The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1874-02-14 00:00:00

Miscellaneous 11nittE9enee,

HOME, FOREIGN, AND CCLONIAL

NOT TO BE BEATEN !—" You cannot taste in
the dark," sail a renowned and pedantic Ectubur‘th
lecturer. "Nature has intended us to ate our food."
"Tiers," inquired • forward pupil, " how about a blind
man at dinner "• Nature, sir," answered the pro-
fessor, " has provided him w•th eye teeth."
THE TRADE wino Cuiru.—Tho foreign ship.
ping entered and cleared at the Treaty ports .4 China
increased from 14,963 vessels of (in the aggregate)
7,381.557 tons in the Tar 1871 to 17,000 vessels of
8,486 473 tons in 1872. The returns stating the share
tali en by each foreign commercial Hag in this carrying
trade, from and to foreign countries arid between the
Treaty ports, shows the chief nationalities to he the
British, American, German, and French. The Britieli
vessels emoloyed increased from 7,164, of 3,330,881
tons, in 1871, to 8,360, of 3 914,130 tons. in 1872. Ame-
rican teem 4,600, of 3,187,648 tons, to 8,174. oil 417,293
tons; German, 1,480, of 428 747 tons, to 1976, of 607,948
, toss; and French, from 277, of 135,289 tone, to 225, of
1 164.346 tons. The value of the goods carried in 1872
that is to say, in vessels arriving from foreign ports (in.
eluding re-exports) and in the coasting trade, counting
in the tatter all goods departing in vessel, cleared for
treaty porta or arriving is vessels cleared from treaty
ports—reached £125,101,067, two fifths in the foreign
trade and threw ii.ths in the coasting trade. Of thee
total amount 5114 per cent, was carried in British
vessels, 3628 per cent. in American vessels, 5 34 per
cent. in (liftman vessels, and 360 per cent. in French
vessels. But excluding the coast carrying trade between
treaty ports, and taking only the foreign trade, the
shares of there four nationalities were as follows :
British shipping. 7796 per. cent.; American, 6•45 per
cent. ; German. 3 53 per cent. •, French, 823 per cent.,
the remaining 317 per cert, bring divided among Rus-
in:au, Scandkiaviall, and other flags.
" ITO MAL &DT WAS ON Tag IsiEuvis !"—ln
leader, the Dotty Hen's remarks :
Toe well known Inscription in an Italian grave-yard, "1
was well: I would be better; and here I am," might plausibly
be sucgestel as the epitaph of the Gladatone Ministry. It
would be very appropriate, if only the first sentence were
true bat this is just vilest happens to have been false. The
tilalet, no Ministry Is dead, and now only •waltinit the
urand qu,st of the nation, which shall d.-elde whether It
WA. fel° de a, or succumbed to natural causes. Wnatever
the verdict, St perished, not because It would be better, but
because it was not Wbl.4 Al worst its AA anticipated the
vltahle result of a lingering malAy. Like the soldier in
Horace, It demanded quick death or glad victory: and as the
tombstone verse declare., death has come wish kindly aid to
loose It from Its pain. Mr. Disraeli cannot understand what
elle bit. It ate well, slept well, drank well. and showed no
want of vigour or ions. Its malady season the nerves. lu a
word, It was hypochondriacel.
„

..
Joy EMILE Whore are
you going to, Papa ?"—"Te the City, my Dear."—
And what are you going to the City for, Papa ?"
" To make money for you, and Maud, and Mamma,
and Baby r—" You needn't trouble to make any
Money for Beby, Papa !"—Why not, my Dear ?"
" He'll only put it in he Mouth r—Punch.
-

