, and the organs of the Slavophile party
at St. Petersburg are already warmly pleading in
favour of their distressed countrymen.
FRANCE AND FREE TRADE.—The Paris Corre-
spondent of the Express writes : "It is, I believe,
quite certain that the Protectionists have nothing to
hope forms long as M. Rouher remains prime minister.
He is quite prepared to demonstrate that the recent
general inquiry shows that the mum:lyre:al treaty with
England has been favourable to France." As to
agricultural distress, a very c Bnpetent witness, AL de
Meaux, sums up the matter thus pithily: "Our land
wants men and capital, and pays too heavy taxes.
These are the three great grievances brought out by the
inquiry, and they are incontestible ; but the treaty of
commerce, or free trade, if you like to use that ex-
pression, is quite innocent in the matter."
MARINE DISASTERS.—According to the BUTealt
'Verde's, of Paris' the number of vessels totally lost
during the year 1868 was 2,371, of which 2,261 were
sailing vessels and 110 steamers. The number of
total losses in 1866 was 2,932, and in 1867 3,045. Of
the vessels lost in 1868 no less than 1.122, bore the
British flag, 253 were American, 210 1 rench, 203
North German, 103 Dutch, 71 Norwegian, and 50

A NOBLEMAN FINED FOR DRUNKENNESS.—
(From the Times of India, Jan. 4.)—Lord George
Gordon was charged, on Saturday, at the Girgaum
Police Court, before Mr. H. H. Showell, with being
drunk and incapable of taking care of himself, in
Breach Candy-road, on New Year's day. A native
policeman found his lordship that morning lying drunk
on the Girgauru road, and he was taken to the chowkey
close by. Ile had nothing to say in his defence, and
only wished to be sent to Palma. In convicting his
lordship of the offence charged, his worship reminded
him that he was not unknown to him, but as it was
about thirteen years since he (his lordship) was brought
before him at Tanna on a similar charge, he would
only order the ordinary fine on this occasion, but
warned him not to come before him again. He was
fined half a rupee. Another account says that " The
fact is that the person who has obtained such notoriety
is a crazy half-caste, professional beggar, who is known
by the above soubrigact."

•
THEIR HUMBLE RETREAT !—The ex-Majesty of
Spain's future residence in the Avenue Roi de Rome,
Paris, is thus described in the Figaro :
You enter by a vestibule of mosaic thirty feet in length,
the roof supported by a double row of marble columns,
leading to a stair-case of white marble. The King's apart-
ments is on the ground floor, consisting of as antechamber,
drawing room, billiard room, a roost entirely surrounded by
presses for his coats, the apartments for the younger children
contiguous with those of the king. On the first floor the
queen's suite, commencing by a sumptotts antechamber, htmg
with draperies and crimson anti gold brocade, opening into a
boudoir of ebony, rose satin, and chiselled gilt bronze style
Louis XVI., the bedroom and dressing room to match. The
exiles are to pay £12,000 for the furniture of their humble
retreat. It is to be hoped they will not suffer severely from
privations

THE FIRST WHITS THIEF.—Our correspondent
(says the Natal Herald) relates "the first instance of
a white man having been found guilty of theft in
Pondoland." The thief—whose name we withhold,
with the hope that he may reform and not either
disgrace it or the nation to which be belongs—had
some time since stolen a gun from Mr Stifles, and din-
posed of it to a Kaffir. When suspicion rested heavily
on the thief, and it became necessary to try him, the
' question arose, how was he to be tried • by the chief
of the Pondos, or by one of his own colour? It was
left to himself to decide, and he expressed his desire
to be tried by the Rev. Mr. Allsopp, of Palmerton
(Wesleyan missionary), assisted by a jury of the prin-
cipal men of the station. In defence, the prisoner
attempted to shift the crime to another man ; be, how-
ever, entirely broke down in this cowardly proceeding,
and was finally pronounced guilty. The rev, gentle-
man, in passing sentence, said—What will the wild
untutored heathen say around us, when the
tidings are carried to them that an Englishman has
been found sulky this day at Palmerton of the crime
of theft? Your guilt is plain, and I herewith order
you to return the gun to Mr. titoffel ; you turnst get lilt
from the Kaffir and return it to the rightful owner.
Further, as a punishment fur the crime, I sentence
you to pay three head of cattle— one head to the great
chief, who claims a beast for every crime committed on
this station ; one to the station as " wash money,"
accenting to its laws; and one to Scheepers, whom
you slowed to be wrongfully accused of the theft com-
mitted by you.
SINGULAR FRAUD. Two men, named Pierre
and Tisserand, and a woman, Blanche, were tried on
Sunday at the Court of Aasizesin Paris, for a singular
fraud. Tiaserand, a greengrocer, hail been conilemned
to a foetnight s imprisonment for cohabiting with the
female prisoner, Who in married, but had attempted to
undergo his sentence by proxy. Pierre, having under-
taken, for a sum of one hundred francs, to repreont
loin, presented himself at the prison under the name
of the other, and was duly installed, but before the
expiration of the time the deception was discovered,
and thy man really condemned was arrested on this
new charge, together with the woman wino had hired
the substitute. The jury returned a verdict of
acquittal, no doubt thinking that they hail been
sufficiently punished by their preventive imprison-
ment.

