The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1886-02-06 00:00:00

THE STOURBRIDGE OBSERVER.
°cal ati,b 4eam.

COMMENTS ON CURRENT TOPICS.
THE trouble in the Balkan Peninsula has
happily come to an end by an agreement
between Bulgaria and the Porte, which
practically permits the former to lay hold
of and retain all she has striven for in her
appeal to arms. Prince Alexander will
henceforth be Governor of Ronmelia as well
as Prince of Bulgaria, and though ha will
still acknewledge the suzerainty of the
Sultan, the allegiance implied will not be at
all of an irksome nature. &I-via must for
the future be pacific and respectful to her
neighbour State, remembering the lesson of
the campaign now ended. The settlement
is one which will le satisfactory to all who
watched the straggle with interest in the
hope that right would ultimately prevail.
Out of the ordeal of combat the "big" Bul-
garia, so smartly handled by Prince Alex-
ander, now emerges with the general good-
will of the Powers. Prosperity to the revi-
vified State stretching on both sides of the
Balkans.

JUDGE WOODFORDE spoke wisely and well
when on Tuesday at Derby he denounced in
good set terms the whole system of adminis-
tion orders, thelatter-day substitute for what
may in comparison fairly be called a good
honest bankruptcy. Petty defaulters have
been, since depression became chronic, as
plentiful as blackberries, and surely the
poor creditors should under such circum-
stances not be further plundered by" Gover-
nment. An administration order is obtained ,
by a debtor to avoid having to pay his obli-
gations, often enough, as his Honour of the
Derby Court most truthfully remarked;
and once the shiftless debtor gets into the
dishonest way of evading payment by the
means easiest to hand, he generally goes
down deeper and deeper in the financial
mire by borrowing more money whereever
he can raise it, and procuring credit in every
possible direction. Under the administra-
tion order arrangement a thriftless working
man has nothing to do but delude a dozen
shopkeepers into letting him run up a bill of
about four pounds each—not at all a difficult
task in these competitive days, if the credit-
monger has any connection and a year or
two's residence to recommend him—and
when pressed for payment by any of those
to whom he is liable, fly for refuge to the
County. Court, and obtain an administration
order, which will simply set apart a frac-
tional portion of the debtor's earnings to be
applied towards the liquidation of his obli-
gations to the dozen of struggling shop-
keepers whom he has, morally speaking.
defrauded. Bat the Treasury takes care to
extract from the small estate it undertake.-
to administer two shillings in the pound
bc..4..re it pays a creditor a penny.
•

THERE have been so many cases of mis-
sing, letters of late that a good deal of inse-
curity is felt with regard to the committing
of valuables to the post. Only the other
day a remittance of £lOO went astray be-
tween Herne Bay and Canterbury, and
petty larcenies innumerable have been re-
ported. What a good thing, as a London
evenine; journal suggests, it would be if we
could adopt the German system of trans-
mitting money. In that postal paradise a
stranger walks into an office at Cologne and
expresses his desire to remit £5 to Herr
Muller, 59, tinter den Linden, Berlin. He
pays down his £5, pins a trifling commission.
The following morning a postman enters
Herr Muller's shop and counts out to him
the £5 in gold pieces. By this means
absolute security is afforded to the public,
and tlle officials, with the exception of the
"money postmen," who are old and tried
servAnts, are exposed to no tomptalluu. We
mig!it even go further than that, and have
the payment possible not the next morning
bat in ,a few moments. Let the remitter
pay the cost of a telegram, in addition to the
oemmission, and the remitting post office
wire on its advice to pay at once. Such a
syst.mt would be a boon indeed.

STOURBRIDOE QUADRILLE CLAM—The first ball
io coon-aim' with the above clals wfts held in the
Union Hall on 'Monday night. There was a large
tn.l faThionablecOmpany, and after s,:•veral boors
•itnusement they br,4zn up. The refreshments
we swli.”-1 h Mr, A. J. Barnett, Mitre ilotet,
in a splendid manner.
ALIIIMI3RA d'nEaTnE.—The piuromime has leen
porformed each night doting thiA weak, but tt
aisemblages have been meagre. To-night (Satin.-
lay) i po4tively.tho last of its proiuction. We
hop to sae a crowded house to he:p to make up
for the defleit during the week —On Monday night
Mi 4 Afargurite St. John, with a good comedy tin]
burlesque company, commences a six-nights en-
gagement here
hELtEF OF THE PoOR Distributions of bread
and coal wire again made on Saturday_ and:Wtd

ties lay lat. ir le Corn Exeharga. The di3tres4
still prevails in the town.

