The herald., 1897-08-08

| There was only one-third of an inch Of
rainfall in July. The crops are serious
| ly threatened and the experiences OF
the 1896 water famine in the East End
of London are already looming up. The
heat, which has been unusually pro-
longed, has affected the LONDON dsath
rate. There were 2032 deaths last week,
of which 1925 were children, bringing up
| the death rate to 236 per 1000. There
were many sunstrokes and general dis
comfort was experienced. The judges
and counsel in the law courts doffed
their wigs and gowns.
| The waning season has been marked
| by a rather stupid Cowes week. Only
! the most languid interest in yachting
was felt outside of the strictly fashion
able circle and the absence of Emperor
William, though he is detested by many
members of the Royal Yacht Squadron,
deprived the week of the brilliancy OF
1896, the presence of the Kings of Bel
gium and Siam failing to fill the void.
The members of the House of ofCommons
have gone home. after placing an un
usual strain upon the Kitchen Commit
tee, which reports having served total
of $3.50 meals. The Master of the House
of Commons also records big achieve
ment. 515,9 900 letters having been posted,
S66,47 letters having been received AND
76, 10S kilograms being handed to men,
bers or sent by them from the House.
Referring to the reply of Mr. A. j. Bal
four, the government leader and First
Lord of the Treasury, in the Commons
on Thursday last when Mr.. Balfour said
Her Majesty's government would cor
slider the advisability of prosecuting on
the charge of obtaining money under
false pretenses the agents of the Nation
al University of Chicago, for offering to
confer degrees for SIS each, Truth calls
the attention of the American public
to the bogusness of the London Society
of Science, Letters and Art" which is
selling degrees" with a gown, hood and
rank of NJ. A., to unsuspecting Amer
leans, and quotes the Churchman of
New York as saying that such de-
gree with a silver medal for merit has
been acquired by the Rev. John Wright
of st. Paul, MINI.
Much interest is taken in French
naval circles at the discovery of COM
position which is alleged to have the
marvellous property of rendering vessels
invisible beneath the rays of electric
search lights. 1t is stated that at the
naval maneuvers off Brest torpedo boat
No. 81, representing the enemy, succeed
ed in traversng unseen the luminous
zone produced by the electric protector,
thanks to having been coated with the
new composition.
Though other Jubilee peerages have
been gazetted that of Sir Donald Smith,
the Canadian High Commissioner,
hangs fire. He desired to assume the
title of Lord Glencoe, but it is under
stood that his intention caused lively
indignation among the McConals, who
were owners of Glencoe centuries before
Sir Donald Smith bought the property.
These objections and those of the Ar
gylls are causing Sir Donald to recon-
slider the matter.
Ex-Queen Natalie of Servia has join
ed the ranks of authors, publishing a
book of aphorisms, some of which are
interesting as they are evidently learned
from her own suffering. She says: "The
dream Of every brave soldier is to die
for something great and to live for some
thing nice" I'm every country the army
is like angels before the throne of God"
"a girl is an angel. Take care that when
she becomes a wife she is not changed
into a devil" THE heart tried too far
no longer knows how to be happy" and
"A moment of apathy may render su-
perf1uous whole existence of the great
est energy"
There has been veritable epidemic
of suicide in Paris for some time past,
the recent tropical heat adding to the
number Of cases. The tragedies COM
menced with the eself-dastruction on July
7th last of the four young dressmakers
in the Poissoire Quarter of Paris, who
suffocated themselves in small room
with the fumes of charcoal, dying to-
gether. Since then almost daily one or
more women have committed suicide,
and the self-destruction of men has been
equally numerous, The bodies of men
are found daily hanging to trees in the
Bois de Vincennes. In one alley of that
park alone six bodies of suicides were
found during the past week and the
morgue is so full of dead bodies found
in the river Seine that there is no further
room for them.