Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1901-05-10

The fast mail on the Union Pacific
made a record burst of speed Friday,
covering 1853 miles between Grand Is
land, Neb., and Council Bluffs, Ia, in
100 minutes.
The plant of the Fifield Tool com
pany in Lowell, Mass, was burned
Monday, causing a loss of over $3.50
900, and throwing 100 men out of en-
ployment.
The population of London, including
the city of London and % metropoli-
tan boroughs, the whole forming what
is termed the administrative county
of London, is now 4,536 ,034. This is
an increase of 3OS,717 since the last
census, in 1891.
Pietro Mascagni, the Italian com
poser, has signed a contract for a
tour of the United States. He will
start on Oct. Is and will take with
him an orchestra of so members. His
personal stipend will be $4,000 a
week for eight weeks.
The Ashland Manufacturing com
panys saw mill, one of the largest and
most modern in Maine, was burned
Friday night. 1t turned out 3d.
100000 feet of lumber annually, and
the work of saving out this seasons
supply of logs had just begun with
a force of 175 men.
Some German soldiers, who were
guarding a German bridge across the
Pei Ho, at the south end of the Brit
ish concession at Tien Tsin, fired on
the British tug Ego on Saturday,
wounding two of her crew. The
bridge impedes river traffic and the
tug touched it.
A st. Petersburg newspaper publish
ed Sunday details of recent Russian
operations in Manchuria, showing
losses of "a men killed and seven
officers and 81 men wounded. Two of
the officers died of their wounds. The
Chinese were severely punished, and
are being pursued.
Seven persons were burned to death
and three were fatally injured Sunday
in a tenement house at South Chicago.
A freight train, which, it is claimed,
Inc crew refused to move, blocked
the tiremen, who were unable to get
near the burning building until it was
too late. The train crew were arrest
ed, and are being held without bail.
E. H. Conger, minister to China,
who is now at his home in Iowa, says
the condition of the famine-stricken
people in the Shan ST district in China
is indescribable. Prince Ching told
him only two days before he left Pc
kin nat these people were literally
eating each other. They have eaten
every blade of grass, every bit of bark,
everything, in fact, that can be eaten
in that province. Nothing has been
raised there for two years, and unless
relief is given many thousands must
perish.
According to the official figures of
the British war office, the total mum
Der of deaths in the South African war
is TIA officers and 14,264 men. Four
officers and 314 men had been invalid
ed home and subsequently died; 2493
non commissioned officers and men
have left the service unfit for duty.
The Chinese estimate that 10000
OF their people have lost their lives
by violent deaths or starvation about
Pekin and Tientsin since the allies
came, and well-informed foreigners
long resident there, do not regard the
estimate as exaggerated.
After a careful consideration of the
situation in the Philippines as it eX-
lists today, the administration has de
cided to reduce the army in the is
lands to 10000 men. If conditions
continue to improve the force may
be reduced still further. The expec-
tation of the war department is that
all the volunteers now in the Philip
pines will have left the islands by
the end of June, leaving only the reg
ulars on duty there. Following the
departure of volunteers will come the
regulars who were sent to Manila in
1898, just after the outbreak of hos
tilities.