The Canton mail. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 18??-1882, 1876-01-01
FROM ALL SOURCES.

Thomas, alias Thompson, the fiend
vi planned the destruction of the Mosel
by a dynastic explosion, died last week from
the effects of injuries self-inficted.
Stoppages of iron works throughout
the whole of the north of England continue
to be recorded. Yet notwithstanding the
stagnation of trade which necessitates this,
the trades union people continue to resist IA
proposed further reduction OF wages in the
works that endeavorine to keep in opera
ton ON a limited scale all winter.
Col. Richard Henry Lee, who has
been chosen to read the Declaration of hide
pendence at the opening of the Centennial
Exhibition, is Practicing law at Milwood, Va.
He IS the grandson of Richard Henry Lee of
the revolution, a nephew OF Attorney Gen
eral Lee of Washington's administration,
and cousin of Gen. Robert f. Lee. He en-
tered the confederate service as a lieutenant
of infantry in the "Stonewsil" brigade, and
was wounded, after which he served as judge
advocate of the second corps of the eonfed-
ate army of Northern Virginia until the close
of the war.
Lord Dufferin gave an entertainment
recently TO the judges of the supreme court
at Ottawa, and in mis- remarks paid this COM
pliment to the supreme court of the United
CtttcS- Nltness the respect anu uelefeuce
with which the chief court of the United
States is quoted by British and European
1ui lists such a court is the parent of peace,
order and good government 1t is the guar
dian OF civil, political and religious liberty
1t is like the sun at noonday; it shines with
its own light, and, happily, human passion
and prejudice, and executive tyranny and
frenzy, are as impotent TO intercept the bene-
hcial influence Of the one as to share the
beam Of the ether.
An exchange tells us that new re-
Ggious belief is gaining ground in Ohio. Its
adherents called Eternalists. They hold
that the soul is immortal, and occupies a sue
cession Of bodies ON earth, both of men and
animals. Belief in the transmigration Of
souls is no newer than any of the half dozen
materialistic and pantheistic PHILOSOPHERS
which during the last haif-dozen years have
attracted attention In Greece from the
time of Thales transmigration was taught.
The Druids in Britain believed in it; so did
the early German tribes. 1t is a superstition
with most heather nations II the adherents
in Ohio wish full explanation of the belief,
they should turn to Hindoo literature, where,
rs an integral part of the Brahmanic religion
1t is fully set forth.
Three freight cans containing So
900 geo, worth of silk-worm eggs arrived In
New York last week. They had come from
Hong Kong to San Francisco in twenty -three
DAYS, and thence to New York in less than
seven days, the speed being faster than the
mails carried by the same route. This
uncommon cargo Is going to Italy and the
South of France, and could have reached its
destination quicker and at less cost by way
of the Suez Canal. but il has been found use
less to ship them that way because the south
ern climate patches the eggs. The silk worms
are put upon long sheets of cardboard in
China, and arc left until each board is COW
cred with eggs, which are about the size of
mustard seed The eggs stick to the cards,
which, interlaid with sheets of paper, are
packed in wooden boxes, tightly closed, and
wrapped in canvas and mating. In this
shipment there were 6i7 cases. containing
over 10000 cards. When the eggs reach
their destination they will be stored in
vaults, eecure against warmth, until the null
berry srces on which they feed have grown
their foliage.
A mammoth telescope, said to be the
largest ever made, is now in process of con-
struction at factory near Dublin, Ireland.
It's building at the order of the Austro-Hun-
garian government for the new observatory
at Vienna, to be finished by the autumn of
1878. The object glass will have an aperture
of about twenty-seven inches The focal
length is to be about thirty-two feet. The
great base casting, weighing some seven or
eight tons will form a chamber about twelve
feet long, four feet six inches wide, and eight
in proportion to the other parts All the
axes will he entirely of steel, and all the va
rous motions of the instrument, as well as
the reading of the different circles, will be
avcilable to the observer from the eye end of
the telescope. A very simple walking-cane,
with candle enclosed, which might be con-
venient for the use in dark passages, or even
for reading i'm railroad ears, has been intro
duo ed BY German firm. The top portion
consists of hollow cylinder screwed on,
and containing spring to press upward, as
fast as consumed, candle placed in it 1t
is closed by n screw-cap, which forms con-
-Yepient top.
Our centennial calls up the facts as
to our religious progress. They are very re-
markable, and have been collated by Prof
Denian, of Brown university. In 1777 the
number of churches was less than $50; by
census of 1870 the number was 1900.
Churches have multiplied nearly. 37-fold
population 11-fold- In 1870, religious socie-
ties owned $354, 100000 worth of property.
The most extraordinary increase has been
among Mcthodists and Roman Catholics.
The rapid ratio of increase of religious
bodies might well seem alarming, were it not
that the vast amount of property held by re-
ligious organizations is distributed among
many bodies A century ago the Congrega-
tionalists were largely in advance; Metho-
dist were hardly known by name. Now
Methodists are the largest organization in the
land. ne hundred years ago the more i'm
por,ant religious bodies were reckoned IN
the following order: Congregational SITS,
Baptists, Church of England, Presbyterians,
Iutherans, German Reformed, Dutch Re
formed, and Roman Catholics; in 1870 by
Methodists, Baptists, Presbvterians, Roman
Catholics, Christian, Lutherans, Congrcga-
tioDaIisis. and Protestant Episcopal. The
zeal OF American Christianity has nowhere
expanded Itself with such force as it has i'm
foundin, schools and colleges, and precisely
at this point the Roman Catholic church
merges into Significance. 1t ranks now as
fou tn in population and second for value of
chu ch property. II has caused apprehen-
sion, bu, on insufficient grounds, as reasons
for its surprising growth can be found in
foreign immigration. Neither the church
statistics the census furnish material for
anxiety Bnt conceding that the ratio of
the increase has been great, there is nothing
in the growth of this powerful body which
need excite any apprehension.