The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1882-11-22
FACTS N COMMENTS.

There has been another silent
couple at Galway, N. Y, Jona-
than James and his wife, who lived
together over twenty-five years without
speaking to each other. Having dis
agreed about the words of a sermon
they heard in 1856, they vowed eternal
silence, and kept the VOW, though
always on apparently good terms with
each other. Mr.. James died last spring,
but Mrs. James is still living.
From the statistics reported by the
United States commissioner Of educa-
ton for 1880, just published, it appears
that in 1871 Twenty-Five States re-
ported a school population Of 9,632,969,
while in 1880 the thirty-eight States
and eight Territories reported a total
of 15,536,280. The number enrolled
in the public schools, twenty-eight
States only reporting for 1871, was
6,393,085, while for 1880 it was $751;
521, all the States and Territories re-
porting this item.
1t is estimated that there r 5000
patent medicines manufactured and
sold. There is one establishment that
keeps them all. They include pills
that cure every disease humanity is
heir to, bitters, cordials, elixirs, syrups,
salves, toothache drops and hair prepa-
rations. There are seventy-ive medi-
cinal waters, $50 liniments, 100 hair
dyes, and of plasters, oils and other
medicaments an equal tumble. Mil
lions of dollars are yearly spent in ad-
vertising them.
A German paper estimates that the
compensation which will have to be
awarded by the international commits
sion for houses destroyed by the Alex
andria bombardment at $7,7O0,OOO.
The property destroyed cover an
area of $4,000 square meters, the ave-
rage value of which is estimated at
$50 per square meter. Adding &c.,
100000 or $12,000,000 for furniture
and stock in trade, and 100000 for
the lossss of the refugees, the aggregate
sum would he $22,000,000 or S24,-
100000.
The Suez canal was built with the
shares at the par value of 500, and,
although their price 10Y is something
like $540, the company is neither re-
ducing the dues o giving greater IA
%cilities for the navigation of the canal.
1t is not surprising, therefore, that the
commercial classes in England take a
deep interest in building another and
purely British canal, an undertaking
that could be carried out, it is said,
with mechanical Improvements and
knowledge, at II comparatively small
cost.
In the event of postal savings banks
in the United States where deposits as
small as n cent may be received,
good opportunity will occur to test
the old proverb which admonishes us
to take care Of the pence and let the
pounds take art of themselves. In
England last year such small deposits
aggregated s12,500,000. Another in
stance of the result Of this policy is
afforded by the fact that the Bank OF
England has obtained $716,30O by
reckoning in its own favor in settle
ments of transactions involving frac'
lions of PENNIES.
Commissioner Dudley reports that
the 285,695 pensioners on the list al
the end Of the last fiscal year, June 80
1882, have been classified. There are
1888 army and 1851 navy invalids
76,448 army and 1858 navy widows
minor children and dependent rela'
tives; 7,134 survivors of the war Of
1872, and 24,661 widows of those who
served in the war Of 1912. The total
mt paamouid to pensioners since 1861
is $560,641,324.75 1t is an astounding
fact that almost one-ffth Of the whole
amount expended for pensions since
the beginning of the war twcnty-ont
years ago will be paid for the same
purpose during the present year. Ant
there are 200, 9G6 claims for pensions
ct to be considered.