The Van Buren press., 1894-11-24
OF GENERAL INTEREST.


The department Of foreign affairs
(now the state Department. was created
in 1881, and it was provided that the
secretary .'shall have liberty to visit
congress- The departments of finan-
ces, war and marine were established
in the same year, with "superintend-
ent' of finances and secretaries for the
other Offices
Although cheap books Of all quail
ties as to type, paper, binding and lit
erary workmanship are now drug in
this market, an audacious Philadelphia
publisher sends over here and sells
through agents at thirty five cents each
the fiimsiest of ill-printed paper-bound
books, being the history of crimes long
since reported in the newspapers, but
now revamped, amplified, and graced
with sensational and virtuously indig-
nant titles.-N. Y. Sun.
The tenement-instinct seems strong
even in the suburbs of New York, and
a land owner who built n few graceful
little cottages for rent at twenty dol
lars a month, after having them lie
empty on his hands, saw one of them
sublet by tenant on the tenement
house plan. Neighboring high-shoul-
dered structures, easily divided into
suites of small apartments, rented
promptly. The public taste was not
for the graceful cottage, but for the
cheapest place of shelter.
Before "Old Glory" was unfurled
4, %lo L-o,yoc %1a nplOoiac had r,nanv
and divers emblems and flags. The
standard of Great Britain was used up
to the time of the revolution, but each
colony added to it some local distin-
gushing design. The colony of Mas
sachusetts made use of the pine tree
on her flags and coins, and this emblem
eventually became famous. The armed
ships of New York flew white flag
inscribed with black beaver, which
emblem is now on the arms of the
state.
--"Truitarians" are the latest nov.
city in the world of cranlzs. They are
ascetic beings, who consider modern
civilization far too luxurious, and
therefore agree to live upon nothing
DuG lIulb anu WdlCI, w llNC III bdI U
huts without any comforts and to wear
as little clothing as possible. The So
ciety is headed by retired German
lieutenant, who has gone to the Sand
witch islands to found colony in some
out-of-the way spot, where his disciples
can follow out their doctrines undis-
turbed.
The first extra session of congress
called by President John Adams in
March, 1897, was convened to consider
threatened war with France. 1t as
sembled at Philadelphia, and John Ad-
ans appeared before it and made a
speech. jefferson introduced the prac-
tice of communicating with congress
by written message. He thought the
presence of the executive before con-
gress might lead to undue interference
with the peoples representatives. His
enemies said that he wrote his mes
sages rather than spoke them, because
he was an excellent writer and rather
poor speaker.
in England from the fourteenth
century to the change of the calendar
in 1859, the legal year began on March
25, and after the change was made
much confusion in dates resulted be-
fore the matter was fully understood.
Even yet a historical issue is some
times clouded by the difference in
modes of reckoning, and is thus made
uncertain whether an event took place
in the year named or in that following
The present beginning of the year on
January 1, in the middle of the winter,
Is not a natural but an entirely arti-
fetal starting point. The Greek year
originally began with the winter SOL
stice, as did the year Of most northern