The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1876-08-12 00:00:00

SATURDAY, AUG. 12, 1876.

1871 called his attention to a pleasant house on
Tooting Beck-common, and recommended him to pur-
chase the lease. He did so for £7OO, and afterwards
sold it, losing Li 00 thereby, and then said that she was in his
debt. Upon his second visit to Brighton, speaking of it, she
said that if she married the deceased she would give the wit-
ness a cheque for the £.:'oo. This last offer be declined. (Po
the joy :) Except one homosvathic prescription he bad
nev-e used sr. y tartar emetic since 1842 Although he wished
to see the deceased his curiosity bad never bLken gratified.
At the termination of Dr. Gully's evidei:c 4, Sir Henry
James stated thtre were no other witnesses to be examined.
Toe coroner expressed a desire to be allowed until Monday
to collect and arrange the evidence for his summing up.
Sir Henry said that he thought a day would be sniff .dent for
that purpose. The matter was one of great anxiety to every
one connected with the case, and it would be desirable to
arrive at the result as soon as possible. He had
to thank the coroner and the assess,r for their
valuable assistence throughout that most dlilLiult inquiry.
Mr. Murphy, Q C., cordially concurred in Bir H. James a
remarks. Mr. serjeant Parry thanked the coroner, and the
assessor acknowledged the patience exhibited by the jury
throughout the prolonged inquiry.
The coroner said that his only anxiety had been that there
should be the fullest possible inquiry.
After some further discussion, it was resolved, after the
reading of the depositions of Dr. Gully, to adjourn the Cauit
to half-past ten on Friday. The reading of those depositions
by Mr. Muir occupied the remainder of the day's sitting.

I ti

A DISTINCTION WITH A I)IFFERENCS.—The
distinction between a picked man and a plucked man.

—Punch.

THE POTATO BEETLE.—A Brooklyn paper
says :—" A feature of Rockaway, a town on the Long
Island shore of the Atlantia Ocean, for a week has
been the presence of thousands of potato bugs. The
bug is an excellent swimmer, and can come to the sur-
face from beneath a coveiing of four inches of sand.
Thus the beetle is fulfilling the manifest destiny we
recently pointed out, and is plunging by myriads in
the ocean on its eastward journey. How it will fare
on the briny ocean without potatoes remains to be
seen."

ENGLISH AND AMERICAN F CT.N. —The difference
between Amr-rican and EngFeh comic literature has
been thus cleverly put by Josh Billings :—"Ameri-
kans love caustic things ; they would prefer turpen•
,ine to colonewater, if they had to drink either. So
with the relish of humour ; they mutt hay it on the
half shell with 'cayenne. An Englishman wants hit
fun smothered deep in mint sauce, and he iz willing
tew wait till next day before he tastes it. If yu tickle
or convince an Amerikan yu hay got tew do it quick,
An Amerikan luvs tew laff, but he don't luv tew
mak'

:e a bizziness ov it; he works' eats, and hawhawa
on a canter. I guess the English has' mire wit, and
the Americans more humour. We havn't had time

yet to bile down our humour and git the wit out ov it.
The English are better punsters, but I konsider pun-
ning a sort ov literary sakriphise, in which futur happy-
ness iz swopped oph for the plezzare ov the moment.
There ix one thing i hay noticed; evryhoddy that
writes expecks tew be wize or witty—so duz evryboddy
expect tew be saved when they die; but there
ix good reason tew believe that the goats hereafter
will be in the majority, just ax the sheep are here.
Don't forgit one thing, yu hay got tew be wise before
yu kan be witty • and don't forgit two things, a single
paragraff haz made sum men immortal, while a volume
, haz bin wuss than a pile-driver tew others."

THE WoRIC OF THE SESSION.—New municipal
buildings, erected at a cost of about £50,000, were
opened at Leicester, on Monday, by the Mayor, as-
sisted by Lord John Manners and Mr. Justice Mellor.
At a banquet given after the ceremony—the members
for Leicestershire and the Mayors of Birmingham,
Bedford, Nottingham, and Northampton being present
—Lord John Manners spoke of the work of the session
as baing simply prodigious. Many measures, he said,
had been placed on the statute book which would have
a direct and permanent influence in the direction of
the social and moral improvement of the people.

