The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1876-01-08 00:00:00

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by
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owner."

Mimi'auto us melt igente,

SOME, FOREIGN, AND COLONIAL,

THE LORD MAYOR'S 4 4 CALICO BALL."—
Clearly a Ball of Cotton. —Punch. - •
Two HUNDRED YEARS AGO.—Mr. Edward
Preston writes to The Times :—" In searching some
records for unclaimed prize money, I happened to
come across the following paragraph, showing the cost
of war vessels 299 years ago Shomberg's 'Naval
Chronology' (vol. 1, p. 76) states that in 1675 Parlia-
ment voted £300,000 for 20 large ships of war—viz, one
first-rate of 1,400 tons, eight second-rates of 1,100 tons,
and eleven third-rates of 700 tons; average cost of each,
215,000.' The tax-payers of the present generation
would gladly welcome,a first class ironclad costing
only g 150,000.,, 1'

ASIIA/s TEE TROUBLES.—A correspondent on
the West Coast of Africa writes:—" There seems to be
great probability of further troubles with the Ashantees.
I thought at the time that our troops had returned from
Coomassie in too much haste. The Ashanteee now
wish to punish the Duaboins for not cutting off Sir
Garnet Wolseley's retreat, and the Akims for allowing
Glover to get into the territory of the Duaboins. The
whole country is not worth the expense of another
war, but we cannot abandon the coast, and, if we re-
main on the coast, we must make ourselves respected."

A SINGULAR AND FATAL ACC IDEN T. —ID
London, on Tuesday, the Deputy Coroner for Central
Middlesex, Dr. Danford Thomas, held• an inquest at
the Ro3al Free Hospital on Thomas Bryant, aged
thirty-five, a stonemason, residing in Clerkenwell.
On Boxing night the deceased was with some friends
in front of the bar of the "Foresters' Arms," opposite
his own residence, and, being very merry, suddenly
mounted a table
,and said he would sing a song.
Mr. James Hones, the landlord of the house,
told him he would not allow that, and called
upon him three times to come down. Instead of doing
this the deceased made a sudden:, spring from th 3 table
on which he was standing to another on the opposite
side of the bar. In doing this he fell, and injured
himself in so frightful a manner that he had tO'be'con-•
veyed to the hospital. The deceased's wife was called,
and stated she saw him on the following day in the
hospital. He was quite sensible, and he told her he
had fallen off a table and hurt himself, Dr. Hodson„
resident surgeon, said the deceased was .brpght in
suffering from most fearfulsinjuries in the' reg Kind the
abdomen, the effect of which had been to produce
urmic poisoning, of which he died on Friday evening
ARCTIC
nienEoTNPEeDwITYIOO
last. Verdict, "Accidental death from a fall while
jumping ft ona a table."
make an expedition to the Arctic Regions early next
spring in search Of the records left by Sir John
oNwEnw nautical EXPEDITION.
—havSeectetlint-wedeitio-
Franklin. A vessel has been purchased and the ser-
vices secured of the well-known Esquimau x Joe, who•
• recently accompanied Captain Allen Young in, the
Pandora. It is stated that only practical navigators
will be allowed to join, each of whom rill'be 1/2.equired
to pay his own expenses. It was expected that Cap-
tain B. S. Osbon, the editor of the Nautical Gazette,
would undertake the responsibilities of conducting the
expedition, Hit the captain has declined the honour,
"his experience in Ike Arctic and Antarctic Regions,
many years ago, being sufficient for a lifetime and he
has no desire to go through suoh hardships again."
FRANBLIN's' IiRINTING PRESS. —The original
printing press of Benjamin Franklin, which for many
years has been in possession of the Fatent Office at
Wazhiegton, has, according to the •ew York, Tribune,
has lately claimed by Mr. B. Mtni.4,' of New
York, to whom it was presented by Messrs. Arnold and
Son, of London,in 1841, and who, after keeping it for some
time, deposited it for safety in the National Institute
in Washington. When this institution soon after
ceased to exist, the press was removed to the model-
room of the Patent Office, where ithas since remained,
the quebtion of title never been raised until recently.
After full examination of the documentary evidence
submitted it is found that Mr. Murray's claim is per-
fectly good, and the press is to be handed over to him
accordingly. It is Mr. Murray's intention to have
this relic of the first ;mat American printer exhibited
at the Centennial Exhibition by the side of a Hoe
lightning cylinder press of the latest construction.