The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1884-10-18 00:00:00

BRITISH AND FOREIGN.

The number of visitors to the International Health
Exhibitiont ast week was 200,934; the total since the
opening is 3,518,761.
The Lord Mayor of London delivered an evangelistic
address on Sunday evening at Watford to a densely-
crowded congregation at the Beechen-grove Baptist
Chapel, in aid ol a fund for the erection of a new Primi-
tive Methodist chapel in the town. He is staying at
eaceriobury-park, tbe guest of the Hon Reginald OnpelL
Owing to the excesses committed by certain students
at Kief the university there has been closed by the
Russian Government, and the dismissed students ar.:
prohibited from entering other universities.
Considerable excitement prevails in Germany in con-
nection with the approaching elections to the Reichstag,
and influential Conservative groups are opposing the
leaders of the anti-Semitic movement.

The Prince and Princess of Wales, accompanied by
Prince Albert Victor and the Princesses Louisa, Vic-
toria, and Maud, arrived at Marlborough House on
Saturday from Abergeldie Castle. The Prince of Wales
was subsequently present at a meeting of the trustees of
the British Museum.

A Reuter rs telegram, dated Rim—go-on, October 11,
says: A representative and influential meeting has been
held here with regard to the recent massacres at Man-
dalay, upwards of 8000 persons being present. Resolu-
tions were adopted, among others strongly recommend-
in annexation of Burmah by England, or, failing
this, the deposition of the present ruler.
At the opening services on Sunday of the new place
of worship of the Wellington-street United Presby-
terian Church, in the west end of Glasgow, the col-
lections amounted to the sum of £12,500. This is said
to be the largest collect:on ever made in any church in
Scotland.

Admiral Nicholas Lefebvre died on the 7th inst., at
his residence. Rue Lefebvre, Guernsey, in the 88th year
of his age. He served in the East Indian and South
Sea stations from 1834 to 1838, and obtained a cap-
taincy in 1853. He was placed on the retired list in
1864, became a retired rear-admiral in 1869, vice-
admiral in 1876, and a retired admiral in 1880.
The Great Eastern saw mills at Bristol were destroyed
by fire on Sunday morning, together with a valuable
stock of timber, plant, and machinery, the damage being
estimated at about £6OOO. The proprietor, Mr. Milsorn,
and his family, who lived in a house adjoining, escaped
in-their night-dresses, their dwelling being completely
gutted.

There have been heavy snowfalls in all the moun-
tainous districts of Austria. Snow is now lying in the
valleys of the Tyrol.
At the Dover Police-court on Tuesday a man named
Mutton was charged on remand with smuggling upwards
of Bcwt. of tobacco. The Solicitor to the Customs
Commissioner prosecuted. The defendant was fined
011.

Intelligence from Monte Video states that a vessel
which has arrived there reports that the French
steamer Arctique, which stranded in the Straits of
Magellan, was on fire and had been abandoned.
Madame Urway, wife of the editor ot " Pesti Naplo,"
a lady well known in Pesth Society, has committed
suicide by shootinz herself.
At the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, the mean
reading of the barometer last week was 29.736 in. The
mean temperature was 47.9 deg., and 4.7 deg. below the
average in the corresponding week of twenty years.
The mean showed a slight excess on Monday and Tues-
day, but was below the average during the other days
of the week.

In Londiiii last week 2882 births and 1344 deaths were
registered. Allowing for increase of population, the
births were 404, and the deaths 184, below the
average numbers in the corresponding weeks
of the last ten years. The annual death - rate
from all causes, which, in the two preceding weeks,
had been 16.1 and 17.2 per thousand, declined
to 17.5. There were 9 deaths from smallpox, 9 from
measles, 16 from scarlet fever, 16 from diphtheria,
11 from whooping-cough, 26 from enteric fever, and
11 from dysentery.
From th 2 Ist of April to the 11th inst. the Exchequer
receipts amounted to £48,610,819, or £1,966,700 less
than the £50,577,519 received in the corresponding
period ending October 13, 1883. The expenditure up
to the 11th inst. was £46,876,908, being £2,134,984 less
than the expenditure for the similar period of last
year. The balance on the 11th inst. amounted to
£1,733,911, and on October 13, 1883, were £1,565,627.

