The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1870-10-29 00:00:00

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*3te that we In not al ai. time!
• e,Trespondent' opinionsJ

still the dominant topic, but
011 • ' e it is not advisable here to
cot ng how • large • portion of
j.Ol wily be devoted to the news
of t otracted struggle. I fancy,
incl. • • • • care very little for opinions
on t . • • eading the news and forming
theii • moreover, the public mind
has 1 wearied with a subject that
ham L minent for more than three
moat It of this there is an earnest
longing I, o >fly there are stronger and
strom,yr I that peace cannot now be
long ,Toioyek.

All I.ont tel its.. es and gentlemen who are
co-ope-atiw. to roe fun.: :o relieve the distress of the
foreig r.lugess ol wb we now have so many in
our e !st Mercy law. I aibtedly wanted to aid those
who! eer, r • ••• • here by the war, and there
is amp. and or enough for any amount of
effort that is likely to be made in this direction.
But, at the same time, it is well to bear In mind
that these refugees are increasing, albeit involuntarily,
the hardships and sufferings of our own poor, while
the immense amount of money raised for the aid of
the sick and wounded in France has very materially
lessened the contributions to our own charitable insti-
tutions. The war has already driven out of employ-
ment many of our own working classes, and lessened
the earning, of a great many more. It is well to look
at all the bearings of the evil of war, so far an that
enormous evil can be ascertained. There are indica-
tions of our poor having a very hard time of it this
winter, and money for their suoconr will be all the
more difficult to obtain in consequence of public
benevolence having been already so heavily taxed. But
In the abstract I would not say a word against raising
funds for the refugees I only hope that those funds
may be better administered than has been the enormous
amount raised for the sick and wounded.

The preliminary proceedings against persons for
an alleged breach of the neutrality laws, by inducing
several people to oln a so-called Franco-Irish Ambu-
lance Corps, and then, when the enrolled persons had
arrived in France, telling them that they were to fight
for the French, naturally attract considerable atten-
tion. The Government action in the matter must be
generally approved of, for the alleged offence, if it has
been committed, would certainly be a breach of the
Neutrality Laws, and we have already quite enough to
answer for in this respect in connection with the
export of arms to France. Whether Government have
done all they could in relation to the latter, and
whether their pmsectition in the former will procure
absolution from the Prussian potentates, may yet be
troublesome queries to answer. But, at all events,
the action of the Treasury must meanwhile be gene-
rally approved of.

It is said that her Majesty intends to settle £lO,OOO
a year on the Princess Louise on her marriage with
the Marquis of Lorne, and that Parliament will pro-
bably be asked for an allowance of £6,000 a year,
Supposing this to be true, it is possibly intended, in
this case to vote no marriage dowry of 00,000, as has
been previously done in other cases.
If it be true, as is stated, that the candidature of
Prince Amadens, younger son of King Victor
Emmanuel, has been definitively decided on, and that
his Royal Highness's acceptance has been notified to
the Regent, Spain may, if she make haste, choose a
sovereign within two years from the flight of the ex-
Queen. It was towards the end of October, 1868, that
the revolution in Spain broke out, the revolutionary
ministry being formed on the last day of the month,
and it was on the 6th of November, 1868, that the
royal fugitive took up her residence in Paris; so that
Spain has been two years in deciding who she will
have, if any one, for a sovereign, and has not decided
yet.

Were it to be said that the metropolis is bestirring
itself to put the Education Act in force, it would
scarcely represent the fact as it exists ; the fact rather
being that several parochial cliques and a few hide-
pendent persons have commenced to move in toe
matter. But this will arouse general attention, and
it is to be hoped that we shall have something like
popular representation on the School Boards, which
are to be elected next month. The Act gives to the
ratepayers of each district the power to elect repre-
sentative!, and the working classes, as well as other
classes, should be alive to their privileges and respon-
sibilities, and this applies to every district throughout
the country. It is the working classes who ought
specially to benefit by the Act ; it was for them that
it was passed; it is their children who are to be edu-
cated under the new legislation.