NOVEL PLAYING CARDS.—A clever American
has patented a novelty in playing cards. In the
"Globe pack," as it is called, the cards are round, ,
which gives an increased indestructibility, and an ease
in handling, shuffling, and dealing, such as is now to -
be attained only by long practice. Besides this, the
the number of colours has been increased to four,
printed as follows :—Hearts, red; diamonds, yellow;
clubs, green; spades, black; thus rendering the suits
more easily discernible; and in addition the rim of each
card has near its edge a number of numerals, printed
in the proper colour, so that without seeing the rest of
the card its suit and value are known at once.

THE IRON TRADE WITH RUSSIA.—A Foreign
Office letter states that the Russian government has
no intention of increasing the export duties on iron
and steel. A Ministerial resolution had, however,
been taken to abolish certain privileges which had
hitherto been granted to railway cympanies in their
concessions to import the rails into Russia free of duty,
a premium being at the same time granted under cer-
tain conditions and for a limited period—say twelve
years—to the home producers of iron and steel rails
for the encouragement of the native industry. It is
further stated that in all future concessions or con-
tracts for railways in Russia it will be stipalated that
at least one half of the rails to be used must be of home
prlduction. The licenses now granted for the free
entry of iron and steel for the erection of industrial
works will not be abolished, but a stricter supervision
will be exercised with regard to them.

THE HEALTH OF THE SULTAN.—The Special
Correspondent of The Times, under date, Coristauti-
nople,_met 6, says :
Upon the advice of Dr. Monger!, an Italian physician
directing the lunatic a.ylum at Scutari, and who has lately
been in attendance on the Sultan, His Majesty was rowed on
Sunday across th- 13sphorus to his villa of Kourbagli Deve,
near Lsdi Keni Tue doct ,r seems to think that the er,joy-
!bent of free air and exercise may have a beneficial effect
upon that depression of soirits which renders the Sultan in-
capable of any mental occupation, and removes him from the
direction of public business.

ANOTHER DECEPTIoN.—The 81-ton gun, it is
observed, and the experiments connected with it, have
cost the country over 2100,000, and yet it has not, up
to the present time, killed anybody. This sort of
thing cannot really be allowed to continue. Why, a
Llndon cabman wil,l do more mischief every day of
his life, and an excursion train will beat this monster
piece of ordnance hollow! The 81-ton gun is nothing
but a huge imposter.—Judy.

WHO ARE MY NEIGHBOURS ?-A minister WO
soliciting aid to foreign missions, and applied to A
gentleman, who refused him, with the reply, "I don't
believe in foreign missions. I want what I give to
benefit my neighbours." "Well," replied he, " whom
do you regard as your rceighblurs ?" "Why, those
around me." "Do you mean those whose land joips
yours ?" inquired the minister. "Yes." "Well," said
the minister, "how much land do you Own ?" "About
five hundred acres." "How far down do you own?
"Why, I never thought of it before, but I suppose 1
own half way through." "Exactly," said the clergy-
man, "I suppose you do, and I want this money for
the New Zealanders—the men whose land joins yours
on the bottom."

DISPEIN SING WITH AN ABSURD CUSTOM. —Tho
singular statement is made in the Indian Daily Nears
that for the first time in 200 sears the Juggernaut car
at Mahenh, near S-rampere, has lately been prevented
from being dragged along the streets, in consequence
of some fears that were entertaiLed by the local
authorities in regard to the sufficiency of the arrange-
ments made for preventing accidents. It is to he
hoped that the " arrangements " will continue insuffi-
cient in future.

