The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1881-07-16 00:00:00

SATURDAY, JULY IG, 1881.

Tim RISING OF THE NILE.-A correspondent at
Alexandria writes to the Daily News on the sth :
"The state of the Nile is a serious matter. Unless
there is a rise out of proportion to the daily rise of
former years, and that soon, we shall have a bad Nile.
By the way, the natives are not fond of such visitors
as the comet, and are fancying all sorts of catastrophes.
To make matters more sensational, a very terrible
comet is predicted for November."

THINGS ONE WOULD RATHER HAVE LEFT ITN.
SAID. - HoBtess. "What, leaving already, Mr.
Mivers ! I've scarcely seen anything of you the whole
evening ! " Mr. Mivers (who goes in for the courteous
manners of the olden time). That, Madam, is entirely
my fault ! "—[Exit gracefully, but remembers as he
goes down-stairs that he meant to say "Misfortune,"
not "Fault."—Punch.

CONTINENTAL HARVEST PROSPECTS.—Not for many
years have the crops of all sorts in Switzerland and
the adjacent districts of France, Germany, and Italy
been in so splendid a condition as they are at present.
There is every promise of a most bountiful harvest,
and the sufficient, yet not too heavy, rains of the last
few days are a good augury for the autumn hay crops,
on which the peasants depen3 for much of their winter
fodder. The condition of the vines is equally satisfac-
tory. A few districts have suffeted from the storms,
but their area has been fortunately so restricted that
they cannot materially affect the general result.

DISCOVERY OF CHALDEAN TREASURES. - Some
interesting discoveries have been made in Lower
Chaldea by M. de Sarzec, Vice-Consul of France at
Bassorah. He has spent the best part of three years
in making researches among the ancient ruins of that
province, and has brought to light a large number of
objects, Including eight very handsome statues, all of
which are covered with inscriptions in the old Baby-
lonian characters, and which are supposed to be 3,300
years old. The French Government proposes to buy
the whole collection for the Louvre, and the Chambers
will be asked to vote a credit for £5,200, which is the
price asked by the finder.

AVERAGE PRICES OF BRITISH CORN.—The follow-
ing are the average prices of British Corn for the week
ending July 9, as received from the inspectors and
officers of excise :—Wheat, 465. Bd. ; barley, 275. 9d. ;
oats, 235. sd. per imperial qr. Corresponding week
last year :—Wheat, 435. 9d. ; barley, 28s. 10d. ; oats,
265. Bd.

OLD COINS.—The Gobs reports from Gamaljejovka,
in the Government of Samara, that a short time ago a
soldier found among the sands which form the bank of
the Samara river, 72 gold and 6 silver coins. A few
days later some peasants found near the same place
20 gold coins. Some of the coins had Tartar inscrip-
tions; the bulk of the remainder are Polish coins of
the 16th century, with some Austrian of the same date.
The local topographers declare that formerly a Kal-
muck camp was fixed on the spot where the coins
were found.
THE MARQUIS OF LORNE.—The Daily Hens pub.
lishes the following telegram from Ottawa :—" The
Free Press, referring to the Governor-General's recent
visit to the maritime provinces, says that the gentle-
men who accompanied the Marquis say that extraordi-
nary precautions were taken by the railway authorities
to guard against accident. Not only were the switches
locked as usual, but all the switch rails were spiked
down so that they could not be opened. A Govern-
ment detective travelled in the train with him through.
out the trip. It is rumoured that the authorities had
received a hint that the Marquis was threatened with
some danger while in the provinces."
RATHER.—Won't the projected hotel on Mount
Vesuvius do a roaring trade? The ladies support is
certain, on account of the sparks.—Judy.
CRAVATB.—In 1636 a foreign regiment arrived in
Paris, in the dress of which one characteristic was
much admired by the people—a neck-wrapper or scarf
of muslin or silk for the officers, of common stuff for
the men, alike tied in a bow with pendant ends,
and used by them it is said to support an amulet
worn as a charm against sword-cuts. Parisians
speedily adopted the novelty, styling theta first
Croats, from the nationality of the regiment, and
afterwards cravat. The rich then used embroidered
And richly-laced cravats, such as we find shortly
afterwards used by Charles 11., who is charged
£2O 12s. in the last year of his reign for "a new cravat
to be worn on the birthday of his dear brother."
James 11. paid £36 10s. for a cravat of Venice lace to
wear on the day of his coronation. Towards the end
of the last century the cravat was revived and worn of
such extravagant size that whole pieces of muslin were
sometimes used, and even shoulder cushions, over
which folds of stuff were draped, so that it was im-
possible for a man to turn his head without wheeling
bodily round as for an early coach to turn within its
own length.—Warehousemen and Drapers' Trade
Journal.

