The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1883-12-15 00:00:00

ERITISR AND FOREIGN.

According to last year's census of horses in European
Russia, 15 millions are fit for active service.
The number of blast furnaces in operation in the
United States at the commenceaaent of Noyember was
331. The number of furnaces out of blast at the same
late was 355

It is stated that every provincial town In England
of more than 100,000 inhabitants has adopted the
Publa Libraries Acts. At present about 113 towns
In the United Kingdom have established rate-sup-
ported libraries.
On Friday in last week a young gentleman, named
Stephen, was drowned at Pemberton, near Wigan,
whilst skating. The deceased, who was only 20 years
of age, would have been entitled on obtaining his
majority to £50,000. _ _ .

_
It is computed that 680 persons perished through the
foundering of fishing vessels in the gales on the coasts
of New England, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland,
during November last.
A raiding exploit is reported from Bisbee, Arizona.
Five mounted men rode into the place for purposes of
plunder. Meeting with resistance they killed three
men and wounded a woman, and having pillaged a
store made good their escape.
Two French travellers, MM. de Maiily-Chalon and
Benoist Meclin, have arrived in Paris after a five
years' exploration in Russia, Per,ia, Siberia, Japan,
Chins, and India. They bring home a valuable
collection of curiosities.

Mr. Vanderbilt, the American millionaire, is said to
have given the painter Meissonier a commi-sion for a
picture upon a military subject, the price to be £40,000.
The size of the work is to be 18ft. by 12ft.
At a meeting of the election committee of the Bir-
mingham Children's Hospital on Monday, Dr. Annie
Olark was elected to fill one of the vacancies on the
staff of acting physicians in opposition to eight of the
most eminent physicians of the town. Dr. Annie
Clark has been for some years connected with hospital
werk in the town, and was elected by a large
m j

From a paper compiled by Sir George Bird wood
and issued from the India Office it appears that during
the last six years the native newspapers in India have
increased from 170 to 330. The number of copies
simulated in 1877 was a little over 54,000, now it is
over 110,000.

With a view of stamping out the foot-and•mouth
ditease in Ireland, the Lord•Lieutenart has d cided
that during the months of January and February next
fairs and markets will be allowed only in counties free
from the disease, except under speoisl licence from hie
Excellency.
Last week's receipts :A cotton at all United States
ports were 264,000 bales; since lit September' 2,672 000
bales. Week's exports to Great Britain 104.000 bales
week's exports to the Continent, 57,000 bales. Total
sines Lit September, 1,395,000 bales. Stock at all ports,
1,050,000 bales.
In London, on Tuesday, a magnificent brilliant
collet necklace, composed of 28 large graduated stones
of the finest quality, the property of a French lady of
title, was sold at Debenham, Storr, and Sons' auction
mart for £2,000.

The numbsr of fdlures in England and Wales
gazetted during the week ending Saturday, Dec. 8,
was 227. The number in the corresponding week of
last year was 223, showing an increase of four, being a
net decrease in 1883, to date, of 636.
The Paris Salon National, which is just closed,
received during its ieventy-eix days 347,538 visitors,
of whom 265,300 entered on the free days, 74,960 paid
a franc, and 7,278 paid two franca. The profit on the
exhibition was 27,000 francs.

The Duke of Edinburgh has presented a donation of
a 25 to the Royal Sailors' Home at Portsmouth, with
his inspection of which he recently expressed great
satisfaction.
The French Government has ordered a census to be
prepared of all the horses, ponies, and mules in
France. Owners will be required to band in a list
and description of any such animals in their possession
befcre the let of January next at the town ball or
Metric of their district. The census is understood to
be for the information of the War Ministry.
The whole of the public elementary schools at
Barnsley were on Saturday morning ordered by the
authorities to be closed for a month owing to the pre-
valence of measles and other infectious diseases in the
town. There are over 300 cases of measles alone.
The Postal, Telegraphic, and Telephonic Gazette an-
nounces that the Poetmaster-Generel will shortly
arrange, in all our lugs towns, for a free collection of
parcels for Parcel Post transmission.