RATIO OF MORTALITY /X CITIES.—The rate of
mortality in fourteen great cities and towns in the
year 1868, as shown by the mean of the rates for the
four quarters of the year, was as follows :—ln London
—that is to say, the entire metropolitan district, 2350
per thousand of the estimated population; Liverpool,
2922 per thousand; Manchester, 3201, and Salford,
30'72 per thousand; Birmingham, 23 94 Leeds,
2721; Sheffield, 2063; Briatol. 2283; Bradford,
2046; Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 25't4; Hull, 2438,
The city or borough boundaries of the provincial towns
are the limits here taken. The mortality of the city
of Edinburgh in 1868 was at the rate of 2087 per
thousand; of Glasgow, 3042; of Dublin (the city and
somesuburbs), 2467. The death rate in all England
in 1868 was 2220 per thougand—namely, 24'22 in the
districts comprising the chief towns and 1940 in the
smaller towns and country parjohes. The death rate
of the United Kingdom was 2211 i per thousand.

THE PATRONAGE OF A PREMIER.—Since the -
accession to office of Mr. Disraeli, in February, 1868,
the number of peerages and other titles and dignities
conferred amount in number to 03. From A reference
to the new edition for 1869 of that useful and accurate
work Dod's Peerage we are enabled to class them in
the follwing ranks—namely, one Irish duke and one

Irish baron—Abercorn and Rathdonnell respectively;
one viscountess—Beaconsfield ; one baron raised to a
viscounty—Bridport ; two baronies revived —Fitz waiter
and O'Neill ; four English barons— Orrnathwaite,
Ke4even, Napier of ?Magda's, and Hatherley. The
baronets are 12 in number—Buckley, Cartier, Child,
Cleasby, Knox-Gore, Harvey-Harvey, Bateson-
Harvey, Humphrey, Jenner, Mills, Moss, and Walker.
The Privy Councillors are eight Ball, Bright,
Childers, Forster, Hunt, Layard, Lytton, and Taylor.
The Order of the Bath and the Star of India, with the
honour of knighthood, have entitled 27 persons to the
prefix of "Sir," while the episcopal bench has been
reinforced by a new archbishop and two bishops, and
the colonial branch of the Church by three episcopal
appointments. Of the knights, Sir Richard Baggal-
lay, Sir William Balliol Brett, Sir John 1). Coleridge,
Sir George M. Giffard, Sir James Hanen, and Sir
George Hayes owe their titles to their legal eminence,
while most of the remainder received their honours
for their exertions as mayors or otherwise in their re-
spective localities. Of theme Ireland furnished the
following i—Sir John Barrington, Sir William Carnal,
Sir Charles Lanyon, Sir Richard Orpon, Sir Edward
Reid, and Sir Peter Tait.

GOOD NEWS FOR ENGLAND.—It 19 announced
that Land and Water is permanently enlarged. It
turns out to be our good friend, Mr. treK-I.AND and
Water who is permanently enlarged.—Punch.

DEATH OF A POLISH REFITGEE.—On Monday
morning there died at Ryder's-court, Leicester-square,
London, Joseph Michalski, a Polish Refugee, at a
very advanced age. M. Michalski, who belonged to
an old Polish family once in good position, fought for
the liberty of his country throughout the revolutionary
war of 1830-31. He held a captain's commission in
the army of the revolution, and distinguished himself
in several engagements with the Russians. After the
final defeat of the Poles, M. Michalski, like many of
his countrymen, sought refuge from Russian cruelty in
England, and embarked in the cigar and tobacco
trade, which he profitably carries! on in Ryder's-
court up to his decease. At the time of the Polish
bazaar M. Michalski was selected as the depositary
of the valuable jewellery given as prizes on that occa.
nice. Up to the time of his death he preserved a fine
military jappearance, and possessed Lot only the
esteem of his fellow-countrymen resident in London
but that of the inhabitants of the neighbourhood in
which he lived—his frank soldierly bearing making
the old revolutionist a general favourite. He was
deeply attached to hiss oppressed country.
Tim Bois/roams AND THE ORLEANISTS. —The
following letter appeared in The Times of last
Saturday :-
Sir—lt is well known that the abusive language, of which
the Infante Don Henry is so indiscriminately lavish has not
for years been deemed worth an answer. But your Paris
correspondent, in sending you the Infante's last letters,
represents them as toeing a revenge for the humiliation put
upon nim by his French cousins. Ahow me, sir, to deny that
this Prince has ever suffered the least humiliation oil our
part. If he ever was a candidate for Queen Isabella's hand,
he has not been excluded by the French Government. One
thing in which we may have been mistaken is In having re- i
ceived Don Henry too well ; indeed, more as a member of
our own family than as a foreign Prince, when his parents
being expelled from Spain, Ile enjoyed with them in Paris
the hospitality of the King, my father. I remain, sir, yours
truly, Louis D'Orleans. Bushey-park, Teddington, Feb. 5.
THE ASSASSIN OF MR. M' GEE.—The case of
Whelen, the ass£4B9ill of Mr. D'Arcy 111`Gee, was
argued in the Court of Error and Appeals, at Toronto,
on the 22nd January. Ten judges delivered elaborate
judgments, fully reviewing the case. The judges stood
four for and six against granting a new trial The pri-
soner's counsel applied for leave to appeal to the Privy
Council of England, and after consultation the Court
I decided that it had no right or power to grant the leave.
The prisoner was ordered to be sent back to Ottawa
gaol; and, so far as the Canadian courts are con-
cerned, the law will take its course, and, if a reprieve
I is not granted, Whelen will be executed on the 11th
inst.

