The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1871-03-11 00:00:00

THE BALLOON POST.

Daring the siege of Paris balloons conveyed from the
beleagund city 2,500,000 letters, representing an
aggregate weight of ten tons. The following are the
name of the balloons officially despatched
The Neptune, which left September 23 ; the Ciltd di '
Firenze, September 25; the Etats U,iss, September
29,; the Celeste, September 30; the Armand Barbee,
October 7 (this balloon took out M. Gambetta
and the first carrier pigeons) ; the Washington,
October 52; the Louis Blanc, October 12 ; the
Codefrog Cutiniqnae, October 14 (this balloon took
out M. do Keratry) ; the Guillaume Tag,
her 14 ; the Jules Favre, October 16; the Jean Bare
Mr. G. Colley, in his report on the S ,uthseast of October 16; the Victor Hugo, October 18 ; the
Scotland, addressed to the Agricultural Commissioners Lafayette, October 19; the Garibaldi, October 22; the
(1867), which has just been printed, takes a favourable Monigolr, 0 Sober 25 ; the Vauban, October 27 (this
view of the attachment to a farm of cottages under the balloon fell near Verdun, in the Prnseian lines) ; the
control of the farmer, which he looks upon as the most Colonel Charras, October 29; the Fulton, November
important differeneein the management of labourinEnge 2; the Ferdinand Flown, November 4 ; the Ga'ile
land aud Scotland. Its effect on agricultural economy November 4 (this balloon was captured) ; the Ville de
is to lead to a very murh better management of horse Cheiteaudun, November 6; the G4mnde, November
labour. Not only does the Scotch farmer employ two 8; the Daguerre, November 12 (this balloon was
horses and one man where the English farmer usually captnred) ; the Capce, November 12; the General
employs three with a man and a bey, but he gets ten Uhrich, November 12 ; the Archimede. November 21
boors' work out of them instead of eight. True his this balloon fell in Holland) ; the Vitie d Orleans,
horses are better fed afol better attended to, but November 24 (this balloon fell in Norway) ; the
his two horses actually do their work quite Jacquard, November 23 ; the Jules Force, second of the
as well as and work longer hours than the same name, November 30 (lost at Sea); the Franklin,
three of the E 'lash farmer. That they do more December 5 ; the Denis Papin, December 7 ; the
work is not only owing to the better feeding, but to General Renault, December 11; the Ville de Puri;
the fact that they are handle I by the man whose December 15 (fell in the Duchy of Nassau) ; the
peculiar charge they are, and whose pride is to see his Parmentier, December 17; the Gutenberg, December
horses look well and perform well—a very wholes tme 17; the Davey, December 17 ; the General Chaney,
influence, Mr. Culley adds, on the character of the December 20; the Laroisier, December 22; the Be-
hind. Not only are the attendants of horses always liveranee, December 23 ;the Tour-rule, December 27; ihe
on the spot to give their help in case of any mishap by Bayard, December 29; theArmie dela Loire, December
night or day, but shepherds and cattlemen are there ! 31; the Newton, January 4; the Duquesne, January 9 ;
also toelo the like for their particular charge, or to take the Gambetta, January 10; the Kepler, January 11;
their Blame of weak in any sudden disaster (such as fire the General Faidherbe, January 13; the Vaeranson,
or flood) which may attack the farm. Aga'n, tbe January 15 ; the Poste de Paris, January 18; the
farm-r has alway Pat his command a little regiment of General Bourbakt, January 20 ; the General Daumonil,
men and women ready to meet any emergency which January 22; the 7 ooriedli, January 24; the Rithatd
a sudden change of weather may produce, a regiment Wallace, January 27; and the General Cambronnc,
composed of persons all interested in the eueeeos of his January 28.
operations. The genets', result, says Mr. Culley, is an Of these balloons 26 ascended from the Orleans
amount of discipline which you may look for in vain Railway station, 16 from the Northern Railway
upon an English farm, station, three from the Eastern Railway station, three
_ from the Place St. Pierre, Montmartre, two from the
Tuileries Gardens two from the Boulevard &Italie,
A CODICIL TO A WILL OVERRULED, one from vaupra;a, and one from La Vilette.

