biglam/hmd_newspapers huggingface dataset:
The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1884-03-15

IN THE MIDLAND COUNTIES

GEORGE MORRIS, PROPRIETOR,

SAG'S HEAD INN,

KING STREET (Late of Stone Street), AND BAIT AND LIVERY STABLE, DUDLkY ARI: 8,

DUDLEY.

{' DINICS. Bt. Thomas-street ,Netherton.
GOULD, Undertaker, Cradley Heath.
MOORE and FERRER, Undertakers,Kingswinford
AGANTI:.-- G. WOODALL. Market-street, do.
WHITFIELD, do. Brierley Hil
DORREL, do. do
EMERY do. do

A Large and Well-selected Stock or
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1884-03-15

ALLEGED EXTENSIVE ROBBERY OF
LEATHER.

In London, at the Worship-street Police-court,
William Rust, 38, described as a railway porter, was
charged with having stolen, on the 19th of January,
a case of leather, value 1'203, and on the 4th Feb-
ruary- a bale of leather value £4O, the property of the
London and North-Western Railway Company. It
was stated by the solicitor representing the company,
that the prisoner had held a position at Broad-street,
and had recently been a "confidential" man. He
had taken advantage of that post to commit some
very serious frauds. The system he adopted was
this :—He destroyed the consignment notes of bales
of goods coming through the goods department, and
reconsigned the goods to an accomplice at another
railway station near the metropolis. The person so
receiving them was not yet known, nor were the
original consignor and consignee known to the com-
pany owing to the destruction of the notes. The
stations uqed by prisoner for his plans were prin-
cipally Watford and Harrow.—Chief Inspector
Coppin, of the company's police, then stated
that in consequence of suspicions regarding
the prisoner he had caused him to be watched,
and had also made an examination of the
consignment notes received at Watford and
Harrow. A great number of these were in the
prisoner's handwriting. On the previous clay in the
police office, witness catechised the prisoner, and ex-
hibited to his notice certain papers produced, which
related to goods supposed to have been stolen
by him. He admitted the signatures upon two of the
bills, which related to two empty packages. When
showr others, the two concerning the leather in ques-
tion, he positively denied having written them. They
were addressed "T. Johnson, Watford." Witness
told the prisoner that he had been seen with the goods
at Watford, but he said this was a false statement.—
A goods porter who was on duty at Broad-street on
January 19 said the prisoner brought him on that day
a bale of leather, and handed in at the same time a
consignment-note. The weight of the leather was 61
cwt., and the note (produced) purported that it had
been consigned by "Beazley, Bermondsey." The
evidence of another railway employe having been
talen in respect to the despatch of the first-named
case of leather, a remand was asked for, in order to
prove the further facts alleged, and to bring evidence
as to the handwriting and other matters. It was said,
in answer to the magistrate, that the prisoner had
been for thirteen years in the employ of the company.
Mr. Bushby granted a remand accordingly. •
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1884-03-15

CLOSE OF THE CALCUTTA EXHIBITION.

Writing on March 10, the Calcutta correspondent
of the Ttmes says: The Viceroy formally closed the
exhibition this afternoon, in presence of a fairly
numerous, but not large, assemblage of spectators.
The excessive heat of the weather doubtless tended
to diminish the attendance. Lord Ripon and his
suite entered the main building at half-past four, 84
were received by the Lieutenant-Governor and the
Executive Committee, who conducted them across t he
courtyard to a handsome dais, of coloured marble, the
work of Herr Pilbiger, of Vienna.
The Lieutenant-Governor then, addressing the
Viceroy, stated that the total number of paying
visitors between December 5 and March 4 had been
817,000. If those who had enjoyed free admission
were included, the total would be nearly 1-1. million.
The daily average had been over 6000—a number
exceeding that of the Sydney and Melbourne Exhi-
bitions.

Lord Ripon, who spoke at some length, congratu-
lated the Bengal Government and the promoters of
the exhibition on the success of the undertaking.
He expressed his gratification at the presence of the
Lieutenant-Governor, whose absence fi in the open-
ing ceremony, owing to illness, bac., he said, thrown
a gloom over the occasion. He next dwelt on the
advantages of such enterprises as that which he was
then closing, and, in conclusion, pronounced it closed.
The guns of Fort William immediately announced
the fact to the city.

A Philadelphia telegram says that a party of ten
"prospectors " in the gold mining district, Wyoming
territory, has been lost. It is believeil that all have
perished in the snow, as they have been absent for two
weeks, and have not reached their destination. Search
parties have. started to find. them: it possible. -
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1884-03-15

LORD HARTINGTON'S MILITARY
POLICY.

The Broad Arrow says that a reactionary policy is
not always susceptible of condemnation, and a
reactionary Minister must at least receive the credit of
his courage. Lord .;Hartington's military policy has
been in a conspicuous degree reactionary; but there
is this to be said in favour of both policy and Minister,
that the one was felt to have become necessary, and
the other to have acted in no spirit of antagonism to his
immediate predecessor. The Broad Arrow made this
clear at the time whilst disposing of the flimsy and absurd
superstructure which supported the reports of dis-
agreements at the War Office. Lord Hartington met
Parliament at a time most critical for the British
Army. Recruiting was stagnant. Men were passing
into the Reserve. Battalions were practically disap-
pearing—melting out of sight. By a stroke of the pen
the Secretary for War last Session abolished short
service, thus reducing the outward flow into the
Reserve ; he relaxed the age limit at which recruits might
enter the army, he reduced the physical qualifications
of stature and chest measurement, and he improvised
a bounty to induce re-enlistment into the Foot Guards.
Events have happily justified this policy on the part
of the chief of the War Office. We took occasion
just before the close of the Recess to predict that
when the recruiting year terminated it would be found
that Lord Hartingtou's changes would be justified by
the result. This prediction has been confirmed. The
army, so to speak, has been "stiffened." The rep Irt
of the Inspector-General of Recruiting for 1883 shows
that by the close of the year General Bulwer will have
to provide no fewer than 38,327 recruits of all arms.
To accomplish this there must be a weekly averap of
737 men enlisted. So far, the recruiting has been
satisfactory, inasmuch as the number of recruits
enlisted since the commencement of the year has
been a weekly average of over 800.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1884-03-15

