The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1881-07-30 00:00:00

Our I...f'.orLbcn Corttspoubut,

We deem it right to state that we do net at 7
OttiSeirt'S with our Corrr,p:7l,lerit's

In point of brilliant weather the recently-closed
National Competition at Wimbledon has been about
the most successful since the establishment of the Rifls
Association. The distribution of prizes by the
Princess of Wales, who performed this duty-last year
also, added a lustre to the closing day which was an
agreeable accompaniment to the fame already achieved
by this organization. In one respect an import-
ant addition was made to the prizes, which ought
to. have its effect when longer practice at it has
been made, by the riflemen of this count) y. With
the :exception of the " running deer," the targets at
Wimbledon have been fixed and imcnovable, and the
ol un tgeri have taken their own time in sighting and
aiming. But it is obvious that in actual warfare a
man does not stand still to be made a target of, nor
does he give the marksman his own time wherein to
aim. It is equally obvious that if the volunteers were
called upon to resist an invasion the "running deer"
would scarcely come in for consideration. Besides, a
deer presents a much larger surface than the frame of
a man, and a volunteer who could strike the former at a
given distance might ;be totally unable to hit a man.
Hence the introduction into this year's competitions ef
the moving man target—a figure dressed in grey, which
many a good shot at a fixed surface found it 'very
difficult to strike. It must, however, be clear enough
that in stern conflict riflemen have not to deal with
stationary figures, but with lithe and active men, who
take good care to give as little advantage to the
enemy as possible.
The Deanery of Westminster, which has become
vacant through the death of Dr. Arthur Penrhyn
Stanley,. occupies a unique position in the ecclesi-
astical history of England. it has the income of
a bishopric without the labour inseparable .frem
the care of a diocese. • Its duties are embodied
in the custody ef the venerable edifice which is
officially described as the Collegiate Church of St.
Peter, but is fanailiatly known to the public as West-
minster Abbey. The decision as to the remains of

any distinguished person being laid at rest beneath the
toof of the structure, and the guardianship of its
numerous monument, are with the Dean, who has
- the advice of the canons in residence, forming the
chapter. Dean Stanley's object was to make the
Abbey representative of all that was great and
noble. Notwithstanding his many engagements, he
never refused a request from any body of men
that wished to study the interior of the venerated
building under his own guidance. Saturday after
Saturday he might have been seen conducting a party
of working men over the Cathedral, and repeating to
them what must have been to him a familiar story.
It was not only to his own countrymen that he
rendered this service. When an American comes to
England upon a visit, he never misses going to see
Westminster Abbey, and thus it came to pass that
Dean Stanley's personality was well known on both
sides of the Atlantic, and that although his death took
place shortly before midnight, the New York papers
came out on the following morning with long bio-
graphic notices, being thus on a level with their
contemporaries in London.
What strikes an American, or, indeed, a Parisian,
who comes to Lindon for the first time is the small
number of daily papers that actually exist in the
greatest city in the world. Between 1871 and len no
fewer than 560,000 persons were added to the popu-
lation of the metropelis, yet the number of morn-
ing newspapers is no greater than it was in 1869.
There were seven then, and there are seven now.
We have The'limes, Post, Advertiser, Standard,
Daily News, 7'elcgraph, and Chronicle. A number of
people equalling the inhabitants of Liverpool have
been added to the residents of London within a
decade, yet they must be content with the same num-
ber of morning papers. One reason for this—indeed
the main reason—is the enormous coat which attends
•the starting of a new morning journal. There is a
tradition that the bold capitalist who does so must
expect to sink at least £lOO,OOO before he begins to see
any of his money return to him. And as, should he
not hit the public taste, none, or very little of it might
ever comeback again, the venture is too great often to
be attempted. In Paris and in America the newspapers
are as thick as leaves in Vallarnbrosa, but they
do not involve such immense cost in preparing. In
place of late news the Parisian journalist gives his
readers a novelette, which is not paid for at the rate
of a shilling a word, the cost of transmission by
A.tlantie cable. The London journalist is at his post
until two Or three in the morning in order to give his
readers the latest possible intelligeaee ; his fellow-
worker in Paris cares very little about this; so
after enjoying himself upon the Boulevards all

