The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1884-11-15 00:00:00

Wistellantous 4nttitigente.

HOME, FOREIGN, AND COLONIAL.

ABERDEEN UstivsaserY.—Lord Randolph Churchill
and Dr. Bain were on Saturday nominated for the Lord,
Rectorship of Aberdeen University.
BIRTHDAY OF THE PRINCE OF WALES.—The anniver-
sary of the birth of the Prince of Wales,who completed
his forty-third year on Sunday, was celebrated on
Saturday with the usual display of illuminations. The
Prince's tradesmen dined together at Willis's Rooms,.
Mr. W. H. Smith, M.P., in the chair.
NEW PUBLIC BUILDINGS AT SWANSEA:The Mayor.
of Swansea laid the foundation stone of the new public.
library buildings in Alexandra•road, Swansea, on Satur-
day afternoon. The building, which is to cost £10,000,,
forms part of the new improvement scheme promoted
by the corporation.
THE PORTADOWN Ricers.—Of the 82 persons charged
with riot at the recent political meetings at which Mr.
Dickson was wounded, two were sentenced at Portia-
down on Saturday morning to six months' and ten to
two months' imprisonment under the Crimes Act. The
remainder were discharged. 'Notice of appeal was given.
GROSS BRUTALITY TO A SON.—Cornelius HUTI.III, a
labourer, was charged at the West Ham Police•court
on Saturday with having violently assaulted his son,
eleven years of age. In a cold stone-floored wash-
house, the boy, being without boots, stockings, hat, or
jacket, had his hands tied by his father behind his back,.
and his legs were fastened together. There he was
left from seven in the morning until past six the next
morning, tied in such a manner that his wrists were
marked, and his hands so swollen that his knuckles •
could not be seen. Theboy's parent was sent to prison
for two months, with hard labour.
DEATH or Mae. F. AneftEu.—Mrs. T. Archer, wife
of the well-known jockey, died early on Saturday morn-
ing. It was only on Thursday that Mr. Archer received
the congratulations of his friends at Liverpool on his •
receiving the news of his wife's accouchement. She.
was a daughter of Mr. John Dawson, and was a
general favourite in Newmarket, 88 was proved when.
her wedding with Mr. Archer took place two years
ago. The infant daughter and only child Of Mr: Archer.
is doing well.
NEW PARR AT BnronTort—A new park was opened.
at Brighton on Saturday, and the ceremony was wit-
nessed by a great gathering of spectators. The chief
incident was a procession headed by the Mayer, who
formally declared the park open. It has an area of
more than sixty acres.
RAILWAY FATALITIES.—TWO railway fatalities hap-
pened on Saturday. In one case,while a labourer was
working in the Lime-street tunnel at Liverpool, he was
knocked down by some trucks which were being shunted,
and both legs were severed from his body. The poor
fellow died on the spot. The other accident occurred
at Bootle. A railway employe was shunting some
waggcns, when a gust of wind carried him under a
passing train, which almost severed his head from his
body. Death was instantaneous.
THE AGRICULTURAL HOLDINGS ACT.—The Duke of
St. Albans presided on Saturday over a meeting of
agriculturists in Nottingham, convened by the Notting-
ham Chamber of Commerce, to consider a schedule of
allowances drawn up by valuers as suitable for the
county under the Agricultural Holdings Act. Mr.
Brett having moved its adoption, Mr. Beaumont pro-
posed an amendment declaring the scale of compen-
sato:on to go far beyond the custom of Notts hitherto
accepted as liberal and fair, and that such claims be
dealt with individually aacording to the merits of each
case. Lord Belper objected to the schedule, and even-
tually it was referred to a committee to report on the
principles of a fair and reasonable agreement.

- AN " ENGAGEMENT" FOR THE- CLAIMANT. The
Claimant. whose recent addresses in Leeds attracted
very small audiences, has accepted a four nights' en-
gagement with the management of a Leeds music-hall,.
at which he will appear during the first part of next
week. His remuneration, it is said, will be £4O for the
four nights.
LATE FRUlT.—During 0.6 past week red currants and
raspberries have been gathered in open gardens in the
neighbourhood of Covertry, and wild roses have been
seen in full blow on the hedgerows. The weather for.
some time past hag been phenominally mild and spring-
like.