The cause of "Wilkinson is Wilkinson "has been heard in
the Court of Chancery, and was a special case as tuiLws :
Elizabeth Musgrave, late of Skipton, in the
county of York, by her will, dated the 22nd of
March, 1867, bequeathed to her niece, the plaintiff,
Elizabeth Wilkinson, a life interest in her (the (esta-
trix's) residuary estate, with s limitation over of the
property, on the death of her niece, it favour of her
niece's children. The en)oymeat of these bequests
was by the will made dependent on the niece acting
as executrix and trustee of it. By a codicil, dated
7th of June, 1669, the testatrix decided as follow
I direct all interest given by ray said will to my niece,
Elizabeth, the wife of IV dliam Wi kinson, shall pass, as in .
my said will named, en care her death, should she not cease
to recede in Slelpton within e,ghteen months of my death." An Occasional Correspondent of the Daily Acres hes sent
The testatrix died on the 23rd of July, 1869; and the the following sketch of one of the meetings of the French
niece and the other executor proved the will, and eietionai Assembly.—
accepted the trusts of it. Mr. Wilkinson, the hunband Almost impossible to obtain an entrance tieket ;
of the niece, carried on a large business as a corn almo.t equally impossible to report. The House is
miller at Skipton, and it was essential to the welfare crowded, all the front seats occupied by ladies in deep
of his businees that he should continue to reside in his mourning. The diplomatic tribune next to ours is full.
house it Skipton. On the lath of January, 1871, the Lord Lyons in there; Mgr. Chigi, the Papal Legate ;
niece quitted her husband's house and went to reside Djemil Paella, and Metternich,
and had ever since resided at Liverpool with a widow The sitting opened with a motion signed by several
la ly who lived there, and whom the niece had paid for deputies that there should be no cession of territory
her board and lodging. Mr. Wilkinson required his until the provinces were consulted. A deputy from
wife :0- return to his house at Skipton, and she wished Saone et Loire resigns, seeing that he cannot fulfil the
to do se if she could without thereby incurring a for. mandate of his electors. The reporter of the first Bureau
feiture under the codicil, then made a long speech, urging the absolute necessity
This case was accordingly presented to the Court of the immediate sanction of the House, in a vei y
with the view of having it declared whether, under the theatrical style, reminding the deputies of the consols.
circuieetances, Mrs. Wilkinson had incurred a for- Lions left to France in the memory of the bravery of
feiture of the interests bequeathed to her by the will. her troops and in the acquittal of her own conecience.
Mr. Dickinson, QC., and Mr. W. W. Kerslake were "Lot her think of her future, and her mission in the
for the plaintiff Mrs. Wilkie s en; Mr. Graham world." (Derisive cheers.) "Yes, the world respects
Haetiugs was for Mrs. Wilkinson , Mr. Lawrence France, let France respect herself. Let those who
was for Mrs. Wilkinson's co-trustee of the will ; and shrink from the responsibility of signing this inevitable
Mr. Karslake, Q.C.and Mr. Alexander were for the peace remember that those who share the grief of
children of Mrs. Wilkinson. France, even as they shared her glory, accep'.ed the
The Vise-Chancellor said the condition attached by hard terms with the armist'ce expiring, with the
the codicil to the interest bequeathed to this lady by enemy's refessi to renew it, with the enemy at the
the will was one that could not be upheld. In the first eater., and the army disorganized. Even now you
place, it was too uncertain in its terms to say how it are frce Li reload to ratify the signature, but by
should be performed ;in the next place, the testatrix &due ed you export, the whole of Paris., nay, the
knew that her niece WU a married woman ; and whole of France, U be invaded by the enemy."
that her ceasing to reside in her helve at Skipton, The orator, with ar other taunt at the Left for their
must depend, not on her but on her husband. fear of responsibility, concluded; and was succeeded
Of what value was such a condition an that? by E lgar Quinet. the twenty years' exile; the only
Then, again, what had occurred showed that the Frenchman ez La keows and appreciates Italy. After
condition was one that nand be held void in law, a sketch of the policy of PElVliift and Germany, he
The lady, thinking it her duty to perform the showed .at Prussia hoped to reduce France to despair.
