The herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1893-1900, 1896-03-12

Heinrich Won Gerstel, the courageous ex-
plorer of the interior of the New Hebrides
and New Guinea. while smoking his after
breakfast cigar, said in reference to the
latter country, that it's interior was one
mass of lava and upheaved granite, and
utterly devoid of the slightest trace of any
precious metals. The country is very thin
ly populated, notwithstanding the fact
that water is abundant, as are also deli
ciously favored strawberries and other
small fruits. The natives are very shy,
and communication with them very diff.
cult. but Won Gerstel was able to collect a
great crowd, after liberal distribution of
candy of which they are passionately fond.
They are homogeneous, and the females
are not permitted to do any work beyond
the care of the offspring and attendance
upon the sick. The nursing mothers carry
their children on their backs and suckle
them by throwing their milky breasts over
their shoulders or under their arms at their
pleasure. Both sexes are entirely nude,
the females having for a covering beautiful
long, black, curly hair reaching TO the an
kles, which is carefully washed and dressed
with a sweet smelling oil obtained from an
annual not unlike the violet. When the
mother is tired of carrying the child the
father does duty by placing i;
in sitting posture on his bullock
which extends nearly a foot outwards from
the spinal column, and is a marked peculi-
arty of the PapuAn race. Their only
weapons appear to be stone hatchets.
They mostly dwell in caves. either natural
or eXcavated by themselves in the dry
season. When the wet season SETS
in they betake themselves to the
trees, building rude huts in them
of withes, intertwined with the
branches. matched with dried mud and
reached by slender. springy ladders LII
the great central plateaus which are
reached by very gradual ascent from the
river levels, the solitude, the awful still
ness, unbroken by song of bird or cry of
animal is awful.
Lumber dealers seem TO imagine that Los
Angeles is a safe asylum. The latest ref
ugee is Albert <. Silverthorne, of Chicago,
who was at a well known hotel yesterday,
said detective from the windy city last
night. He disappeared about the first of
January, owing about $150,O0O. The
warrant for his arrest is issued
upon complaint of Brewer
Land, extensive dealers in lumber at
Duluth, Mimi. and the Shores Lumber
Company of Ashland, Wis. who are cred
itors for about $4,000, equally divided.
A charge is made against Silverthorne of
making false representations regarding
his financial ability, for fraudulent pur.
poses.
Hon. Francis of the English foreign Of
flee said TO THE HERALD's representative
that the publication of the parliamentary
blue-book giving such impartial details of
the boundary question between Venezuela
and British Guiana would do much to re-
move the prevalent opinion that Great
Britain was attempting 10 coerce an insig-
nificant but respected republic. President
Cles Glands action and that of the senate
was not to be censured, as they led to inves-
legations by which her majesty's govern
ment had obtained much valuable infor-
nation which would be a benefit not only
to it, but to that of the United States. The
probability of a readjustment of the
Dreibund owing to the disastrous defeat of
the Italian troops in Abyssina is occupy
ing the attention of leading European
diplomats. 1t is not improbable that Eng
land Germany and Belg iu,n will if it be nee
essary, order their troops (now within toll
erably easy march of Adorra) to join those
of Italy and to teach King Menelek a
severe lesson. Private cipher dispatches
scribe the slaughter of the Italians as
being terrific and that close upon
10000 men were put hors du combat.
The wounded we're treated barbarous,y by
the victors. There is no doubt but that
Italy has been more hardly hit by the de-
feat of General Baratieri in financial
sense, than in the number of her slain
soldiers, but the great financial centers of
Europe have already so many millions at
colonies adjacent to the Ably ssinian terri
tory, that if it should be needed, Italy
would have no difficulty in raising loan
at per cent.