The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1876-04-15 00:00:00

Aliscellantotts nttiligtutt.

HOME, FOREIGN, AND COLONIAL.

NOT MAKING HIS FOKTITNE. —An Indian
opened a barber-shop in a Kansas town, but he is not
making a fortune (says an American paper). One day,
while shaving a white man, he permitted his mind to
wander back to the happy days of his childhood, and,
bt-fore you could say the multiplication table back-
ward, he had his customer's gory scalp dangling at his
belt. Of course he apologised when he fully realised
the consequence of his absent-mindedness, and offered
to glue the Scalp on at hi- own expense • but the white
man wouldn t listen to reason, and left the shop swear-
ing that he would never go back there to get shaved.
And he has kept hie word.

THE SPELLING BEE AGAIN. —A contemporary,
writing on this subject, makes the following off-baud
declaration :—" Nothing is easier than to hold a Bee."
Perhaps the contemporary never tried. A little boy
whom the writer knows tried to hold one which he
found in his father's garden, and he did not find it at
all easy. He weht about with his arm in a sling for a
long while afterwards. —Judy. •

EDUCATION GRANTS,—Yrom a parliamentary
paper just issued it appears that the expenditure in
education grants for the year ending March 31, 1875,
came to 21,356,746 19a. 5d., being an increase of
2134,812 7s. id., as c.)mpared with the year 1874.
The cost of administration appears to be £126,141 104.
5d,, showing an increase of £11,813 is. 7d. over the
charges for the previous year. The greater part of the
grants go to schools connected with the Church of Eng-
land. These institutions get £822,565 93. 5d., being an
increase of £38,337 13s. id. over 1874. Altogether
since 1839, the time that our system of public instruc-
tion began to take definite shape, the Chureh of Eng-
land has received in the form of Government grants
£10,463,441 63. 7d., a large sum compared with the
2,669,894 63. 6d. which during that time has been
granted to British, Wesleyan, and other elementary
schools. Last year this latter class of schools got
£255,887 6s. 6d. from Government, the increase as
compared with last year being only £1,056 Bs. 11d. As
for board schools, they only got £90,231 10s. 10d. last
year, about one-ninth as much as was given to the
schools of the Churzh of England, and only about
g 1.6,000 more than was given to the schools of the
Roman Catholic Church. In the latter case the in-
crease in the grants in aid for 1875, as compared with
those for 1874, amount to £9,168 12s. sd.

STREET ACCIDENTS IN LONDON.—In the
House of Commons on Monday evening, Mr. Cr..ss,
in reply to Sir P. O'Brien, said that he gave instruc-
tions to the police authorities to make full inveetiga-
tioncoivnetrd vansoetherel and
existing
angebeidetwenetes. A
n the employment
the
returns
of
for 1875 had not been finally made up, he could give no
infatuation respecting that particular year, but the re-
turns for 1874 showed that out of 124 persons who were
killed in the streets, 28 were killed by vans, 24 by light
carts, 18 by waggons and drays, 15 by omnibuses, 14
by cabs and heavy carts, and none by covered vans.
Again out of 2,568 persons aimed, 1,716 • were
maimed m
by light carts, 624 by cabs, 375 by vans, 320
by broughams and carriages, 100 by ataggone, and only
22 by covered vans. He had given instructions to the
police to issue placards warning the drivers of light
carts especially—for the risk came in an especial
degree from them—to be more cautious in the way
they drove about the streets. At the same time he
was bound to say that a great amount of carelessness
existed, not simply amongst the drivers, but amongst
the foot passengers crossing the streets.
THE RAVAGES OF WOOD PIGEONS. —At the
last meeting of the East Lothian Agricultural Club
Mr. Robertson, Newmains, presiding—the secretary
read letters he had received from several noblemen and
gentlemen expressing their willingness to co-opetate
in any measures that might be deemed advisable for
the destruction of wood-pigeons; and some of them
enclosing subscriptions for prizes for the destruction of
the bird. Mr. A Smith called attention to the fact
that the Earl of Haddington had written an article on
gations. .For instance, he found that the "crop of
wthheichsuhbejtsettatefodrateher,BGullatssgoofweNomaetuorfalihsistsa'
wSuociinetvyt,stiin.
one contained 144 field peas and 7 large beans; that
of another 231 beech nuts; another, 813 grains of
barley; and another, 874 grains of oat a and 55 of
barley. His lordship intimated that the wood-pigeon
'replenished its "crop" three times a day • and it such
was the case, the above details would give them some idea
of the amount of damage done by these birds. Lord
Haddington, it appeared, had been in the habit of
regularly killing wood-pigeons at Tynniughame, and
during the past four seasons as many
have been destroyed by him, as 3,526 birds
THE WAY JANIN WROTE.—The late Jules
Janin, the famous French dramatic critic, wrote very
rapidly 7 and apparently never re read to polish or
otherwise improve what he had written. He was
always delighted with what he had written, and did
not conceive it possible that it could be improved.
Years ago it was justly said of him :—"Janin is a host
who is guilty of cooking in his guests' sight. He writes
one sentence, and then another, and then a third—
none of them clearly expresses his idea. He writea
four, five, six—a dozen. He has not hit it yet! At
last he does find the expression desired, and he serves
it up a ith a triumphant air to his readers; but he
then neglects a petty detail—namely, to blot all pre-
ceding lines." His weekly dramatic criticiazn in
Journal des Debats filled twelve columns of thirty-five
lines, each line containing thirty-three letters. He
would fill these twelve columns in three houre,"
Writing so rapidly,. never reading over what he had
written, never pausing to think, you may easily, con-
ceive that he should have written prefaces to above
one hundred works, should have been an active con-
tributor td fifteen newspapers or magazines and to all
the encyclopedias and dictionaries published since
1830, besides being the author of numberless works,
some of the names of which are given in the article,--
*railer/

