The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1885-06-06 00:00:00

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HOME FOREIGN, AND COLONIAL.

:rue Ji.rvxmlons ExinnrrioN. The number of
lhlitors to the International Inventions Exhibition for
the week ending 30th May was 211,633; total since the
opening, 491,642.
AMYYRER DRANA BY 7718 LAIIREATE.—Lord Tennyson
is writing anothei historical drama, which will be a
sequel to " Beckoky and is collecting hitt detached
poems,. which will bt, issued with new lyrics.
A MCKIBTER StmLr.tim.—An almost perfect skeleton
of the mclasaurus has just been found in a quarry near
Mons. It has the extraerdinary length of 55 feet nine
inches, and will be preserved at the Natural History
Museum at Brussels.
Swiss SLA-.r.1-..kcy.—The dave mart may be seen
nowadays in free, Republican Switzerland. At Bienne,
in Canton Berna, the public crier lately hired out four
children of a widowed mother to the lowest bidder, to
prevent the family becoming a burden ou the public
funds. The little ones ages varied between eight and
two years, and they were hired for from £2 15a. to
£1;28. for the remainder of the year.
LIBRARY PRESENTA.TIONS.—Lord Crawford has piNe-
smted a complete set of his Bibliotheca Lindesiana to
the Wigan Reference Library. The copy is on finer
papt-,r, and it has autotype photographs in addition to
the photo-lithographs There is only one other copy
thus- treated, and it is in her Majesty's library at
Windsor.

GELMAN Ran:cum.—First-class carriages are not
much required on some German lines. The statistic&
have always shown that they are little used. On one
of the State railway systems in the year to March 31st,
1883, only three passengers in a thousand travelled
first-class; so that most of the trains-must have had no
first-class passengers at all.
USEFUL HINT.—To test the enamel at tinning of
cooking vessels, &c., for lead, M. Fordoz recommends &
drop of strong nitric acid placed on the enamel or tin-
ning, and evaporated to dryness by gentle heat. The
spot where the action of the acid has taken place is
then wetted by a drop of solution of potassium iodide—
five parts iodide to 100 of water—when the presence
of lead is at once shown by the formation of yellow
lead iodine.

A NEW READING.—In an article in the "Catholic
World," a Mr. Pollen, of New York, contends that the
"Idylls of the King" are not to be taken literally or
I historically, but allegorically—that " Arthur " means
the Soul; the" Round Table," the Body; "Merlin,"
Wisdom; "Lady of the Lake," Religion;, and the
"Three Queens," Faith, Hope, and Charity. Mr. Millen
states that he has received a letter from Lord Tennyson,
written by his own hand, accepting his interpretation
of the meaning and purpose of the "Idylls of the
King."
THE BRITISH MrsEum.—The trustees of the British
Museum have just acquired two interesting studies by
Anton Van Dyck for his magnificent picture of King
Charles 1., lately purchased by the National Gallery
from the Duke of Marlborough. The sketches are for
the horse only; they are executed in pen and bistre on
tinted paper, and were formerly in Sir Joshua Rey-
fold's collections of drawings by old masters. A fine
study by Van Dyck in water-colours for the trees in
the background of the picture is also in the Depart-
ment of Print and Drawings, British Museum. Among
the drawings lately acquired by the tiustees of the
British Museum are the following: An autograph illus-
trated letter by John Flaxman, LA., dated from Rome,
July 4, 1791, addressed to Mr:William Hayley, Fartham,
near Chichester, submitting a sketch for a monument
afterwards erected to the memory of the poet Collins in
the Chichester Cathedral; a study for "The Sleeping
Bacchus " in the Houghton collection by Luca Gior-
dano; "The Giant's Staircase and the Great Door of
the Ducal Palace at Venice," by Fancelli ; a drawing in.
red chalk of a boar hunt, by Giorgione ; a study of a
head by Tiepolo ; and an interesting sketch of Queen
Charlotte, by Cotes.
'Pima Hroo's Weri..—Victor Hugo is stated to,
have left a considerable fortune. It is said that he has
120,000 deposited with nothschilds, besides a greater
aura in the Bank of Belgium, and his freehold pro-
perties in Paris and Guernsey. A special clause is
reserved in his will—made in 1875----disposing of the
copyrights of his works. The theatrical copyrights-are
left to M. Paul Meurice ; the rest to M. Vacquerie.
Besides the money bequeathed to his family, £40,000 is
set aside for an object which is not very clearly defined.
The will, it is said, is a mystery, and seems to be a docu-
ment setting forth his political, philosophical, and social
views.

