The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1858-04-06 00:00:00

Somtratobire.

Ytom.—Robbery at a BUveremith'e. —On Sundey
morning week, the shop of Mr. Dobai, silversmith,
of this town, was broken open. The following is a
list of the ;atolls stolen, with the prices marked
upon them t—One pair of silver brthelets, 224. one
silver mounted pebble oval link, with heart, arose,
and anchor atteched, 37e. 6d. i one ditto, buckle
fastening band, 375. ; one ditto, heart fastening,
16s. 6d.; one ditto, white pebble, silver mounted,
with heart, its. 9d, one pair, brown wood and
steel, 2s. Plated brooches—two scroll miniature,
swivel, 10s. 6d. each ; one ditto ditto, 12s. Id. ; one,
miniature and hair devioe, swivel, 101. 6d. one,
miniature only, 9e. Id. ; one, ivory sitting, 2 doge,
20e. I one, stag, Se. one, 3 stone garnets, 14..; one
ditto, Ss. two, 2 stone ditto, lie. Id. Cameo.—
one, scroll mounted, St. George and Dragon, 20e. ;
one, twist and leaf, St. George and Dragon, 20s. ;
one, head, flat wreathed with flowers, 10t. Id. ; one,
horses and oar, man driving, 10e.; one, scroll and
leaf, Hobe, Si.; silver cake knife and fork, 55e. Id.;
The perpetrators of this felony must have removed
one of the shutters on the side nearest Hendford, by
driving back the bar which is supposed to fasten the
shutters, thereby loosening any one of them so as to
drop it on the ground. They then broke a large
square of glass, and, inserting • band, swept away
everything within reach that they thought proper to
abstract. The night policeman was at the spot at 4
o'clock, when everything was right, so that the rob.
bery must have taken place after that hour—at
which time the night police are off duty.
THZ MORDZII, AT MIDDLIZOT.—At the Somerset
anises on Saturday, before Mr. Justice Crowder,
Ann Richards was charged with the wilful murder
of her husband, Thomas Richards, at Middlesoy, on
the 9th of March. The prisoner, who is stated in the
calendar to be 65 years of age, is a thin emaciated
woman, but indifferently clad, and wearing a widow's
cap. The trial did not appear to excite so much in-
terest as is occasionally manifested in similar cues.
Mr. Cole appeared on behalf of the proeecution, and
Mr. Hooper defended the prisoner. Several wit-
nesses having been heard, his Lordship summed up,
and the jury acquitted the priaoner, on the ground of
insanity. She was ordered to be confinsal during
Her Majesty's pleasure.
Bauvors Catrecn.—The opening of the new organ
will be celebrated on Easter Thursday, by • full
cathedral 'service by the Vicar's choral and choristers
of Wells Cathedral; the service being in the morn-
ing at half-past eleven. A sermon in aid of the
organ hind will be preached by the Rev. R. Huston,
M.A., Vicar of Sherborne.

BRUTON. Melancholy Accident—A most dis-
tressing and determined act of suicide was commit-
ted on -Wednesday week, at a village named Wyke,
about a mile from this town by a woman named
Louisa Hicks. It appears that she had an illegiti.
mate child about a month singe,
_which preyed on
her mind so that she determined to destroy her-
self, A few days before she committed the act, she
sent a boy with a note to Mr. Hill, chemist, of Bru-
ton, for six-penny worth of laudanum, stating it was
for the use of cattle, and in a day or so after she sent
for a similar quantity, and this was the fatal dose.
Mr. Taylor, surgeon of Castle Cary, was imme-
diately sent for, and applied the stomach pump,
but all to no purpose, and the unfortunate woman
expired within a short time after. A coroner's in.
quest was held, and a verdict of " Feb de so" was
found, and the unhappy woman was buried late
on Monday night.
_

