The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1875-06-12 00:00:00

J ' isttilaneous Intelligena ,
HOME, FOREIGN, AND COLONIAL.

SHOCKING DISASTER ON TIA E TAGUS. —A dread-
ful disaster is reported to have taken place on the Tagus
on the 26th ul t. A party of about 100 holiday seekers were
proceeding down the river in a large lighter from the
quay of Carregado to Lisbon, to be present the next
day at the procession of Corpus Christi. Near a
point called Castanheira a sudden squall caught the
large sail of the lighter, and she instantly upset.
About 60 persons, men, women, and children, perished.
When the vessel turned over the passengers nearly all
remained under her, and few bodies were recovered.
ENGLISH DOGS IN AMERICA. —Over 100,000
dols, worth of dogs, principally pointers and setters,
were brought to this country from England during the
past two years. The furore about Lavernacks, red
Irish Setters, Gordons, and kindred other breeds is
now as great as was ever that in Japan about spotted
rabbits. No dog that cost less than 1,000 dols. is con-
sidered worth owning. These noble animals have their
pedigrees preserved with as much care as the nobility
of England.—American Paper.

THE EXPEDITION TO THE SAHARA.—The
President of the Italian Geographical Society has (says
a Daily News telegram) received favourable intelli-
gence of the expedition sent to examine the possibility
of conducting the waters of the sea into the hollow
basins of the Sahara. The Tunisian Government co-
operates energetically in supplying guides, escorts,
horses, &c., for the expedition, which at Gates will be
divided into two parties. One is to explore the Oasis
of Gerid, and carry out some interesting collateral
researches among the ruins of Carthage, particularly
the remains of the aqueducts and the remarkable lead
Mountain of Gebel Drucas.
THE LAST NEW BONNET.—A new bonnet has
been introduced (says the Court Journal). The ma-
chinery is thus described in the provisional specification
for the patent :—From front to back rim this bonnet is
of endless diameter. It is set on behind a wreath
piled up upon the spot where phrenologists tell us the.
organ of firmness lies, and it defies madly the laws of
gravitation. With its trailing garlands is a wild frolic-
some look, which suits the giddy spirits of youth. No
pity has it for the faded or "rejuvenated " hair. and
it does not lend itself to the stratagem of the double
veil of white and black tulle. It only goes with a
bared face.

THE SERVANTS.—HOUSeMaid (just engaged):
"I should like to he shown my room, m'am
Lady of the House (startled) : "0, if you like. You'll
find it a comfortable—"—Hottsemaid : "I should
like to know if it's large enough for my piano, m'am !"
—Punch.

TRADE RETURNS FOR MAY.— The Board of
Trade returns for last month show that the total
declared value of British and Irish produce exported
was £18,225,152, or about £3,000,000 less than in the
corresponding month of last year; and that for the
five months of this year they amounted to £91,507,221;
or about £7,000,000 less than in the same period last
year. The imports, on the other hand, show an in-
crease of nearly £4,000,000 for the month, the total
being £32,346,107, and for the five months,
£157,895,261, or only about half a million less than in
the corresp.,nding period of last year. Among the
exports, cotton shows a slight increase both in quan-
tity and value; but there is a falling off in the ex-
ports of iron for last month of about three quarters
Df a million in value, though a smaller proportion in
quantity.
FRENCH PRISONS.—The irrench Assembly on
Saturday passed the Prison Discipline -Bill. The
clauses agreed to give prisoners sentenced to more than
12 months' confinement, the option of choosing the
separate system, and thereby obtaining the remission
of one-fourth of their term, this reduction being also
applicable to sentences exceeding three months, if the
prisoner has passed three consecutive months in isola-
tion, No departmental prison can in future be built
without provision for the separate system, or without
the plan being approved by the Government, and, on
the proposal of M. Schcelcher, a clause was added
instituting a Superior Council of Prisons, such as
existed from 1815 to 1830, to advise the Minister of
the Interior. The bill passed by 486 to 118.

