Connecticut western news., 1872-10-11
Facts and Fancies.

Irish potatoes are so cheap in Kansas as not to be worth digging, ....,.. ~.
 Presbyterian property in Philadelphia is worth over $5, ,O00,O ,OOO. ,.'..' ..' -.",', ,.'
 T. Ross Browne has contracted to pay $500, ,0OO for 10000 acres of California salt marsh. .,,.., Y. o5 .. r,. |,
 The library lottery drawing ehas been postponed at Louisville, Ky, till the 7th of December. '. .'"'' From 1868 to 1871 in the United States 526 steamboat casualties took place, with loss of 1473 lives. .,. .,,
 The fumes of lucifer matches stran- gled premium bull that was being trans
 ported in Kentucky freight car.
 .. The French Government has paid to Germany 57, ,0O0, OG0 francs, which com. pleted the fifth half milliard of the war indemnity. '"' ''' .' ''.' .' '.''''. In Iowa, women hold offices as notary public, four are county superintendents | of public schools, and one is State Librarian. ,".,... .... -. l-.. ..
 ,' A French soldier at Lyons blew out | his brains because his comrades Jeered. at him for spelling their dinner, which
 he had cooked. ,"4 A Japanese student, at New Haven sent a polite note to his professor, re- ouesting permission to kill Q student
 who had insulted him. -,.. .., -. The subscriptions to the Italian Opera 1 in New York. amounted to $50, ,O0o for
 season of thirty nights before Q single
 advertisement appeared. ...,. ....... ...,.. '
 The crops in England have but
 poor prospect this season. Intelligence is brought from time to time of great
 damage done to them by wind and ram
 and continued wet weather.
 ,, The high price of coal has so increased
 the expenses of running the Lancashire
 cotton mills that it has been decided to
 reduce the number of hours Of labor 1n
 them while the present high prices are
 maintained.
 The French authorities and General
 Manteuflel commander of the German
 troops in France agreed that the evatu-
 ation of the Departments of the Marne
 and Haute Marne commence on the
 10th October. '"'
 Speaking of theoretical farming, Josh
 Billiues says that he once knew man
 who wouldn't even set Q gate post with
 out having the ground analysed to see II
 it possessed the proper ingredients for
 post holes. .' .0 -..
 c. H. Goodspeede, who was feeced
 out of 5000 by gamblers at Chicago, turns out to be Henry Stone, the conti-
 dential clerk of 0 Hartford, Conn, bank,
 who robbed the bank of $5, ,OOO and
 started for California. ., = 4l,n ornaly y1n1aY tho great Natural Bridge in Virginia sudden
 ly disappeared, and subsequent lnvesu- 4 gation demonstrated the fact that the
 steam emptles itself into the earth .throuch Q number of newly-formed
 Assures of unknown depth. .' ,'
 The greatest smoker in Europe has just died at Rotterdam. In his will he
 expressed a wish that all the smokers of II the country be invited to his funeral, and
 that they smoke while in procession to
 the grave. At the foot of the bier
 tobacco, cigals and matches were placed. + Among the clever hits of the paragraph
 ing of the period, the following is quite
 the best ss Elias Williams, of Butfalo,
 Missouri, blew into the muzzle of his
 gun to see If it was loaded. Could Mir. .l Williams communicate with his friends in this world, his spirit would gently
 whisper, It was " " The Fourth Auditor of the United , States Treasury is now busily engaged
 in making preparation to pay the navy employees the amount due them for the reduction of their wages under the eight-hour law. About 4O,Ouo persons will come in for an allowance under the
 law of May IS last. .'",-.
 Caleb Shercer, wealthy farmer of Ossawattomie township, Kansas, in a supposed fit of insanity murdered his daughter, Mrs. Wallace, and mortally
 wounded his own wife and his son-ln. law,
 Wallace The latter, while defending ] himself, struck Shercer with club and
 killed him instantly. ,,., ,..". l... ! Forty thousand eight hundred and eighty-one men lost by death, of which l7, ,527 died in battle, 10,740 died from l wounds received in the engagements, BIO perished by accidents, 30 by suicide, and the rest of the number by disease. ; This is what 1t cost the Germans for the conquest of France. ,r. ,o .st> , It is said that the first willow tree ever planted in this country was set out , on the line of Third avenue, New York, one hundred and eight years ago. It was a willow twig which came in 8 package of figs from Babylon was stuck into the ground, and in two years be- came quite large tree. ... 1a Nathaniel Niles, ex-speaker of the New Jersey Assembly, has been prose- cuted by tho New Jersey Railway, Con- , pany, and suit for libel was begun in the Supreme Court, the damages /. being laid at $5,000,000. The alleged libel is an article which appeared in the s Nation over the signature of "Jerssy.'
 The Meriden Republican is responsible
 for this "A man in a neighboring town r ties his cat up by the tail in the back e yard every night; in the morning he goes v out and collects the pieces of soap, . shaving pots, soap dishes, old brushes and various other things thrown into l the yard by disturbed and angry board I CTS in the adjoining houses. '"
 l "What nuisance l" exclaimed a !, gentleman at concert, as @ young flop ? in front of him kept talking in loud voice to lady at his side. Did you . refer to me, sir ?" threatingly demanded . the. flop. "Oh, no meant the musi. ? cians there, who keep up such Q noise e with their instruments that I can't heaf l. your conversation" was the stingine ' reply. @ ..t ..t ,..,.. ... ~ ~ There is Russian at Old Orchard Beach, Me-, whose fondness for the sea
 and everything connected with it ' e eccentric, to the verge of mania. Ht a drinks two or three gallons, it is said, o . sea water daily, eats sea-weed by tho n handful. and bathes four or five times 1 a day. He is very healthy and robust, fa "a as seal, and has 0 round, red ioyia if face. !" ...~',.... V i4,,. .t,,.,,,,..i