A " PHENOMENON " PORT.—Plymouth. Where you
may not only hear the band on the Hoe, but see the
Sound.—Judy.

THE PLAGUE IN RUSSIA. The GOlOB announces
that some cases of Siberian plague have appeared in
the environs of St. Petersburg, several horses and
cattle having already died from the disease. No fatal
cases have, however, occurred up to the present among
the workmen or peasants.
LORD STRATFORD DE REDCLIFFE.—The Morning
Post says—" A movement is on foot having for
object the erection in Westminster Abbey of a statue
to the memory of Lord Stratford de Redcliffe. Be-
tween the statues of George Canning, the illustrious
statesman, whose memory will be revered while the
history, of this country is read, and of Lord Canning,
the Indian Viceroy, whose policy was instrumental ih
saving the brightest gem of the British Crown,
will fitly be placed the resemblance of the
Great Eltchi. Already a powerful committee has
been formed, having in its ranks men of all parties,
who seek to do honour to one whose career was
of such value to the country. His majestic presence
and grand, clear•cut features are worthy of the chisel
of our best sculptor, and when the multitude that so
constantly throng the Abbey pass along the memorials
of men who have led mankind and left their impress
upon its records they will find in the long line of
English worthivs few whose countenance was more
truly a refic.x of the mhici, or who looked when living,
or in sepulchral marble, more worthy to command the
admiration which by their deeds they have for ever
secured."

MEm.—Historians have clearly proved that the
Great Duke never exclaimed, "Up Guards, and at
'em !" We think it highly probable he said, "Up
Guards !" but as to the remainder of the sentence,
there's not an "at 'em" of truth in it. —Punch.

GENERAL SKOBELEFF IN PARIS.—A Correspondent
of The Times writes :—" The hero of Plevna and of
the recent campaign in Central Asia has arrived in
Paris, where ne has remained so quietly that none of
the journals there appeared to have noticed his
arrival. He dined with his Imperial Highness the
Grand Duke Nicholas, late Commander-in• Chief of
the Russian Armies in Turkey, at the Ileptel Chatham
on the 27th of June, the anniversary of the passage
of the Danube in 1877. The Grand Duke is accom-
panied only by a doctor and ene aide-de•camp ; he
occupies rooms on the third floor of the Hotel Chat-
ham, and is living in a very retired manner. His
Imperial Highness is suffering from nervous de-
rangement, and says that the recent campaign in
Turkey left his health in a very unsatisfactory condi-
tion. General Skobeleff occupies apartments in a
private residence, and preserves the strictest retire-
ment."

EVICTIONS IN IRELAND.—It appears from a return
issued on Monday of cases of eviction which have come
to the knowledge of the constabulary in the quarter
ended the 31st day of June, 1881, that the total num-
ber of families evicted was 1,065, comprising 5,262
parsons. The number of families readmitted as
tenants was 50, comprising 256 persons; and the
number of families readmitted as care-takers was 542,
comprising 2,894 persons.