GERMAN ARMAMENTS —A Berlin correspon-
dent writes that the new fortifications of Metz are
now all but finished. The four forts added by the
Germans to the seven constructed by the French, are
with the exception of Woippe, reoy to be armed.
Cannon, ammunition, arid provisions are sent to the
place, the victuals being intended to maintain an army
of 40.000 men for several years. Preserved vegetables
in large quantities have been dispatched from the
new governmtnt manufactory at Mayence. As to
the Strasburg fortifications, the new works on the
left side of the Rhine are ready, while those
on the right bank will require another eighteen
months. According to the opiniou of German mili-
tary men, Metz and Strasburg will shortly be the
strongest fortresses in the world, and in connection
with Diedenhofen, Saarlouis, and Britiach to the west,
and Mayence, Coblentz, Germers.heim, and Rastadt
to the east, will form an almost impregnaMe line of
dvience. To make assurance.dotibly surEy some more
railways are being constructed between these fortresses,
and the idea is seriously entertained of adding to the
works of Cologne. When all is complete, the gar-
risons of all these fortresses will admit of being united
within twenty-four hourEi.

MONEY-MARKET AND CITY INTELLIGENC •
Operators for the Rise—Aeronauts; likewise Anglers.
—Punch. •
EXPLORATION OF ICELAND.—Mr. Watts, of
London, who visited Iceland last year, and aicendecl
the Vatno (Mel to a higher point than had previonsll
been reached by any traveller, sailed from Granton on
Tuesday in the Diana, for Reykjavik (says the Scoti;
man). He is to resume his travels in the interior el
Iceland during the present summer. There is still a
large portion of the island unexplored, and, as it
very mountainous and covered in some places with I',
petual snow, the work of exploration is attended Witt; ,
great danger and difficulty. With the assistance tle
some of the Icelanders, however, it is hoped that tbl.s
inhospitable region may be crossed over and examined!
so that its topographical and mineralogical character
may be determined more exactly than jias yet boerl
done.
THE PATENTS FOR iNVENTIM
meeting of the London Association of Voleiu'i
Engineers and Draughtsmen, it eld at the Cannen-streef
Hotel on Saturday evening, under the presideneY
04r. Joseph Newton, it was resolved that, in the eve'
of its, being determined to provide for the preliniipl
examination of applications for letters patent, s"c,
examination should be confined to the question° -
whether the invention is for any manner of manufac;
ture, whether the specification is clear, and whethed
the invention appears open to ojection on the gOO%
of want of novelty, as far as can be ascertained by
examinatibn as is prescribed by former specificatiell
and other documents and publications in the Pat_.ierld ,
Office; that adverse judgment of the examiners showd
not constitute a veto upon the grant of a patent; f
that inasmuch as the publication of reports
examiners would, in many cases, operate unit' tdll,
against the patentee, such reports should not be 111,4
public, provided that the appli .a.nt inserts /11 "c,f
specification an acknowledgment of the existence a
the prior matter the examiners may have found filo
called attention to, and a specific statement of wilt"
nevertheless claims.
RULER OF THE (CHANNEL) WAVES.—BOit°II
rice Britannia superseded. —Punch.
e
A NORWEGIAN SCIENTIFIC EXPEDITIO.O. :
The Norwegian Government have decided to send
next year a scientific expedition to the North Atlantl'
Ocean, between Norway, Faroe, Iceland, an gilPt
and Spitzbergen, the object being the same as that gi
our own Challenger Expedition, and the time W
spent for the work is fixed at three years. The cd:1—;"
mander of this expedition will be Captain Carr Ns'''.
of the Royal Norwegian Navy, who is at preserl,
England for the purpose of gathering information also,
the work done by the Challenger. Captain Wile
for the last five years had the command of
Norwegian survey steamer Professor Hanstein, ant,cl po ,
well qualified for the work to which he liaS
appointed.