„
The” Poor Traveller" house at Rochester immor-
talised by Charles Dickens in one of his Christmas
annuals is threatened with extinction. The Charity
Commissioners have drawn up a new scheme, in which
they propose to apply the funds of this ancient charity
to the assistance of poor persons desiring to emigrate,
or to find them work at home, and to the maintenance
of sick persons in convalescent homes &c. There is a
strong local feeling against this suggestion.
Four men, named Ibbotson, Yates, Marsh, and Pike,
were on Tuesday sentenced by the West Riding magis-
trates at Sheffield to one month's imprisonment and
bound over to keep the peace. The charge was one of
night poaching, hitt the circumstances were aggravated
by an attack made by the prisoners on a farmer named
Phillips. The latter defended himself with a clasp
knife, and a desperate fight ensued, and resulted in the
attackers being put to flight. One of them was severely
injured.
At the Swansea Sessions on Tuesday William H.
Maxted, locally known as "The Neath Masher," was
sentenced to seven years' penal servitude forfraudtku-
lently obtaining goods from several pers-ons at icea
He had previously been convicted of forgery at the
Central Criminal Court.
George Abdale, brassfounder, and Annie Potter were
at Birmingham, on Tuesday, prosecuted by the Treasury
for frauds upon the War Office, the prisoners having, as
alleged, since April, 1883, forged certificates of a dis-
charged soldier, named Thomas Howell, for his pay, he
being entitled to a pension. Howell was convicted in
October, 1883, and is still a prisoner. He was brought
into court to give evidence under a writ of habeas
corpus, and was in the custody of the police. The
woman formerly lived with him, but, upon his convic-
tion, transferred her affections to Abdale. She stated
when arrested that she had Howell's authority to remise
the pay during his imprisonment, but tbis allegation
was denied. The prisoners were committed for trial,
and refused bail.

A married woman named Kelly met with a shocking
accident on Sunday morning at Palmerston, near
Dublin. She was riding in a trap, when the horse shied
at an engine attached to a steam-tram car. Her head
struck against the projecting part of the engine, and
she was thrown under the car, receiving such injuries
that death was instantaneous.
A fatal accident occurred to a man named A. M.
Alderson, at Sunderland, on Monday morning, while fol-
lowing his employment at Messrs. Wayman and
Priestly's brickworks. He was working among some
clay some 20ft. deep, when a quantity gave way and
knocked him down, burying him among it. When re-
covered he was dead.

On Monday afternoon, at the Cheshire Quarter
Sessions at Knutsford, Mr. Christopher Bushel, in the
absence of the Duke of Westminster, lord-lieutenant of
the county, asked the court to contribute £lOOO towards
the abolition of the Dee-bridge tolls, and explained that
01,000 out of £33,000 had been raised. His Grape
personally contributed £lO,OOO towards the abolition
of these tolls. The court unanimously granted the
sum.
At Durham Assizes on Monday, Margaret Powell,
domestic servant, was charged with mixing three and a,
half grains of blue vitriol with her mistress's tea, in
order, as she stated, to spoil the tea and annoy her
mistress. The latter had quarrelled with the girl about
nine weeks before the present offence was committed,
when blows were exchanged. A few days afterwards
some liniment was found to have been mixed in her
mistress's tea, and she narrowly escaped drinking it.
The blueish tint of the mixture led to the discovery
that vitriol had been used. The prisoner was sentenced
to 12 months' imprisonment.
At the Dover Quarter Sessions on Monday, before
Mr. H. B. Poland, the recorder, a young man named
Ellis, aged 22, of respectable appearance, was charged
with stealink a quantity of jewellery and £lO in money
from an eating-house in Dover. It was proved that the
prisoner was wanted for similar robberies at Cambridge,
King's Lynn, Sunderland, Middlesborough, Stockton-
on-Tees, and other places. The robberies in each case
were cleverly perpetrated. The prisoner, who belonged
to Bermondsey, was committed to prison for 12 months,
with hard labour.
The Recorder of Shrewsbury, Mr. A. R. Jelf, Q. 0.,
in addressing the grand jury at the Quarter Sessions
there on Monday said that the late alterations in the
duties of judges on circuit had caused great public
inconvenience, and suggested that the present difficul-
ties might be overcome by extending the jurisdiction of
the court of quarter sessions, whereby the business of
the assize courts might be very considerably reduced,
fur very many cases now heard before judges might
very well be heard before inferior courts.
A remarkable case of self-starvation came before the
Northampton coroner on Monday morning. A beer-
house keeper named Hardwick went to bed on the
12th ult, suffering from melancholia, and, despite all
entreaties, refused to take any food save minute quan-
tities of soup and arrowroot. He died on Friday from
what the medical evidence described as self-imposed
starvation. The jury returned a verdict of sudden
death. caused by insufficient food.
At Novomoskofsk, in the province of Ekaterinoslav,
Russia, a trial of heresy is about to take place, in which
92 men and 11 women sectarians will figure as accused.
They belong to a new sect of seceders from the Ortho-
dox Church, which recognises neither spiritual nor tem-
poral authorities, and disbelieves in the sacrament, and
the virtue of holy pictures.
The number of towns in Germany provided with a
system of telephones is 45, with a total of 7549 sub-
scribers.

