The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-12-24
ITEMS Of INTEREST.

-"One can almost hear the means OF
Liberty as she struggles in ner chains
says the Kansas City Journal. THE gold
bug Westmoreland (Kan) Recorder has
absorbed the Westmoreland free silver
Banner of Light and Bugle Blast of Free
dom-a Populist paper which did not live
quite as long as its name
"A curious point in insurance law is
troubling the Vienna courts. A surgeon
in trimming his nails before an operation
cut his finger but went on with the oper-
alton and his finger was infected so that
he had to call in a doctor for himself. He
claimed compensation on an accident po,-
Icy but the company refused to pay on
the ground that operations performed by
doctors on themselves were expressly ex-
Guided in its policy. The courts must de
eide whether nail cutting is surgical
operation.
I'm johannesburg no negroes are al
lowed to be out on the streets between the
hours of p. m. and 5 a. M, without
special permits. under penalty OF fine of
SIS, or fourteen days Imprisonment, with
or without fifteen lashes. White persons
must remain indoors between 9 p. m and
5 a. M, the penalty for violation of the
regula ton being a fine of S., or eight
days Imprisonment. In addition to these
measures, a very stringent liquor edict
IDS DStI III force since tDe beginning Oh
the South African war.
India is accommodating a gold reserve,
now that its currency has been placed on
the gold basis. The gold has been OBJ
tanned from Australia. Up to the middle
of October $14,100,OO0 had been received
from that source and the movement has
continued The India Council found it
easier to get the yellow metal in Austria
liza than in London, where a special effort
Is being made by powerful banks to pre-
vent the effiux of gold while the Boer war
is in progress. The councils purchases
DO not directly affect the Indian treasury,
since, under the regulations adopted by
the council it has power to issue curren-
cy notes to the full amount of gold held
-"Dreyfus; or, Vive la Francer' is Aus
tralia's latest contribution to the British
drama. It is the joint production of two
formerly well-known London actors,
George Fignold of Drury Lane and Walter
Bentley of the Lyceum and brother of
Faithful Bogg, NJ. P. Mr.. Rignold made
triumphant tour of this country years
ago. starring in the role of Henry " The
villain of the piece, Esterhazy, is made
| governor of Devils Island, where he goads
his victim into mad rush at him, an in-
| cident which is widely cheered by the
| gallery. In the final scene Esterhazy at
| tackled by an angry crowd, is magnani-
mously rescued by the indicated Dreyfus
| beneath the shadow of a market cross
| Comic relief is brought into the drama nv
providing Dreyfus with a Ffanco-Irish
servant.
One noteworthy consequence of the
war in South Africa is the exhaustion of
the supply of uncut diamonds, saws an ex-
| change. At Antwerp, which is the world
center of the diamond cutting industry.
two considerable firms have failed and
| further business suspensions are expected;
while $500 cutters, who have been thrown
out of work, recently made a demonstra-
ton by marching through the streets of
the city AT Amsterdam 1000 men have
| been laid off, although no failures have
yet been reported. The interdependence
| of men living on opposite sides of the globe
| is such that war, even in the remotest
corner of the world, inevitably affects the
| fortunes of many who dwell in the heart
| of civilization and who at first sight would
| appear to be entirely unconcerned in the
! conflict
| The new orders and instructions Just
issued by the British government relative
to the defense of Gibraltar are, without
doubt, of the most stringent character
| This position and place has naturally al
ways been well looked after and guarded
to such an extent as to be thoroughly pre-
pared for all and any emergencies But
| the latest orders are that no one will be
| allowed to enter the gates without a pass
| and those Englishfnen who previously had
| this privilege have had it temporarily sus-
| pended. Spanish workpeople must quit at
| sunset, when the gates will be closed and
noe opened again until reveille. No one is
| to be allowed to visit the batteries of
| heavy guns. For several months past new
and more powerful batteries have been
| constructed 1t is also stated that the
forces now at Gibraltar are to be in
| creased.
The Countess Castiglione who died re-
Gently in Paris at an advanced age, says
an exchange, was one of the famous beau
| ties of the third empire, and her charms
made an impression on Napoleon III, which
| was said to be the cause of the Empress
Eugenie's sudden and much talked-of visit
to Scotland. The Countess beauty was of
a buxom, forid Sort and she was noted
| for her golden hair, which touched her
| feet when let down. She scandalized the
court by her appearance as Salammbo at
| a ball at the Tuileries wearing her hair
| her jewels and very little else. The EN-
press, who viewed her with disfavor de-
| clared that she must be cold, and insisted
! upon her donning a mantle The Count
| ess was never again invited to court
| entertainment. After the fall of Napoleon
| III and the death of the Count she lived
| in cloistered rooms in the Place Vendome
| She never went out, and her meals were
| sent to her from a fashionable restaurant.
The government ought to pay its small
bills, trying to be just, before it becomes
| too generous. The Boston Traveller says:
| 1T can scarcely be regarded as other than
a national disgrace that the undertaker's
! bill for the funeral of President Garfield
| has not been paid. The expenses of the
| funeral were assumed by the nation by a
vote of Congress, and then the committee
| in whose hands the appropriation was
| placed began to haggle over it, The Aud
| iting Committee took the bills and proceed
ed to cut them here and there, as seemed
| pleasing, taking the position that only
such proportion of each bill should be paid,
! as they saw fit. The undertaker's bill for
/ NH nL rn..na .n.ra. IL --I.--