The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1870-01-27
Items Of News.

extremity OF America. FOR some years
past small barrel has been fastened
by an iron chain to the outermost rock
Of the mountains overlapping the Straits
of Magellan, opposite Terra del Fucgo.
1t is opened by every ship which passes
through the Straits, either to place
letters in it or to take letters from it.
This postoffice, therefore, takes care Of
itself, it is coniided to the protection of
seafarers, an there is no example OF
any breach of trust having occurred
Each ship undertakes the voluntary
Transmission of the contents Of the
barrel, if their destination is within
the limits Of its voygc
The water power of maine derived
rom the rivers aud streams, is estimat
ed, by an official report, at between
100000 aud 100000 horse power.
The approximate area of the lakes,
ponds aud rivers Of the State is placed
at 5000 square miles, and the area of
forests at 81 900 square miles. Maine,
it is sscrted, has 1868 lakes, more
in proportion to its size than any other
country of the globe, with few cxcep.
tions and ,229 200 900 cubic feet of
water are annually delivered by her
rivers.
A gentleman has just died in Gin.
cinnati who was killed in rather an
unusual way. lie was travelling on the
Clarksvillc aud Memphis branch of the
Louisville and Nashville railway, aud
was in his berth in a sleeping car. The
train stopped for water, and then moved
under the heavy iron spout, which was
raised by hinge for all trains to pass !;
but while it was passing, down came
the spout crashing through the roof Of
the car, and wounding Col. Pattcu, the
gentleman in question, so frightfully
that he has died Of his injuries.
They are long favored in Kentucky.
An elongated gentleman in Paris, Ky,
was boastiug that of five ei:hbors he
was the smallest, although he weighed
225 pounds, and was six feet high. In
the midst of his remarks, John Howard.
of Bourbon, came in, and stepping up
behind him, easily stretched his chin
over the top of the boosters head Mr..
Howard is six feet and ten inches high,
and weighed 296 pounds.
Official information shows that dur
ing the past six months Blacquc Bey,
the Turkish minister, has expended
five millions Of dollars in gold in this
country. He has purchased for his
government 100000 stand of arms, to.
gether with all the machinery necessary
to alter them to breech. leaders. The
minister states that this is only the be
ginning of expenditures in this country
by the government of Turkey, to add
to the efficiency Of her army aud naval
forCS
When the Sultan of Turkey fails to
raise money enough to meet State ex
peuses, from the people, we are told
that he makes the deficit by conliscatine
from sixteen to twenty five per cent. oil
the salaries Of HE Office holders. In
this country a different plan is pursued
When the nation cannot meet its ex
penses, the salaries OF officers are in.
creased, and the greater the stcalagc
becomes. Taxpayers, however, would
not complain it we borrowed an idea
from the Sultan. 1t would be GOOD
plan to carry out in paying the national
debt.
The looking glasses in the Internal
Revenue Office ut Washington costs
thirty thousand dollars 4. This is the
kind of economy the Radicals practice
at Washington, AMI especially in the
Treasury Department, and the people
are taxed on all they cat wearand con.
sumo, to pay the bills.
Messrs. \. T. Steward 4 Co, Of
New York, who generally do n steady
and non.fiuctuatins business, have dis
charged sixty clerks since the first Of
January. Clailin & Co. have been
obliged to dispense with 6ftysix Of
their men, and Spaulding & Co., thirty.
At a Christmas dinner in Santa
Barbara, Cal, sweet and Irish potatoes,
vegetables of all kinds, lemons, pome.
granates, olives, aud Strawberries were
served fresh from the garden, and the
table was adorned with lemon, an; lie.
strawberry and raspberry blossoms.
\ minister at Pittsiicld, Mass. Mt
whose church cougrag tional singing is
practi.ed, gave out ahymn ofsix verses
last Sunday, rcmarking that if the con.
gregation sang it well the entire hymn
might be sung, but lift was to be poorly
performed one or two verses would be
enough.
The vestmcnt worn at Rome are des
cribed as beautiful beyond conception,
and the ladies say the lace upon them
surpasses anything in the world. So
dazzling are the colors of the dresses
that the bishops are likened to bed of
tulips in appearance.
The apathy in celebrating the ami.
versary of the battle of New Orleans.
January 9Th, is explained by colored
brother 20 be caused by the fact that
"Butlcrs bin dar since Jackson's bin
gone"
New York has a gentleman of leisure
and wealth whose weakness is the col.
lection of old tobacco pipes. He has
pipes made in nearly every country in
the world.
A South African Chief has been
smlttcn with passion for Queen Vic
torla, and to iavcrably open his suit,