The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1879-09-27 00:00:00

Our Ifonleit gratspoOnt.



We deem it right to date that we do not at all thus:,
iantify ourselves with our Correspondent's opinions.)

No subject before the autumnal session of the
Associated Chambers of Commerce was of greater

national mportance than that of local Parliamentary
inquiries in connection with private bill legislation.
It was recognised unanimously by a body representing
men of all political views, and coming from every part
of the United Kingdom. It is not, however, discussed
how for the first time. As long ago as 1864 a Com-
mittee of the Rouse of Commons appointed to examine
the state of business divided on the point whether or
not the private bill legislation should be taken out of
Parliamentary jurisdiction; but the present Lord
Derby, then Lord Stanley, carried the negative
by a majority of one. Half a generation has passed
away, and it is doubtful whether another Parlia-
mentary Committee would come to the decision of
1864. The difficulty is now confessed to be a grave
one; for not only are the distant parts of the United
Kingdom subjected to an unnecessary and irritating
expense, but the time which is so much needed for

the despatch of public business is trenched upon to a

serious extent, all parties are agreed upon the necessity
of something being done to relieve an overburdened
Parliament; and to lighten the expense of carrying
out projects necessary to the welfare of distant parts
of the 'United Kingdom. The Associated Chambers t 5 f
Commerce propose that the inquiries into local schemes
zhould be made upon the spot, instead of crowds of

witnesses having to go to London from the extremest
ends of Ireland and Scotland when a railway or a gas
bill is wanted. The value of local inquiry is un-
doubted; and the members of the tribunal to whom
the matter is referred would be able themselves to use
their own judgment after personal inspection of the
districts concerned.

The fact that a certain percentage of persona are
born every year either wholly or partially colour-
blind, is comparatively a recent dis•overy. When
it is borne in mind that green and red are almost
universally employed in railway and naval signalling,
it will be obvious that the safety of trains and ships
may at any time be imperilled by a person whose
duty it is to be on the look.out, and unable to distin-
guish quickly and certainly between the two colours.
The proportion in which colour.blindness prevails in
various countries is somewhat doubtful. In many
cases red, blue, and yellow can be perfectly discerned,
while green cannot. What the true theory of the
causes of colour-blindness may be in those who are born
so with organs of vision otherwise good, is a question
which is occupying the serious attention of our scientific
men. One plan for ascertaining its existence is a very
simple and effective one. It consists in placing
those employed in navigation and on our railways to
assort skeins of wool of various colours; and when the
momentous results are considered which might arise
from mistaking a green for a red light, either at sea or
upon a railway, the importance of taking every pre-
caution against possible colour blindness will be at
once recognised.

Nothing can well be more surprising than the in-
difference of the population of the largest city in the

- - .
world to its own convenience with respect to many of

its daily requirements. For some time past the
great cities of America have extensively used the tele-
phone, whilst in London it is only now being intro-
duced. At this time of the year, and generally during
the prevalence of the holiday season, the conveyance
of luggage is a subject of anxiety to many a travelling
householder, who has not yet been brought acquainted
with the system of checks and express waggons so pro-
fitably and conveniently established in the United
States. In the same way the organization of messen-
gers, so well-known in America, who are to be ob.

tamed at any hour of the day or night by the payment
of a small annual fee, has never been attempted
here, though they would certainly be employed
largely when once the plan was understood.
The telegraph affords another convenience which
might be more extensively used by the inhabitants
of the metropolis; but probably the shilling rate
is in some instances an obstacle. The sending of
ten words for sixpence is a reform in our tele-
graphic system which has been long demanded,
but for which we must yet wait. In thou-
sands of cases the sender of a message expands it
to twenty words simply because, having to pay a shil-
ling as the minimum fee, he thinks it just as well to
have F shilling's worth. He could Bay all he wants
to say in half the number of words if the charge for
transmission was half the amount of money.

About eighteen months ago, when there was a fear
that England would be involved in war with Russia,
the Government purchased four ironciads which were
then being built in England for foreign countries. One
of these, the Superb, has had several thousand pounds
expended upon her in alterations and additions to
adapt her for the accommodation of an English instead
of a Mussnlman crew. Although in tonnage and en-
gine power the Superb is larger than the Orion and the
Belleige, two of the f eur vessels purchased, she is
not so formidable as the Independencia, which is
the most powerful of the squadron, her armour.
plating ranging from a thickness of nine up to
thirteen inches. Tne Superb is intended to mount
25-ton guns in her battery, the heaviest armament
carried by any masted battle-ship under the English
flag; and there is little doubt that her enormous
strength will make her a welcome addition to the
British navy.

