The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1874-09-26 00:00:00

Our Yonbon Qorrespnnnt.
(Ws deem It right to state that we do not st all times
Identify ourselves with our Correspondent's opinions.j

When the Metropolitan Railway was opened, in
January, 1863, it was feared that the omnibuses from
Paddington and Oxford-street to the City would be '
driN en off the line, for in the filet year of its e nce
the
1, • way ried 9,500, passengers, little
alter r ..en d 40,000,000 he twelve ths, or
ten in re than the •re populat of the
Mite • me RAI t ense mini ris now 1
annually exceeded. But what, meanwhile, has become
of the 'buses? Do the thoroughfares no longer resound
with the rumble of their wheels, and are the Kuper-
animated vehicles laid up in wane vast courtyard, the ,
horses which formerly propelled them engaged in agri-
cultural pursuits, the drivers and conductors employed
in other occupations, the countless hosts of passengers
which once filled the seats scattered in all ifiree,-
tions ? Do they lie there in all weathers, bleached
in the sunshine, and rotting in the rain? Not
the slightest sign of it. At the present moment
thireThFli- guff- rniffiriTirien—oli- th-Fi " line' r-ii route
than there were when the railway started, and
they ass -actually earning more per mile than
they were before the Metropolitan rails were 'laid
down. More than thin, the omnibus company is paying
a qividend at the rate of 8 per cent, per annum, while
the railway, notwithstanding its wonderful amount of
traffic, imps only 2 per cent. People in London seem,
indeed, to be continually moving to and fro. They not
only crowd the railway carriages and fill the Omnibuses,
bidslimb high 'upon the roofs of tramway cars, and
stad thickly Upon the decks er the iiteamboata Which
are inceseantly plying-up and down upon the miriade
of the river. Such facts as I have quoted above seem
at illisMaiiht well-nigh astounding; brit the surprise
datiliiiitx, wheu we remember that in sPeaking of
laualian naseenges traffic we are dealing with a popula-
thiaanisates than that of all Seotland, and more than
twsethirdeAhat of the whole of Ireland.- The number
ordurpenplerie increasing at the rate of over 40,000 a
ypolf,.. yet the great streets are not an inch wider than
Oleg were centuries ago. Fleet-street and Cheapside
are just as narrow as they were in the days of Queen
Elizabeth, when a barrier stood at Ludgate ; and, to take
a tiltffonger case, Thames-street is just exactly the
iiathi• widtk now as in the reign of King Alfred.
Aoq..a natural consequence, it in in a state of con-
gesaitei twelve hewn, out of every twenty-four.
Meats 4 various kinds have, from time to time, been
Ali& to relieve this plethoric tendency. The metro-
potitan Proper is pushing on to Aldgate, a densely'
peopled district at the east end of the town ; and a
neheme is now being actively earried out by which aline
will be made from the Mansion House-station of the
Metropolitan District Railway to join the other under-
taking at Aldgate, and thus complete what is known as
the Inner Circle. When this is finished, passengers
will be enabled, if they think proper, to enter a train
at any given station, make the circuit isf London by
rail, and return to the spot from which they started
without change of carriage. The line last-mentioned
will proceed along Cannon-street and thence by a new
thoroughfare which is to be made at the joint expense
of the Company, the Board of Works, and the City
Corporation. The railways, meeting at Aldgate, will
from two great lines of intercommunication between
east and west, while the new street will be a line of
traffic above ground which is greatly needed. The
narrow outlets of Leadenhall-street and Fenchurch-
street, are totally insufficient for the accommodation
of the traffic, both vehicular and pedestrian, so con-
stantly surging through them.

Goldsmith once said of the French that it was a
pity that they had not butchers' meat, for they could
make twelve different dishes out of a turnip-top. Nothing
more surprises the English visitor to Paris than the
variety of dishes served up at a two-franc dinner
In one of these cafes in the immediate neigh-
bourhood of the Patois Royal. It may not possess
the solidity of a one-and-eightpenny meal in Fleet-
street; but certainly the way in which it is cooked is
sure to attract the notice of the stranger. I see that
in the three months between April and July, 973
horses, 103 donkeys, and 7 mules were utilised as
human food by the people of Paris. But it must be
remembered that the French capital has a population
1,850,000, and that amongst such a mass of humanity
there are various tastes and different degrees of capa-
bility so far as the obtaining of the beet of food is con-
cerned.

