The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1881-09-24 00:00:00

To the practical man, no less than to the scientific,

,there can be few subjects of greater interest than the
influence of the electric light upon vegetation. Dr.
Siemens, whose name has so long been associated
with the utilization of the force of electricity, has
disproved, by a series of experiments, the theory
that plants, like animals, require periods of rest and
darkness, alternating with periods of growth and
sunshine. He was enabled, by means of the electric
light, to keep his vines, peas, and raspberries
all through the night in a glare as bright as
noonday. Vegetable life was quickened, and all
the more important stages of growth were stimu-
lated. From the elaborate experiments conducted by
Dr. Siemens, it would seem that in the future plants
will be forced to grow more quickly, to come to
maturity sooner, and to ripen earlier than under the
old order of things.
For centuries needle Work has been the favourite
recreation of the highest personages, and splendid
pieces of tapestry such as those at Bayeux have testified
to the interest with which the ladies in royal circles felt
in the execution of elaborate pieces of work performed by
the needle. Some of the bridal articles fol. the Princess
Victoria of Baden, who is about to marry the Crown
Pr:nce of Sweden, have been wholly done through this
agency. The veil, the pocket handkerchief, and the
fan have been made at one of the best-known lace
factories in Hirschberg. The ends of the veil display
alternately the arms of Sweden and Baden. It is six
yards long, and the design is a composition of oranges
and myrtles. The King and Queen of Sweden and Nor-
way rule over a kingdom more free from political convul-
sion, from religious strife, and from disaffection amongst
its people than probably any country in Europe. Their
frequent and prolonged periods of foreign travel testify
to the confidence which they feel in the tranquillity of
their people. Of late years Norway has successfully
competed with other favourite places of autumn resort
for the presence of the British tourist, its fjords, fjelds,
and tors opening up a new and interesting scene of
exploration for those who had already gone over the
more accessible avenues of recreation.
The 29th of September is always a day of much
interest and importance in the City of London. It is
then that the liverymen, as the enfranchised citizens
are termed, assemble in the Guildhall for the election
of a Lord Mayor. The mode by which the choice is
made differs materially from that in operation in the
towns which came under the Municipal Corporations
Reform Act of 1835. In these latter the aldermen and
councillors select from their own body the gentleman
who is to be chief magistrate for the year ensuing and
the choice is made by a majority of their votes. The
burgesses may be present in any number, but they
can take no part in the election. In London the
choice is made by the Liverymen—the citizens—in
common hall assembled, but it is restricted to the
members of the Court of Aldermen, twenty-six in
number. Those, however, who have already filled the
office of Lord Mayor are not eligible, and their names
are therefore not submitted to the meeting. As a
rule the choice of the citizens falls upon the senior
alderman next in rotation to the Lord Mayor
who has not yet served the civic office, but two names
are always selected; and this having been done, the
aldermen withdraw from the Guildhall to their own
chamber, where they themselves make the final choice.
Invariably they fix upon the member of their body
who stands next to the existing Lord Mayor in point
of seniority, so that the time-honoured rotation prin-
ciple is thus maintained. Although the Lord Mayor
is thus elected on Michaelmas Day, his formal instal-
lation into office is deferred until the 9th of November,
when the Mayors of all the other municipalities are
,:hosen.

The progress of the Law Courts towards completion
will, it is expected, after the present year, deprive the
Lord Mayor's Show of a considerable part of the
route which has hitherto been traversed. It is
customary for the Show to traverse the principal
streets of the ward represented by the new chief
magistrate in the Court of Aldermen, and then
to go to the Court of Exchequer at Westminster
to be presented to the barons. But time has wrought
changes which must ultimately tell upon the oldest
institutions. There is no longer a Lord Chief Baron,
no longer a Court of Exchequer, besides which the
Law Courts have been removed from Westminster to
the Strand; and in another twelve months will
probably be completed. There will then be no neces-
sity for the journey to the old historic Hall, which,
standing between the venerable Abbey on the one side
and the Houses of Parliament on the other, is a link
between the ecclesiastical earnestness of centuries ago
and the more active life of to-day. The new Law
Courts stand just outside the civic boundaries at
Temple Bar, on the borders of the city of Westminster,
and the fact of the Lord Mayor's procession having to
stop there, instead of going the entire length of the
Strand and Parliament-street, will Bh3rten the route
hitherto taken by more than one-half, and must
materially interfere with the eftect of the pageant.

The investiture of the King of Spain with the order
of the Garter has revived some of the historical
associations connected with that high distinction.
Edward 111, is credited with its foundation shortly
before the famous French battles of Cressy and
Poictiers. It was solely a brotherhood of bravery in
its origin; and Sir James Audley, who on the field
of victory was described as the most valiant of Eng-
lishmen by the Black Prince, is supposed to have been
the actual originator of the order. It was long closed to
all except the members of the Royal family and
the famous warriors of England. It is, perhaps,
Elio, most exclusive order the world has ever known,
and although after a time ouened to diplomatists and
statesmen am-well as to successful soldiers, has never
been held by any one below the rank of an earl except
in one instance. That exception was Viscount
Pabnerston, who, when tilling the high office of
Prime Minister some years ago, took the honour at
her Majesty's special request.