The remarkable sunsets which attracted so 'much
attention in tais country a fortnight since were also
the subject of much observation in America, and a
well-known American astronomer, Professor Brooks,
wrote to the New York papers stating that from
observations he had made with the telescope he had
no doubt that the remarkable spectacle was due to the
eelth encountering vast clouds of meteoric dust.
On Monday a rowing boat, in which were five Ger-
mans, capsized on the Niagara River, all the five men
being drowned. One body was recovered, the others,
it is believed, have gone over the Falls.
The additions to the Zoological Society's Gardens,
Regent's Park, London, during last week included a
moorhen (Britith), pre!ented by Mr. T. E. Gunn;
two common wolves (European), a Dufresne's amazon,
from South-East Brazil; a Bell's cinizys from West
A;ricre, two cArd from British fresh waters, purchased ;
an Indian gazelle, born in the Gardens.

The cost of the Order of the Legion of Honour is
estimated at £500,000 a year, Each Grand Cross has
£l2O a year; Grand Officer, £80; Commander, £4O.
t the Officers, four have £4O, and the rest 20;g 108
Knights have £l4, and the rest £lO. There are 40
Grand Crosses, 178 Grand Officers, 915 Commanders,
4,721 Officers, and 29,517 Knights.
The new German Navy List for 1884 is just issued.
The Imperial Navy now comprises thirteen iron-
clads, of which seven are frigates and six corvettes.
There are thirty-one cruisers, of which twenty•one
are corvettes and ten gunboats, besides thirteen iron-
clad gunboats and fifteen torpedo boats for coast sle.
fence.

The new iron ship Shannon, 1,623 tons, left Glasgow
on the 6th instant for Brisbane, having on board
the following emigrants :-86 single men, 126 single
women, and 112 families, making a total of 372 soul,
equal to 318 statute adults.
The steamer State of Pennsylvania has landed at
New York Captain Campbell, two mates, and four of
the crew of the British barque Benefactress, which
foundered at sea on November 28. The captain says
that the remainder of the crew, fifteen in number,
left the barque in the long boat, on November 26,
against his advice, and he fears that they are lost.
The usual notice by the Speaker was published in
Tuesday nigt t's London Garette that he will at the end
of six days issne a writ far the election of a new
member for Wigan, the death of Mr. Knowles
having been certified to him.
From April Ist to the Bth instant the Exchequer
receipt/ amounted to £55,312 136, as compared with
£54,449,123 in the correaponding period of last year.
The ex!)enditnre has been £55,318,991. On Satur-
day last the balance in the Bank of England was
£4,830,587.

The marriage of the Princess Victoria of Hesse to
Prince Louis of Battenbnrg is at present fixed to take
place on the 11th April at Darmstadt, and it is ex-
pected that the Emperor, the Crown Prince and
Crown I. UC4C, Prin.‘o an:t :Prince— th.c
Prince And Prince.s of Witleo, gloi other English
Prino6s and Princesses will be present.
it. is now officially announced that an International
Exhibition of Arrg, Alanoinctut CA, and Sc;entific4
Aoi,ultaral, and Indo,trial Productq will be opened
at the C05t...1 P...lace on the 23rd of April next, and
ad!l ref:y.)4in kli.l) for at least six months. P1'71.9 will
be giver, col.:6tint; of a diploma of honour; gold,
silvtr, nod :,ronza medals, &e.
A premium of 1,000 dollar's ha: been offered by the
Alchnic-an South', t4chool Union for a book on the
:14).)h4.,11. The, competition is strictly confir2e.l to re,i-
d.:,nf s in the United States.
In London last week there were 2,346 births and
1,623 deaths redstered. Allowing for inerc,.. of I,ou.
lation, the births were 294, and the deaths 210, below
the average numbers in the corresponding weeks of the
last ten years. The annual rate of mortality from all
causes, which in the three preceding weeks had been
equal to 22.2, 220, and 218 per 1,000, further de-
clined to 21'5.

About ten years ago the Christian population of the
provinces of India under British administration was
only 5A7,216. According to the last Census the number
of Chribtians of all sorts in India is now upwards of a
million and three.quarters, the exact ficures beln
1,862,525, of whom 142,000 are Europeans, 62,000
Enra,ians, 390,000 natives, and 760,000 others and un-
specifie•d. The most numerous body of all is ths
Roman Catholic' 863,058. The Church of England
comes next with 353,713.

On Monday morning a lad named Jonathan Prit-
chard met with a shocking death at the New British
Iron company's Wyonstay Collieries. He was a pony
driver down the pit, and while taking a train of small
waggons iiito the mine hs became entangled with the
tuba and wal dreadfully mutilated. The train caned
over his body, and the unfortunate boy was killed in-
stantaneously.