the evening, he eoes back to his office, sticks in a sen-
sational story, and any item of news to hand, and his.
•work is dune. Ti,e complaint of the Americans of Eng-
lish daily papers is that there is no fun in them, and as
fun is cheaper than foreign news, a newspaper in the
United States is brought out at much less cost than in
this country.
That our legislators are now within a measurable
distance of the prorogation of Parliament can scarcely
be doubted, although the date is necessarily uncertain;
The session is often impatiently welcomed if for
nothing more than to relieve the pent-up feelings
of a long recess. What is so eagerly greeted
is, however, quite as gladly dismissed. It
cannot by. said of • the usual Parliamentary
session that "welcome ever smiles, and farewell goes
out sighing." We may hasten to meet the session
with smiles; we
.seldom allow it to depart with sighs.
It has been continuous, with the exception of the
usual Easter and Whitsuntide recesses, since Twelfth
Night. Even to enable it to terminate in the last
days of August, a great many valuable Bills have
been sacrificed, and much important work must be
left or one.
The searching inquiry which is being made by the
Corporation of London into the Fish Supply of the
metroliolis has directed public attention to this
question, and ifile inquiry is made how to extend and
improve the means of bringing the fish within reach
of the large centres of population. Ocean, river, and
lake teem with palatable and nutritious food; but
except in a few seaside towns the price of fish is
generally such as to place it beyond the reach o
any but those in comparatively affluent circum-
stances. Of the value of fish as an article of food
there can be no doubt whatever. It is well suited
for the use of a population working to a very
considerable extent with its brains, and exposed to
the wear and tear caused by worry. The admirable
dietetic qualities of fish have indeed long been re-
coknised. It has long been known that nervous waste
of the system is best supplied by the food to be ob-
tained from the sea. For a working-class population
there is nothing more nourishing, for the wealthy
there is no more tempting article of diet, and for the
delicate there is nothing more easily digestible.
The wave of heat which has caused so many
hundreds of deaths in America, and has set al
Eugland grumbling, has brought Paris very near a
water famine —so close that at one time the city was
within forty-eight hours of a cessation of the supply
altogether. Recognising the threatened danger, the
authorities at once took steps to prevent waste and to
husband the service as far as possible. It appears
to-be-the custom of the people of Paris to cool their
houses and yards by allowing taps to run continuously
practice which would strike many on this side of
the Channel as savouring of waste. Naturally, this was
ordered to be stopped, and, in addition, the watering
of the streets and the flushing of the drains was discon-
tinue 3. The unfortunate Parisians have thus suffered
many inconveniences, and are exposed to some danger.
The unwatered streets bear a distant resemblance to
Sahara; for the dust, driven by the wind, fills the air.
Those who know anything of the thoroughfares of
Paris are well aware that the accumulated heaps of
garbage are not very sightly spectacles, and a lack of
water therefore becomes a perilous matter. Paris has
heretofore experienced a scarcity of food; it would be
hard if the city suffered also from a scarcity of
water.

--- •
WestwaVl the course of empire takes its way."
From Asia the tide of civilization and of population
as well rolled on to Europe; Babylon and Nineveh
have given place to London and to Paris, and the
scene of life's bustle is transferred from the Euphrates
and the Tigris to the banks of the Thames and the
Seine. The ruined and deserted cities of Central Asia
now offer a suggestive contrast to the busy energy
of Europe—energy which is being rapidly trans-
ferred from the eaAern to the western hemis-
phere. This is a subject which is commanding the
serious consideration of the German Government,
seeing that the emigration from the Fatherland is now
going mat a rate far exceeding anything of the kind
ever reached within the last ten years. This matter
was frequently discussed during the last session of
the German Parliament, and is still a frequent topic
of anxious interest in the Teutonic press. In one day
lately as many as 4,320 Germans landed in New York.
Such material contributions to the population of the
Great Western World combined with those from our
own shores, will, it is estireated, by the end of the
century, raise it to a hundred -millions.
The August Bank Holiday is perhaps the best
appreciated of the whole four. As aTule the weather
is less capricious than on either of the other two days
of outdoor rezreation,—Easter Monday and Whit
Monday ; for Boxing-day may be put aside as affording
few facilities for amusement in the openair. The people
who enjoy the August holiday know wpll that nearly
Aye months interyene between that and the r, .txt

on the list. Perhaps the uncertain nature o
the English climate was never more forcibly illus-
trated than upon the very last Bank Holiday. For
some time previous to Whit• Monday the weather had
been beautifully fine, and on the Saturday innumer-
able engagements had been made for a long and agree-
able drive. But on the Sunday the weather changed,
and on the appointed day the downpour rendered
everyb dy miserable. Rain was grateful enough to
the parched and thirsty land, while anything but
acceptable to the drenched and disappointed makers
of holiday.