THE PHILADELPHIA EXHIBITION.— OHO of the
points at this exhibition for which extensive prepara-
tions are being made allover the world, is a show of
china and porcelain, which will, it is anticipated, excel
anything ever before attempted. This is only natural.
Of all places where crockery and " crackery" are repre-
sented. Phila-delf ia is the very one to come out strong.
—Judy.

HABITUAL DRUNKARDS .—There has been, re
marks the Examiner, an interesting di,cussion at a
meeting of the Social Science Association on the
question, what the law should do for the reformation
ef habitual drunkards. Dr. Carpenter. who read the
paper on which the discussion was taken, divided the
question into three branches :—" I. Is further legisla-
tion required for the control and management of the
habitual drunkard? 2. Are the present powers capa-
ble of being used for his reformation? 3. If not, and
new legislation is required, what direction should it
take? Dr. Carpenter, decided that new legislation
is required, and that it should take the direction
of locking up the drunkard as a lunatic until he
was cured. This course we must take leave to
think, is open to objections. The moment society
carries the right of locking up evil-doers beyond those
who are dangerous to property or person, it must en-
counter grave difficulties as to drawing the line. An
intemperate tea-drinker may do almost as much harm
to himself and his family as an intemperate drinker of
alcohol, although he is not so obviously incapacited for
business. Mr. Carpenter appeared to think that the
drunkard might be locked up till he was cured. But
some doubt was thrown on this by Dr. Ellis, who had
for fifteen years kept an establishment for the recep-
• tion of dipsomaniacs. His experience was, that,
having once passed a certain line, they were incurable.
We should be inclined to agree with Dr. Cameron,
that efforts should be directed rather towards locking
up the drink than locking up the drunkard.
OPIUM SMOKES O. —A Chinese essayist on
opium-smoking says :—Three years ago I saw an Eng-
lishman go to the hospital at Kolangsu to get himself
cured of opium-smoking. I was told that this man
was in good position in life, and had excellent MAR-.
ties ; yet he fell like this. It seems to me that it
would be difficult for this man, if pressed at some
future day by weariness and exhaustion, to avoid again
having resort to the criminal indulgence, and just as
hard to prevent his leading his companions to do the
same. If in this little Amoy Englishmen have been
seen smoking opium, how are we to be sure that in
other places there are no Englishmen that smoke
opium? Further how are we to be sure that at some
future day such men will not lead others to smoke
opium. China formerly called herself a country of
literary enlightment, but since opium came to abound
In China, she has come near to a tottering and helpless
condition. At present, England, although she is si
famous nation, having among her people a certain
number of opium-smokers secretly leading others as-
tray, if she does not at once atop the traffic by prohibi-
tion, will find it difficult to prevent the mischief from
spreading over the entire country.

