The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1872-11-30 00:00:00

eu Tabu Corresponkut.

iicacr.. it eight to date that wo do not at all times
eanalva with our Ootreapondent's opinions.]

I see with pleasure that the Prince of Wales has
sent twenty brace of pheasants for the patents of
Charing Cross Hospital, and that the Earl of
Aberdeen has sent a case of game to the in-
mates of the City Orthopiedic Hospital. The
Prince is especially kind in this way, and this
Is not the first time by a good many that
he had sent peesents of game to our hospitals. How
acceptable must these gifts be I I do not suppose
that sick men and women, lying in pain and weakness
on their hospital beds, trouble themselves much stout
the game laws, but should a delicious bit of pheasant,
daintily served up, remind them of these laws, the
patients must be willing to admit that at least there is
something to Its said of these laws.

Is not abuse uontsgione ? I asked myself as I read an
article attar.,king Mr. Ay rton. It mattere not what article
or whei-„, for articles of this character are curiously nume-
r°'.w. Now I ananotaboutto defend Mr. Ayrton, and cer-
tainly shall not attack him —there is no need of that, for
almost everybody else does that. But I begin to fancy
there is a fashion in this kind of thing, and that many
of us praise or blame a particular person for no better
reason than that because other people do so. It is
positively marvellous what an amount of blame is aow
heaped upon the First Commissioner of Works, for
whom I will say just one word—he bears It all quietly
and makes no reply.
Under the auspices of the Lord Mayor and other
influential gentlemen, a parliamentary notice has
been eposited in the proper quarter prepwatory to the
'establishing of a Tribunal of Commerce in London. his
strange that while other large commercial cities in
England and Scotland have such tribunals, the city
which is presumed to be commercially more important
than any other should not have established such an in-
stitution. If this tribunal be constituted it will have
power to compel the attendance of witnesses, and
commercial disputesmay by consent be brought before
the court. Of course the judges or arbitrators will be
men chosen for their commercial knowledge, high
standing, and probity, end it stands to reason that such
a court will be better able to decide purely commercial
questions than a common jury, who in all probability
know very little of such matters, and who would be
sorely puzzled by the conflicting arguments of opposing
colonel.
•

