The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1878-10-05 00:00:00

THE REVENUE AND ITS WARNINGS.

an article with the above beading, the Pall Mall
wazette remarks :
" Unless we mean deliberately to underrate incl.
fending difficulties, we should admit at once, and
that the financial prospects of the country de-
tiand serious consideration. Expenditure is steadily
`uereasiog. Unless an absolute wrong be done to the
fiteple of India, the cost of an Afghan war will in all
tt, elihood be added to the many charges with which
e Imperial Exchequer is burdened; and there is,
fortunately, no hope that this expense will be
nvered by the natural growth in the revenue. On the
irtra the revenue is either stationary or diminish-
Neither the external nor the internal trade of
e country justifies any expectations of its immediate
;,teProvement. The people of other nations, stunned
e", the commercial crises of the last few years, or
ehausted by the exertions which war, or preparations
War, have imposed upon them, are unable to buy
.4_44 our markets; while our own people, oppressed by
:74gnant trade and a decreasing demand for labour, are
rowing the purchase of those commodities from
ell the larger portion of the national income is
''avrn." .% 7' - ,

4„4-nliOng the food industries which have lately sprung
setii America is the Il dried-egg industry," which, it Is
4ted, has proved a great success. The egg 6 are carefully
:earalned by light, to ascertain whether they are good or
and are then thrown into an immense receptacle, where
are broken, and by a centdingel operation the white
yolk are separated from the shell, very much as liquid
uoney is separated from the comb. The li+tutd is then driad
beak by a special process; and the result is a sub;tance
rich resembling sugar, which is put in bssrels and is ready
Li': transportation to any p3int, preserving complete:fy all
th R2oq qualities. It has, indeed, been taken twice acrea's
tr &pater in 'Ws, and found equal for no &Unary Mee
eggs freshly la.

[From Punch.)
THE NEW POLICY.

(Or, what ought to have come of it,—(f there hadn't been a
hitch somewhere)

SCENE—The .Reeeption-Hall in the Royal Palace at Cabul
The Ameer discovered on his throne, surrounded by high
State functionaries, the Ladies of his Harem, his Body
Guard, Court Jugglers, Slaves, and a private Brass Band.
Enter Sin NEVILLE CHAMBERLAIN on a richly caparisoned
White Elephant, escorted by one Thousand British Hussars,
and the whole population of Afghanistan wild with enthu•
siasm. .

The Amter (descending from his throne, and crawling for-
Ward on his knees with market i civility) Welcome to the
Great Stranger—a thousand times welcome 1 See, the old
Ameer is proud to make his acquaintance. There is peace
between us 1

Sir Neville (through an interpreter). Ditto to you, old
boy!
The Ameer. Allah be praised for that Allah be praised
for that! (Es assisted on to his feet.) And now tell me—has
the Great dtranger brought the poor, easily satisfied old
Ameer any presents?

Sir Neville. Certainly. There you are (Motions to his
Suite, who empty the contents of several chests of carving-
knives, Birmingham ware, teapots, moderators, opera-hats,
and bicycles in a heap before him.) There All that's from
your great Feudal Sovereign, you know—the Kaiser-i-Hind,
the mighty Empress. And here—here 's a letter for you!

[Hands him a despatch

7h.e Ameer (bewildered). A letter to the poor, humble,
easily-satisfied old Ameer! Oh, this is too gracious—too
kind! But read it to him, my son: for he has never
learned reading, writing—nor, indeed, he may add, arith-
metic! His education has been sadly neglected—sadly.
But Allah be praised for that Allah be praised for that!
Sir Neville. Quite so. Well, this is about it. (Opens a
despatch.) You see, LYTTort's latest idea is to make tnings
hot, and get up a row all round—somehow. He 's stirring
up the feudatories down South fairly now, and we calculate
that that move will be tolerably ripe in a month or two.
Meantime, as it is always pleasant to have more than one
tough job on hand, we have thought it as well, hearing
that you are a dangerous old savage, to drag you in—neck
and heels. You see you are cut off from us completely by an
almost impassable mountain range, and, with your four
hundred and fifty miles of badly-watered territory to
traverse, you could positively keep our natural enemies the
Russians quite at arm's-length. But you don't. Now, this
won't do, you know—it dosen't bit off the new policy. So, all
you've got to manage is this. Send ABRAMOFF and his set
flying back to St. Petersburg; and if that doesn't bring a
Cossack horde over your borders,—well, take a dip over
them North yourself, and see if you can't stir up a row that
way. Meanwhile, all we want to do is to ride roughshod
over the place, depose you, you know, it necessary, and, in
short, arrange everything with a view to a brisk universal
Asiatic blow-up before—let's say, next spring.
The Ameer. And is that all, my sen ? Is that all?
Sir Neville. That's all, old boy!
The Ameer. Allah be praised for that! Allah be praised;
[Weeps tears of gratitude, and is left embracing all the
members of the Mission, in turns, as the Curtain falls