The Portland daily press., 1870-07-02
General Ncwe.

The New York customs inspectors are get
| ting educated up to the 'false bottom dodge"
of smuggleis. While an inspector was ex-
aminiog lot of luggage of steerage passen-
gers brought by steamer, the owner offered
him s5oO to pass trunk. The inspector over
hauled the trunk and from below the false bot
tom he removed several thousand dollars
worth of jewels and jewelry. Another trunk
had quantity of the same kind of goods.
From other luggage were taken 1000 cigars
| and $1,000 worth of human hair. One pas
senger had stitched up in the quilt of his
| berth valuable piece of bloadcoth. These
are only few of the simplest dodges adopted
| by smugglers to get goods into the country
| The high duties inspire mems ingenuity to
evade them, and the detective force of the
government is lot half strong enough to
break up the practice.
A scientific expedition, under command Of
Prof. o. c. Marsh of Yale College, left New
Haven on Thursday for the West. 1t is COM
posed of students and recent graduates, and
they intend to spend several months in the
Rocky Mountain region, investigating some of
its geological features, and collecting largely
for the Yale Museum the extinct animal re-
mains which abound there, especially in Ne
braska, Dakotah and Wyoming. The party
will then proceed to California and visit some
of the principal geological localities on the
Pacific coast, after which they will return
through Colorado and Kansas, reaching New
Haven again probably in November.
Some of the New York railroads have
adopted the English method of supplying
their engines with water while at high rate
of speed, thus avoiding stops, and reducing
the time schedule on long routes several
hovrs: as for instance from New York to
Chicago to twenty-four or twenty-six hours.
In the center of the track is placed a trough
1900 feet in length, fifteen inches deep and
eighteen inches wide, fed by springs. From
the man-hole of the tender, down to posi-
sition between the hind trucks is an ingen-
ously constructed pipe, governed by simple
mechanism. When the locomotive approaches
the trough, the nozzle can be dropped instan-
taneously into the water, while the train is
running thirty miles an hour. The nozzle
sinks only to the depth of two inches into the
trough, yet when the 1900 feet are passed
over 1884 gallons of water will have been
drawn into the tender. The first expert
ments in taking water by this new method
were made few days ago. The locomotive
dashed, over the rails at the rate of thirty
five miles an hour. AS the Izzle struck the
water the fluid rushed into the tender with
the roar of a young Niagara, and when the
trough was left behind the tender was full.
The experiment was great success. .!-,s
Lightning came near proving fatal to Judge
r. A. Willis and his children in Coeton coun-
ty,S c., the other day. While the Judge and
two of his children were on their way home, it
commenced to rain. He took his two chill
dren under tree, and leaned against it, with
his umbrella over him. He had been there
but short time when the tree was struck
by lightning. The main current ran down it,
and, passing within about eight inches of the
judges head, ploughed the ground at his feet
small current struck his body, near the arm
pit, and passing down towards the hip, divid-
ed and ran down both legs. His little daugh-
ter's bonnet was badly torn by lightning.
The current struck the top Of her head, and
running down in straight line to The ear,
crisped and singed her hair. The little boy
was uniDjured. Judge Willis and daughter
lay insensible for some time, and when he
recovered his senses his little boy was sitting
down, looking at him. He is still suffering
from the effects of the stroke, but is slowly re-
covering. The little girl has entirely recover
ed. -1'Ti
There was some very nice pistol practice in
dulged IN in a New York liquor shop, We'd
nesday. John Byrnes entered Thomes Re,l-
ly's shop and threatened to shoot the bar
tender. He hurled two pitchers at him, when
the bartender, Martin Commerfoot, picked
up seven-shooter and discharged the whole
contents at Byrnes. Five of the seven shots
entered Byrnes' body; one ball entered in the
right breast, one under the left shoulder, one
in the back of the left hand, one in the left
thumb, one broke the small finger of the left
hand. The others went wide of the target.
Byrnes was taken to the hospital, where three
OF the balls were extracted. He refused to re-
main longer, and deliberately lose and walked
home. Byrnes is noted rough, and is eyi-
IDENTIFY tough as well as rough.