Some time ago a committee was appointed by the
Association for the Reform and Codification of the
Law of Nations to consider the subject of the Patent
Laws, and the results have been adopted in a series of
resolutions. These are distributed under thirteen
heads, according as they relate to general principles,
laws, treaties, the patent office, fees, what is patent-
able, and by whom, international exhibit,ons, provi-
sional protection, procedure on application, and exami-
nation of the validity of the claim to the protection
of the patent. The resolutions are 36 in number.
Of these, eleven are identical with and modified
forms of some of the conclusions arrived at by the
International Congress of Industrial Property held in
Paris last year. The general principles proposed are
two in number—viz., that the right of inventors over
their productions is a right of property, regulated but
not created by the law ; and that a temporary
privilege of sufficient duration to ensure the remune-
ration of their labours and outlay should be accorded
to inventors as well in their own interest as in that of
industry in general.
The importance of Suez to British interests has
been recognised for some years past, and a remarkable
testimony was borne to it when our Government gave
four millions sterling for a substantial share in the
canal through the isthmus. Consul West, in his an-
nual trade report, points out that Suez is the link that
holds the independence of our communications with
the far East; and it is seven doubtful if the route
by the Euphrates Valley were rendered available,
whether "via Suez" would not still be the quickest.
Consul West holds that Suez ought to be as much
in our possession or under our control as Port
Said is under that of the French. At Suez we
are in the Ottoman dominions, under the rule of
the Khedive; at Port Said we are in the Viceroy's
dominions under the control of the French. Yet
Suez is a far more interesting point to us nationally
than Port Said is to our neighbours; and the facilities
already provided at the former place by the Egyptian
government at such a heavy outlay, are of a nature to
render it doubly important to us in connection with
our communications with India.

Although England is not such a devotee of military
glory as her nearest neighbour, the people are proud
of the deeds of our army in the past, and are ever
ready to give a word of encouragement or of welcome
to our soldiers on their departure for the scene of foreign
war, or on their return home. Evidences of this have
been frequent
y after
e in recent months; and it is remarkable
bow, in the early spring, crowds waited da ft daye
by
in the streets of London to see the Lancers g
prior to their embarkation for Zululand' whileothy
welcome home to such of the regiments as have re-
turned from South Africa has been hearty and
cordial. Yet when any improvement is required in
our military or naval administration, we almost
invariably follow the lead of some other power. At
one time it was America with her large frigates and
heavy armaments ; then it was France with her iron-
clads ; and later it has been Germany with
her needle-gun and her perfect scheme of military
organization which we have striven to imitate.
For years it was the custom in this country to ascribe
Prussia's successes in 1866 to the needle-gun; and her
astounding campaign of 1870 to the system of short
service which enabled her to mass the whole of her
adult male population on an enemy's f i
territory n a
few weeks. Von Moltke, however, ascribes his vic-
tories over the Austrians to the fact that they had
adopted a system of service which had shortened the
soldiers' stay with the colours, and thus given rise to a
laxity of discipline which had led to serious difficulties.
His successes over the French were due more to the fact
that a plan for the invasion of France had been worked
out in the most minute detail two years before
the war broke out, and to the high training and dis-
cipline of the German armies, than to the German
system of enlistment. In recruiting the ranks of the
British army we have to contend with obstacles
unknown in any other country in Europe; but various
efforts have been made of late years to popularise
the military service, both by short terms of enlistment
and by other means, and the Emcees of these ought to
have the good wishes of all loyal citizens.
At a time when Qs deicienc7 In our own halved

has been the theme of so much comment, any informa-
tion respecting the yield in other countries is of some
interest; and it seems that in Hungry the grain
crops show a very serious deficiency. Wheat, barley,
and rye fell short, but there is a surplus in the
oat crop. Heavy stocks remain over from the past
season, but the imports into Austria-Hungary will
need to be large during the coming year. It has been
estimated that the dual state will require from outside
rather over one million quarters of wheat, besides one
and a half million quarters of rye. In comparison
with the immense foreign requirements of Great
Britain during the next few months, the degree in
which Austria-Hungary will depend upon imports of
grain appears quite small; but Hungary is a purely
agricultural land, and Austria partly so; and the
necessity for their importing at all indicates a distinct
failure of the crops this year. Fortunately there is
grain enough and to spare in the United States; but
it is a noteworthy fact that these occupy only one
half of the American continent; and that compara-
tively little use is made of the wheat-producing capa-
bilities of the other. The mighty river Amazon, in
South America, 4,000 miles in length, drains an area
which would produce corn enough to feed the whole
world if more civilization and less barbarism pre-
vailed along its course.