There is some dissatisfaction amongst the non-com-
missioned officers of the army respecting their pay
and position, and a difficulty also exists in the way of
recruiting under the short service system, now that
pensions have been withdrawn. It has been suggested
that both these auestions might be dealt with by the
establishment of a grade of warrant officers taken
from the higher non-commissioned ranks. Young men
are more influenced to enlist by a consideration of the
probable prospects afforded to them in the service than
was formerly the case, and recent returns showing the
educational attainments of the British soldier indicate
a very marked improvement in this respect during
the last few years. The consequence is that more men
are now qualified, and therefoie anxious for promotion
from the ranks than in former days. It is believed
the creation of a class of warrant officers would be
hailed as a great boon by the sergeants of the army,
and that at a trifling expense to the country the pro-
spects of the young moldier would be improved, and a
material benefit conferred upon the public service.
Gifts of land for purposes of recreation are becoming
frequent in the history of our large towns. East
London is now about to benefit by the acquisition
of a plot of ground which is to be added to
Victoria Park. This, although small in extent,
will add greatly to the beauty of that pleasure
ground. It is to be purchased by a gentleman
who will hand it over to the Committee of the Park
Preservation Society, and is to be retained as an open
space for ever. The acquisition of the land in ques
tion would seem to be due to an appeal publicly made
by the Secretary of the Society, and this gentleman
has now come forward with a further suggestion that
Temple Bar, when removed from its present position,
should be transferred to that portion of land now to
be added to Victoria Park. The competition for the
possession of this antiquarian relic has become strong
and animated, for both the Inner and the Middle
Temples wish to have it erected in their respective
gardens.

A great deal has been written during the present
autumn respecting the perils of mountain and hill
ascents, but the truth is that accidents happen also in
localities which are ordinarily looked upon as being of
the safest character. Traversing unfrequented paths,
like wallcingin Cheapeide, requires a reasonable amount
of care, and upon our own hill-sides, it is only under very
exceptional circumstances that more than this is needed.
On a bank holiday, when the river in the neighbourhood ,
of London is crowded with pleasure boats, there is
more peril than is experienced in Wales or Weetmors
land during a whole season. On the Alps, of course, I
it is a very different matter. There are conditions of
"ether and sudden changes of temperature which
render Alpine climbing perilous even with the help of
the most experienced guides. No familiarity with
the pathways of the mountain can make a guide
always sure of the footing te which, in certain olaces,
he is about to trust. Some of the most terrible
calamities amongst the Swiss mountains have occurred
despite the escort of guides whose complete knowledge
of their business could not be questioned. It should I
also be borne in mind that the safety of a party often I
depends upon the unruffled steadiness of the nerves of .
all who are engaged in it. A stagger or a false step, I
a7nathe whole —are plunged into the most imminent I
danger.
There are a good many Alsatians settled in London,
and amongst them there is a general concurrence of
opinion that the people of Alsace are beginning to be
less intolerant of their connection with the German
Empire. They admit that the military laws are
strict, but not so Draconian as had been represented.
It is likewise found that German officials, if some-
what harsh in manner, are essentially just, and strive
to administer the law in a spirit fair to all parties. At
first there were serious objections to the use of German
instead of French in schools, but this is being gradually -
Jverrome. As an illustration of the change of feeling,
it may also be mentioned that citizens entrusted with I
important public functions have this year, for the trot
time, consented to discharge them. This is as far as
the population of Alsace is concerned, but the French-
speaking people of Lorraine do not as yet show such a
ready disposition to accept the lot of annexation.
This may be partly attributable to the fact that Alsace
is watered by the Rhine, and is therefore nearer to
Germany. Lorraine is watered by the Moselle, and is
immediately contiguous to tie new French frontier.
Wanderers in London seldom venture so far east
as Ratcliff Highway. From Pall Mall to that locality
is not more than a five mile journey; yet a dweller in
the first-named thoroughfare might traverse ten times
that distance in any other direction before he would
find himself. in so utterly strange a district as the
eastern end of the metropolis. The intending visitor
to this unexplored region may have travelled long
over a diversified field of adventure. He may have
been in Paris with the Communists, in Strasburg
with the Germans, or shut up in Metz with Bazaine
during the siege. But it is doubtful whether, in any
one place he can have ',witnessed sights and scenes
more remarkable than those to which he can be intro.
diced any evening in England's capital. And as the
most secluded dens remain untroclden by any except
chosen occupants, it is customary for him who would
see and hear the most to attach to himself a trusty
member of one of the gangs. There are journalists
who hare actually done this in order to arrive at an