The National Gallery's recent acquisition, Antonella
da Messina's "Christ on the Cross," has been hung in
oom XII., on the next screen to the great Leonardo.
The memorial of the liberation of Vienna in 1683 in
the Cathedral of St. Stephen's, on which the sculptor,
Herr Helmer, is engaged, will, it is expected, be com-
pleted by Christmas.
At this moment there are 122 printing-houses in
Greece, which produce annually about 1000 different
works. Nearly every village has its newspaper. In
Athens alone there are no fewer than 54 political papers.
The remains of the Hon. Gilbert Leigh, M.P., arrived
at New York on Thursday in last week, and were taken
to Grace Church. They were embarked for England on
Friday.
The fruit growers of California have discovered a new
application for the electric light. Many bushels of
night-flying insects are killed in their orchards near the
city when the electric light is employed.
The Post-office authorities have equipped a number
of miniature vans to be worked by the ordinary tricycle
mechanism. They, are like the other vehicles of the
Post-office administration, painted a bright red, and
bear the inscription "Parcel Post." The tricycle vans
are already found very economical and expeditious both
in collecting and distributing in suburban districts,
where the work is comparatively light.
The trade-marks registered last year were 4241 in
number, an increase of nearly 17000 over the number
for 1882. Various kinds of cotton goods accounted for
1924 of these trade-marks; fermented liquors and
spirits for 220; articles of food for 203; and tobacco for
171.
Great preparations are being made in Denmark and
Norway to celebrate the bicentenary of the birth of
Ludvig Holbere, the father of the Danish stage, on
December 3. Holberg was born in Bergen, in Norway,
where a statue of him will be unveiled on his birthday.
He settled down, however, in Copenhagen where he
studied and took his degree. He was a poet;dramatist,
historian, and philosopher.
More gold fields are reported to have been discovered
on the Russo-Chinese frontier of the Amoor, twelve
miles from the frontier on the Chinese side; and the
Russians, who have complained so much of the invasion
of fbA• own Ride by the Chinese, are now swarming
over to the new Chinese El Dorado.
Forty years ago a gentleman left £20,000 for the
erection of an additional gallery to the British Museum.
This has just been completed and handed over to the
keeper of the Greek and Roman antiquities, who has
furnished it with splendid specimens of the works under
his care. A marble tablet, with gilt letters has been
affixed to the north wall, inscribed: "This gallery
was erected in the year 1882 from funds bequeathed
to the trustees of the British Museum by William
White,Esq.
On recovering his health the Ameer of Afghanistan
devoted the proceeds of the congratulatory offerings
which were made to him to the construction of a road
from Sherpur to Pamunar.
A committee has been formed at Lucerne with a view
of erecting what is called a" universal column." It is to
measure 3001 t. in height, and is to contain in its interior
relief portraits of all the celebrated men and women of
the present era on bronze tablets. Another project of
the committee,the " Athenwum " says, is the building
of a "museum of the nineteenth century," to be
dedicated to art, science, inventions, commerce, and
industry, and to contain the busts and statues of all
distinguished persons in these domains. The cost is
estimated at seven to eight million francs (£280,000
to £320,000), and is to be met by subscriptions,
lotteries, Sze.
The whole number of publications of the world during
the year 1883 was, according to official accounts sent
out from Leipzig, no fewer than 15,474 books, pamph-
lets, &c., and 386 maps, or 429 books &c., and 40 maps
more than during the year 1882. Leipzig continues to
be the centre of the book trade for Germany, and,
indeed, for the whole world. In that city during the
past year no fewer than 2624 books and 14 maps were
published; while in Berlin 2484 books and 57 maps
were issued. Austiia issued 1944 publications, and
Switzerland 644.