RACE ON IHE BICYCLE.—The bicycle race
from Bath to Kensington—a distance of 106 miles
--
for the championship of the Middlesex Bicycle Club,
was decided on Monday. At five minutes past five
a.m. six competitors started. Elson and Bartlett ar
once went ahead, and soon left the others in the rear.
Both kept close company till Huntingdon, 42 miles
from the start, was reached, when Elson began to go
in front, and passed through Newbury (50 miles), at
nine o'clock, Bartlett following three minutes later.
This position remained unaltered until Reading was
left behind, when Bartlett increased his pace aud
caught his opponent just before reaching Maidenhead.
The exertion, however, had such an effect upon hiur
that he retired upon reaching Hounslow. Elson pur'
sued his journey, and alighted outside the King's Arnie
Hotel, High-street, Kensington, at twenty-eight
minutes past one, having thus accomplished the
journey in the very fast time of eight hours twentjts
three minutes. He rode a 50-incti racing machine,
made by the Coventry Company.—Dai'y Tetegraph.
HINT FOR SOME PROPLE.—A Bad Card tO
Play—A postcard. Do your friends the honour ot
sending your communications und-r cover.—Judy.
DEATH OF A NEPHEW OF BCRNS, THE POET.
—The death is announced of Mr. Robert Burns Beggi
nephew of the poet. Mr. Begg was born at Black.
wood, near liesmabagow, in 1798, and was elected
parochial teacher of Kinross in 1822, which office be
held with great efficiency for the long period of fiftr
one years, when he resigned. He was a man highl9
honoured in sending out many pupils to various parr°,
of the world during his half-century's incumbency, an°
in the spring of 1872, it being the occasion of hi°
jubilee, he was at a public meeting presented with hie
portrait by many of his admirers. He still continued
to hold the offices of inspector of poor and registrar
for the parish up to the period of his decease, ail
being well known among all classes for his kind sou
genial disposition, his removal has caused a blank
which will not easily be filled up. He has left a widost
and highly respected family of grown up sons aues
daughters to mourn the loss of a beloved parent, wha
has died full of years.—Notes from the North, in
Pktoriat World.
TWEED SALMON FISHING.—In the Tweed last
week, after the gales and rains which partially flooded
the river, there Vibe greatly improved salmon fishing,
which was very fair for the season. Compared vritb,
the good fishing a fortnight before, however, belt
week's fishing showed a great deficiency in grilse, btu'
an improvement in salmon, which, being much heavier
than grilse' contributed to make the week's fishill
among the best of the season. At one station 120 fiat!
were landed at one haul. The best days of the wee'
were Thursday and Friday, when on each day about
700 grilse, besides salmon and trout were cati.cht;
Saturday's fishing was only one-third of the fishing or
the previous day. Prices on Saturday were :—Salmon,
lid.; grilse, ill.; and trout, 10d. per lb.
AVERAGE PRICES OF BRITISH CORN.—Th°
following are the average prices of British corn for the
week ending August 5, as received from the inspector°
and officers of Excise :—Wheat, 465. Bd, ;
31s. 101 ; oats, 294,. 9d. per imperial quarter. Coc.
responding week last year :—Wheat, 534 10d, ;
40s. 4i. ; oats, 32e. 4d.

,
AN OLD-TIMM GIRL.—We saw her on Fourth
street yesterday (says the Louisville Courier Journan'
She wore a neatly-titting, plainly•cut, and modestlY-
trimmed calico dre4s. Her modest faoe beamed with
youth and beauty beneath the graceful folds of a gauzl
green veil, and her may cheeks shone through it like A
pair of large cherries. She didn't carry one half of Ile;
dress in her band high up to gratify the vulgar gaze el
blackguards, or to draw forth ludicrous and ungentle-
manly remarks of corner loafers. Nor was she pinned
back so tight that she couldn't step, and her heel 4
didn't kick her tiller as high as the small of her 1)05',
She didn't walk like a mule with a loose set 01.
harness on and flies bad. No; she wasn't dressed in a
style calulat:d to attract the attention of any but trtle,
gentlemen, and of these she commanded the utmost
respect, and it was paid her by all who, in meeting,
admired her.
FROM THE EAST. - That a vast number of
Persons have had their incomes reduced by the depre'
ciation of "Turks," is becoming more manifest evenl
day. The evil is not even confined to this country.
for a great many Servians have, somehow or othet•
found their way into Turkish bonds.—Judy.
DISCIPLINE OF THE WORKSHOP.—A writer WO
remarked :—"Every difference between comrade;
ghoul! rest at the door of the workshop, The duty 01.
the foreman consists in acting only with the
greatess
justice towards all the men who are under his surve
lance—in having regard neither to nation, nor countllA
nor humour of each, hut only to the good conduct fiu.;
aptitude of the individual. He ought in giving tut
orders, especially to deal tenderly with the self•love,_°o
the person—to invite rather than to command—th,.
head of the establishment exacting nothing but th!,
accomplishment of the reciprocal duties, and t,°!:
exact execution of the regulations. Every ustio.
on the part of the foreman ends but in comproindehl
the inter.sts of the concern; it is for the just mall L
do to others only that which he would wish should
ov!
done to him. The foreman knows by experience k
little agreeable it is to receive imperious orders publiT:2
he knows, besides, that, at the point of oivilizert:
where we are, it is not fear that inspires men Inv'
resPoot and obedience, but emphatically reason."