condition In order to avoid a forfeiture, had been oh- "Aleaou and L rraine cannot be alienated by French
liged to neglect her other obligations. She had left hands. France cannot commit suicide. An Assembly
her husband, and gone to reside elsewhere, apart from can do what it *ills. Alsace and Lorraine are the
him. But in a case of "Mitchell v. Reynelde " (1, boulevards of France. We cannot seal our fall and
Pare Welliante Report 189), Lord Macclesfield hod shame."
classified such conditions as these. He said,—" All M. Bamberger, deputy for the Moselle, opens his
the instances of conditions against law in a proper sense speech with a tirade against Nap Aeon, whom he says
are reducible under one of these heads 1, either to do will be sent to the pillory by history. This brings M.
s ,mething that is mal unt in cc, or ?nal uen nroheb it ; Conti, ex secretary of the ex-Emperor, to the rescue ;
2, to omit the doing of something that ie a duty ;3, to he considers the attack a personal offence, M.
encourage such crimes and omiasions. Such conditions Bambereer yields his place ; the entire Howe refuses
asthene the law will always, and without any regard to t , listen to Conti ; the President withdraws the paro'c;
circumstances, 4s feat, being concerned to remove all the public hisses; Conti persists. Victor Hugo tries
temptations and inducements to those crimes.' The to ruscend the tribune. "'rue Poosians are at Perin,"
Vice. Chancellor said he was clearly of opinion that the cry a portion of the public; but three.qualters of an
condition now is question was a vicious one, within the hour are lost.
secood of these classes, and he, therefere, felt no The legal downfall of Napoleon 111. and his dynasty
difficulty in deciding that it was void at law and of no is proposed. M. Thiers mounts the Tribune • the
silence is instantaneous ; he attributes the entire fault
of the war to the Empire. He did not expect an
apology, but advisee the House eitter to close the in.
cident or to allow Conti to speak. " We can aft crd it ;
we are sovere'gns for the first time in twenty years."
The downfall of the Napoleonic dynasty is voted
unanimously. No: At the division five votes are
given in its favour. "What courage!" rail an Eag-
liehman. No, Sir," replied a reporter, "they are
paid for their services, and no one will trust them."
A defender of the peace rises, and is listened to with
had fference. Victor Hugo ascends the tribene, and
electrifies the House with a eerie of paradoxes im-
possible to translate. Ito c mmences with a eulogy
on Paris. "Paris in five months has gained more
glory than France in twenty years of eliame
had loot. Paris, aseailed by famine, mitrailleuece,
epidemic, has kept all Germany in cheek. Paris,
enej -sic as Rome, stoical as Sparta, is desecrated, uot
conquered, by the Prussians. Paris is resigned to her
own death, not the dishonour of France. The cause of
Europe is identified with that of France." You
remember that Victor Hugo has writtee, "The smeke
of Perim forms the ideas of Europe "—and can guess the
rest of his harangue.
A deputy a think De (?harette)—" Yost speak in
the presence of a Papal Z leave and of the Pope's
Legate. This year has rendered two nations re-
doubtable—the conquerors and the conquered. Both
are to be pitied. France is invaded AlhalN and Lor•
raine may be ire:z el, not possessed. DoesPritssia possess
Silesia? Does Sdaiu possess Cuba? Does England
posses. Gibraltar? At Strasburg two 'tattier; still exists
Gluttenhurg protests in the name of civilization ;
Kleber in the name of the Republic. Frauce will
not perish, despite the C3WalldiCN of Europe. France
will yet arrive on the Rhine." Voicts--" We protest
against the spirit of conquest." "Nay ! A conqueror
will yet reach both sides of the Rhine. France, in the
name of peace, in the name of the universal Republic,
will say to Germany, 'Am I thy enemy! No, I am
thy sister. You delivered us from our Emperor; we
deliver you from youre.'"
After another orator in favour of the peace, roma
Louie Blano, lie does not NM aged a single day