News comes from Suez that the oldest and most
celebrated dealer in wild animals in the world, Mr.
Bernhardt Kohn, died in Kassala, at the beginning of
August last, in his 72nd year. Mr. Kohn was the first
to import animals into Europe direct from Nubia.
Quite lately he had procured a large number of giraffes,
lions, antelopes, ostriches, monkeys, kc., and had them
brought to Kassala. For eight months Kassala has
been besieged by the adherents of the Mandi, and since
the death of Mr. Kohn the Mudir of Taka has been in
great embarrassment what to do with all the animals.
It was thought probable that they would be slaughtered
by the inhabitants, who were said to be in danger of
famine.
A German engineer claims to have discovered a
means of condensing or expanding the gas in a balloon
by the use of carbonic acid. By this discovery not
only could the aeronaut ascend and descend until he
finds a suitable air-current, but in war time a balloon
may enter the enemy's territory and leave again with-
out requiring a fresh supply of gas.
Through the munificence of the German Emperor,
the Royal library at Berlin has been enriched by an
extensive collection of ancient Arabic literature, com-
prising 1000 works in 1052 volumes. The oldest of
these manuscripts dates from 1058 an., perhaps earlier,
ard is called the " Kitab Elfelalae," or book of agricul-
ture, by the celebrated IlenWahshijje.
A great fire has occurred at Paita, in Peru, by which
fifty houses, including the Spanish and Portuguese con-
sulates, have been destroyed. No mention is made of
the loss of any British property. The damage is esti-
mated at 250,000 dols.
Copies of resolutions passed at a recent conference on
technical education having been forwarded to Mr.
Gladstone, with a request that he would consent to
receive a deputation on the subject, the Premier's secre-
tary has sent a reply, in which he says that with regard
to the. request that Mr. Gladstone should receive a
derutation, " I am directed to state that he is unable to
comply, as the subject in question belongs to a depart-
ment of the State with which he is not immediately
connected, and he would advise an application to Lord
Carlingford or Mr. Mundella."
Considerable anxiety was caused by the late
arrival of the Ostend boat on Saturday morning. She
left that port at eight o'clock on Friday night, but did
not reach Dover until fire o'clock on Saturday morning,
having been nine hours on her passage. She encountered
b
very heavy weather in the Channel, and had part of her
ulwarks carried away. The Calais boat also had a very
rough passage. Before getting clear of the French
coast she was struck by a heavy sea on the port side,
which carried away part of her paddle box.
During the north westerly gale on Saturday the
schooner Little Kate, at anchor in Sheerness harbour,
broke adrift from her moorings and drifted on to the
stone slope of Queenborough Wall, a quarter of a mile
distant. The vessel sustained some injuries to her keel,
and has not yet been got off. The Little Kato is the
schooner which was run down about a year ago by one
harbourafternoe ni na a Danishdisabled
condicondition,
n was ,
having
a tNoiwn
of the Flushing mail steamers and has since been
moored in the Medway
unemployed. On Saturday
gedloisnttoherShaerichoessr,
besides suffering other damage in the gale.
A severe gale prevailed on Saturday at Margate, &
strong north-east wind having blown in windows and
destroyed fences. The sea was so boisterous that it
washed over the Marine Palace to the gardens at the
rear. A boat in the harbour was smashed and a barge
damaged. Several shops were partly or entirely

,closed.
- The additions to the Zoologioal Society's Gardens,
during last week include a lesser whitenosed monkey
from West Afriea, presented by Miss Ethel A. Hutton ;
a bonnet monkey, from India, presented by Mr. W.
Phillips ; two great bats, British, presented by Captain
W. St. George Ord ; a horned lizard, from Texas, pre-
sented by Mrs. S. Russell; an Eraleben monkey, from
We Africa, a common marmoset, a black-eared mar-
moset f orn South-East Brazil, a pig-tailed monkey from
Java, two small hill-mynahs from Southern India, a blue-
bearded jay from Para. an alligator from tho Mississippi,
deposited.