HOUSE 80 7—Strange that the height of the
rich man's ambition is to get into the House, and the
height of the poor man's ambiti3n is to keep out of the
House.—Fun.

BJGUiIMIaG TO LEARN His LETTE RS. —The
youthful Emperor of China will shorly begin to
learn his letters. The announcement is made with
becoming gravity in an edict, purporting, of course,
to proceed from the Emt,ress Regent, which ap-
peared in the Pekin Gazette of the Bth of February.
"The Emperor," says this curious, but not infelicit-
ously worded document, "having ascended the throne
while still of tender years, it is most needful that his
studies be undertaken in due time, and be pursued
with continual progress to the end, that the results of
education in the course of right may be secured, and
the foundations whence good Government takes its
rise be laid straight." Among the " arrangements"
necessary to the Imperial studies is another appoint-
ment—which is not gazetted—that of Lahachutze, or
"whipping boy." The holder of this, who is a child
usually of nearly the same age as the Emperor, has
the honour of being flogged or disgraced when the
Sovereign is naughty or inattentive.
VICTORIA PHILOSOPHICAL INSTITD TE.— The
usual meeting of this society was held in London on
Monday evening at 10, Adelphi-terrace, when a paper,
"On the Place of Science in Education," by Prof. H.
Alleyne Nicholson was read. The author reviewed .
generally the place which science ought to occupy in a
rational scheme of education. The claims of science
as an educational agent were considered as regards its
disciplinary value, its utility, and its capacity of minis-
tering to a higher culture. The relations between
science on the one hand, and religion and philosophy on
the other hand, were also discussed at some length, and
it was pointed out that science would not occupy its
true position in education till it was admitted to have
a secondary interest in causes and ends, in addition to
its primary concern with phenomena.—The author
concluded by urging the importance in the investiga-
tion of truths of whatever order of maintaining an
affirmative rather than a negative mood of mind, the
true function of science being constructive rather than
, destructive. A discussion ensued.

IN FAVOUR OF SMALL BIRDS.—The Paris cor•
respondent of The Times writes :

M. Waddington, Minister of Public Instruction, has signa-
lized his assumption of office by addressing a circular to the
Prefects on the destruction of the wall birds, and the con-
sequent injury dens to agricultural interests. The circular
will, I fancy, hardly be greeted with the same enthusiasm in'
the gourmets of Paris as by the farmers in the country, for
any one who has dined at a French restaurant must knot,
those dishes of small birds on toast known as mauviettes.
These are currently believed to be larks, but, in tact, tall
rainy a chaffinch. sparrow, and linnet does duty for the har-
binger of morn. Consequently, a decrease in the quantii!
would assuredly bring about a rise in the price of the "giblet',
even if compensated for by quality.

LEATHER OUT OF PAPER. —A manufactory at
Barmeu, Prussia, is making an imitation patent leather
out of paper. A similar manufacture was started in
England some years ago with fair results. The Gertne*
process is as follows :—Rolls of paper, fifty to sixtl
inches wide and twelve feet long, are covered 'with a
preparation of asphaltum. The paper is then dried it)
an oven, after which it is rubbed down with pumice'
stone. It is then coated with varnish and exposed to
the air, in which it is alloweel to dry slowly. It is then
stretched on a frame and again dried in an oven, which
completes the process. Paper thus treated is brilliantly'
black and resembles patent leather, but with the further
advantage of bending without breaking. 'A dozen rolls
of paper thus prepared sell for twelve thalers.
THE VALUE OF FRESH-WATER FISH .—To the
French people every Lind of fish is acceptable as diet,
from whatever waters they may be derived. In Or.
own country the salmon and trout grayling are bred
artificially as yet, and it is a great question whether,
the breeding of any other would yield a commercial
profit, as fresh-water fish in general with us are much
despised, although undeservedly so. We have known
perch cost half-a.crown a pound; and there are
epicures amongst our aristocracy who make it *
practice always to have a pike upon the table. There
is, however, no occasion to breed these fish artificially,
as-they would multiply in sufficient numbers to meet
almost any demand, if properly protected. A pike, fag
instance—according to Mr. Buckland's.crucial examine-
tion—weighing thirty-two pounds, will produce 595,200
eggs, and a salmon of the same weight will et-utak)
about 29,000 eggs, so that it will be evident that a pike
produces a much larger proportion of eggs than s
salmon. We might learn a profitable lesson here froni
the Jews, who are the beat patrons of the fresh-water
salesman. Barbel, thought by us to contain elements
of blood poison, are boiled by the Jews in vinegar and
water, and make a most aoceptabie dish. Dace, which
scarcely one English cook out of a hundred can renda
palatable, a Hebrew chef will place upon the table with
a gout, it not superior, equal to smelts; and roach,
and every other lieh discarded by us are made to con'
tribute a welcome and rapid addition to the domestic)
resources of the poor an wealthy of the thoughtful
and industrious children of Israel. —The Technical Eckg°
cator.