CoiesEßveTevE Assootamote.—The annual meet-
ing of the members of this association was held on
Monday night at the rooms of the society, under
the presidency of Mr- C. P. Noel. Amongst those
pi•esnt were Mr. Alfred Freer' Mr. C. W. Collis,
Mr. C. H. Collis, Colonel Stalla-d, M-ssrs. B. Bratt,
T. W. Wooldridge, Phipps, Hinde, Penn, Batham,
Hart bury, Thompson, Littlewood, Grout, G. Burton.
&c.—A letter of condolence was ordered to be sent
to Mrs. Millinchip on the death of her
husband, who was a member of the association.—
The annual report was presented detailing the
work of the association in the past year, which,
owing to the election, had been one of more activity
than usual.—lt was mentioned, among other
matters, that there had been 13,000 political leaf-
lets distributed through the agency of the aesocia-
tion. There had been forty-five members elected
in the year, and seventy-five in the previous one.
[he income of the society had been £163 lie 6d,
an I there was a balance of £9 8s 84 in hand.—The
Chairman moved the adoption of the report, and iu
doing so made some allusions to the allotment
question. He said that the Stewponey Allotment
Society was tried for some time in that district hut
it did not answer, and he could not see how Mr.
.Tesse Collings' scheme was going to answer.—Mr.
C. W. Collis seconded the motion, which was
carried.—Mr. Noel was re elected president of the
association, and the vice-presidents were appointed
with the addition of the namra of Earl Beauehatnp
and Lord Windsor. Mr. George Burton. was re-
elected secretary, and a hearty vote of thanks was
givea to Lim for his pest services. A committee
70- the year was also appointed.—Colonel Stallerd
gave an address on the working of the associatioa
and the proceedings closed with a vote ef thanks to
the Cl. airman.
KINGSWINFORD SCILOOL BOAPD.--Mr. T. Wall,
miming officer, has received the ptecept for the
election for this Board. The election will take
p'etee on the let
_March, and nomientions will be
r ceived not later th4n Peburary 18th.
BOARD or Graaprerrs.—Mr. H. Billinerl.am pee-
el yesterday at the meeting of this Board.—The
e.tel's returns were as follows : Admitted 13,
tiseilanzei 16. dead 4, remaining in the house 50.
e;aieet 569 for the correspon 'ing week last year.
—helief, Kingen Mord .245 Os 2d, Stourbr.dge £35
is 71, Ilalesowen £26 18s 61, non-residents £2 7s
el, tete' ..2,116 Os 51 against £lOO 12s 5.1 for the
eerrespondine week last year.

_
DuerrKimmuss.—At till Police Court yesterday,
efore Co!onel Fletcher, and Messrs. W. J. Turney
tl,l t. Feeer, John Henry Kniht was charged with
drunk on the 12th ult, at Cradley. P.C.
);Iris proved the case, and defendant was fineii
2s 6d and costa. _

WorNDlNG,—Thomai Nlaley was charged with
n tlicionsly and unlawfully wounding and inflict-
In:: grevioue bodily harm on William Broom, on
ci Ist inst.—William Broom, Amzel Street, slid
le was in the Harvest Home Inn, Coventry Street,
et we.ln 8 and 910 the evening. He loft the house

Ln I was was going along Coventry Street when
Lley struck him with something at the back of
h heal, which rendered him almost insensible.
to •was then taken to Dr, Smith's,—Godfrey
e'l.y Perkin, boot manufacturer, Coventry Street,
id that on the day in question he wain Coventry
itrtet. He saw Broom pass by and the prisoner
as fdlowing,,,. Ile saw prisoner run to prosecutor
Ini jump on his back, and ;lit his arm around
zi 0 and they then had a tussle and fell down ;
q,,10y beim!. on the top. He pushed Maley off
13 oo and he then saw a quantity of blood where
13 oont had fallen.—Dr, H. Smith said Broom was
,roug,,t t ) his house, He had a soverl lacerated
und on the scale about three inches in len2th at
he back of tho left side of the head. There wis
a deep woued almost to the bone. In his opinion
it was not causel by a sharp instrument. It midi!
-,:tve been done by falling azainst a sharp corner.
I ono pl•toe the ecnip -wars lifted up 5,11 alit anyone
c old have put a finger in. There was no danger
—P.S. Chars sail from inforznati )n received he
-rn?sted the prisoner and chirged him with assanit-
g William Broom He replied "I suppo,e I must
plea I guilty to the charge." The charge of mall,
ions wounding was wi hdrawn and a charge of
c) ninon assault preferred.—PriQoner said be did
.ot strike complainant with an intent to do him in-
uv. lie very sorry.--The Bench said they
could!not deal with it like a general common as-
, tul'.—P.C. Webb said that complainant and de
eadant were b-th drunk.—A fine of 20s and costs
,v,zs inflicted, in default one month,

