The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1879-05-10
FOREIGN NEWS ITEMS.

Nn-- ~ GAAIEEAC AL supremacy DELhEEh ia
North and South seems about to receive a new
/! lease Of its unblessed existence.
The almost universal depression in commerce
appears TO have also affected the Suez Canal
The number of ships that passed through it last
year was I,593, as compared with l.663 during
the previous year. The gross receipts in 1877
were Gls3l0,9 75, and in 1873 they were 81,
243 $50.
The Indiana Legislature and Governor have
put upon the statute book a law reducing the
rate Of interest to eight per cent. by special con.
tract, and to six per cent. in absence of such
contract. A bill of the same purport has been
ordered to a third reading in the Illinois House,
by a large majority.
Macallister attributes the low grade of ~civiliza-
ton OF the Australian aborigines to the total
absence from the continent Of lerocious and
powerful animals, the comparative ease with
which the poor and limited quantity Of their food
was obtained, and their national isolation.
1t has been calculated by Ritter that 5 1000
years ago the sun radiated one per cent. less heat
than at present, aud that zoo, 900 years ago it
gave out ten per cent. less. Each kilogramme Of
the suns mass contains, he thinks, about 49,
O0O, 900 units of heat.
The Marquis Of Lorne and Princess Louise de-
vote an hour to family deyotions each evening.
half an hour in the morning and a quarter Of an
hour at noon. The Marquis reads from the
Church Of England service and the Princess
responds.
The San Francisco Republicans in a recent
manifesto on the Chinese question allude to - the
chIvalrOus Blaine, whose voice is worth a thous-
and cannon in battle" II he fails to be elected
President, hc can let himself out for Fourth Of
July salutes.
The d" balance of trade " is a most delusiye
measure Of national prosperity. For twenty
years past England has imported an average Of
nearly $500, OO0, 900 per year more than she has
exported, according to customs statistics. Yet it
Is not doubted that she has been growing richer
every year with this immense 50 balance against
her.
Connecticut is to try the bell punch. The tax
Will be p cents on every glass Of liquor and half
q cent on each glass Of beer sold. Some Of the
most enthusiastic legislators look for a revenue Of
over a million dollars annually.
Treating " is the great bano of this life, ac-
cording. to an Illinois reiormer, who happens
also to be a member Of the Legislature. He has
accordingly introduced n bill providing that any
person who treats another in a saloon shall be
punished for each and every offence by a fine of
not less than IS nor more than SIS.
There is great distress among the operatives of
France. A deputation representing twenty-nine
thousand spinners and wcavers went to Paris,
very recently, to represent to the Govern
ment the destitution existing in consequence of
the reduction OF wages and the stoppage of
factories.
The Catholic bishops of Belgium have issued
a pastoral eondemning in toto the government
project Of law for the reform Of primary ~instruc-
ton. They call it irreligious because instruc-
ton in dogmatic religion is no longer made COM
pulsory. At the end of the pastoral a prayer is
prescribed, which is to be recited aloud after
mass in every church and chapel.
The investigating COMMITTEES which has been
examining the horses of Hartford, Conn, said to
have the CHAMBERS, makes report that ''as CHAMBERS
Is an ineurable disease, and is communicable to
the human subject, in which case it is always
fatal we advice that they should be destroyed
at once" 1t is earnestly to be hoped that the
disease may be checked before it becomes cpl
demic.
Among the English-speaking people of the
world Episcopalians rank first in number, with
10000 Methodists are next, with IA ,000,-
600 and then come Roman Catholics with 49,
Presbyterians, with 10000, 900; Bap-
lists, with 8, 900 900 CoDgregationalists, 7,OO0,-
BOO, and Unitarians, with l 900 900.
A Russian peasant recently discovered a vault
supposed to have been a cellar of some pre-Cos-
Inside this vault, at the foot of
some stone steps, were found seventeen oaken
kegs or chests, crammed with Turkish gold
ducats. The weight of the gold was found to ex-
coed 200 pounds, which should realise at least
$50 900. All this gold goes into the pocket
Of the Gar!
Commenting on a couple of sensational pull
pit topics a couple of Sundays ago, both from
OdNah . III
Kicks Him Over - and 1.-THE Devil Imprisoned
the Jewish Reformer says that if this style OF
church advertising is to prevail it will soon be
impossible to distinguish between a religious
notice and a minstrel company's s'three sheet
poster This is a Judgment we'll deserved and
Just.
A grand financial project is now talked of
among the Catholics Of Europe. The title is to
be the Anglo-Uuiversal Bank Uimited), with a
in London and Paris, and it counts
among its patrons eminent British, French and
Italian noblemen. The design of the bank is to
up and extend valuable foreign connection,
md assure moro efficient protection and develop
nents Of Catholic banking interests throughout
he world.
The Bank of England will celebrate its IS5th
anniversary on the 9th of next july, having
received its charter of incorporation at that date
With a capital of $4,000 900. all of which was
to the Government of William and Mary,
then much embarrassed The last renewal of
the charter was made in 1874. The bank now
500 men,, issues nothing less than a IS
note, and keeps on an average eos ,000, 900 of
notes IN circulation.
a young Chinaman at Phillips Academy. in
finds his head in danger. John has
been rather backward in his studies, so that the
Faculty considered it its duty to make the same
known to the Chinese Government, at whose ex-
penSe the young man is educated. This they
did, and one may imagine the disgust that was
manifested upon reading the reply, which was as
follows " Send him home, and we will behead
John will stay
The exodus Of the colored race from the
States still continues. 1t is estimated
that over ten thousand negroes have left the
State Of Louisiana alone since January Ist.
This is partly due to the reduction Of wages, and
partly to the fact that intelligent colored men are
Of obtaining equal rights under the ex-
elusive rule of Democrats. But, whatever the
cause, the loss Of so many laborers can not fail
TO be disastrous to the sugar and cotton districts.
Col. j. F. Reigart, of Philadelphia, has pre-
pared a pamphlet entitled History of the
United States Flag" in which he gives a biogra-
phical sketch of Betsy Ross, the Quaker uphol-
stress, and relates how, at the request OF DIR.
Franklin, Robert Morris and Col. George Ross,
she designed and made the first flag of the United
States, which was approved, adopted, and made
before the words 1" United States of America "
were used. In addition, the different Colonial
flags are described.
Among the measures which the Brazilian Gov
ernment proposes to brig forward, is one for
H. N1E,1 Er-rrazg,.- 6 - -zI..-. - =