Wood River times. [volume] (Hailey, Idaho) 1882-1915, 1882-07-12
HERE AND THERE.

Complaint is made that the Ger
man universities are overcrowded.
During the season Of financial spec
ulation that followed the French war
the attendance seriously fell off. But
now students are coming in larger
numbers than ever, with the result,
it is said, of injuring productive in
dustries and depreciating the stand
ard of examinations.
A young man of wealthy London
parentage came to America to see the
Centennial Exhibition of 1876. Al
though provided abundantly with
money by his father, he lived SO riot
ously that he wanted more, and to get
it he went into scheme Of forgery.
His trial and conviction did not bring
out his real name, and, on going to
the Moyamensing prison for five years,
he wrote home that he had started on
a slow tour around the world, and so
might not be heard of in long time.
His recent death divul ged the facts.
One of the most eminent Of Ger
man medical men is reported as say
ing that there are not less, probably,
than 10000 persons in Germany who
have become slaves to the habit Of
hypodermically injecting morphine.
There are many who take as much as
eighteen injections every day. Some
have hardly square inch of skin on
their bodies which is not marked by
scars produced by this practice.
Slaves of this habit are even more
hopelessly enchained than those who
take opium in other ways, and it is
speedier destruction.
In the new number of the Revue
des Deux Mondes NJ. Charles Richet
gives some startling statistics as to
the state of population in France
since 1926, more especially since
1876. The number Of births is di-
minishing over the whole of France,
though not equally in all the pro-
vinces. The diminution of births is
greater in the rural population and
greatest where the land is most SUBJ
divided among peasant proprietors
During the last fifty years the popu.
lation of the three great towns, Paris,
Lyons, and Marseiiles, alone show nc
increase.
It is perhaps not generally known
that Weber's ''Euryanthen is, in the
principles of its construction, the di-
rect predecessor Of Wagner's music
dramas. In letter written on De-
cember 20, 1924, to the Akademische
Musikverein Of Breslau, Weber says
that the work would be ineffective in
the concert room, because it is ..a
purely dramatic experiment, relying
for its effect onl Y on combined work
ing together OF all the sister arts.
Wagner, however, carries the princi
piles much further than Weber, fol
in "Euryanthe" the usual musical
forms are retained, though the mum.
bers in most cases follow one another
without Il break.
Some progress is being made with
the works for the Panama canal
Excavations have been begun at sew.
eral places; but much sickness and
mortality prevail among the laborers
who are to large extent drawn from
the West Indies-especially from
Jamaica. The French have built
hospitals, for which there seems tc
be only too much need. The tota
absence of all proper sanitary ar,
rangements is said to be a fal
greater cause of disease than the
unhealthiness of the climate. al
though during eight or nine months
of the year the heat is intense. INT
Europeans on the isthmus have ex
perienced great suffering; but theil
respective Governments, acting