The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1881-09-24 00:00:00

THE CROPS IN THE UNITED STATES

The Commercial Bulletin says the losses by the
August drought, as indicated by the reports of the
cotton, corn, and tobacco crops equal 200,000,000 dols.
The cotton crop prospects are worse by 1,000,000
bales • the maize crop is worse by 260,000,000 bushels.
The figures for spring wheat are not included.
The exports of breadstuffs last August were
25,547,521 dols. ; in August last year they were
31,734,860 dols. ; in July and August this year
45,584,228 dole., against 62,964,537 dole, in the same
two months last year. In the eight months ended
with August they were 11,565,205 dols. ; in the same
eight months of last year, 185,321,222 dole.

The New York Correspondent of the Daily News
sends the estimates of the wheat crop in the United
States. The agricultural department places the
yield this year at 1,026,000,000 bushels, a decrease of
511,000,000 from last year. Another estimate puts
the yield at 1,264,000,000 bushels. Some fear is felt,
of a glut in the market, and of prices declining.

A fatal boat accident occurred on Tuesday evening
on the Yare,' near Norwich. Harry Barnes, a Yarmouth fisher.
man, and Frederick James Sugg, of London, with three young
women, were in a pleasure boat, when one of the young
men, in reaching after an; oar which he had lost, capsized
the boat. Both men were drowned, but the women clung
together, -and were gallantly rescued by a-young mei-named
Thompson, of Norwich.

SUICIDE OF AN OFFICER.

In London, on Monday night, Mr. Langham held
an inquest at Tavistock-chambers, Covent-garden, as
to the death of Charles Mant, aged forty-two, a
major in the Royal Engineers, who was found shot in
the head on Saturday last in circumstances leading to
the belief that he had comaiitted suicide. The court
was crowded with brother officers and other friends of
the deceased gentleman.—Mr. J. E. Clark, of the
Junior United Service Club, deposed that he was a sur-
geon-major in the Army, awl knew the deceased well.
The latter had been in India for a length of time, and
while there was occupied in architectural designs for
fortifications and other erections. He came to Eng-
land on leave of absence in March last, and had been
much depressed in consequence of the failure of his '
drawings. He had never threatened to commit suicide,
nd so far as witness knew he had no reason for taking
his own) life.—Alfred Scott, assistant housekeeper at
Tavistock-chambers, stated that on Saturday morning
last he saw the deceased at 9.25, when he asked for Ms
letters. No letters had, however, arrived, and witness
left him apparently in good health. At 11.30 he re-
turned to the room, and then found the major sitting
in a chair with a pistol tightly clasped in his hand and
blood flowing from a woundi n his head. Dr. Carolai
was at once summoned and pronounced life to be ex-
tinct.—Police-constable Baker proved that he searched
the room and discovered deceased's watch, chain, and
seals, £.3 4s. in money, and other property, and said
there were no indications that the deceased had died
otherwise than by his own hand.—Dr. Carolai having
stated that the death of the deceased gentleman was
due to a bullet in the brain and that everything pointed
to suicide, the Coroner summed up and the jury im-
mediately returned a verdict of "Suicide while of
unsound mind."