UNREASONABLE.—Those who think the Lord
Chamberlain's Circular about the dress worn by
actresses and dancers does not go far enough, should
remember that he could hardly be expected to do more
than skirt the subject. —Punch.

DISTRESSING CASE OF SOMNAMBITLISM.-011
Friday morning a distressing and fatal Case of som-
nambulism occurred at South Shields. It appears
that Mr. Finlay, one of the collectors in the
employ of the South Shields and Sunderland Water
Company, on Thursday retired to rest in his usual
health, and without anything unusual being noticed
by his brother, with whom he slept. About five
o'clock the brother missed the deceased from bed.
After a time, finding he di I not return and seeing his
clothes at the side of the bed, the brother became
alarmed, and at once got the assistance of a neigh-
bour, John Wilson, and searched for the deceased. A t
the back part of the house is a pond of considerable
depth, and the brother and Wilson on approaching
the pond were horrified to see the body of the deceased
in the water. His friends suppose that during his
sleep he had got out of bed, and unconsciously walked
into the pond. Deceased was a widower, 32 years of
age, and was much respected.

AN ENGLISH PRISONER IN SPAIN.—An English-
man in Spain writes to the Pall Mall Gazette men-
tioned in a previous letter the case of a British seaman,
who, having stolen a sail when drunk at a Mediter-
ranean port, was handed over to the Spanish autho-
rities. He has now been in prison nineteen months,
and his case has not yet been tried—a pleasant com-
mentary on the Ciria Ranzaaaa boast of some years
bask. A month ago the authorities at Madrid dis-
covered that there had been a mistake about him all
along ; that he was, not like his two Spanish accom-
pikes, subject to their naval law ; and that he ought
to be tried at the court of the place at which his rdfence
was committed. In due time he was made aware of
this and directed to defend himself. Having requested
assistance, the local court appointed two lawyers to
represent him, and these admirable persons went to
him in prison and requested 100 dollars for expediting
the proceedings. The money not being forthcoming,
the period of the poor fellow's obtaining what is here
called "justice' is uncertain. For the informatiein of
those who are curious in details, I may add that the
Englishman's name is Thomas Jones, and that he is in
gaol at Barcelona.
CARDINAL CULLEN ON FEN lAwism.--In a lenten
pastoral just addressed by Cardinal Cullen to the
Roman Catholic clergy and laity of the archdiocese of
Dublin, his Eminence thus refers to secret societies
"As secret societies are the cause of great evils, tend-
ing to promote impiety and infidelity, and injurious
to the public good, the Boman Pontiffs, Benedict
XIV., -Pius VII., Leo XII., &u, have excom-
municated all who engage in them. Hence Catho-
lics if Freemasons, Ribbonmen, or Fenians, cannot
be Idmitted to the sacraments. It is well frequently
to publish the censures of the Church against secret
societies, and the constitutions of the Popes against i
Freemasons, and to exhort those who have the mis-
fortune to be engaged in such organisations to do
penance for their sins, and to be reconciled with the
Church."