:eeereeteo Om—James Taylor was charged. with
slee:ing out ori the Ist inet without any visible
Ineans of subsietence. P.C. D ivies found the de-
fe viant <leeping in a hovel at Netherend CAliery
—Mr. 1111 acid he thought the defendant ought t.
ee put under some keeping as he was continually
'bow; nobody would employ him. The case was
eljeurned for 7 days.
CA oTIoN —John Henry Bradley was summoned
t sh cause why he should not pay the costs of a
n giitr ites' order end a sol'eitor's fee made out
to him, on the 31st October, 1884.—Defendant
said ha thought he had peid the money. Since he
eel ben tried Mr. Hill had been stopping money
.very Oth r week. About Whiteuntide he stopped
I week's wa,_ee-e—Mr. Hill ,aid he had not been
pill anything P.S. Cope said that after he served
the s tremens the defend Int enid he should go to
on on ;n preference to paying the in-msg.—An
order was made for payment; in default one month.
A LIAM ED WtiUXDi NO AT C LENT. —lilij,th Waldron
was eherged with unlawfully and m,liciously
Ar on 'ine William u Huxley on the 21st of January,
at Cent ; William Huxley was cherged wish
isetel in Elijih Wallron on the 21st of January.
Jr. J. Mega snpentred for Huxley: and Mr Perry
defended Waldron) C mplainant stated that he
Ii e:1 at Cleat with his mother He recollected the
314 ult. when he WWI at the Fountain public-
boese w.th his father, Waldron, and several ethers
['hey had some words. His father an! himself ,
ve .t away soon after 9 o'elo •k and left Waldron
,iehind. They went to the Spring Tavern and his,
father soon after went in the direction of the
Feuntaiu. He went back to see if his father was '
there for feir there should he aro v. It was near
'losing time, and Welds( n 'lid not want him to g-
in, hut his father was not the-e. He went to get
to his sister's house, and in doing so he paseed
Waldron's house As he was passing Waldron
jumped on the -op of him an't pressed his knee
in o his stomach ; he humped him with his knee.
Waldron had a mething in his right hand and.
ho kept striking him with it en the side of the
head, and on the forehead. He held him by the
throet with his left hand. When he was down he
used bad languaze and' threatened to kill him
Witnees was quite helpless., and bled eery badly,
end the (mental, of blood in his mouth nea-ly
choked him. Every blew which defendant stiuck
he 83iti "Now then, new then." Three young men
named Cherie:, Sheriff, Gill. William Buhl), arid his
mother and a uirl out of Waldroe's public hoase
came up His brother-in law helped te e'et hi).
up. but he could not stand, so they carried him ,
in his brother-in-law's hoese. He saw Waldron)
eianding a little way off, and witness toll him that
it was not his hand and that it was a "knuckle-
luster " Dr Hobbs was sent for. Cross examined :
He and h s father were in the house before Wald-
ron came in with a man named Fieher, His father
ealled Waldron M b— thief, and h. (witness) seie
hat lie was, He (witness) Paid that he should
to have him, Wrileron outside t-bit. He wt e
on one side of the table and Weldren on the other
lie, witness reached across the table and caught
‘Nreldron by the collar, and polled him, and asked
him to come and have it out out of doers. Waldron
took up a stick and struck him with it on the arm.
! Mr. Pnillips came in and told him to leave, and he
did so, As he left he, witness, said "11l wait for
you outside." When he came hack Waldron was
-melding inside the doorway of the tap room and
lie, witness, then cud there pushed him down.
They were not redline on the ground together.
When he accused Waldron of using knuckledusters
tie did not hold out his bands and say "these are
my knnekledusters. Colonel Fletcher here said
that they thought it was merely a common as
,sault. Mr. Higgs said that he thought it ought to
be one of common assault, as cross examination
Limeys put a different ef• t upon the eve Dr
He'sles, Clent, said he remembered being called to
Huxley on the 21st ult He found him suffer-
ing from two scalp wounds on the head,
of a jagged appearance. A clean cut on the top of
the nose, between the eyes, and a slight scar on the
side of the cheek. The eyes were just hegien7ng to
swell. There was some blood about, such as usuelly
'follows scalp wounds. He saw him again on the
22nd and he then bad two black eyes. The scalp
wounds might be caused by a fall.—Colonel Fletcher
said they did not think it was of any use to go on
with the ease after bearlng the cross-examination,
and the case was dismiaaed.—The cross-summons
, was then withdrawn. as Mr. Waldron said he
wished to be friends.