"SPIRITS AND BEER !"—According to the 16th
annual report of the Commi.siooers on the Inland
Revenee, just fettled, the net receipt in 1873 was
£45,645,252, and in 1872 £44.805,895. The net in.
crease was £839 357. The Couumissioners add : "We
b.lieve that such an extraordinary Ir. crease purely
from natural growth of revenue as that town above
has never before been re c odd in the acconnts of our
Den •rtuoent. it is derived almost entirely from spirits
and beer." The Excise duty on spirits last year
amounted to £13,479,543 against £12,274,596, showing
an increase of £1,474,947.
A " CALICO BALL."—The disapproving as-
tonishment with which the Orientals formerly regarded
European amusements is now generally exchanged for
appreciative participation therein. Instances, how-
ever, still occasionally occur of misunderstandings with
regard to their origin and purport. A festivity lately
took place at Poonah, known as the 'calico ball," at
which the English residents appeared in fancy dresses.
A traveller who happened to arrive at the place that
night, seeing the Council house lit up, asked a native
what was going on, who gave him the startling infor-
mation that it was Satan que nautch, a dance in honour
of Satan. It seems that some of the wild tribes of
North-Western India have regular feasts, at which
the -people dress up in fantastic dresses as an act of
homage to the power of evil. The worthy nativehad,
therefore. come to the conclusion that the wearers at
Louis XV, dresses, shepherdess costumes, aud
Albanian jackets and fustaneilds were simply acting
on the advice of the poet who suggests that, in view of
possible eventualities, "it's just as well to bow "even
to the evil one, and had calmly set down in his own
mind that the great novelty and success of the season
was neither more nor lees than Satan que ?match.
AN INDIANA DUEL. -- The Indianapolis
Journal statei that on the evening of the 1001 ult. a
party of young people of Jamestown were returning
from a dance, when a quarrel arose between two of
them, named Briggs and McClain, about the privilege
of escorting one of the young women. High words
ensued, and finally it was decided to repair to a neigh-
bouring common acd Fe- tie the difficulty by an appeal
to arms. It was midnight, but the madmen, for such
they were, repaired to toe spot selected. It was ar-
ranged that they should stend back to back, advance
three paces, wheel, and fire, the distance separating
them being only six ;sac,. Ths arrangement was
carried out, and at the first fire McClain fell, the ball
from Brigg's pistol having gone clear through his neck.
His condition was considered hopeless.
IM&IOBAN1S AT NEW YORK.—From official
returns made to the Bureau of Statistics at Washing-
ton it eeems that during the quarter ended December
31, 1873, 44,769 immigrants arrived at New York. Of
this number 24693 were males and 20,000 females;
under fifteen years of age, 11,223; fifteen years and
under forty, 27,583; forty and over' 5 933. Died on
the voyage, 47. Of the total arrivals, 7,523 were from
England; from S eitland, 1,292; Wales, 76; Ireland
5,9 ,2 ; Germany, 21,457 • Austria, 850' Setwften..33l'
Norway, 297; Denmark;672 ; France, 1,507 ; S
land 783 ;Spain, 64 ;Portue al, 2 ; Italy, 1 933; Belgium,
67; Holland, 500; Enrols, 209 ; Poland, 365; Hungary,
122; Finland, 21; Turkey, 12; Greece, 7; China,
4; Japan, 11; Canada, 28; Nova Scotia, 6; New.
foundland, 2; Mexico, 20; South America, 1; Brazil,
10; United States of Columbia, I; Venezuela, 2;
Celli, 1; Peru, 1; Buenos Ayres, 2; Cuba, 46; Porto
Rico, 1; St. Croix, 18; Hayti, 1; San Domingo, 4;
JaillibiCti, 10; Bonacea, 2; Bahamas, 1; Bermuda,
12; Malta, 1; Sicily, 30; Australia, 4; Persia, 3;
Armenia, 2; Africa, 1; Egypt, 1; New Zealand, 5.
Born at sea, 26. The immigrants represented 277
different occupations, including, of course, the occupa-
tions of the 26 infant immigrants born at sea.

THE EXPORT OF CO;LS.—The fdlowing is a
statement of the quantity of coal shipped at Grimsby
during Janus: y :—France, 5,553 tone; Germany,
1408; Holland, 527 ; Sweden, 2,305; Belgium, 433;
Egypt 8305; Turkey, 451 ; British India, 1,507;
United States, 477; in isq, 21,066. In the same month
the quantity shipped cemt wise wm 2043, tons ; in all,
23,109 tons. In 1573 the quantity of coal shipped to
the countries ahose.named was 19,578 tons ; the quan-
tity shipped cometwise, 1,550; in all. 21,125. The in.
crease thus amounts to 1.981 tons.

Arr ANTI-FASHION CoNVENTION.—An " Antis
Fashion Convention" has been held at a pace called
Vineland, in New Jersey, for the purpose of proteAMg
against the present absurdities of female costume, and
of effecting a reform therein. The convention wan
numerously and influsntially attendsd, and how far the
anti-fashions of the future are likely to be superior to
the fashions of to-day may be judged by the reformed
costumes worn by some of the speakers. Oce lady
wore a tunic and trousers of crimson velvet, with a gold
watch chain slung over her shoulder. Her headdress
was a blonde wig, composed of innumerable little curls,
surmounted by a cage's cad of the fourteenth century,
in which an ostrich fraher was fastened by an aigrette
of amethysts. Another was dressed like a Japanese,
a third wore a tunic of olive-green cloth, with knicker-
bockers and eaiters of the same colour, the tonic
being fastened by a black India rubber band. One
lady, however, was eccentric enough to appear in
an old black -ilk dress that she had bought nine years
before, and to suggest that some of the reformers spent
more money and showed more vanity in their reformed
dresees than many old-fashioned people stowed in their
unreicrmed costumes. Nevertheless, the Convention
passed a remMution to tha effect that, "when a mother
puts her girl into petticoats she Peals her daughter's
doom as a slave—which is, at any rate, a new and
remarkable contribution to the philosoihy in which
Professor Tenteladroelkh was so distinguished •
master