News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1884-02-14
NOTES AND COMMENTS.

EVEN IMPRISONMENT BY BRIGANDs NAV
have Its compensations. The italian
duke whose family have Just ransomed
him for $30, ZOO, after five weeks cap
tivity in dark cell, suffered great hard
ships, yet is said to have been cured of a
nervous disease by being troubled with
something really worth worrying about
while his obesity was also subjected TO a
prolonged bread-and water diet. Brig
ands thus done for him what doctors
could not; still, the fees for this school
of practitioners are probably rather too
high and the treatment too heroic to at
tract other patients among nervous fat
men.
NEW YORK REAL ESTATE. con-
veyances of real estate in New York city
last year were for $165, 192, ,S4S, against
$174, 653, ,227 in 1882. AS the total tax
able valuation of real estate is about
81, ,08O, 900, 900, it would seem that about
fifteen per cent. of the property changes
hands in year, though the underEalu-
alton in stated consideration may not be
as great as in valuation for taxing pur-
poses.
SERGEANT BATES Is STILL promoting
moral and patriotic citizenship" in his
peculiar way. He is now tramping
through Georgia with an American flag
in one hand and the hand of his son in
the other. It does not hurt the flag
any, and the people look on with care
less apathy.
GOVERNOR ROBINSON, OF MAssAcHU-
sETTs, was asked few days ago why he
did not make his son his private secre-
tary. Because" he answered, 81
think too much of my boy to set him
riding on top of bubble. He must
prepare for honorable work in life be-
sides, my family are not going to be fit
ted with Offices.
The ENORMOUS ANNUAL LOSS of life in
India by snake bites, amounting to near
ly 10000 persons, continues in spite of
the wholesale destruction of these ven
omous creatures. The rewards paid by
the Government to snake destroyers
show that there were killed during last
year throughout India 322, ,421, of which
| 262, ,384 were found in the Bombay Presi-
dency alone. Local authorities are
warned to remove from town or village
sites or their vicinity aloe, cactus, or
thorn hedges, ruined houses and walls,
and the like, which harbor and afford
cover to these reptiles.
SOME LIGHT Is THROWN upon the ques-
ton whether or not hanging is painful,
by the experience of a thick-witted farm
laborer in England several years ago.
A number of men were one day discuss
ing an execution which had just taken
place at Liverpool, when one of them
expressed desire to learn what hanging
was like. His companions were ready
to crafty him, and he was soon swing
ing from a beam in the barn where they
J had gathered. But they left him too
long in this situation, and when at last
they let him down he sank to the floor,
to all appearances stone dead. However,
after long interval he began to revive,
to their great relief, and at length he sat
up and stared wildly about him. Then
one of his companions asked: 'Well,
Tom, how did thee like hanging?"
''Hey, man," answered Tom, with a
stutter, "hanging's nothing; it's coming
to life again that's terrible"
"THERE WE'RE 650,000,000 menhaden
taken in the waters about New York and
in Long Island Sound last season." said
q dealer in oils to reporter, ''but they
were so poor that the oil secured from
them wss only 4, 500; ;66e gailons, against
I n0oIAJ @-,OoOs00O s5"AA$'It9 AhVAhH OoO,-
OO0,0 900 fish taken in 1882. The fer
tiIizer made, however, in 1888 was
third more than that made in the
previous year-about 10000 tons against
1000, in favor of last season. The
market is full of the fertilizer, and it
is being held for better prices.
CRUsHED.-A wealthy merchant of
Moscow died the other day and such an
immense throng of poor people gathered
before his house to receive the money
usually dispensed on such occasions that
several persons were crushed to death
and four severely injured in the struggle
for aims.
A TRAIN OF CARS IN Buffalo has be-
come wall of ice. The Buffalo E:c-
press describes it +: "One of the most
striking things on the lake front is a
long train of cars on a siding next the
open lake. They were hauled out there
when the breakers began to run high,
three days ago, in order to protect from
ice the adjoining tracks. Some of
these cars are empty and others loaded
with lumber. There are, perhaps,
quarter of mile of cars. From one end
to the other they are solid wall of ice.
Most of the cars cannot be seen at all.
On the lake side the ice is two or three
feet thick. The spaces between the cars
are filed solid with ice, and the space
between the wheels under the entire
length of the train is a miniature Mann
moth Cave-a gallery of stalactites and
stalagmites. Several of the cars have
crushed and caved beneath the weight
of the ice. 1t is q veritable train of
ice"
SEVERAL OF THE DIRECTORS OF banks
and Joint stock companies in London are
over so. One well-known shipping firm
has on its direction an octogenarian
Admiral who dates back to the days OF
Nelson, and whose name was mentioned
in dispatches for gallantry at the battle
of ofAlgiers. Sixty-seven years after Lord
Exmouth's battle was won survivor OF
eighty-six is still in harness, not only on
the Board of one of the largest English
steam companies, but also as director
of a colonial bank, thus showing the
stuff old sea dogs are made of.
THE INTENSE COLD WHICH has driven
everybody to his fireside in all parts of
the country north of Florida, has made
the Kennebeck river a scene of great ac-
tivity. Men are gathering with teams
and machinery to cut out the annual ice
crop. The ice was ten inches thick last
week, and is expected to be of the re-
quired thiclzness-ffteen inches-this
week. Then the laborers will begin to
cut it in cakes of 22x32 inches, for stor-
age in the ice houses. These have a
0nO 0On n0n 4o,,a