The Olneyville tribune. (Providence, R.I.) 1893-189?, 1894-07-14
NOTES AND COMMENTS.

are either now in possession OF, or
wiRn the natural course OF events
come 10 occupy seven thrones-those
OF the British Empire, the German
Empire, the Russian Empire, the
Kingdom OF Greece, the Grand Duchy
Of Hesse. the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg
and Gotha, and the Duchy OF Sake
Meiningen.
ACCORDING TO compiler OF statis-
tics in Paris, one-half Of the French
people are farmers, one-quarter live
BY means OF other manual pursuits,
o tenth are engaged in commerce, n
twenty-tifth practice the liberal pro-
fessions, and three-tiftieths enjoy
settled incomes sufficient for all their
wants. Journalists and literary men
number 3d.
OLD ENGLAND as we'll as New Eng
land is suffering in parts on account
Of abandoned farms. Hunter Prin-
gle makes a report on the agricultural
condition of Essex. in which he says
that IL three-fourths Of the farmers
who have been served notices to quit
in 1894 DO so, thousands of acres will
be left tenantless. The decay of farm
ing began in 1879. The low price OF
produce and the increasing cost Of
labor have served TO ruin many an
Essex farmer
ATTENTION has been called anew 20
the perils Of Spain's national sport
by the awful death Of promising
young torero in the bull ring. An
idea had gained some currency that
the danger Of the men engaged in this
sport was small, but such "A notion
has no foundation in fact. Those who
sneer at what they call the cowardice
of bull fighters speak without knowl-
edge. One has but to witness the en-
trance into the ring Of u fierce Anda-
lusian bull, twice the size OF lion
and almost as active, to understand
that every man in the ring carries his
life in his hand. and the slightest
mistake may prove fatal.
TEMPERANCE in Russia takes pecu-
liar forms which would make some
American leaders Of the movement
stand aghast. Thus the Temperance
Society of the great province OF To-
bolsk meets in church every year,
and after singing TIE Deum it's MEM
bers pledge themselves to total absti-
nence for twelve months. Twenty
four hours grace, however, is always
afforded between the expiration of
one temperance year and the begin
ming OF the next, and during that
brief period the members are permit
ted to decorate their heads with
vine leaves. Whosoever breaks the
pledge during the remainder Of the
year has TO pay fine OF % rubles to
the church for each offence, while
the faithful members have the ques-
tionable privilege of splitting in the
face Of the erring brother.
RIVER mud is not generally sup
posed to have commercial value. In
Florida, however there is prospective
wealth in river mud. or muck, rs it
Is called down there. At the last
session of the Legislature "a charter
was granted to company to dredge
or mine the submerged muck in the
st. Johns River from the mouth of
Lake George to the head OF the river,
and in the tributaries of the st.
Johns for a distance OF six miles from
the confluence. A contract has been
made with a dredging concern to raise
and prepare this muck for agricultur-
al uses. The statement is made that
when dried and pulverized it is in
an available form to supply the
vegetable mould needed in most soils.
The promoters Of the enterprise ex-
pect to find ready market for the
st. Johns River mud among farmers
and truckers, and they hope to get
rich by the sale Of their new fertil-
izer. The dredging is to begin Sep
tember at Lake Jesup.
WHEN President Lincoln, in 1861,
issued a call for troops, 5000 Phila-
delphians volunteered their services.
They were organized as the Philadel-
phia Brigade. composed OF the Sixty
ninth, Seventy-first, Seventy-second,
and One Hundred and Sixth Penn
sylvania Regiments. The brigade
served for three and half years. and
distinguished itself at Munson' =
Hills, Ball Bluffs, Yorktown, Fair
Oaks, Malvern Hill, Antietam, Fred
ericksburg, Charlottesville. Gettys-
burg, Mine Run, Wilderness, Spott-
sylvania, Cold Harbor, and the many
engagements around Petersburg
and on the road TO Appomattox. OF
the original 5000 volunteers only
1000 returned TO their homes. Four
thousand prisoners and twenty-five
battle flags were captured by the
brigade, which never lost one OF its
own ensigns. The survivors propose
to erect on the field OF Antietam a
monument sixty-three feet in height
TO the memory Of 5i5 comrades who
fell there. The cost OF this mem
orial will be $l5, 900.
Two wealthy Bostonians, who were
greatly interested in photography.
recently discovered in Paris "A maker
OF lantern slides who possessed Sc