The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1884-03-15 00:00:00

EPITOME OF NEWS.
BRITISH AND FOREIGN.

The United Kingdom Band of Hope Union is offer-
ing prizes to the amount of 200 guineas for three tem-
perance tales.
Within forty years the imports of India have in-
creased from £5,250,000 to £6o,ooo,ooo—more than
eleven-fold; and the exports from £11,500,000 to
£80,000,000—nearly seven-fold.
A boiler in a mill at Bryantspond, Maine, has burst,
killing four persons.
It has transpired that $29,000 were stolen from a
safe at the railroad office in Chicago recently.
A telegram through Reuter's agency from New York,
dated March 8, says that the Gloucester had arrived
there with damage to her port bow from ice. Vessels
arriving there continue to report having encountered
ice and icebergs.
During February 547,720 tons of coal were brought
to London by rail, and 365,209 by sea, an increase of
27,500 'tons over the quantity so conveyed in February,
1883.
A gentleman in Ceylon-in-the-Hills, who has to con- -
tend with a devastating grub, has an idea that if he
could but import a few English moles they would be
most useful allies to him.
The statement lately circulated that 40,000 persons
were out of employment at Manchester is now said to
be utterly discredited.
During last year vessels having a total tonnage of
393,941 tons were returned as lost or broken up. Of
these 144,138 weke of wood, 248,221 of iron, and 1582
of steel.
A quarrel occurred in a public-house at Hamilton on
Saturday evening between a number of miners over a
game of dominoes. One of them, a pit-head labourer
named M'Donald; assaulted and severely stabbed three
of the party with a common clasp-knife, and then
escaped. He was subsequently captured and taken into
custody.
A New York telegram says that a noted duellist of
South Carolina, named Cash, whose son recently killed
two persons, has been arrested by the Posse Comitatus
at his home in Cheraw Country, where father and son
had for some time defied the law. Cash's son succeeded
in escaping through the swamps.
The total number of cattle entered for consumption
at the Metropolitan Cattle Market for the week ending
Saturday last was 2".o.)0 head; the corresponding week of
1883, 2060; 1882, 3350; 1881, 2540; 1880, 3890; 1879,
4230; 1878, 3340; 1877, 3030; 1876, 3780; and 1875,
4090.
The Proportional Representation Society has now
been joined by one hundred and fifty-two members of
the House of Commons. It is said that the promoters
of the movement are confident that they will be able to
enforce their views on the Government with con-
siderable effect.
In London' on Monday, at the Marlborough-street
Police-court, Charles Selby, 19, a labourer, was sen-
tenced to six months' imprisonment with hard labour
for stealing a black poodle dog, the property of Lord
Randolph Churchill, in Albemarle-street.
The Boston " Advertiser " states that kerosine oil
has driven cocoa-nut oil wholly out of use in Zanzibar.
Fifty thousand cases of kerosine were imported by
American houses in that country in the year 1882.
The Board of Trade have awarded a binocular glass
to Mr. Thomas Fullarton, in acknowledgment of his
valuable services in connection with the life-saving
apparatus at Ayr, and especially for his skilful manage-
ment of the apparatus, in exceptionally bad weather
on the 23rd January, at the wreck of the schooner
Twin Sisters, when six lives were saved by means of the
apparatus; and also on the 27th January at the wreck
of the Elizabeth, when four lives were saved by the
same means.
The South-Eastern Railway have again brought in a
bill authorising the construction of the Channel Tunnel.
As soon as the Bill is put down for second reading the
Board of Trade will oppose the project, and will recom-
mend that the time for the compulsory purchase of
lands authorised in 1881 to be acquired for experimental
borings and other works shall not be extended until
Parliament has definitely sanctioned the construction of
the tunnel.
The 111th anniversary dinner of the Medical Society
of London was held on Saturday evening, Sir Joseph
Fayrer, president of the Society, in the chair.
The "Nord" declares that there could be no more
favourable time than the present for a general dis-
armament.
The bill authorising the purchase by American
citizens of ships built in foreign countries to be em-
ployed in foreign trade has been reported adversely to
the House of Representatives by the Shipping Com-
mittee. . _