Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1871-05-30


DA rs and 81 TURDAYS. at Sir Doiiors per
annum.
CHANGES IN ENGLAND The meagre de
tails received from time to time by the cable
Of the revolution that is going on IN Great
Britain, furnish us generally with such barren
facts that we merely know what is accomplish
ed, without understanding at all the influences
that arc at work, or the change OF sentiment
that is taking place. Yet, it is evident tha''
during the past two years, there Is tar less re-
sstance to what is known rs the spirit OF
progrcss" and that Innovations OH rights and
privileges, formally considered almost sacred
meet with much less opposition than they dld,
even shot time ago In the House OF Lords,
the University Tests act. defeated again and
again, has at last been accepted, with scarcely
any important reservation. other than that tu-
tors shall be required to make a declaratlom
that. in the exercise of their Offices they will
teach nothing contrary to the Divine authority
of the Holy Scriptures, while the abolition OF
the purchase system begins to find favor, even
with the army officers themselves. Onl% last
year they were III trouble about the loss which
would be entailed upon them. To-day they
arc calculating how much they can make out
Of the operation. Next will follow the dis
memberment of Church and State which Is
not far off. Nlr. Gladstone may assert, as
much a. he chooses, that the Dlsmcnbermcnt
Act for ireland was not III Initiative act. but I
matter Of necessity but it is, nevertheless,
plain that this has paved the way to some
what similar action in regard to England pro-
,,er aud that, at no distant day, the Church OF
Eugland will be as much lett to stand alone, rs
its sister Church in this country. 1t Is so, too,
with the Tenure of Land act. The working OF
the system established for Ireland will serve
,.s Il precedent for England, and before long
we shall not only see the power Of entail cut
nf;, but the sale of land, under certain condl
tons, rendered compulsory. Ban. GdEcifr.
The NAMES OF APER.--Printcrs are some
times asked why various kinds OF papers OBJ
tain the peculiar names they bear. Here Is
the reason In ancient times when compare
lively few people could read, pictures of every
kind were much in use where writing would
now be employed. Every shop, for instance,
mad its sign, as we'll as every public house and
those 81 igns were not then, rs they are often
low only painted upon board but were inva-
ri, >bly actual models of the thing which the
sic n expressed-as we still occasionally see
= Dc VI, and the like For the same reason prln-
t.rs employed some device, which they put
upon the title pages and ut the end OF their
hooks. And paper-makers also introduced
,marss. by way of distinguishing the paper OF
their manufacture from that of others; which
marks becoming common, naturally gave their
names to different sorts Of paper "A 1avonte
noner mark, between l540 and 1850, was the
lug or pot, and would appear to have orlglna-
ted the term pot paper. The foolscap was j
latter device, and does not appear to have been
nearly of such long continuance as the former.
II has given place to the figure Of Britannia,
or that Of lion rampant supporting the cap OF
liberty on pole. The name however has CON
tinued, and we still denominate paper OF par
ticular size by the title 'fooscap.' Post pa
per seems to have derived its name from the
post- horn which at one time was its dlstin-
cuished mark 1t does not appear to have
been used prior to the establishment OF the
general post-ohice, (lG7o,) when 1t became
custom to blow a horn; to which circumstance,
no doubt We may attribute its introduction
Bath post is so named after that fashionable
city.--Erchan9e.
LOSSES BY FIRE.-Thc present year seems
to have been unusually prolific Of losses by fire
throughout the country. In some instances,
the losses will cut very heavily in the premiums
received during the year by the Fire Insurance
Companies, and may lead, with portion OF
them, to diminished dividends. Beyond this,
it is believed the Companies have not, thus
far, been affected 1t is fact that is worthy
of notice that, although the statistics Of
losses by fire have not been us accuratcy y tabu
lated as the statistics of mortality, by which
The Life Insurance Companies arc governed,
u.Nere seems to be law governing the annual
be, 'centage of loss IN the one case, us IN the
9th, II 1t has already been ascertaincd that
whils.H there are some years in which the losses
incur ed by the Fire Insurance Companies are
very l,reat, and there are also years in which
the 10 sses sustained are quite light, the aver
age pc rcentage OF loss. through given num-
ber of years, varies but very little from the
average of the same number OF years preceding.
1t has also been noted that in those years IN
which trade is active and fourishing, there are
fewer fires than in years when there is 4 gen
eral dullness in all branches Of trade
NARROW ESCApE--Thc Southern bound
mail train on the Fredericksburg road, on
Thursday night, narrowly escaped fearful &c,
cident at Hazlc Run bridge, just this side OF
fredericksburg ltappears that horse which
had straycd down the track on the night refer
red to, took fright at the approach OF the tram
and started off in gallop ahead Of the engine
towards the bridge.
The track curving nearly all the way 10 the
bridge, the engineer did not see him until he
WIS nearly upon him. and the career of the old
horse arrested by falling along the bridge with
his legs dropped down between the ties. For
tunately, the train was stopped before the en-
yne struck him. II that had happened 1t Is OF
opinion of the railroad men that the engine
wouI;l have been knocked off her front tracks.
and in al probability the whole train tumhled
down the high embankment. ,
II was found impossible to get the horse oft
the bridge, so he was pushed through and
landed on his feet, sustaining no injuries, al-
parcntlv, and was led home but next morning
was innnI deoa R,c b7ouI EU0Hirrr