, 1880-10-04
Our Egyptian Obelisk.

UuI ESy plld1 O0cllSk.
As quickly as the best engineering
skill of the country can accomplish it
there will be placed in position, as an
addition to the Egyptian antiquities il
our Central Park, a remarkable gift anG
proof of good will from the Old World
to the New. The history of this treas
ure antedates the Christian Era. The
history of it's coming here began only
in 1877. Many Americans whom We
have not space to mention here have
interested themselves in it
We owe the gift to the good will foi
America and the love of learning and
progress of the late ssgacious Khedive
of Egypt, Ismail Pasha, and his equal
ly sagacious and friendly son and sue
cessor, Temfik Pasha. We owe its safe
arrival here to the intelligent zeal,
wisdom and engineering genius OF
Lieutenant Commander, Henry II. Cor
ringe, of the United States Navy, who
sailed on his difficult mission, from this
port, August 26, 1879, and returned to
port July 10, with the treasure safe in
the hold of the Dessouk, an iron steam
ship bought in Egypt for the purpose
of the transportation. The expense of
the removal of the monolith from
Egypt to America is understood to be
borne by William H. Vanderbilt.
This gift of the Khedives to New
York. through the American govern
ment, is one of the two needles of
Cleopatra that stood for centuries on
the shores of the Levant, near the city
of Alexandria, and that for centuries
before guarded the doors of the Tenn
pie Of the Setting Sun at Heliopolis.
Its mate. which had fallen from its
pedestal in Alexandria, was granted to
England in 1919. but only received
there in 1878, through the efforts and
personal sacrifices of Professor Eras-
mus Wilson. The present obelisk, ac-
cording to the Greek and Latin inscrip-
tions on its base, was built by Engineer
Pontia, at the order of Barbarus, Pre-
feet of Egypt, in the eighth year of
Augustus Caesars reign, or twenty-five
years before the beginning of the
Christian Era. 1t was enormously be-
lAved to have been removed from He
liopolis to Alexandria, in the time of
Cleopatra, and hence it was called
Cleopatra's Needle" The monolith
itself is sixty nine feet long, seven feet
eight inches square at the base and five
feet square at the top. Its massive
foundation stones, all of which have
been brought, will give it a consider
ably greater height when in position,
than the length of the needle itself.
The remarkable emblems found en-.
craven upon the stones forming its
base have excited the interest of Ma
SONS throughout the world.
The site for its location, which has
been selected, is in Central Park, in the
neighborhood of Fifth Avenue and the
new Metropolitan Museum OF Art
building, where is already rich store
of Egyptian antiquities. The work of
getting it into place is already in prog
ress; but it is work which cannot be
hurried, and it will not be surprising
if weeks stretch into months before it
is completed. When that time comes
we have an enduring arch@ologic orna
ment Of which we may we'll be proud,
q perpetual lesson in granite and link
between the new civilization and the
New World, and the Old World and all
the civilizations of the past.-The IN.
" South.
The UEited States is likely to have
as large surplus of wheat as Europe
can possibly absorb. The estimates of
our crop vary from 40, 900, 900 to 500.-
100000 bushels. With favorable
weather the vast crop now harvesting
in the West will reach the latter figure.
Our home consumption of wheat is
rapidly increasing with the growth of
population and the advent of better
times. When the times are hard,
wheat -four is not so extensively used,
but with the revival of business always
comes a largely increased demand.
White bread and good times 60 to-
gether. The stock OF wheat held in
Europe is low, and, even with the good
crops there, it is likely that, to keep the
reserve in hand adequate to all con-
tingencies, many millions of bushels
will have to be imported from America.
A tame woodcock is an object of
much interest now IN Jefferson Market,
it having been supposed hitherto thai
the bird could not live in captivity.
Dick is large and handsome bird,
about five months old. When first
captured he was put into small con-
servatory, with but little hope of rear
ing him. An ingenious way of serving
him his favorite dish of worms, so that
he could "bore' for them in marshy
earth, proved great success, and ere
long Dick forgot his captivity. He
has been put into large cage, is now
quite tame, and we'll accustomed to the
many spectators who watch his move
ments. His appetite is voracious, re-
quiring at least pint of worms daily.
In this scientific age, when every
thing is analysed, and anatomized, and