Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1897-08-05
NOTES AND COMMENTS.

It is now roughly estimated that in
the college and university graduations
for this year about one-half of the en-
tire output are women. Fifty years
ago only about half of one per cent.
of college graduates were women.
Queen Victoria has thirty great
grandchildren, all of whom are living,
and nineteen of the number are boys.
Matronly honors are gathering also on
the Queens oldest daughter, the EN-
press Frederick, who has seventeen
grandchildren.
Kansas boasts that it had hail
storm the other day in which the hail
stones were as large as ostrichs' eggs,
and it is said that one enterprising
farmer filed his cellar with the stones,
covered them with sawdust, and will
sell them to families that need ice.
The proudest man in the State of
Washington at the latest mail advices
was Mr.. j. r. Know, of Latah, Spo-
kane county, to whom four children
has been born. One of them is u boy
and him the happy father has named
Rogers, after the Governor of the
State.
A recent statement, based on good
authority, affirms that between twenty
five and thirty million birds are annu-
ally imported into England alone for
decorative purposes, and that the sup
ply for Europe requires not less than
one hundred and fifty million. Add
ing fifty million for America it makes
a total of some two hundred million
birds sacrificed annually on the altar
of fashion.
The recent Danubian floods have
apparently been as destructive as those
of the Mississippi, and left as many
people homeless. Twenty thousand
inhabitants of Galatz, in Moldavia,
have been drowned out by the deluge,
the severest recorded in that region
within the century. With its tale OF
earthquake and flood and various
forms of calamity and ruin around the
world, the current year has taken a
prominent place, but has several
months left in which to redeem its
reputation. 1t is quite time it SET
about it.
Up to the year 1904 the Bible had
only been translated into thirty Ian
guages. Most of these, besides the
English, were dead languages. But
now, by the latest statistics, the num-
Der of versions of the Scriptures in
existence in 1895 is 3S1, so that the
Bible within about ninety years has
been translated into some $50 Ian
guages. These translations comprise
those of all the great Christian
nations, so that nine-tenths of the
world now have the Scriptures in then
own tongue.
Thanks to the encouragement which
Emperor William has accorded to the
practice of duelling, it is now being
adopted by the medical profession in
Germany. A couple of physicians
summoned in consultation became in
yolved at the bedside of the patient in
30 vehement dispute with regard to
the character of the malady and of its
treatment that they concluded to fight
the matter out. The conflict took
place on the outskirts of Bopn, on the
Rhine, one of the combatants, DR..
Fischer, receiving bullet in the chest,
which killed him instantly. This may
be said to constitute all altogether new
departure in what is known to laymen
as medical etiquette.
The French parricide, who slew his
father and mother and was asked upon
condemnation what he had to say why
sentence should not be pronounced
upon him, entreated the Court to have
mercy upon poor orphan. This tale
is green with the moss of ages and
may not be true, but something like il
is true Of woman named Marie Gel
vet, recently sentenced by Paris tri
bunal to twenty years Imprisonment,
at hard labor for the murder of hei
sister. While in court she constantly
wore long crepe veil. ''Why do
you wear this veil?" asked one of the
officials, to which she replied that she
was in mourning for her sister. Show
ing an affectionate sensibility, the
| tdTllcr eAhlDltiOu VI Which, hoWONci
would have been more becoming to
her even than the garment.
w. Bokaseff, of Russia, is thus
quoted in The Washington Post: 81
have come to America to study your
methods of farming and dairy bust
ness, and especially to look into the
cultivation of the sunfower plant in
this country. / am a sunflower far
mer at my home in Russia. One Of
my family was the first person in Rus
STA to obtain oil from the seed of tn,
sunfower. 1t is one of the leading
agricultural industries in the Czar''
dominions now, and the people car
clear more money from it than any
other crop. If the soil and CLIMATE,
conditions are right in the United
States, and can find suitable loca
ton, / may enter on the cultivation o
the sunfower on large scale, and al
so put up mills for the extraction o
the oil. {"
Over $1,000, 900 packages of vege
table, flower and field seed have beer
distributed by the Department of Ag
riculture during the past spring. This
distribution has given to each member
of Congress 40, 900 packages of seed a
total cost of 100000. Over mil
lion of these packages were flower
seed and nearly 800, 900 field seed, tn,
| l. l. .okx 80