The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1881-01-27
THE EGiI'TydN OBELISK,


Saturday, in the presence of five thou
sand spectators. Its history is az fot-
lows:
Thotrncs III. erected the obclisk Mt
tho entrance to the Temple Of the Sun.
In Hcliopolis, moro than three thou.
eand five hundred years ago. Two
centuries later Ramescs II. employed
the reporters Of his times to carve his
greatness on the stone, and twenty.
three years before Christ Augustus
Caesar moved it to Alexandria and sci
IT up ut the Cnsnrium, palace that
has gone to ruin. and in our times is
merely one Of the walls or marble
yard. In that yard, near the station
OF The railroad to Cairo. Mr.. W. ii.
llurlburt found il when the Sucz Canal
was opened. lie persuaded the
khclivc Of Egypt to present it to the
city OF New York, through the govern
mcnt of the United States, and u con-
tract was nearly perfected with John
Dixon, who had transported the mate
OF this obe)isk to London, to bring it
TO New York for S75 200, but the ne
gotiations fell through, and Lieutenant
Commander Gorringc, then command
ing the Gettysburg, having taken care
ful observations in the Mediterranean,
expressed his willingness to do the
work. Thcreupon the Secretary Of
the Navy assigned him to the State
Department. Secretary Evarts per-
mitted him to take the contract, and
detailed him to go to Egypt. The cost
of transferring the stone from hemis-
phcrc to hemisphere has been much in
excess Of $4,000. The Commander
shipped the trunnions OH which the
obclisk swung Saturtla y from Trcn-
ton, N. D., to Egypt, and took the
stone down. He sailed with it for
, New York on the 18th Of June last
and arrived on the goth Of July, the
length Of passage being due to Il broken
shaft. His steamer, tho Dcssoug, was
drawn up on the Marine Railway on
Staten Island, and the obclisk was run
out Of her 1orccastlc and placed on
pontoons, which were towcd I'D New
York i1arbor OH the afternoon of the
10th of September last. The stone was
carried across tho Hudson River Rail
road track at Nincty-sixth street with
out stopping train. 1t was ut q per.
pcndicular over its pedestal on the
ninety eighth day after its landing on
Manhattan Island.
The following figures were given to
the press for the first time Saturday :
Height of the obcIisk from base to tin,
~ feet 2 inches; base Of the obclisk,
square through its axis, feet 81
inches: at the top, 5 feet 3 inches
square; weight, 2l9i tons; main body
OF the obclisk, Gl feet inches in
length; pyramidon, feet inches in
length. No two sides Of the obc!isk
arc equal in width. II YOU cut il
! through in sections you will find it a
trapcZium.
The height Of the pedestal 6 feet II
inches; Mt the base it is . feet inches
square, and at the top feet 1 incl.
square. The weight Of the pedestal is
! 10 tons.
The height Of the foundation is 4
feet 10 inches; height OF the bottom
step, l foot 5A inches; width foot G
inches. Height OF the middle step, !
foot inches; width, l foot "a inches
Height Of top step, foot % inches
The base is II feet s inches square at
tbe.bo!t9m ana d. Il z teet G "a inches at the
Total height of tho tip Of the obclisL
from the monticlc on which the base
stands, so feet | inches. Height from,
the eastern drive to the foundation, II
icct i inch. Elevation Of the site OF
thc obclisk above mean high water
lOl feet inches; to the top Of the
obelisk, 1874 feet 6 inches. Weight OF
the oDelisk and its pedestal and tounda.
ton: 7l2,O00 pounds.
-. D .e------
| The ENGLISH MARRIAGE LAWS
| Under the English law no persons can
DC married except within the canoni.
cal hours Of eight o'clock in the morn.
ing and twelve at noon unless tho mar.
rage is performed by special license
from The Archbishop Of Canterbury
AS the cost of a special license is onc
hundred and fifty dollars, aud in
voiVcss, to obtain it., n good deal of
lroub!c, such marriages arc usually
confined to the wealthy, and only in
respect TO them in comparatively rare
instances. Up to 1871 the presence OF
clergyman was necessary to make Il
marriage valid. Since then laws have
been passed which permit marriages
to nc solcmnlzcd with or without Il
religious ceremony. The marriage
must either he conducted by u clergy.
man Of the Established Church, or i,
any non-comiormist place Of worship
or in the registrars office, after OBJ
tanning a certificate anu giving notice
Of intention. But in each Of these
latter cases the marriage must be con.
quoted by the registrar. In Scotland
mere declaration Of marriage in tho
presence of witnesses IS valid. The
obligation to be married within tho
cahonical hours applies in England tc
all marriages. The synod Of the Irisl
branch (now discstablishcd) of the
| Church of England has already altered
the canon for that sland by extend
ing the hours two O'Clock in the after,
noon; and now there is a bill before
Parliament which proposes to permit
tho marriage ceremony TO be lawfully
performed at any hour between eight
O'Clock in the morning and five O'Clock
IN the afternoon. This apparently
simple and desirable innovation upon q
custom strengthened by tradition and
confirmed by statutes, seems destined
TO meet with serious opposition, al.
though it is predicted that the proposi.
ton will, in all probability, end in q
compromise by the adoption Of the
Ang lo-lrish synod for ali marriages il,
England and Wales. 1t is curious tc