The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1884-11-08 00:00:00


EPITOME OF NEWS.

A second writ of mandamus from the Court of
Queen's Bench was served on Saturday on the mayor,
town clerk, and members of the Limerick Corporation,
claiming a further sum of DIM 4s. for extra police, in
addition to the previous sum of £1450, for which the
first writ was served. The corporation is allowed to
the 17th inst. to pay the money.
The Postmaster-General has appointed Mr. John
Nitford, of the Receiver and Accountant-Gederars
Department, General Post-office, to the post of chief
cashier, vacant by the superannuation of Mr. Wilkin-
son.

It is stated that Sir Charles Warren is likely to take
with him from this country some picked volunteers for
service in Bechuanaland.

Commander John F. Rainier, who was a member of
the committee on machine guns in 1880-81, and Secre-
tary to the Committee on torpedo instruction this year,
has been appointed to the command of H.M.S. King-
fisher, to be recommissioned for a farther term of ser-
vice, although she only recently returned from the
Pacific Station.
The last time Professor Schweinfurth was in Ger-
many he presented to the Egyptian Department of the
Royal Museum a numb; r of well-preserved plants out
of the old Egyptian monuments. Among them are
wreaths and garlands of flowers, consisting of leaves
and blossoms, found in the manner represented in
ancient Egyptian sculpture, and also single branches of
plants. These things have been taken from the enve-
lopment of mummies, and are so well preserved that
very often the red and yellow colour of many of the
flowers can still be recognised. They have been placed
between plates of glass to keep them from pressure, but
they are unfortunately very susceptible to the effect of
light.

A bill to extend certain provisions of the Factory
Acts to shops has been issued.
Mr. Parnell has written to the Secretary of the
County of Dublin Registration Association congratula-
tions upon the success of the revision for the past two
years, by which 1100 National voters have been added
to the register, and stating that two National candi-
dates for the county should be started at the next
General Election.

A Good Service Pension of £l5O a year has been
awarded to Captain Francis M. Prattent, commodore
and senicr naval officer in charge at Jamaica.
The Belgian Ministry proposes to form the military
reserve of 30,000 men, which is considered necessary
for the security of Belgium in time of war, by extend-
ing the period of the obligation of those who have
served in the regular array to rejoin it, in case of mobili-
sation, to 13 years.
A correspondent, writing off Korosko, says : "The
monotony of the life of the three officers here is some-
what indescribable. An out-station of a bog in Ireland
would be a paradise in comparison. Sand, sand, eternal
sand, varied by black rocks. I remember describing a
fearful hole I was quartered in in the Soudan—Kawa,
on the White Nile; but there one could sally out at
early dawn over grassy plains, among bryshwood, and
see the startled antelope bound away and the bustard
whirr overhead. Here, outside Korosko fort and ham-
let there is not a vestige of life—naked savage sterility,
unrelieved by a single blade of grass."
A machine which makes type and sets it up oat the
same time has been invented in America, and is attract-
ing a good deal of attention at Washington. The new
machine is operated the same as a type writer, except
that a cast is not made of each letter separately, but of
each word or line. It is very complicated, and is not
easily described. A word or line is set—that is, a
matrix of type is made in soft copper, and the frill line
cast at the stroke of the finger. This already works
Fairly well, the thing most lacking being evenness of
the faces as the type line appears. Notwithstanding
tHs defect, it is said to be the opinion of experts that
this wonderful machine will be workable. About
50,000 dols. has thus far been expended upon it, and it
is so far perfected as to suggest a reasonable hope of
practical success. Then "there will be a revolution in
the art of type-making and type-setting," and, accord-
ing to another authority, " a girl with sense enough to
run a type-writer can set up as much as ten men now
can, and make her own type as she goes along too."—
"Iron."

'The additions to the Zoological Society's Gardens
during last week include a Vervet monkey, from
South Africa, presented by Mr. Thomas Ely; a Grivet
monkey from West Africa, presented by Mrs. K. E.
Villers ; a common paradoxure, from India, preernteel
by Mrs. L. McArthur; a hedgehog (British) presented
by Mr. C. G. Hopkins; a laughing kingfisher, from
Australia, presented by Mrs. A. M. Packard: two -
seedeaters from Smith Africa, presented by Mr. W. B.
Cheadle. F.Z.S. ; a mute swan (European) presented bv
Lady Siemens; a common chameleon' from North
Africa, a common viper, British, presented by Mr. F. H.
Jennings; a proteus, European, presented by Mr. W. J.
Mules; three common marmosets, from Brazil, six
Canadian beavers, from Canada, two lesser sulphur-
crested cockatoos from the Moluccas, deposited •,
Talapoin monkey, an Allen's galaao, a thick-billed
rirgeon, a river jack viper, from West Africa, two
horrid rattl.snake3 from Florida, purchased; four
Hardwick's rsastigures from India, two Bengal blonitori
from Bengal, a Nilotic eracadilo from Africa, received
in exchange..

The Lore! Chancellor has issued an order for the
closing of the County Courts on the 24th, 26th,and 27th
of December.

Mr. Campbell-Bannerman, Chief Secretary for Ire-
land, is now, like his predecessor, constantly attended by
a detective in plain clother.
The death is recorded of a very distinguished officer
of the Prussian Army, General Ferdinand von Bentheim,
in his 76th year.
Her Majesty's gunboat Woodlark sailed from Malta
on Monday for Aden.