--FOOTBALL ACCIDENT.—During a fOotball match on
Saturday in the Eton College Playing Fields, against a
scratch team from Oxford University, W. -J. Corbett,
K.S.A., sixth form at Eton College, had his right leg
broken by a crocs kick. He was conveyed to his room,
and attended by Dr. Gooch.
A PARK FOR HULL.—At Hull on Saturday the 'mayor
(Dr. Rollit), in the presence of a large number of spec-
tators turned the first sod of a new park which is to be,
provided for the west portion of Hull. The ground,.
which is about 70 acres in extent was bought by the
Corporation some years ago, with the view of utilising a..
portion of it for a large cattle market. That idea has
now been abandoned, and more than half of the land
will forthwith be made into a park, a portion being re-
tained for a cricket and football ground.

STARVED TO DEATH.-011 Satui•day, at the Notts and
Lincoln Assizes, before Lord Chief Justice Coleridge,
Charles Briggs, chemist, 39, and Elizabeth Briggs, 67,
were indicted for the wilful murder of Thirza Briggs,
at Glee, near Grimsby. The deceased woman was the
wife of the male prisoner and daughter-in-law of the
female, who, although in comfortable circumstances,.
were alleged to have deliberately starved her. Mr.
Horace Smith said that the male prisoner had a post-
nuptial settlement, by which if his wife and her little
girl died he would possess her whole property. The jury
convicted the male prisoner of manslaughter and
acquitted the female. Briggs was sentenced to 20 years'
penal servitude.
SAD FATALITY IN SCOTLAND.—On Saturday afternoon
a gentleman was knocked down by a train about half a
mile from Arbroath Station. Death was almost instan-
taneous. On Sunday evening the body was identified
as that of Mr. James Mitchell, chief reporter of the
"Aberdeen Free Press." The deceased had been to
Arbroath on Saturday afternoon, and it is supposed
that, being late for the return train, he was walking
along the line as a short cut to the station, when the
accident occurred. Mr. Mitchell. who was a well•known
and able journalist, and highly respected, leaves a
widow and two children.
THE KILLING OF DER.—Under the Ground Game
Act of 1880 every occupier of land has a right, of which
he cannot divest himself, of killing hares and rabbits on
his land. It is now proposed, in a bill that has been
introduced by Mr. Munro-Ferguson, Kr. for Ross and
Cromaxty, to extend the raeaning of ground game in.
this Act so as to include deer. The occupier, however,
is not to be entitled to kill deer on moorlands or unen-
closed lands, not being arable. Moreover, the provision
that firearms are not to be used for the purpose of kill-
ing ground game between the expiration of the first
hour after sunset and the commencement of the last
hour before sunrise is not to apply to deer.
CLOSING OF A NOTED DISCUSSION HALL.—The discus-
sion" Forum" in Fleet-street, London, which attained
considerable notoriety about thirty years since on
account of complaints gravely preferred by the
Emperor Napoleon of speeches delivered there which
were offensive to his Government, has at last ceased to
exist, the Green Dragon Tavern, to which it formed
an annexe, being about to be demolished to make way
for a new hoteL The " Forum " was at one time a.
favourite resort of youthful students of the Bar and
others desirous of obtaining practice in public speaking.
FOREIGN LIVE STOCK AND FREER MEAT.—Thenum-
her of live stock and the quantity of fresh meat landed
at Liverpool during the past week from American and
Canadian ports amounted to 897 cattle, 1276 sheep,
5978 quarters of beef, and 300 carcases of mutton,
which, when compared with the imports of the pre-
ceding week, show a slight increase in the arrivals of
both live stock and fresh meat. The conveyinc, steamers
were as follows: Milanese 368 cattle and 47)8 sheep;
Montreal, 313 cattle and 868 sheep; lowa, 138 cattle.
and 928 quarters of beef; Oranmore, 80 cattle; Egypt,
1684 quarters of beef and 150 carcases of mutton;:
Alaska, 1660 quarters of beef and 150 carcases of
mutton; and Catalonia, 1704 quarters of beef