Evening star., 1898-12-31
Great Britain Adopts New Rate Be-
ginning Christmas Day.
BLOW TO CZAR'S PEACE PROPOSAL
France and Germany Increasing
Their Military Power.
FOREIGN NEWS AND GOSSIP
Copyright, 1898. by the Associated Press

'SVpSilEHt- 1919. by the Associated Press
LONDON, December 31.-Christmas day
saw the inauguration of the imperial penny
postage. About Sc, 100 letters benefited by
1t during the first three days The ma
Jor1ty was composed of letters destined for
Cahaua' over 1900 letters paid the old
rates, through the senders' ignorance.
The White Star line steamer Majestic.
which sailed from Liverpool for New York
on Wednesday last took the first Cana
dian batch under the new ARRANGEMENT.
her mail consisting of $50 sacks, which is
above the usua! quantity at this season of
the year
Mr.. John Henniker Heaton, NJ. P, the
father of the imperial penny postage
scheme, which was passed July Il of the
present year, and who introduced telegra ph
money orders in England and the parcel
post in France, had silver pennies struck
and distributed among those who cooper
ated with him in bringing about this pos
tai reform. He sent one OF these pennies
to Queen Victoria who accepted the me-
mento and replied, saying:
The completion of this important change
IN the relations of the various parts of my
empire is matter of sincere satisfaction
to me-.
Blow to Disarmament
The czars disarmament scheme receives
almost daily hit below the belt in the
shape of announcements Of the extension of
the military and naval forces OF the various
powers in one form or other. After the
news that the German fed artillery will
be definitely armed with the new quick
hrers by the beginning of The new year
comes the announcement that the French
field artillery, before the spring. will be
fully armed with the new 10 centimeter
qulck-hrers, rivaling the German arm.
SERIOUS attention is being given in Great
Britain to these important changes which
one authority describes as being the most
portentous military advance in armament
since the Introduction of magazine rifles.
or perhaps since the Germans used breech-
loading needle guns in the Austrian war of
1866
Experts estimate that batteries of the
new guns will be at least three times as
powerful as the present batteries Each
new French battery costs f12 900 $50 600
The re-arming thus costs France e, 700, 900
(S2S,5pU,OUO) in guns alone, while the i'm
proved gun will also necessitate the reor-
ganiZatiOn of the ammunition TRANSPORT
which will bring the total expenditure up
to nearly f19, 0GU $50 000, ,VV0 British
artilleryists point out that against these
new guns the British artillery would be
swept off the field, and they urge that the
British field gun be brought to the level of
the foreign arm. Great Britain must thus
be prepared for an early expenditure of
The French naval budget published this
week involves the expenditure of 3O4, ,O7s 100
francs, being an increase of 17,121, 45t
francs. France will have ninety-one war
ships building IN 1899.
French Submarine Boat.
Interesting details have been published
regarding the French submarine boat Gus
tave Zede, which, it is claimed, has Just
emerged from some successful tests at
Ioulon. She is said to have toruedoed the
French irOnclad Magenta twice, once when
the latter was anchored and the second
time when she moving. The only draw
back, it is pointed out, is that the eddy
caused by the boat betrayed her move
ments at 100 yards in broad daylight
The principal of the invention is that the
boat is no longer blind, two lieutenants
having invented an eye which facilitates
submarine progress. Another French sub
marine boat, the Gymnote, is now armed
with tOrpedoes, and a third, to be named
the Morse, will be ready in March
The government inquiry into the causes
of the terrible mortality among railroad
men, which during the past ten years
reached 4,749 persons killed, while 3O271
were injured, shows the accidents to have
occurred chiefly among the sWitchmen. In
consequence of this showing the board of
trade sent an expert to study the systems
in use in America. This expert has just
returned here and brought with him speci-
mems of the American automatic couplings,
which, he reports, have reduced the num-
ber of accidents in America by 30 per cent.
1t is understood that the president of the
board of trade, Mr. Charles Thomson
matte couplings compulsory III Great
Britain. Considerable opposition is develop
ing against the bill, the change viii
cost f7.0oo,OoO $50, ,0O0,000).
A singular occurrence is reported from
the Semmering mountains, near Vienna.
Two youths and a young woman ascended
the R&x on Monday, and when they
reached height of 1000 feet the wo'
vas taken i'll and carried to a she er
house where she gave birth to a son. Her
two companions made a fire and wrapped
her in all their spare clothing, the cold
being intense. Then one of the young men
descended the mountain and fetched doc
tor, who at first declined to go, thinking
the whole affair was hoax. The woman.
however. cannot be removed for some time,
while a serious snowfall will compel her to
remain in the shelter house with her new
born babe for a long time.
The Pope's Health Good.
The bright, cold weather of Christmas
tide has given the pope's health decided
change for the better. He now walks un-
aided during his daily constitutional in the
Vatican grounds. The newspapers of Rome
announce that rich American lady has
had gold snuff box, incrusted with su-
perb diamonds, made by one of the best
jewelers. ol rome, as a New Y ear oHering
to the pope, who, 1t is added, will find a
check for $4,000 inside the snuff box.
The pope recently refused TO allow the
electric light to be introduced into his
apartments, remarking:
There is something superfiuous about
that light"
The czar has returned to St. Petersburg
after long holiday in the Crimea. Incl
dentally, his majesty has taken up the fad
of papering and decorating his rooms with
black and white sketches. He has had his
study papered entirely with caricaturcs of
himself which he has collected from for
eign papers.
The chief eunuch of the Sultan Of Turkey
has just died with suddenness character
istic of the Golden Horn. He left Jewels
and plate worth s16o,0OO. besides 5000 600 in
money, al! of which passes, under an old
law. into the sUltan's treasure box Poison
and the bowstring are hnted at
"A notorious figure disappears from French
public life with the resigna ton of M. Dieb