Da. LIVINGSTONE. —ln connection with the
Yeovil Mutual Improvement Society, on Thursday
evening the Rev. H. J. Chancellor, of Salisbury,
delivered a lecture on the "Travels and Discoveries
of Dr. Livingstone, in South Africa." The chair
was occupied by R. Donne, Esq., and the attend-
ance was very numerous. The lecture was illus-
trated by a large map of South Africa, and numerous
drawings. Mr. Chancellor mid that Dr. Living-
stone, in his early life, gave indication of the per-
severance, the diligence, and the determination to
overcome difficulties, which characterized his sub-
sequent career. When but a boy, he had to earn
his livelihood by the sweat of his brow; he became
a cotton spinner, but although he had to toil from
early in the morning to late in the evening, he found
time to acquire • knowledge of botany, geology, and
of the Latin language; and such was the advance-
ment he made that he tells us, be knew more of
Virgil and Horace when 16 years of age, than he
did now. The very first week that he received
wages for his work, he spent a portion of it in par.
chasing "The Rudiments of Latin." He was
determined to succeed, and did succeed. He ac-
complished what he proposed, and by the blaming
of God upon his labours, had earned a fame which
few had ever surpaesed. While thus engaged in
amassing treasures of knowledge, his mind became
impressed with the idea of going to China ; but
the Chinese war happening at that period, he offered
himself as a missionary to the Loudon Missionary
Society, to go to South Africa. Having reached the
Cape of Good Hope, he settled himself among the
Bakwains, some hundred miles from the station
where Moffat laboured. He found the people ex-
ceedingly degraded and depraved; but in course of
time he succeeded in making a deep impression upon
the chief Sechele, and upon one occsaion, when they
were talking about the great judgment day, Sechele
said to him, "Stop, that makes my bones shake.
If you and your ancestors knew all these things,
why did you not come and tell my forefather.!
Now, alas, they are all reamed into deep darkness."
After some years, Sechele was baptised, and be
had continued firm to the present moment, doing all
he could to promote the instruction of his people.
Whilst Dr. Livingstone was amongst these Bakwauis,
the Boera, a people residing in the neighbouring
mountains became very troublesome. They were
vexed to find that the natives were supplied with
fire arms, and sent several threatening messages, so
that he found it expedient to remove from that
country as soon as possible. It was the threatening'
and attacks of these Boers that led him first to en-
tertain the thought of becoming an explorer to the
north, and but for them he would probably have
now been quietly labouring at that station. The
rev, gentleman then described Dr. Livingtone's
journey northward in 1849, through the Bakalahari
desert, the features of which he vividly portrayed
—and a number of "salt-pane," which he said were
20 or 30 miles each in diameter, the inner portions
being incrusted with salt. He noticed a curious
mode of obtaining water in the desert—the women
boring holes in the sand, and inserting into
them reeds, through which they sucked up
the water into their mouths, conveying it thence
into the shells of ostrich eggs, which they took
with them for the purpose. On reaching Lake
Ngami—a lake 70 miles in circumference—Dr.
Livingstone found it necessary to return; but he
recommenced his journey the next year, and again in
1851, when he reached the Makololo territory, and
met with Sebituane, the chief of that tribe, who
welcomed him with great kindness. He appeared a
chief in advance of his day, being very anxious for
the elevation and improvement of his people. But
the intercourse of Dr. Livingstone with him was but
of brief duration, as he was seized with inflammation,
and carried off in a short time. Dr. Livingstone
again returned, and he made up his mind to send
his wife and family to England, to go back through
the desert, and endeavour to accomplish the object
he had in view, which was the establishment of a
I mission station further to the north, in a healthy
region, and where the people were in some respects
ready to receive the truth. In describing this
journey, which was commenced in 1852, the rev.
gentleman, having traced Dr. Livingstone back to
Makololo, spoke of his efforts to induce the people
to learn to read, in which some of them were pro-
gressing satisfactorily when he left that country to
find a route to the western coast. He also described
the customs of the Makololo women, who covered
their bodies with butter, and appeared uncommonly
comfortable in that condition. (Laughter.) Here
Dr. Livingstone took several Makololo men to ac-
company him, and proceeded on his course, passing
the lUrotee valley, a district of great fertility, en-
closed between two mountain ranges, and so produc-
tive that the natives were accustomed to call it the
land of plenty, where hunger was never felt. It
was, however, a land of death, being, in consequence
of the inundations of the river, subject to malaria
that were highly injurious to human life. He reached
Loanda in May, 1854, and was most kindly received
by the bishop—a Portuguese, and • Roman Catholic
—who entertained him as a brother. Not
having discovered any suitable position for his
purpose, he determined to see what could be
done in a route towards the eastern coast.
The Victoria Falls, on the river Zambesi, the waters
of which, above the falls were 1,000 yards wide, fell
from • height of 100 feet, sending up five jets of
vapour. They then became contracted to the narrow
space of 30 yards, and went on roaring and foaming
with hills on each side for 30 miles, when they ex-
panded again to their previous width. Dr. Living.
stone said he could not but believe that angels often
visited such scenes as this; it was one unsurpassed
in beauty and magnificence. After relating nume-
rous incidents of the ,ioumey, and speaking of the
Betake tribe, and their custom of 'mocking out
their front teeth, which gave them a peculiarly faro.
oious appearance, the lecturer pve a facetious expo.
salon of "women's rights" all existing_ in a stale
through which the distinguished traveller passed.
The husband on marrying went to live in his wife's
village. The wife could divome the husband, but
the husband could not divorce the wife. Sometimes
the ladies became a little obstreperous, and if they
wished to revenge themselves on their husbands they
would prepare no dinner. Oooasionaebdlows were
resorted to, and the husband was obliged to apply
to the authorities, when the wife was ordered batiks
him upon her shoulders and carry him through the
village in the sight of the people who followed her,
the men Jesting and laughing, and the women *now
raging her in -her proceedings. When Dr. Living.
atone passed, a peal Billinagate sort of woman was
carrying about a little insignitloant.looking man
upon her shoulders in this way. Mr. Obanoellor
went on to say that, having selected a spot ;suitable
for his purposei_Dr. Livingstone returned to Eng.
land in ISM. He then remarked upon the objects
he had in view—the development of commerce by
the establishment of commercial stations on the
Zambesi river, and encouragement of the native
tribes to cultivate their country the suppression of
the slave trade, and the religious and moral sieve.
Hon of the natives I "the en of geographical light"
being "the commencement of missionary enter.
prise." He concluded by expressing in what were,
he said, almost the dosing words of Di. Livingstone,
a hope that he would be able in his day and senora.
Hon "to do good for poor Africa." The Chairman
presented the thanks of the audience to Mr. Chan.
(sailor for his interesting lecture.