The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1878-10-19 00:00:00

NATIVE BRAVERY.

A Madras paper says :—" We hear so much of the
helpless cowardice which prevents the natives of India
from rendering assistance to those in danger that it is
gratifying to be able to record an instance of the opposite
which has come to our notice. An officer connected with
the Revenue Survey was at Aska on August 16 in the
course of his official duties, and had occasion to cross
the river for Ballibhadra. It is easy to imagine the
rapidity of a mountain stream after a week's incessant
rain. The officer was persuaded to wait a day in hope
of the 'fresh' subsiding; but next morning he felt
that the perilous attempt must be made, and accoid.
ingly the only three available boats were placed at
his service. "Unhappily, the third boat, which was
managed by a boy, was overloaded, and when it
reached the middle of the stream swamped. At this
point the river was from 15 to 20 feet deep and 500
feet wide. The boy boatman, paralysed with fright,
was unable to do anything to assist the other occu-
pants of the boats, among whom were three women;
and, clinging to each other in fear and horror, all were
being rapidly carried down the stream. As a matter
of course, the English member of such a party is
looked to as a saviour; and the official was not
long in discovering that a boat lay moored to the
opposite shore. Even before he had time to relieve
himself of some of his clothes for the purpose of
leaping into the water and swimming to this boat
one of the party, Pura Bahara, a boatman, had
discerned this means of safety, and had struck out
boldly towards it. Together they reached the
boat, and bearing down swiftly on the sink-
ing craft, seized it, and helped its occupants, with two
exceptions, into comparative safety. Considering that
a delay of five minutes would have brought the boat
to the junction of two streams, where all must cer-
tainly have perished, the result cannot but be re-
garded with satisfaction. Since the above was written
(continues the same paper) we have received an ac-
count of a similar display of courage. On July 5 last
a boat full of people capsized while crossing the River
Basrur, in the Kandapur Talud, South Canara dis-
trict. The river was swollen owing to the late rains,
and the occupants of the boat were in imminent
danger of being drowned. Seeing this Karvi Naga, a
fisherman of Basrur, aged 15, and Maga Venkata
promptly put out in two boats, and rescued six persons.
The district magistrate has sanctioned the payment of
a!eward of lOrs. each to Naga and Venkata, in recog-
nition of their humane and courageous conduct."

DR. CITMMING ON THE SECRET OF
ENGLAND'S GREATNESS.

The Rev. Dr. Cuinming preached to his congregation
for the first time on Sunday since his return from his
vacation in the Highlands of Scotland. The morning
sermon was devoted to a discourse on the text,
"He saved others; Himself he cannot save."
Selecting for the text of his evening's discourse
the words "Not by might, nor by power; but by
My spirit, saith the Lord of Hosts," the rev. Doctor
showed at considerable length that from the fall
of the Tower of Babel, with its consequent con-
fusion of tongues, all those nations and dynasties
which had set themselves up to oppose the designs of
God had met with signal failures and overthrows—
that had been the case with Babylon, Tyre, Athens,
and Rome. Referring then to England, he said they
might feel assured that the one secret of her greatness
and of her glory was not her soldiers, though they had
returned victoriously from a thousand battlefields;
nor yet her navy, though they had flung their flag of
victory over every shore; nu. her Parliament;
nor her money; nor all her applied sciences.
It was none of these; but it was her recogni-
tion of the inspiration of the inspired Word of
God, and especially of these words, "It is My
spirit, saith the Lord of Hosts." And if ever the day
would arrive when, in punishment of England rely-
ing entirely upon her naval, military, parliamentary,
or dynastic resources, rather than upon God—or if
ever sheshould write upon her school houses, "There
is no God ; " or in her class books, "There is no
Christianity,"—at such a moment the finger of God
would write upon her regalia, her throne, her Parlia-
ment House—' Ichabod ; the glory of Israel has
departed."

Colonel Drummond Moray, MX. for Perthshire,
addressed a large meeting in the City Hail, Perth, the other
day. In reference to the late Parliamentary Session, he
said that a great deal of very good and useful work had
been accomplished, and many measures had been passed
that would prove of much benefit to the country at large.
He was proud to support the Government, which, having the
welfare of the nation at heart, had brought them through a
great crisis, not only with prudence, but with that true
British courage which had made them the people they
are, and which alone could keep them in the position they
occupy.
A return has been published giving a comparative
statement of the number of paupers, except lunatic paupela
in toylurns and vagrants, in receipt of relief, in AUguq,.lB77
and 1878. On the last day of the first wekbf "Anent the
numbers were—in 1877, )48 569 ; in 1878. 658,084—au increase
of 9,515, or 15 per cent. in the second week the numbers
were—in 1877, 647,715 in 1878, 657,0n2—an increase of
9 367, or 14 per cent. In the third week the numbers were
—in 1877, 647,798 ; in 1878, 656,586—an increase of 8,788, or
1-4 per cent. In the fourth week the numbers were—in
1877, 447,06, and in 1878, 656,136—au increase of 9,130, or 14
per cent.