Morning journal and courier., 1881-09-28
EDITORIAL NOTES.

From the tower of the old church of St. I Martins Lane, in London, the royal stand ard of England waved Monday at half mast. | This standard was not raised when the Czar l of Russia died, and was never before raised at half mast out of respect to President or other officer of republic.
 | Words of wisdom from Chauncey NJ. De- pew: "A million of needy ambitious men besiege the President for the hundred | thousand places in his gift. In a change is a perpetual opportunity to retrieve failure, and murder turks in this concentration and distribution of patronage. Let the President be the constitutional ruler of the republic and the civil service placed upon business | basis"
 The new French army list shows that the French army includes total of As, ,039 off cers of all arms and classes. The general staff comprises 100 Generals of Division and 200 Br1gadier Generals. The infantry has g, OH officers, the cavalry 5,092, the artillery 5,414, and there are 1,509 officers of engin- eers; there are 841 officers of gendarmaries,
  guard and forestry services total is arrived at of 37, ,13O officers. The medical staff, the veterinarians, telegraph operators, account ants, and other non combatants holding the rank of officer, number nearly II 1000, and so the strength is made to reach AS, 900 as stated above.
 The appointment of an influential com mission by the Czar of Russia to report upon the best means of checking drunkenness in the Empire has provoked much discussion and elicited many facts respecting the drink ing habits of the people. There seems to be no doubt that intemperance has largely in- creased since the emancipation of the serfs. This fact is plainly shown by the statistics regarding the manufacture of the native corn brandy, called "vodky." The London Globe points out an essential difference between Russia and England in respect to the drink ing habits of the masses. It remarks that in Russia the people habitually refrain from al- coholic liquor with their food, and touch only their beloved vodky, on holidays and festive occasions. In England, on the other hand, a very large quantity of the alcoholic drink yearly consumed forms an innocent part of the alimentation of the people. Thus it happens that while the average amount of liquor consumed by the English adult is very largely in excess of that taken by the Russian, drunkenness is considerably less rife in England than in Russia. In England a very large number of people habitually use strong drink without going beyond the bounds of temperance In Russia, on the other hand, the majority never touch vodky except for the express purpose of making themselves drunk. For this reason there is little need for sitting Russian drink statistics to see how much liquor is taken necessity, real or supposed, and how much as luxury, nearly all of it coming under the latter cate gory There is said to be general disposi- tion to aid the purposes of the Czars inqui- ry. Already many communes have anticipa- ted remedial measures by closing all the drinking places within their jurisdiction.
 What manner of man James A.. Garfield was is indicated by his response to a request made by two southern ladies who became in- terested in the case of family consisting of blind man, his invalid wife and lame daughter. The latter was at work in the fourth story of 8 government building in Washington at a salary of $400 per annum, and to get this small amount the was obliged