The Sun.
London, England, 1870-12-28 00:00:00

AGRICULTURAL PROSPECTS.

The week opened with slight rain in the morning,
succeeded by fine weather for the remainder of the day,
with the wind N.N.W. On Monday much rain fell
throughout the day, with the wind high from the west.
Tuesday quite a fine day. Our advices from the West
Riding of Yorkshire runs thus :—" Our farmers complain
much of the turnip crop; but some very fine crops of
mangel wurzel have been grown : on one farm they ave-
raged nearly fourteen pounds each, many roots weighing
twenty-eight pounds a piece. Potatoes are a plentiful
crop and of good quality, and at a very reasonable price,
7s. to Bs. per 2521b5." From the East Riding before the
frost : "The growing wheat plant comes up strong and
healthy, and prospects for the future are thus far
promising." From Lancashire, under the same circum-
stances ; " Vegetation in East Lancashire assumes a
healthy appearance for the season of the year, and
the young wheat plant is progressing satisfactorily."
On Wednesday, with the wind N.E„ came very sharp
frost, with snow showers at intervals during the day.
From Scotland, the eastern coast, we are advised :
"That in the North on Saturday week the frost was very
keen, and early on Sabbath morning snow began to fall,
continuing for several hours, when it changed to a heavy
rain, and before night the snow had all disappeared. On
Monday morning the river Deveron was greatly swollen,
and did some damage to turnip-fields. On Tuesday
morning the rain somewhat abated, and was succeeded by
a fresh fall of snow, which on Wednesday morn-
ing lay several inches deep. Agricultural opera-
tions have been mostly suspended. Turnips are
standing out well in this district, and large quantities
of them have been stored ; straw appears not to
stand out so well, but it is of excellent quality." On
Thursday there was again a very sharp frost, with snow
continually falling during the early part of the day,
but with the remainder fine, with a brilliant starlight
night." Again, from Lancaster of this date : " The
weather is fine, with severe frost. From Suffolk : " The
mild weather noted in our last advice continued
until Tuesday night. The past two days have
been bitterly cold with north-east wind." From
near the coast of the same county : "We have
a charming change in the weather, from rain and tog
to sharp frost." From Bristol: "During the early
part of the week the weather was mill, since then severe
frost has set in." Friday was again very sharp, with the
day very cold and very fine throughout. From Devon-
shire our correspondent writes :—" " Very bright weather,
with hard frost, thermometer standing at 11 degrees at
nine o'clock p.m." From Lincolnshire :—" Immense
floods have resulted from the incessant rain, and all low-
lying districts are in a bad state. Frost has now made its
appearance again with great severity, the thermometer
marking 21 degrees of frost on the morning of the
23rd. A good covering of snow has fallen, and this
will in a great measure preserve the turnips." From
Cambridgeshire : " We had an unusually heavy fall of
rain on Monday, and up to Tuesday evening it continued
very wet. On that night it turned to frost, and after a
fall of rain on Wednesday the weather has become very
severe indeed ; during last night 27 degrees of frost—the
coldest since the memorable Christmas eve of 1860—
brilliant and sharp, with every prospect of continued
hard frost. Should this continue farmers will have
nothing to do but thrash. Some samples of wheat are
softened by the wet weather, but on the whole our wheats
never came to hand in November and December as dry
as they now are." The covering of snow to the wheat
plant will be of great service in protecting it.—Mark
Lane Express.

The Minerva, of Seaham, bound for Rochester
with coals, is ashore at Palling, and will become a total
wreck. The crew were landed safely.

FATAL COLLISION AT SEA.—On Friday morning,
in a thick snowstorm, the French brig La Concepcion,
bound for Barcelona, with coals, was run into off the
Scilly Islands by the English barque Carry Wright ; the
Concepcion being cut in two amidships. The master and
five men got on board the barque, but one man and a boy
were drowned.

The Clonmel Chronicle says the intellgence of the
intended release of the Fenian convicts was received at
Tipperary with almost frantic enthusiasm. The result
was a general illumination on the Sunday night with a
display of fireworks. The paper named proceeds :
" There was not, we learn, a single house in the whole
town that did not present a blaze of light. Such is the
state of terrorism there existing, that those inhabitants
who did not in the least degree sympathise with this o va-
tion were compelled, through a feeling of self-preserva-
tion, to join in these rejoicings."
IMPROVING WINE BY ELECTRICITY.—At Digne
in Germany, several butts of wine were shattered by
lightning, and their contents passed along the floor into a
cistern beneath. It was found that, far from having suf-
fered by the accident, the wine was improved so as to sell
at 60 instead of 10 cents per litre. Subsequent experi-
ments tend to chew that a current caused by the immer-
sion of two platina electrodes in connection with a galvanic
battery has a similar effect on wine. Even poor wines
seem to assume an agreeable flavour through the process.
Food ✓ournal.

MELANCHOLY ACCIDENT.—TiIe Manchester Ex-
aminer says : The other evening a melancholy accident
happened to Miss Emily Oswald, only daughter of Mr.
Oswald, the proprietor of the Swan Hotel, Egham ilythe.
The deceased was running across the yard adjoining the
hotel, when her face came in contact with a cart that was
standing there, with such force that her head was knocked
backward and her neck broken. Death appeared to be
instantaneous. The deceased was about 21 years of age,
and was greatly respected. A few moments prior to the
accident she had arranged to accompany some young
friends to an entertainment at the institute, and was at
the time of her melancholy death hurrying to prepare
to go with them.

DEATH OF " CHICKEN Tom," THE MISER.—The
Kirkby Lonsdale correspondent of the Kendal Mercury
announces the death of Thomas Walker, of Hutton
Roof, better known by the soubriquet of `' Chicken Tom."
This character, with upwards of £3,000, lived in a small
cottage by himself, and even deprived himself of the
common necessaries of life. His clothes were old and in
rags, and he was always glad to make a penny by selling
besoms, but his income he principally derived from sell-
ing fowls and chickens—hence his nickname. Last Satur-
day week the man's neighbours thought something wa3
was wrong, as his house was closed. The door was broken
open, and in a miserable condition this creature was found
dying, in fact, and without the common necessaries of
life to support him in his old age, for he was an old man.
He expired on the Monday following.
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