The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1876-08-24
GENERAL BREVITIES.

A PELICAN five feet high, with wings
measuring eight feet from tip to tip,
was lately captured in Minnesota.
THEAberdeen (Miss. } Examiner says:
A child of Mr.. G.. M. Jones was bitten
by highland moccasin, and a perfect
cure was obtained by external applica-
tons of kerosene-oil. A valuable dog
was bitten by 'scotton-mouth," and
was dying when the first application of
the oil was made, but obtained instant
relief, and was up and running about
in two or three hours.
AN investigation led to the following
striking result: OF every 1000 traders
but seven acquired wealth. From such
sad results farmers are comparatively
exempt. OF Lip bankrupts who took
the benefit of the Bankrupt law in Mas
sachusetts only IA were farmers; and OF
1850 in New York only 46 were farm
ers. Less than two per cent. OF the
bankrupts belonged to the agricultural
population % years ago, though that
population SO largely exceeded that of
all other vocations. How is it at this
epoch of our country's history?
OYSTERS do not abandon their ova as
great number of other marine ami
mails do, but detain them within the
folds of the bronchial lens inside their
shells, where they remain enveloped in
mucous substance, in which the en-
bryo development is accomplished.
The young ones come out of their shell
with temporary swimming apparatus,
which enables them to float and search
solid body, to which they can attach
themselves. The number of young oys-
tiers expelled at each period of breeding
from the mantle of a single mother
amounts to from one to two millions.
FROM private soldier in Rouen, the
surgeons recently removed Chassepot
ball, which had been lodged in his body
since the battle of Mars la Tour in 1870.
He was shot in the left lower jaw, and
though the bullet was not found it was
supposed to have gone through the
larynx and lodged in the collar bone of
the right side, and in consequence of
the injury he had permanent paralysis
of the right arm. Recently, however,
the man felt severe pain in his right
side and went to the surgeon, who easily
removed the ball, which resembled a
piece of hammered lead, its original
shape being lost.
A COLONEL of a British regiment was,
according to the Times of India, lately
much distressed by the constant COM
plants OF his men respecting their "a
tons. The beefwas tough and stringy,
the bread coarse and tasteless, the tea
had no strength in it, and the sugar was
largely composed of sand. The Colonel,
although he was unable to arrive at any
other conclusion than that these COM
plants were unfounded, at last sent for
the sergeant-major, and, confding to
him the trouble he felt at the grumbling
which went on, asked him what could
be done to stop it. "Grumble about
rations," said the sergeant-maior;
"why of course they do, sir: and so
they would if you was to feed them on
toasted angels!''
MISS YONGE, the novelist, has pub
ished a remarkable essay upon Court
ship and Marriage for the young people
of England, especially for Christian
young women. She maintains that the
thought that woman should have a
personal affection for man before
marriage is a comparatively modern
notion, and that in old times the
daughter was disposed of by her parents
as if she had nothing to say for herself
in this matter. Miss Yonge believes
that our modern freedom of choice
should make young women serious and
careful, and that a marriage of mere
obedience, without previous love, which
was no sin in the maiden of former
times, nor is so in some countries now,
is a sin in the English girl of our day,
who ought to know what she does.
ACCORDING to Prof. Randall's recent
description of the sun, that body is a
molten or white-hot mass, $50, 600 miles
in diameter, equaling in bulk 1880, 900
worlds like our own; it has surround
ing ocean Of gas on, 90, 900 miles deep,
tongues OF flame darling upward more
that 5O, 200 miles, volcanic forces that
hurl into the solar atmosphere luminous
matter to the height of 100000 miles.
drawing to itself all the worlds belong
ing to our family of planets, and hold
ing them all in their proper places; it
attracts, with such superior force, the
millions Of solid and stray masses that
are wandering in the fathomless ABYSS,
that they rush helplessly toward him,
and fall into his fiery embrace; and
thus he continues his sublime and rest
less march through his fiery orbit, hav-
:ng period of more than eighteen mil
lion years, which is simply inconceiv-
able.
PROF. G. V. RILEY asserts that in 1874
the Southern States lost 500, 900, 600 by
the cotton worm in a single week; that
In 1871 $50, 600, 900 worth of grain was
ruined by the chinch-bug, and that