A FIGHT IN A MENAGERIE.—A small menagerie
is being exhibited in Whitechapel, Liverpool. On
Thursday morning a large Siberian wolf managed to
escape from his den, and began worrying some
monkeys. One of the keepers heard the noise; he
immediately seized the iirst weapon available, and
commenced to soundly belabour the wolf, which
quickly turned upon its assailant. The savage brute
sprang upon the watchman, making his fangs meet in
his right thigh. The man roared out lustily for as-
sistance, and Mr. Whittington, the proprietor, was
soon to the rescue, but he could not make the wolf
loose its grip until he had made a vigorous onslaught
upon it with a two-pronged stable fork. Several of
the Liverpool borough police, who were on duty in the
vicinity, attracted by the uproar and shouts for as-
sistance, appeared lin the scene, but they evidently did
not consider it a portion of their "duty' to place an
enraged escaped wolf in durance vile again; while on
the other hand, the animal did not appear to be in the
least disconcerted by the formidable appearance of
the guardians of the peace, but boldly confronted the
whole posse. After several futile attempts, Mr.
Whittington succeeded in throwing a rope, with a slip
noose, over the head of the wolf, and thus lassoed the
brute, which was then taken hack to its old quarters.
The keeper is now under medical treatment.
A DIVORCE CASE.—In the Divorce Court on
Saturday the case of " Shelton v. Shelton and Campbell"
was heard. The petitioner, Col. Shelton, married the
respondent at Shnla so long ago as 1845. They lived
together till 18.55, when the petitioner woke up one
night and found that his wife was not in the room.
He went to look for her, and found her with an officer
of another regiment. He attempted to eject this
person, but the respondent interfered. He then went
to fetch assistance, and in the meantime the respondent
collected all the valuables she could find and eloped,
Colonel (or, as lie then was, Captain) Shelton at once
separated himself from his wife, but took no proceed-
ings against her paramour, whom be thought less in
fault than the responds nt, beyond requiring hist to
give an apology in writing, and a solemn Promise that
he would never see the respondent again. There was
no reason to think that this undertaking was violated
but the officer perished in the Indian mutiny. For
some years the petitioner paid his wife an allowance
of £lOO per annum; but in 1864 he received an inti-
mation that she would not require any further assist-
ance from him. He then instituted inquiries which
led to the discovery that she was living with the co-
respondent in India. Decree nisi, with costs.
SHOCKING DEATH OF A THIEF.-011 Tuesday,
Matilda Humphrey, age.i 41, was killed by falling from
the roof of a house in Itotherfielffistreet, Islington,
London, whilst engaged iii stealing lead. It a: pears
that the deceased WAS a general servant, and on Friday
morning she was left in charge of the house and three
children. She sent the two eldest out fur a walk, and
told the other to sit in the kitchen whilst she went to
barbed-room, She went upstairs to the attic, and cut
the lead with a screw-driver that was near the window.
She got a chair, and leaned out of the window, trying
to wrench the glitter off, but she overbalanced herself,
and she was pree. pitated to the ground and killed. By
her side was a large piece of lead.
THE "ORDER OF WOMAN'S COURAGE. " The
Daily News notices the establiahment by the Duke of
Saxe-Coburi Gotha of a new Order if Woman's
Courage. 'I he difficulty in bestowing this new order,
the News thinks, will not be the wan af deserving
candidates, but in the discernment of the quality or
courage to be rewarded. Physical, or rather animal
courage, which is so common among men, (as among
beasts) that its absence is almost a disease, is by no
means an uncommon characteristic of women. But
the true courage of women, in which men not only never
surpass, but very seldom equal them, which is often alto-
Father wanting in men and very seldom ffi wonien, is
not the courage of the battle-field, but of the hospital;
not of the animal, but of the ministering angel. In
truth women's courage shrinks from fame, as man's
courage seeks it. 't is the strength of unselfish and
unconscious self-de ffitiim in one who has a heart for
any fate.
NWA OFFICE ECONOMY. A printed paper
has been distributed an this office, requesting the mes-
sengers to collect all the old quills from the several
moths for the purpose of then being seut to the sta-
tionery-office, to be remade and again issued for use..
The saving to be thus effected can hardly, however,
cover a few of the items of expenditure sanctionedby
the head of the department., says the Standard,

as a gratuity of £2,500 to the architect of the new
office (that gentleman having previously received about
212.000 in the shape of commission, kc.). a eratuity of
£.oo to the architect's clerk, and 2100 to his
assistant; also an addition of two clerks to the
establishment (correspondence department), and one to
be added to the auditor's department, which will
involve inchuli.,g an increase just sanctioned to the
salary of those in the latter department, an immediate
charge of about £5OO a year, with a maximum charge
of about £1,500.

LITERARY ANECODOTE.—" How came you to in-
sert that story?" said the spirituel X . . . . to the
sparkling Z . . . . . (editor of the brilliant
"You could'ut believe it." "My dear fellow," said
7 " don't confuse matters. Editing's one thing
and Crediting's another." "Ah ! " said X . . . .
—Punch.

SPANISH INTELLTGENCE.—" Thirteen Canons of
the Cathedral of Burgos have been arrested for com-
plicity in the assassination of the Civil Governor."
Poor Canons ! Will they be let off ?—Punch.