-----
Sir John Bovering's death is a great loss to the com-
munity. He was a man of no common order. As a
decided Liberal, of course many will differ from his
political views, but his character, his ability, and his
great learning always commanded respect from all
parties. He was a man who woe never thoroughly
popuhsz in this sense, that his mind was too philoso-
phical, and his views too deep for the great mass of the
people. He was, perhaps, as deep a thinker as any
man of the present age, and like Mr. J. S. Mill, who
In many respects resembled him, be rather soared
above us ordinary mortals. As a linguist he had few
equals; as a writer he possessed more power and in-
fluence than fame, for he wrote chiefly under the thick
veil of anonymity. II his "Life" is ever written, as I
hope and believe it will be, we shall oaly then know
what a great man we have lost.
It is to be hoped that the weather will be mere
bright said cheerful when these lines are read than it
is "at these presents." The aspect of &thaw is
certainly far from agreeable, and "the rain
it raineth every day," while very sad accounts arrive
from various parts of the country of floods and boister-
ous weather. The effect of this upon trade is unmis-
takeable, and I am sorry to say that there are many
Indications of employment falling short. There are
also very sad accounts of gales and lose of life on our
coasts. Narratives of shipwreck and maritime disaster
are just now so numerous that we take too little heed
of each particular case, but the aggregate amount of
loss of life and property must be very great. Another
depressing consideration is the effect of this long-con-
tinued bad weather on oir food supplies. The grain
markets exhibit rising prices, and Mr. James Caird, a
high authority on the subject, writing to The Times,
says that we shall require, from September of the pre-
sent year to the September of next year, twelve
millions of quarters of foreign wheat and flour, the
largest quantity we have ever yet imported. On
the other hand there is a consolatory reflection—
the prices of coal and iron are coming down, and this
must have a tendency to lower prices for commodities
generally.
The question of the legality of certain sporting and
betting clubs will ere long in all probability come
before the Court of Queen's Bench, on a case arising
out of the recent decisions of the Lord Mayor against
two members of such clubs ; and if such a trial takes
place it will undoubtedly (excite great public interest.
Great complaints are made at the prosecution of certain
little clubs, while Tattersall's is left untouched, and it
is moreover well known that betting to a large amount
is carried on at most of the West End Clubs. Pending
the approaching trial I venture to say that most well-
disposed persons are heartily glad that attempts are
being made to put down betting as far as it can be put
down. It is notoriously the ruin of thousands of clerks,
shopmen, lade, &c., and the recent prosecutions are
decidedly in the interest of public morality.
Whatever opinions may be held with regard to the
justice or injustice of the pretensions of "the Claim-
ant," the public must now pretty generally desire that
his claims should be disposed of, be the result what it
may, and it is satisfactory therefore to hear that there
is to be a trial "at Bar," to dispose of the serious charged
under which he rests. Another little legal matter is
of public interest. A jury has just decided a case
In the Court of Common Pleas, on which case
they had been engaged for three days, and at the ter-
mination of it each juryman was handed the muni.
Scent sum of one shilling! Hereupon the foreman
complained to the Judge, remarking, however, that of
course he was net eesponsible for it. Of course not,
says Mr. Justice Bytes, "but you had better apply
to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, who will be moat
happy to assist you." A good joke, truly ! Seriously,
however, such payment of jurymen for compulsory
service is a great shame. The system of paying juries
has been somewhat reformed, but it is evident that
further reform is needed.
Why should not famous London town have its
"hospital Sunday," as well as minor towns? This is a
question that has frequently been asked, and now a
practical answer is about to be given to it. A meeting
of treasurers and representatives of our hospitals and
charitable institutions has bewa held, and it has been
resolved to have " Hospital Sundays" in London (how
many is not stated), and a committee has been ag.
pointed to make arrangements for carrying out the
idea. Of course the question will come up which ex-
cited such an immense amount of argument in relation
to the Marquis of Hertford'e will—what is a hospital?
But the committee now appointed will decide this, and
from their decision there will be no appeal. It appears
that in several large towns " Hospital Sunday " pro-
duces eeverally more than £2,000. And what a noble
and truly Christian work of mercy and charity is ac-
complished with this money! The clergymen and
ministers who preachon Hospital Sunday will certainly
have no difficulty in finding suitable texts from which
to preach. The Bible le full of them.
We have all sorts of trades-unions, but the purposes
for which they axe formed Cary but little. In fact
there are but two objects sought as a rule—higher pay
and less work, and if these two objects can be gained
why so much the better for trades-unionists--- for a
time at least. But a very fanny trade-union with very
different objects, is said to be in process of formation.
It is said that the hair-dressers of London, some 3,000
strong, are about to amalgamate, not for intimidatory
purposes, but simply to improve the position of their
business. So far, so good; but how do they mean to do
this? "They wish to become more thoroughly acquainted
with chemistry in connection with the human hair end
with the manufacture of perfumes, and they seriously
think that, could it be readily provided, false hair
would be generally worn by the community. Oh,
Indeed ! The hairdressers will have rather a hard
task to persuade "the community" to wear other
people's hair when they can wear their own. Some
ladies may wear false hair in addition to their own,
but not in lieu of it—that is to say if they have any
brains under their hair; and a to us men why we
would rather have a little hail of our own, even if it is
"rather thin on the top, sir," than a lot ot anybody
else's; so that if the hairdreseers want to persuade
the " community " out of this common sense, it will
take them a long time to do it. It seems also that the
hairdressers "desire to make themselves able to con-
verse affably with their customers." Dear me, I
thought conversation was their strong point already !
The affability with which they recommend their
pomades, and pomatuma, and the rest of their stock,
la well known.

PROLIFIC SEEDING. —I t has been calculated
that one plant of the red ropily bean 50,000 seeds;
one Sow thistle, 19,000; one Cornoockle, 2,590; the
Charlock, 4000; and the black Mustard, 1,200. The
old gardening books recommended any person who
entered a garden to pull up whatever weed he saw
near him. What • blessing it is to take • handful of
any of the above! It is worth remembering, too, by
the lover of canaries that every time his pet eats •
Grounded, it destroys at least 6,600 poseible Ground.
eels of the future—that is, supposing each of these
seedlings take up two square inches, it prevents some
ten square yarde of ground from being carpeted with
this weed. If he is benefactor of hie nice who causes
two blades of grass to grow where but one formerly
flourished, the man who pulls up only one weed has
far more claims on our nowt. He sets free • large
space of land for nodal cultivation.—The Garden.