The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1893-10-08
HUNDRED YEARS AGO.
What the People Were Doing, Saying and
thinking.


There Is a shelf In my library which
holds what was called the"New Annual
Register" and 1 have just been taking
down the volume which tells me what
men were saying, doing, and thinking
just one hundred years ago. Mighty things
had freshly come, or were coming. to pass
I'm those days, including such as the
French Revolution and the Independence
Of the United States, let alone wars and
rumors of wars in Europe; and what was
then called "the East Indies" The record
Of these fill about one-third OF the octave
volume under the head of British and
Foreign History" while another, headed
Biographical Anecdotes and Characters"
Is medly Of papers, essays reviews,
poetical and other extracts. and obserya-
lions Of the 'stie" of Demosthenes, the
natural history OF the beaver, the fifth
satellite of Saturn, verses to a fly taken
out OF bowl Of PUNCH, with receipts
for the making Of cider. and the curing
OF hydrophobia.
Thus manifold tastes are suited; but It
IS from a large sheaf in the middle OF the
book, that / would first pluck few stalks
for my reader. IT is called principal Oc-
currences in the Year"
These are not gathered from the small
field Of the United Kingdom alone. The
whole world offers a harvest. and the
reaper wanders over its surface cutting a
handful here and there from what seems
TO him the richest groWths, and worthy
OF being called Principal" / have some
times wondered at the guiding motives OF
those chroniclers who pin an event 70
each day In our present common almanacs
and hll space which might nave served
for q memoT andum, with the statement
that on such and such a date John
Bright was born or Calico died. Occa-
sionally, you come across n juXtaposition
which suggests a fitness In the sequence
OF events. The other day / noticed the
following two announcements in penny
almanac at the order given. Martyrs
burned at Oxford" Fire insurance be-
gins" But the choice OF the historian
who records the Principal Occurrences"
Of n whole year i'm the New Annual
Register" indicates what would seem a
curious paucity Of news IN the journals
OF the day. since In his opening pages he
gives equal prominence 70 "sR eXtraor-
binary earthquake at Lisbon" the offer
ing by the Pope Of "a suit Of superb
rooms In the Vatican 20 Prince Angus
tus. fifth son Of his Britannia Majesty
(who politely declined them), and the
finding of IAN enormous stone in the
body OF a cart mare at Colchester" This
comes In the chronicle Of January, which
also immortalizes certain mr. Smith"
who was crushed to death In a crowd
outside the Haymarket Theatre and the
humanity of the inhabitants of Hull
which deserves 10 be recorded 10 their
honor" since they collected "ffty-six
pounds for the relief Of a shipwrecked
crew. More interesting is a glimpse OF
the rude condition of agriculture a hun
dred years ago. This is indicated by two
announcements. The first recodrs the in
yentiOn OF a machine (which is so simple.
and so excellently contrived that. by one
and the same movement, Il separates
and throws into different re-
ceiyers the heavy corn AMI the light"
The other tells how can ingenious farmer"
having cut the tops and tails" stacked
and matched about twenty loads Of tur-
nips so that they We're preserved from
the frost and when opened" were found
perfectly sound and fresh" affordng an
excellent fodder. Literary Digest.