The Atherstone, Nuneaton, and Warwickshire Times. — 1889-08-10 (Atherstone, Warwickshire, England)

MESSRS. MERRYWEATFIER of steam fire engine notoriety,have sent me illustrated particulars of the Glenister-Merryweather fire-tricycle. From these I gather that the machine carries two men, witlia portable fire engine, the necessary hose, stand pipes, &c., that it can be propelled at good speed, and that it is of light but strong construction. The illustrations are from photos, and show the method of using the apparatus. In towns where hydrants are fixed, the stand-pipe and hose may be used in the ordinary way, but in the case of a fire in the country, the small fire engine is brought into requisition, taking its suction from the dam, this being replenished by the buckets. The fire-escape consists of a handy arrangement for raising a line to a window to enable a person to be lowered. This is a valuable portion of the machine, and by it a life may in many cases be saved before the ordinary fire-escape could arrive on the spot. A trial of one of these machines was recently made at Greenwich with the following results, being manned by two average-sized men :—Starting from the Works, Blackheath (a distance of threequarters of a mile) was reached in ten minutes, the route including the very steep (Blackheath) hill; the return journey was performed in four minutes. A second run was made to the "Ship" Hotel, Greenwich, the distance being the same as the above, but the road nearly level and laid with tramway lines, the time occupied being four minutes. On arrival at a fire, the average time of getting a hydrant or the fire engine to work is 20secs. ; thus with the use of this apparatus, on an alarm of fire being given, the tricycle may be run a mile, and a jet thrown on a fire in smin. 45 secs. This machine is specially adapted for country districts and towns,having outlying villages, &c. In all cases it may be used as a first aid, and on the arrival of the engines may be used for despatching messages," stops," &o. - - -  WHAT has become of the memorial praying for a commutation of the sentence of twenty years' penal servitude passed on George Tidman in iday, 1882, for having attempted to murder Sarah Beale at Sows? You will remember that a few weeks ago I gave in this column a short history of the attempt, and said that the memorial to the Home Secretary had been signed by the Lord-Lieutenant and other county gentlemen. I have never heard whether the memorial has been presented, or whether, if presented, a reply has been received. We are all curious to know the result of the movement. Can anybody give any information about it?  Teems has become such a remarkably popular pastime that I am tempted, in the interests of lady players, to give the following description of the tennis-dress prepared for a young lady who is spending her summer at Newport. She wears with it a divided skirt. There are a pair of green silk stockings to begin with, embroidered with buttercups and finished off with a little pair of pig-skin shoes. After these are on, the wearer will array herself in an under-garment of greygreen China silk, which looks like a petticoat, ruffled up to the waist, but which really consists of two petticoats, one for each limb, and fastened to one belt, which gives her a freedom of movement she has never known before since she went out of short frocks. A little low-necked silk bodice goes with the divided petticoat, and this is frilled with lace, and drawn up with little narrow green ribbons about the shoulders and arms. The tennis-dress proper is of grey-green serge, laid in a deep hem about the foot of the skirt, and embroidered with a deep border of buttercups done in a gold-coloured floss. The skirt is gathered quite full, and falls just the fragment of an inch below the ankles. The waist is a loose blouse of the Garibaldi shape, made of white serge, with a turn-over collar, under which is knotted a yellow silk scarf, the same colour as the broad soft sash, knotted about the waist. The sleeves are loose and full, and arc gathered into a deep green cuff which reaches nearly to the elbow. Over this blouse goes a little green serge jacket, whose edges are embroidered with buttercups, which is lined throughout with silk of the same shade, and has no sleeves. The hat is a sailor-shape of white straw, trimmed with green ribbons and a bunch of buttercups.  Out MT