THE AGRICULTURAL LABOURERS'
UNION.

At a meeting of the Executive Committee of ths
National Agricultural Labourers' Union, held in
London on Tuesday, under the presidency of Mr.
Joseph Arch, the following resolutions were unani-
mouSly carried: 1. That the Executive Committee of
the National Agricultural Labourers' Union witness
with deep regret the efforts which are being made to
relegate Mr. Chamberlain's Shipping Bill to a Select
Committee, and earnestly entreats the Government to
persevere with the measure, Which is absolutely
necessary to prevent the appalling loss of life
amongst our sailors. In the interests of our
common humanity the committee calls upon every
member of the House of Commons to heartily support
the Government in their efforts to pass the bill into
law." 2. "That whilst rejoicing in the proposed ex-
tension of the franchise to householders in the coun-
ties, the Committee of the National Agricultural
Labourers' Union earnestly ask the Government to
insist upon the same privilege being accorded to Ire-
land." 3. "The Committee of the National Agricul-
tural Labourers' Union would impress upon the Go-
vernment the supreme importance, whenthe franchise
is bestowed upon labourers, of extending the hours
during which the polling shall be carried on in rural
districts, as provided in the bill introduced by the
Right Hon. Sir Charles Dille?'
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1884-03-15

GROSS CRUELTY TO CATS.

In London, on Saturday, atithe Marylebone Police-
court, three young men, named respectively Cotterill,
Boome, and Seddon, described as army students, re-
siding at Notting-hill, were charged with being con-
cerned together in cruelly ill-treating two cats, by
beating them to death with sticks in Prince's-square,
Bayswater.—Police-constable Hill, 221 X, said that at
about half-past eleven o'clock on the previous night
he saw the three prisoners, and two other young men
not in custody, beating a cat with their sticks. As
soon as they caught sight of him they made off, and
he then saw a cat lying dead upon the pavement. 110
went after the prisoners round the square, and saw
Cotterill knock another cat out of a doorway on to the
pavement, and the other young men joined in beating
the animal to death. They made off into Wtstbourne-
grove, and there, with the assistance of some brother
constables, the prisoners were taken into custody. Both
cats were killed. The prisoner Cotterill : There was
only one cat touched. Inspector Attwool, X division,
deposed that he took the charge at the station, when all
three prisoners admitted beating one cat to death,
which they said they did for sport. He went to
Prince's-square, and there saw on the ground spots
of what seemed to be blood; but the bodies of the
cats had then been removed by some one. The sticks
carried by the prisoners were formidable weapons,
each big and heavy enough to kill a cat. In conse-
quence of tile systematic annoyance and damage done
by young gentlemen in the position of the prisoners
it had been necessary to place plain-clothes constables
on duty all over the neighbourhood. Complaints
were constantly being made at the station of gardens
being robbed, and vases and other ornaments being
knocked down and broken. Chief Inspector Giles
had also received a considerable number of letters on
the subject. In reply to the magistrate's formal
question as to whether they had anything to say in
their defence, or witnesses to call, the prisoners curtly
answered "No." Mr. Cooke, addressing the pri-
soners, said that they had been guilty of very cruel
and cowardly behaviour. They had beaten cats to
death out of sheer and wanton cruelty. They would
each have to pay a fine of £3, or be imprisoned for
twenty-one days with hard labour.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1884-03-15

HIGII CLASS WORK",
Moderate Charges.

W. J. 0.

Surgeon Dentist,
77, High Street/

STOURI3RIDGE,
Every Friday,

V\TD
Colmore 'rouse, Colmor,. Row,
B/R,j/INGRA

DAILY.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1884-03-15

PRINCE NAPOLEON.

The 'Paris correspondent of the Morning Post
writes:

The delegates of the " Tresse Departementale "
for the appeal to the people resolved to transmit to
Prince Napoleon the order of the day voted unani-
mously affirming "the unity of its devotion to the
principle of national sovereignty." The meeting de-
clared that "it will energetically pursue the revision
of the Constitution by an Assembly invested
with full powers." The Prince on receiving
the declaration said : " I thank you for your
work. The declaration which you have presented
to me fully corresponds by its clearness and pre-
cision with my well-known sentiments. It is the
policy I pursue and which I advise—a loyal, patriotic,
and democratic policy. As things stand the final
decision must rest with the people who have the last
word. It is the people who are our only masters and
have the only right to make a choice. lam not pur-
suing a policy of resistance. lam first of all an
emancipator. I have not the gold of the Princes of
Orleans. lam poor, and lam proud to be so. But
I have what is better than riches—the absolute
respect for the people's sovereignty, and the firm
resolution to fight with all my energies against those
who would be inclined to usurp once more our
rights."