The German Emperor and Empress have contri-
buted six thovnalid and four thousand marks respee-
tively to the bazaar to be held at Constantinople for
the benefit of the sufferers at the Tschcsme earth.
qnake. The Emprets bee also sent several valuable
objects to the bazaar.
In London, on Tuesday evening, a young gentle-
man, named Nlnirheaci, committed sniajde at Lower
Clairton, order singular eitcnmstanees. He bad been
ere% ed to a young lady, who recently asked him to
release her. She wore about to attend a ball, and was
enter;nr her carriage with a gentleman, when Muir-
ile.l came up aud pointed a revolver at her head.
She stooped, and he then placed the revolver in
his own mouth and fired. His death was instan-
taneous.
Sneaking at a Ohnrch of England Temperance
Society meeting at Blackburn on Monday, Lieutenant.
General Feilden, M.P., said that the temperance ques-
tion wpm the foremost of the day. He believed the
consumption of drink had been smaller during the last
year than previoesly, and might be due to people
hying los money to spend, but he was inclined to
ttriek it vr, .s owing to their having become more right-
minded by the effoOrthat had been made at home and
abroad. The narcleirt work, the eplisrlrf runein, , and
tit? moat expeditious military movements were made
upon cold water and tea, and not on spirits of any kind.
On Mond ty an inquest was held at Manchester on
the body of a middle aged man, who was found on
Saturday by an inmate of the workhouse lying dead
in the passage close to the relieving office of the
Union. He was evidently making his way to the
wcrkhowe, and would appear to have dropped dead
from cold and exhaustion.—The jury returned a ver-
dict of death frow starvation.

The Annisquam Mills at Rockfort, Massachusetts,
have been destroyed by fire. The lops is estimated at
four hundred thousand dollars. Two hundred and
thirty persons are, in consequence, thrown out of em.
ployment.

It is proposed to celebrate the 400th anniversary o
the great Swiss Reformer Ulric Zuingli by a national
fête on the 6th of January.
Five men were drowned on Monday by the upsetting
of a boat near Buffalo, and eeven men were drowned
by the wrecking of a steam barge on Lake Huron.

The total of arrivals of bess's for cor sumption at
the Metropolitan Cattle Market for the week ending
Saturday last was 3,650 head; the corresponding week
of 1882, 4.520; 1881, 5,450 ; 1880, 4,450; 1879, 5,740;
1878, 5,480; 1877, 5,680; 1876, 6,900; 1875, 6,430; and
1874, 6,290.
The Royal Academy of Sciences of Turin has con-
ferred on Mr. Hormuzd Ripsam the first grand prize
of 12,000 f. (£430), in consideration of the services he
has rendered to science by his Assyrian and Baby-
lonian discnveries, the results of which are deposited
in the Brit;sh MUS3UM.

A whale has been captured in the Menai Straits,
having become stranded in its endeavour to escape
from four boatmen, who captured it after an exciting
chase.

A man named John Slough, aged 63, who had
worke i on the Midland Railway for many years, was
knocked down by a Scotch express on Monday morn.
log near Luton and killed.
The Annisquem Mills, at Rockfort, Massachusetts,
have been destroyed by fire. The loss is estimated at
4C0,000 dollars. Two hundred and thirty persons are
in consequence thrown out of employment.
It is observed in the elthenceum that the death-roll
of the Royal Society for year ending November 80
confirms former experience, and shows that science is
favourable to longevity.
Mr. S. Smith; M.P., has offered two prizes of
00 and £lO respectively to bond Ade working men in
Liverpool who will pass the beat examination on
subject to be found in Adam Smith's "Wealth of
Nations.
As Thomas Kelly, aged 13, was sliding on a pool
at Tunstall, on Saturday, with a number of other
boys, the ice broke, and the unfortunate boy was
drowned.
The discham of workmen in the Clyde shipbuild.
lug trade continues. On Saturday 35 men were dis-
missed from Messrs. Elder's yard, making a.total of
70 for the week ; and in the yards of Messrs. Napier,
Shank, and Bell 40 were paid off..

