Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1878-12-13
NO. so.
NEWS ITEMS.


at Philadelphia last week
George Henry Lewes, best known as the
husband of George Eliot" although himself
an author of prominence, is dead
Louis A. Cooley, the founder Of Godoy's
Lady's Book, and its publisher and proprie-
tor until within two years. died suddenly in
Philadelphia, Friday aged 7j years.
The captive balloon at the Paris Exposi-
tion was n great success. II cost 500, 600,
but the receipts were SlGO, 600, and it is still
as good as new.
Virginia realized $500, 600 by the MofTett
register system Of taxing the sale Of liquor
This is not so much as expected, but never
theless it represents good many drinks at a
half or a whole cent tax upon each.
Those who have learned to believe that
everybody in the South drinks whisky will
be surprised to know that four counties in
Maryland, under a local option law, have
voted for the prohibition of liquor selling.
"A Paris physician has invented narcot-
ic of which a person may take certain doses
for certain time of sleep. The action is al
most instantaneous, and if one were wishing
for only an hours sleep on a railway car, for
instance, the drug would accommodate him.
"A farmer at Ulverstone, England gave
lift home from market TO a neighbor and
her three children. For this kind act he was
arrested on the ground that he had violated
the law which licensed his cart to carry only
merchandise, and a reluctant judge was COM
PEELED to fine him heavily.
During the recent war 594, 600 Russian
soldiers poured down through Roumania into
Turkey. OF these, jS, 800 were sent back by
rail wounded and g. $50 ill 81, 600 sick went
home to Odessa by sea, %, 600 are still in hos
pital, 81 900 laid their bones in Roumania,
and 30, 600 perished in Bulgaria.
Christian X. Ross, who went to Towan-
da, Pa, last week, TO investigate the story of
a half breed Indian that he had the boy Char
lie Ross, returned to Philadelphia satisfied
that the child was not his. The boy was
brought from Vermont with family, and
was in the woods % miles from Towanda.
An American lady has purchased in Par
is this season the costliest switch of hair ev-
er made in that city it was of snow-white
hair. yard and a quarter in length, and cost
$500. Another American lady has bought
fan, the leaf of which was painted by q ia
nous French artist, with the owners mono
gram set in diamonds on one of the outer
sticks. The price of the fan was S1lOO.
-Diphtheria is fatally prevalent in Eu-
rope, and details appear in English journals
of the illness Of nearly the whole family of
the grand duke of Hesse, whose wife is Prin-
grand duke himself, his son and four of his
five daughters were all afflicted with the dis
ease, and the youngest child, Mary, four
years old last May, died of it.
Alexander II. Stephens, while ascending
the stone steps leading TO the House of Rep
rcsentatiyes last week, on crutches, slipped,
and would have fallen directly backward but
for the assistance of his attendant, who
caught him in his arms. As it resulted the
only injury received is a painful strain or
wrench Of the left knee, which will probably
contnc him to his room for some time.
The London Court journal remarks
What will be thought of the United States
shipping plum pudding to England, potatoes
TO Ireland, oatmeal to Scotland, toys to Hu-
remburg and lager beer to Germany? Yet
such are the facts, and they are no more as
tonishing than the now thrice-told tale of the
regular and profitable sale of American cot
ton goods in Manchester and American cut
lery and hardware in Birmingham"
Philadelphia is actively engaged at pres
ent in defending herself against the heirs of
Stephen Girard, who have brought suit
against that city for a sum amounting to mil
lions of dollars. The ground of the action is
the alleged violation of trust on the part of
the city by disregarding the requests of the
departed millionaire, as detailed in his last
denial, and the lawyers have prospect of q
pretty wrangle, which is already inaugurated.
The St Louis journal of Commerce says
"A Chicago wholesale grocery which, few
years ago, carried sixteen drumners at an ex-
pense of $40, 900 per annum, and did an al
most protitless business, has abandoned the
drummer system, spends one-fourth their
cost annually in newspaper advertising, and
divides the rest among customers As a natural
result the trade has increased tenfold, and the
net profits to the house in 1877 were $780,
OO0"
A party of laborers on the Chicago and
Northwestern Railroad near Denison, Iowa,
in making an excavation in gravel bed a
few days ago, at'the depth of 10 feet came up
on vast accumulation of bones extending
along a line some 20OO feet in extent Some
of them, particularly the teeth, are in an ex-
cellent state of preservation, and all are Of re-
markable size, and could have belonged to no
animals like those now living. Some of the
teeth that have been found weigh eight pounds
and are over foot in circumference.
The story that Gen. Reno was killed at
the battle of South Mountain by member of
the Presidents regiment to avenge grudge
is abundantly disproved, j. G. Doughtery of
Louisiana being the latest witness. Dougher-
ty was lieutenant of a Pennsylvania regiment
at the time, stood within 7j yards of Reno
when he fell and has often talked with the
oolor-bearer of his company about it, who
stood right by Reno's side. Reno was in the
very front of the line and was struck down
by stray bullet Just at the close of the fight,
the fact that his wound was in the breast, in
stead of the back, showing that it was rebel
bullet which killed him.