The olemansion of the Greville family in the neigh-
bourhood of Holborn is about to be demolished.

The Royal Humane Society's bronze medal with clasp
and certificate, were, at the last committee meeting,
awarded to M-. Charles W. Lyde, of 29, Royal-crescent,
W., for his gallant rescue from drowning of a young
lady bathing at Sidmouth, on the 29th of September.
Mr. Dodson is gazetted a peer by the title of Baron
Monk Bretton, while that of Sir W. 0. James is Baron
Northbourne. •

Mr. David Fraser, of the firm of Messrs. David Fraser
and Son, of Dundee, was decapitated on Monday while
testing a new elevator.
The Rev. Morlais Jones has been appointed to suc-
ceed the Rev. Dr. Aveling as minister of the Congre-
gational Church at Kingsland.
A cast of the Vatican L'opy of the famous work of
Praxiteles—the Aphrodite of Knidos—has beer!. placed
in the South Kensington Museum.
Mrs. Dutton Cook, widow of the late novelist and
critic, has been appointed professor of the pianoforte at
the Guildhall School of Music.

Dr. Macdonald, of Nottingharn,who was placed under
the influence of chloroform, for the purpose of havir.g
some troublesome teeth extracted, has died from the
effects of the drug.
Upwards of thirty smacks arrived at Hull on Tues-
day ; ten of them have lost all their fishing-gear in the
recent storms. The Young Greg was boarded in the
North Sea, and only the cook was found on board. Four
of the crew were missing, and it is supposed that they
have been drowned.

An extraordinary outrage was reported on Tuesday
from Aughnacly. A party of men entered the house of
a farmer named Rea, and, seizing the servant-girl,
who was sitting with her mistress, succeeded, after a
desperate struggle, in placing her on a car and driving
away. The police pursued, but the men got away with
the girl. The only cause assigned is that the latter had
turned Protestant.

At a meeting of the Macclesaeld Union Sanitary
Authority, on Tuesday, Dr. Smith, of Chelford, reported
the death of a girl from alleged overpressure at school.
He stated that every time he visited her she was in a
state of muttering delirium concerning school and
lessons. He did not blame the teacher, but the system,
utging that when a child came from school its evening
hours should be spent in physical development. It was
decided to send copies of Dr. Smith's statement to the
Education Department, Lord Stanley of Alderley, and
Mr. Salt, M.P.
Miss Wallis, who is fulfilling a successful tour in the
provinces, and who on Tuesday night was to have per-
formed in a new play entitled "A Bitter Love" at Bir-
mingham, was unable to appear owing to indisposition,
and the threatre had to remain closed. She had so
severely strained her strength on the previous night
that she fainted just as the curtain was falling on the
last act. It is hoped that after a very brief rest she
will be able to reappear.

Monday was the anniversary ot the bombardment of
Acre, in Syria, by the British fleet under Sir R. Stop.
ford, which took place on Nov. 3,1840. The town was
afterwards taken by the English., who only lost twelve
killed and forty-two wounded. The Egyptians lost about
2000 killed and 3000 prisoners.
Not since the day when the Irish Sunday Closing Bill
was before the House of Commons have so many tele-
grams reached it as was the case on Monday. Mr.
Cowen alone received 75 before six o'clock referring
mostly to his motion respecting the formation of the
Shipping Commission.
Mr. Buchanan' well known as a sportsman, was
accidentally shot on Monday at a Brighton sparrow
shooting match.
A panic in the Siihr Circus, Vienna, was only recently
just averted by the presence of mind of one of the
officers and the firemen on duty.

--The recent disclosures as to the condition of the navy
seems to have had some effect with " the powers that
be," for the Admiralty has just given instructions for
the commencement of a new large armour-plated vessel
at Chatham Dockyard, and the work will be commenced
as soon as the material can be prepared. She will be
constructed to carry the heaviest guns manufactured.
C; eorgiana, Viscountess Sherbrooke, died at 34,
Lowndes-square, London, on Monday. The deceased
was the second son of Mr. George Orrell, of Aigburtli-
house, Liverpool, and married, in 1836, the Right Hon.
Robert Lowe, formerly Chancellor of the Exchequer,
who was raised to the peerage. May 25, 1880, by the
title of Viscount Sherbrooke. Her ladyship had been
in declining health for several weeks.
Intelligence from St. Petersburg states that on the
night of the 31st ult, the police arrested four students
found in possession of proclamations, issued from
Charkoff, inciting the University students and the
pupils of other high educational establishments to make
public demonstrations.
During the celebration of a Mahometan festival at
Elizabetopol a crowded balcony gave way, whereby
eight of its occupants were killed on the spot, and
several others injured.
A" movement is on foot for introducing into Parlia-
ment a bill for the construction of a harbour for the
north end of Deal. The scheme i•acludes docks at North
Deal and a new railway close by. It is believc,l the
London, Chatham, and Dover Itailway Compan:. will
support the proposal.
The Manchester Chamber of Commerce has exp. -ssed
an inclination to support the proposal of Mr. St rdey
to establish through the International Associaton a
free State of the Congo, and maintained filo,. the
present was a magnificent opportunity for securie the
commercial supremacy of Great Britain in the he,,rt if
the African continent.
The World's Exhibition at New Orleans will be or,”
on the;l6th December; later than was at first arr.,
On Monday morning the quadriennial visita oo of
the Bishop of London took place in St. Paul's Cathe-
dral. The Bishop of Bedford preached the sermon.