CRIMINAL STATISTICS. —ln London, On
evening in last week, at a meeting of the St..
Institute, at which Mr. Straight presided, Mr.
Clifford (barrister), in the course of a le
"Thieves' Dens," drew attention to the fact
log the ten years ending with 1873 the n'
known criminals at large had decreased from
to 18,940; of receivers of stolen property from 3,; A,
1,782 ; of "suspected persons " from 32,488 to 24/7'
and of houses used for criminal purposes from 9,9
5,064. In the latter category the suspected Pn,,ti'
houses and beershops had decreased from 5,1 f
1,582. He deprecated the proposal to sweep awaY
called "thieves' dens" as calculated to in
difficulty of apprehension. Mr. Straight exP)
hope that an Act would be pawed to punish vi
ing by severe castigation and a short term of'
ment, and advocated the appointment of a •
secutor with large financial resources.

Frida,
George%

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AMERICAN TORPEDO VESSEL —A ne
vessel called the Alarm, has been complet
Navy-yard, Brooklyn. This is the second of
built during the past 12 months, both being
by Admiral Porter. The Alarm is entirely co]
of iron on the bracket plan, with double
bottom. She has seven water-tight compar
the sides, and, whenever necessary, can be
down in the water for the purpose of being
The Alarm is 170 feet long in the keel, 1'
deck, and 28 feet beam. She has 312 tons'
ment, carrying one 20-inch gun on the bow,
fully equipped will have four Gatling guns 4
There are three torpedo bars, capable of
pounds of dynamite, equal to 400 pounds o'
and 100 loaded torpedoes, and about the sam(
of cartridge and shot. She has stowage roc))
bunkers for five days' consumption of coal
when necessary, she can carry on her deck (
cient for three days more. The engines and
are worked from the wheel-house, and nee(
person to work them. Accommodation is
six officers and 60 men, and when out on
will carry two months' provisions. She is sul
be very fast, and will be able to make 15 kno+
easily.