_
FOLK-LORE IN THE PACIFIC ISLANDS.—On the
subject of Pacific Islands folk-lore a correspondent
I
writes to Notes and Queries :—When in the Tonga- '
tabu groups I was amused by a curious custom the ,
natives there have of saying, when one sneezed, " Ofa," '
which means love. I asked the reason for this, and
was told that when a man sneezed he was thinking of
his wife, and that when a woman did so she was
thinking of her husband; so that they consider it only
a polite little attention to say " Ofa ' to one at those
times. Here in Samoa I find a very different phrase
in vogue on similar occasions, and, on account of its
likeness in meaning to one still used in England, of
much greater interest. Here when one sneezes they
say, " Sliefua," whose meaning is, as near as possible,
"God bless you." It is strange that in two countries
so far apart as England and Samoa there should be a
custom so very much alike.

THE LATE REV. DR. CUMMING.—At Sunday morn-
ing's service in the Scotch National Church, Crown-
court, London, before an unusually crowded congrega-
tion, many of whom were attired in deep mourning,
the recently-elected pastor, the Rev. Donald MacLeod,
at the close of his sermon, which was based on St.
John's Gospel, 14 chap., 2 verse—" In My Father's
house are many mansions "—alluded in leering terms
to the death of one whom since they laSt worshipped
in that place it had pleased the Mighty Disposer of
all things to take away to Himself. The deceased
VMS one who for many years was well known in that
church, and for a lengthened period he had made
Crown-court, humble as were its surroundings, one of
the most widely-known and most eagerly-resorted-to
churches in that vast city. The name of Dr. John
Cumming was a household word to Scotchmen at home
and abroad. Dr. Cumming was a faithful, earnest,
and gifted minister, of whom Scotchmen and the
Church of Scotland might well be proud.
.A NOTE AND COMMENT.—Mrs. Ramsbotham's
niece read out the advertisement of Dore's picture,
"Moses before Pharaoh." "Dear me ! " exclaimed
the dear old lady. "Before Pharaoh I I always
thought they lived at the same time. But," she
added, after a moment's reflection, "I dare say its'
been altered in the Revised Version."—Punch.
THE POPULATION OF THE TRANSVAAL—A map of
the Transvaal appended to the Blue Book on South
Africa, issued on Tuesday, shows the populations of
the various provinces of the territory. They are as
follows :—Zoutpansberg : Kaffirs, 364,250; Europeans
of Dutch origin (Boers), 654; Europeans of non-Dutch
origin, 160. In Waterberg the numbers are respectively
174,045, 714, and 50; Rustenburg, 26,300, 5,370, and
485; Marie°, 13,200, 1,967, and 209; Bloemhoff, 39,570,
784, and 90; Potchefstroom, 1,500, 6,517, and 1,085;
Pretoria, 13,125, 5,859, and 1,810; Heildelburg, 1,500,
4,181, 320; Middleburg, 3,125, 1,885, 195; Standerton,
2,185, 1,143, 160; Lydenburg, 123,300, 1,286, 292;
Wakkerstroom, 7,500, 1,869,200; Utrecht, 5,150, 1,510,
260, or a total of 774,930 Kaffiri, 33,739 Boers, and
5,316 Europeans other than Boers.
THE SIMPLE HABITS OF A STATESMAN.—The late
M. Dufaure was a stern opposer of anything approach-
ing luxury or extravagance. His study was miserably
bare, the walls were hung with dark paper, and were
ferfectly unadorned, cheap common curtains shaded
his windows, and the only furniture consisted of two
wooden chairs—arm-chairs being regarded as Sybaritish
—a wooden table, and books piled everywhere. M.
Dufaure greatly disliked society, and as a Minister
would never preside at official entertainments, but
during his last term of office, when guests invaded his
rooms he walked off at nine p.m., declaring that he
had gone to bed at that hour for sixty years, and was
not going to change his habits. He rose regularly at
four a.m., and would occasionally go then to fetch
his family home from a ball.