Materfamiliaa is grumbling, and not without reason,
at the high prices of butter, eggs, and poultry. The
cause is obvious enough. Our supply of these articles
has been largely diminished by the war. But why, it
may be asked, are we so largely dependent on France
for the supply of eggs and poultry? We do not apply
anything like the amount of attention to the rearing
of poultry in this country that we ought to do. Pro-
perly understood and efficiently carried out, poultry
rearing is always very profitable in the long run, and
were it managed on a larger scale than at present, it
would materially increase our food supply, always •
matter of immense importance.
Mr. J. C. Earle is engaged on the "Lives of the
English Premiers," from Sir Robert Walpole to Sir
Robert PeeL Most probably an interesting work will
be the result ; but why stop at Sir Robert Peel? Mr.
Earle was secretary to Mr. Disraeli when the latter
was Prime Minister. Why not write his life up to the
present time?
People ever so distant from london, who have any
appreciation of national beauty, and any feeling for
the sanitary acquirements of the dwellers in our large
city will be glad to learn that Hampstead Heath isnow
safe for the recreation of our population. It will coot
some £50,000 to oomplete the arrangements entered
into, but there will be no difficulty about this,
and 240 acres of recreation ground will thus be pre-
served to us for ever. This is all the more important
seeing that elsewhere in the suburbs of the metropolis
our commons are being nibbled away bit by bit.

It has been often asserted that we have no national
school of music, but thoae who proudly dispute this
have been in the habit of referring to the familiar
name of Balfe. Ireland may taunt us that so many
of those who are referred to as belonging to the Eng.
lish school of music wore really Irishmen (It is remark.
able by the way how few women composers of any
country there have been), but the civilised world may
well mourn Balfe's loss. With how many charming
operas, with how many lovely airs, is his name iden-
tified.

Thepoet-cards are universally admitted to be • great
convenience, but I have heard many complaints of
their being delayed in delivery, and the evidence in a
recent case showed that some of them passed through
the Post Office without being damned I The depart-
ment has not yet perhaps had time sufficient to get into
thorough working order after the new arrangements,
so that we must not be too hard upon the G P.O. Boys
are now very largely employed in the post-offices, and
though this may be a tolerably good thing for the boys
It is not particularly beneficial to men who would other-
wise be engaged. It becomes a question, too, whether
thews boys, even as boys, are sufficiently paid. Lads
who have to eort manses of letters, many of which con-
tain articles of value, are paid only 6e. a week. This
is certainly not adequate to the duties as the Postmaster
General will, doubtless, be told the first time one of
these boys is had up for robbery.
It is rumoured that an eminent London publisher
has offered £lO,OOO for the exclusive right of publishing
the revised version of the Bible now in progress. But
ought there to be any copyright at all in the Bible?
On the other hand it may be asked, ought any one to
have the right of publishing the Bible, seeing that an
alleged copy may or may not be correct! There is
ranch to be said on both aides. But if this eminent
publisher, whoever he may be, has made such an offer,
be will have plenty of time to think over his bargain.
Probably he will be quite a patriarch by the time the
new translation is finished I
Many persons probably thought that the execution
of Mrs. Waters would pot • stop to baby-farming, but
this has been too much to expect. Peaby-ferming began
long before she was born, and will doubtless exist, in
some form or other, long after her payiug the terrible
penalty of her crimes. It is stated, indeed, that the
police have received information of three baby-
farming establishments now existing in a London
suburb, and that 'very shortly the owners of these es-
tablishments will be arrested and brought before the
basgistrates"—tuilese this note of alarm causes the people
to escape. Meanwhile efforts are being made towards
procuring the registration of nurses who take children
for hire as well OA of the children themselves, and a bill
with this object will be brought in next session, pro-
bably by Mr. Charley. But would It not be well for
the Government to take up the matter? This would
be only a fitting sequel to the recent Government pro-
secution, There is no reason whit v.r why Parliament
should try to achieve an in, possibility--pre vent the
placing out of infants. What the public demand is
that this necessary evil should be regulated ; that those
engaged in it should be rf gistered, so that offenders
may be brought to justice.

A Newport couple have Oat celebrated their pearl
wedding, Imelda been married for sematy years.