Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1889-05-09
FOREIGN GOSSIP.

FOREIGN GOSSIP.
German cavalry officers hereafter
will have to include steeplechasing In
their Studies.
in Rome there are 80 cardinals. 80
bishops, 1,469 priests, 2.215 nuns and
5000 monks, friars. candidates, ETC.
AT the recent London diocesan
+, conference the Bishop of Bedford adj
vocated card playing in workingmen' 8
clubs, but, rather strangely, disap-
proved of dOminOes.
o-The Beers have whipped England
five different times. and one of their
prophets now predicts coming war in
which a Boer will be raised to the
British throne.
I'm 1882 Iceland was visited by a
remarkable sand-storm, lasting two
weeks, which hid the sun and objects
a few yards off like dense Jog, and
and horses.
"A discussion as to the helgnt OF
trees in the forests of Victoria ellclted
from Baron Won Mueller, the govern
ment botanist, the statement tnat ne
saw one of a height of 525 feet. Inc
late chief inspector of forests measured
one fallen and found that 1t was 900
feet long.
The commander of the French Ma
tional Military School at St Cyr lately
issued an order forbidding card play
ing. He defends the order by assert
ing that playing for money was so COM
mon in the school that young men OF
no fortune had frequently mortgaged
their pay for five, six, and even ten
wears after leaving the college to pay
gambling debts.
"A German travelling on the Lake
of Como recently. gave waiter paper
of diamonds telling him that it was a
tip, and made similar presents to
others The police asked him some
questions. and he replied that he lived
upon diamonds and he paid with dla-
monds, whereupon he proceeded to
swallow several of the precious stones
He was locked up in an asylum and his
friends sent for. He had nearly fifty
thousand dollars worth of diamonds In
his possession at the time.
The population of Kamchatka,
which was carefully registered in 1878
and 1879, shows q regular decrease;
since 1741 the population seems to have
been reduced to One-half of what 1t
was 14S years ago. Years of scarcity
of fish, the staple food of the popula-
ton, are quite common. In such cases
the Lamutes and the Koryals usually
bring to the Kamchadales a number of
their reindeer; but this voluntary help
is not sufficient to prevent starvation.
Rev DIR. J. M. Buckley, writing of
Spain, says: Bribery is general in
Spain. Almost any thing can be done
with fee Not more than forty
per cent of the taxes levied by the
government can be collected. Mayors
of cities get rich in a year. One at
least of the most important cities is
destitute of credit. No one will lend
it any money. Spaniards so distrust
each other that money is not forth
coming for great public works. The
English manage the water-wOrks, the
street cars and almost every thing
else"
One of the strangest pieces of ar
tillery in Europe is at Metz and is
known by the name of the ''Griffin,"
from the figure of the fabulous animal
which is to be found among the orna-
mental portion of its workmanship.
The gun was cast in 1929 at Ehren-
bEeitstein, near Coblentz. 1t is II feet
in length and B in diameter. The bore
is 104 inches; weight. 22.5OO pounds.
Its carriage is "a feet in length, and
the weight of the ball which it carries
is $50 pounds; ~ pounds of powder is
required for the charge. Napoleon
intended it for the War Department.
Paris, but found difficulty in transport
ing it.