COST OF LIVING IN PHILADELPHIA.—A Phila'
delphia correspondent, speaking of the probable cost
of being in that city during the Exhibition, says ass
"The hotels in Philadelphia are few, and the chances
are that the ordinary visitor must go to a lodging'
house. At these places he will have -a bed, breakfasts
and supper for 10s, a day; but if he insists on a roams
or even a bed fur himself, he must pay twice this sum'
He namt get his dinner at a restaurant, and it wig
cost hint 6s. more. Thus, for the bare necessities 01
life, as understood by a respectable Englishman,
Re 2s. per week will be required, and to this must be
added all the incidental expenses attending such
visit. On the whole, I should say that no one who II
not prepared to spend £2O a week without grumbling
should come to Pniladelphia."
MORE Tnuin.--Fond mother (to Gov'nor tO
whom her son is apprem iced). I am sorry to say, Site
that Harry, won't be able to come to work for some
little time—the doctor says be has got braimfever.--
Gov'nor (interrupting her). Then the doctor is a—is a
fool, madam, for the boy hasn't got any more brains
than—than a donkey, ma'aml—Judy.
SUBSTITUTES FOR A SPARAGUS.—There must
be in the world thousands of plants suitable for titan's
' enjoyment and sustenance as articles of food of whieh
as yet be is entirely ignorant. Amongst these 'ø'
known treasures .there may be many subetitsates for
asparagus, but, so far as such supposed s'fastitutem are
known, it must be confessed thee are not of great
value. It is possible, however, that at this season of
the year a list of plants properly coming within the
category may be useful to many, and the following is
offered as a contribution towards a list, for there can-
not be a doubt that many more plants might be added
to it: Saleify (Tragopogon porrifolius), Buda Sales
Swede Turnip, Butcher's Broom, Milk Thistle,
Burdock (Lappa major), Common Cotton Thistle
(Onopordium aoantilium), Star of Bethlehem, Bladder
Campion, the Rorie Bay Willow Herb (Epilobitog
angustifolium), Bistort or Common Buckwheat (Poly'
gonura bistorta), the Hop, and Japanese Asparagus
(Puiygonum cuspidatum).— The Gardener's Magazine.
DEATH OF A VICTORIA. CSOSS Mir.—An in-
quest wa-. held on Saturday ori the body of Mr. James
Halowell, aged 52 years, who had died very suddenly
at 20, Gloncester-sti eet, Queen-square, Londans
Deceased had formerly belonged to the ifith High;
lauders, and served with that regiment during Oa
Indian mutiny. He was one of the nine who held for
a day and a nieht, against terrible odds, the square Of
the now razed Firreed Buksh Palace, where Havelock
and Oatrara discussed the means for capturing the
Itssidency at Lucknow. While he was standing iii
the archway of the palace a shot from the mutineers
grazed his shoulder and killed the heroic Neill. It
was after the fall of Nicholson, and during
a scene of disaster, that Hollowell, by his braver);
and pluck, brousht hope to his comrades au9-
assisted in saving many of the wounded lying it the
doe dies. Hollowell also volunteered to Rt., iD. Search of
his chief, Nicholson,. who was missing, and alone went
into the open, and in the face of 20,000 musineere
carried across his shoulder into the British camp hig
wounded officer. Hollowell was afterwards cat off
from his comrades 26 hours., and again be was success-
ful in the daring feat of rescuing and carrying into the
British lines Colonel Beauchamp, who had fallen
within the range of fire of a large body of the enemy.
or this and his other heroic deeds' her Majesty pre.
seated him with the bronze medal of the Victoria
Cross. After leaving the army he was employed as
private policeman. The Jury returned a verdict o
Cleoth from heart &male

1