The Pickens sentinel. [volume] (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, 1883-05-17
BITS OF INFORMATION.

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THREE attempts have been made to
"ssasslnate Queen Victoria.
The theater of Marcellus, OF Rome.
"as capable OF seating 20, 900 persons.
IT mas been estimated that 2, ,OOO, 900
nhen peris6ed in the wars begun to re-
cover the Holy Land.
WILLIAM HENRY HAnr1soS was tho
oidest man elected President, and Gen.
Grant the youngest.
AN italian writer saws that An ooo
operas have been written since 1GO1 ~
which 10000 have been produced 6v the
sons of Italy. '10
IT is stated that it takes 2O,O,0 roses
to produce half on ounce Of the altar,
which accounts for the high price de-
manded for the pure article.
ENGLAND produces more tin than an
other country in the world. There arc
tin mines in Bohemia, Saxony, Spain,
Portugal, Malacca and Australia. .,
WARREN HASTINGS, Governor General
OF India, was tried by the peers of Great
Britain for high crimes and misdemean-
orS. One OF the charges was his accept
ance OF 100000 from the Nabob of
Dude. Tho trial lasted seven years and
three months, terminating in his ac-
quittal.
THE White House was first built in
1892, at a cost of $3.50, 900. 1t was not
occupied until 1900. 1t was rebuilt in
1878. It's porticoes were not finished
until 1929. Altogether, it is computed
to have cost for building, rebuilding and
furnishing about 81 700, 900. The whole
structure has frontage of ITO feet and
depth OF 68 feet, and its vestibule is
6Ox4O feet. The garden and park which
mcloso the mansion occupy twenty acres.
Tho Cablnet-room, 40x30 feet. is on tbe
second floor. The White House was
modelled after the palace of the Duke of
Leicester.
IHE phrase "Speabing for buncombe"
originated near the close OF the debate
on the famous " Missouri Question, " in
the sixteenth Congress. 1t was then
used by Felix Walter, who lived at
Waynesvllle, in Haywood, the most
western county of Nortl Carolina. near
the adjacent county of Buncombe
which formed part of his district. The
old man rose to speak, while the House
was lmpnhcntly calling for the "ouns-
| ton and several members gathered
around him, begging him to dcsist. He
persevered, however, for while, dcclar
ing that the people Of his district ex-
pected it, and that ho was bound to
"make speech for Buncombe."
The phrase "According to Guntcr"
refers to Edmund Gunter, distin-
guished English mathematician, who
was born i'll 1854 and died in 1926. Ho
is known rs the inventor of the chain
commonly used by surveyors for meas
urlng land, and of tho fiat wooden rulo
marked with scales on equal parts of
slnes, chords, ETC., and also with lopa
rllhms OF these various parts, which is
used to solve problems in surveying and
| navigation mechanically with tho aid Of
dlviders alone. Hence in the Use of the
phrase, anything is according to Gun
Ter which is done quito right and adj
mltS OF no Improvement.
LONDON paper once printed the fol-
lowing i'll regard to the "origin of the
custom of making fools on the LIST of
April" "This is said to have begun
from the mistake of Noah in sending tho
dove out of the ark before the water had
abated, on the first day of the month
among the Hebrews winch answers TO
the 1st of April and to pcrpctuato tho
memory of this dcliverauco it was
thought proper, whoever forgot so re-
marknble circumstance, to punish
J them by sending them upon some sleeve
! less errand similar to that Intellectual
message upon which the bird was sent
by tho patriarch. The custom appears
| to be of great antiquity, and to havo
| been derived by the Romans from somo
| OF the Eastern nations