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LIONS AT PLAY.—" Perhaps the most .
ful sight that I ever saw in connection with
was on a morning when I had not got from
most carelessly, my gun was still unloaded wre
examining some buffalo spoor, when on looking,n)
my gun-bearer, who had my cartridges, -
at full speed. Knowing that he must have .:.
thing to frighten him so, I did not shout, but
where he had been standing, a few yards
there sure enough, not twenty yards off, were a
lions; they were both full-grown, and the -
immense mane, and formed altogether as
pair as I ever saw ; the lioness was ro!
playfully striking out at her lord and -
fore-paws like a kitten, while he stood
mejestically looking on. I stopped a mol
them, though the ground was quite or
must have seen me if they had looked .
I rushed off after my Kaffir to load.
they were in was good, and I might have
a certainty, if not both, but when I had
getting him down from the top of a big
back, they had gone. I suppose they an
our wind. No doubt they had been hunt
and had been down to the river to drink pre)
to going to bed."—W. H. Drummond.
is: a fog
A SUBSTITUTE FOR PENS.--A macual-i. 0,
writing spoken words has been invented by A-L'tee
Huppinger. The Revue Industrielle describes. „tit
machine as being about the size of the hand. It n 5 rept
in connexion with the vocal organs—the instrunil of
recording their movements upon a moving bslnee
paper in dots and dashes. The person to wholn, tile
instrument is attached simply repeats the words aloe
speaker after him inaudibly. This lip language ifi
faithfully written out.—Athenceum.
,-.4t-„,401:1f
CURIOUS SUPERSTITION.—Lady Duff uF... ott,
in her Last Letters from .kgypt, mentions a curioneo
perstition which she actually observed to the effeevl;et .
twins, if allowed to be hungry, turn into cats at %ale
and go out prowling for food; they only eat air 041
'of your provisions b-at it you beat them they IT, ate
their parents next day, "So-and-so beat me Twilel
house last night," and show their bruises. OnlY
do it; and if you give them a sort of onion broth,,bef
camel's milk the first thing when they are born,
don't do it all. "One of the American missional be,
says the authoress, "told me something like it pool
longing to the Copts, but it is entirely Egyptian, Ale
common to both religious. I asked several Copts, "0,
assured me it was true, and told it just the sain%., owiti
it a remnant of the doctrine of transmigration? '•"-' nie ' -
ever, the notion fully accounts for the horror PO: ti
feel at the ilea of killing a cat."
d 04 P
A DOG STORY.—" G. F." writes to Lan- „lie,
Water:—" A poor fellow, a carter, named COlB •
residing at Crossgates, near Dumfermline, left.not '
et few days ago accompanied by his dog. He din tee
li
return that day, but on the following afternoona_ i
dog arrived home in a very excited state, and beh 1g A
in a most eccentric manner, apparently endeavol;l7o
to attract the attention of the inmates. Seeing,,ree
44
the animal continually rushed off in the same n''' 4
tion, and that he evidently wanted some one to,r7to
with him, Colville's friends resolved to follow Te„„
fearing something had happened. The dog led t.,_„ft.,.
straight away some distance to a disused coal-
where it stopped, and refused to go any further.
worst being now conjectured, grappling irons "'be
procured, and eventually, after much trouble,
dead body of Colville was brought to the bank." a
ROOTS IN DRAINS.-.-In a paper recently r,e_"o
before the Edinburgh Botanical Society, some curio
cases were cited of the entire occupation and stoe
of drains by roots of trees (says the Garden). Ini.i.isit
instaace a 2-inch pipe, with sockets, laid in an ace
a foot below the surface, was completely filled wit
roots of an Apple tree. In another, a root had en'
a lead pipe and grown and branched into nu&
fibres which filled the pipe for a considerable disl
The strangest case was where a Willow growing Ile'
dam had sent roots 25 feet beneath a road, and,'
trated a large leaden drain-pipe 7 feet below the ;.?
and stopped it. The pipe was taken up and clezi-,
and the tree cut down. The drain was relaid,
some time afterwards was again stopped. It wasle-
found tht the stump, which had sprouted, had sellbti;
mass of rootlets into the drain, which had filled 1'
pipe solidly, although their connection with the
was only by a single fibrous rootlet.
t.
CONSUMPTION OF MALT.—An inland revellll,,,
return relating to brewers shows that in the year en,'
ing with September, 1874, the common brewers of .
United Kingdom consumed 47,219,780 bushels of no
a quantity which is more by 1,685,804 bushels thibA,
that which was used by common brewers in the preee'n,
ing year. There was more than that increase in V:IA.;
land alone, the amount having risen to 41,194,
bushels. The quantity in Ireland rose to 3,558,5,61
bushels, an increase of nearly 39,000 bushels ; but, P.. 1)
quantity in Scotland declined to 2,466,914 buskelg2-0)
decrease of above 103,000 bushels. The return (101
tinguishes the quantity used by the common brevie4l°
each "collection." In the Lichfield collection, wn,Awe
of course includes Burton, the quantity was 4,821,.7)
bushels in 1872 (the year ending with Septembe,
l,
5,530,597 bushels in 1873, and 5,994,150 bushelo:,-1
1874. The quantity in the London collection
-911211
ceeded ten million bushels in 1874 ; the quantit,„t. ,
the Dublin collection reached 2,461,061 bushels. .L.,..',
quantity of malt consumed, not by common brewe"„, -
but by victuallers and other licensed retailers brewir
their own beer, amounted in 1874 to 10,843,493 busbettl'
or 86°,268 bushels less than in the preceding year, tig
decrease being chiefly among the persons (in Englan
not victuallers but licensed to sell beer to be drunk ern
the premises.
ENGLISH CARPET MANUFACTURERS AND 1111,1
UNITED STATES EXHIBITION, 1876.—A naeteors
signed by 29 power-loom carpet manufacturing full
and representing four-fifths of the entire Brusee
carpet manufacturers of the United Kingdom, I
been forwarded from Kidderminster to the Duke
_r
Richmond, as President of the Council, and Comoni".
sioner of England of the Philadelphian Exhibitil
1876. The memorialists submit the following replY vo
the invitations inviting them to contribute specirnel
of various manufactures to the exhibition :
in view of the heavy duties now levied by the-U.0'2:0
States on the importation of carpets produced iii utly '
country—au additional 10 per cent, having reeen ny
been reimposed—the manufacturers fail to see
advantage in responding to the invitations requesat,
them to become exhibitors in Philadelphia, in
and they respectfully submit that international ,e,T.T,.,
bitions are incompatible with tari,%4 ei a prohib'w
character,"

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