The official statement of the returns of taxes and
indirect revenue in France for the eleven months
elapsed of the present year was published on Saturday.
The realisations are 5N110,000 francs below the &Ai-
mates. They are, nit witl standing, 33,908,000 francs
higher than the returns of the corresponding period
of 18E2.
At the Sligo Winter Assizes on Tuesday Mr. Jus
tice O'Brien sentenced Edward Vallelly and three
other men, who had pleaded guilty to the charge of
conspiracy to murder Martin Lyden, in the county of
Galway, to ten years' penal servitude, and the other
members of the same band pleaded guilty to minor
charges, and were sentenced to short terms of impri•
sonment,
A parliamentary return just issued shows that over
fifty millions sterling have been invested in gas under.
takings in Great Britain aed Ireland, the authorized
capital being nearly eighteen millions more.
A New York telegram says that the 'visible supply
of wheat on Dec. 7 was 33.200,000 bushels, as against
32,300,0(0 bushels the previous week. Visible supply
of Indian corn, 8,600,000 bushels, as against 8,900,eCt
bushels the previous week. The export clearances of
wheat for Europe during last week amounted to
510,000 bushels; the export clearances of Indian corn
for Europe during last week amounted to 800,000
bushels,

Acoording to intelligence received from St. Peters-
burg M. Nenstojeff, a teacher at the Irkutsk Gym.
nasium, professing liberal opinions and universally
popular in the town, was arrested and shot within
twenty•four hours for having struck General Anut-
schin, the Governor. General, in retaliation for a per-
sonal affront offered to him by the latter.
Fifteen British actual shipwrecks, and twenty-six
foreign, were reported during last week, bringing up
the total for the present year to 1,720, which compares
with 96 for the corresponding week of last sear, when
the total was 1,517. FJrty-five lives were lost.
The collectors of property tax in France have ascer-
tatned that there are in the whole of that country
8,551,737 houses, of which rather more than 140,100
were built in the twelve months preceding the collec-
tion of the last year's tax.
The Duke of Albany, on the invitation of the chair-
man of the Liverpool Council of Education, has con-
sented to deliver the prizes on January 26 and deliver
an address. His Rola' Highness will be accompanied
by the Duchess, and they will, during their stay, be
the guests of the Duke of Westminster at Eaton Hall.

On Saturday morning the large flannel mill known
as the Mill End Factory, belonging to Mr. Lloyd
Jones, at Llangollen, was discovered to be on fire, and
in an hones time the whole pile of buildings, with their
large stock of wool and flannel, together with the rare
and costly machinery, were totally destroyed. The
entire joss is estimated at about 00,000,
It has been thought desirable to make an indepen.
dent house•to•house canvass in Dumbarton to ascertain
whether its inhabitants are in favour of local option,
All persons of eighteen years and upwards were re.
quested to sign their names in forms provided, accord.
log to their opinion. The result was :—Against, 243
in favour, 3719; neutral, 191.
Representatives of the Cricket Clubs of nine of the
principal English counties met on Tuesday at Lord's
Cricket Ground, in London, under the presidency of
Lord Harris, to discuss the question of unfair bowling,
which, in the judgment of many of the speakers, was
having a prejudicial effect upon cricket. After much
discussion a Resolution was carried, by a majority,
pledging those of tha County Clubs who supported it
not to employ any bowler whose action is at all doubt.
Addressing his constituents at Sheffield on Tuesday
night, Mr. Mundella characterised last session as one
of the most fruitful during the last ten years, and
defended the financial policy of the Government,
pointing oat that the only increases of expenditure had
been in matters for the material welfare of the people,
such as education and the reduction of the National
Debt.

Replying to a deputation from Liverpool urging an
alteration in the law which permitted licensing
appeals from the local magistrates to the quarter
sessions, Sir W. Haroourt expreieed general concur-
rence with the views of the deputation, holding that
communities endowed with self•government ahonld
form their own opinion as to what was beat for the
locality, and how it should be carried out.
Mr. Lloyd Voss, manager of the Brighton New
Club, died suddenly on Tuesday afternoon. He was
attacked with illness whilst speaking to the hall
porter at the Club, and although medical assistance
was immediately procured, death ensued in less than
twenty minutes.
The ship Talisman, of Liverpool, arrived at Dundee
on Sunday night horn Calcutta with a cargo of jute.
The captain reports that on the sth October he sig-
nailed the Dutch three-masted schooner Ballasso, from
the coast cf Africa for Falmouth, with six of her crew
dead from fever. Only the captain and two boys re.
mained to work the ship, and ,two men were trans-
ferred from the Talisman to assist in navigating her.
The traffic receipts of railways in the United King-
dom for the week ending Dec. 1 (the latest published)
amoanted on 17,201 i miles to £1,262,270, and for the
corresponding week in 1882 on 17,026 i miles to
£1,218,509, showing an increase of 174 i miles and of
£43,761. The receipts averaged £73 7a. Bd. per mile,
against £7l 11. a. 4d. in, the corresponding week last
year.