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—ROYAL AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. The entries of
stock for exhibition at the present year's annual meet-
ing of the Royal Agricultural Society of England, which
opens at Preston on July 15, fall rather short of the-
number exhibited last year at Shrewsbury, the total
being 1613, against 1687 last year. The show of
horses, however, is in excess of the Shrewsbury meet-
ing, being 438 against 407.
CORN AVERAOES.—The following are the average
prices of British corn for last week, as received from
the inspectors and officers of Excise: Wheat, 345. 11d.;
barley, 28s. Bd.; oats, 225. 9d. per imperial qr. Corre-
sponding week last year: Wheat, 375. 7d.; barley.
28s. 9d.; oats, 21s. 2d.

LAST WEEK'S Wexcks.—Ten British and 13 foreign
vessels were reported during the week as actual wrecks
of which four were British steamers ; but only three
vessels (all British) were lost off the British coasts. By
collision only one case occurred a French barque
sinking off America, with 22 lives. Total lives lost 70,
mostly in foreign vessels. Three vessels (two British
and one French) wrecked in the ice; two destroyed by
fire. Total wrecks for year, 474. Corresponding week
of last year: Wiecks, 20; British, 14; total for year,
715; by collision (all British), four.
'WHAT GOETHE RECEIVED FOTI MS WORKS.—A con-
troversy on this subject has been long going on in
Germany, and will perhaps be settled by a communica-
tion lately published in the Leipsic "Gazette for the
Book Trade," by H. Boehlau a bookseller of Weimar,
who has had the opportunity Of referring to documents
held by Goethe's family, and also the books of J. G.
Cotta, of Stuttgart, the poet's publisher. From these
it would appear that between 1795 and his death, in
1832, Goethe received from Cotta 233,969 florins (about
£20,054), and his heirs down to 1865 the further sum of
about £23,223; making for the 70 years from 1795 to
1865 a total of £43,277.
FOREIGN LIVE STOCK AND FRESH MEAT. The
following steamers arrived at Liverpool during the past
week live stock and fresh meat on board from American
and Canadian ports : Barrownaore, 705 cattle; Broaklyn,
662 cattle; Lake Nepigon. 280 cattle, and 674 quarters
of beef; Helvetia, 379 cattle, 1780 quarters of beef, and
350 carcases of mutton; Nevada, 2140 quarters of beef,
and 600 carcases of mutton; City of Chicago, se
quarters of beef, and 200 carcases of mutton; Ger.
manic, 790 quarters of beef, and 200 carcases of mutton;
Samaria, 1028 quarters of beef; Illinois 1200 quarters
of beef; and Lord Clive 982 quarters of beef, making
the total imports 2026 cattle, 9644 quarters of beef, and
1350 carcases of mutton, against the preceding week's
arrivals of 3415 cattle, 345 sheep, 8104 quarters of beef,
and 1108 carcases of mutton, showing a decrease in
the supply of live stock, but an increase in that of fresh
meat.
DEATH OF "OLD MARGAAET."—The habitues of the
Houses of Parliament will learn with regret of the
death of Mrs. Davies, better known as "Old Margaret,'
at Westminster Hospital. She had for over fifty years.
administered to the wants of hungry and thirsty
visitors to the old and new Houses of Parliament, and
she had the exclusive privilege of setting up a fruit
stall in Westminster Hall. Captain Gosset obtained
subscriptions from members of Parliament amounting
to more than £lOO, and Inspector Denning has kindly
attended to the wants of the genial old applewoman
since she left Westminster Hall.
LIE ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS.—The additions to the
Zoological Gardens during the past week incladO a
white-bellied beaver rat, a white-bellied sea eagle, two
stump-tailed lizards, a great cycloclus, a diamond snake,
from Australia, presented by Mr. E. P. Ramsay,
C.M.Z.S. ; an Australiav cassowary from Australia,
presented by Mr. T. H. Bowyer Bower; four Pacheran'e
guinea fowls from East Africa, presented by Com-
mander C. E. Gissing, R.N.: a kestrel, British, pre-
sented by Mr. 0. A. Marriott; seven striped snakea
from North America, presented by Mrs. A. H.
Jamrach ; a common viper, from Epping Forest, pre-
sented by Mr. F. W. Elliott; two lions from Africa,
two pumas from South America, deposited; a collared
fruit bat, four upland geese. bred in the gardens,