The Aberystwith Observer

BEYOND DOUBT."—The universal appreciation of Harmm-an's Pure Tea has induced unscrupulous dealers to palm off on the public a worthless imita- tion. Caution is necessary that the purchaser insists upon getting HORNIMAN'S Puns TEA ONLY, guaranteed strong and delicious. Always good alike. IT is estimated that only one couple in 11,500 live to celebrate their diamond wedding. TUB natives of Vera Cruz do a large trade in fire- flies which they catch by waving a blazing coal at the end of a stick. The insects fly towards the light, and are eaptured in nets. The fire-flies of North America emit their light in capricious flashes, instead of with a steady, uniform glow. This peculiarity ha3 gained for them the name of lightniag bugs." 11 K,kr'i OoMpopND BMeaoe ci tjmaoed, Aniseed, Senega, Squill, Yolo, Ac.. with Ohlorodyrw, 9M-. In. lid., &c. As visitors to Lisbon know, many of the giils in the Portuguese capital are very beautiful and attrac- tive. But they are closely guarded, never appearing unattended in the streets, and rarely being seen on foot.. Carriage driving of a decorous kind is a favourite amusement, but the girl who follows the Queen's example, and appears on horseback, is regarded as very advanced in her ideas. The girls play a little tennis in summer, dance and play cards j for amusement in winter. They are rarely invited to formal dinners as their parents are, but are taken to the opera. The chief delight of these delieatelv bred and earefully guarded maidens is the great bull-fight at Ctqtara.

CATHEDRAL CHOIRS. I WESTMINSTER ABBEY. The form of the grand old Abbey of Westminster is that of a Latin cross, and the total length, including Henry the. Seventh's chapel, is 520 feet; breadth at the transept, 203 feet, and the height of the western tower is 225 feet. The choir extends beyond the tran- sept to the middle of the nave, from which it is sepa- rated by an iron screen. Before the altar is an old pavement of mosaic, laid down by Abbot de Ware in 1260. The inscriptions are now nearly obliterated. The reredos is a beautiful modern work chiefly in red and white alabaster, and above it is a mosaic in Vene- tian glass representing the Lord's Supper, designed by Messrs. Clayton and Bell. In the niches are statues of Moses, David, St. Peter, and St. Paul. The wood-car nng of the choir, executed in 1848, is very beautiful and elaborate, especially the orna- j mentation of the dean's stall and the canopies of the canons' stalls. The organ, reconstructed by Hill in 1848, is divided into three portions, and placed at the north, south, and east sides of the screen. The galleries above the aisle are very spacious, and were probably intended by the architect for spectators at the great ceremonies of the Church. Above are the clerestories. The effect of the tall columns and the narrow-pointed arches supporting the groined roof is very fine. The superb west window has figures of Moses and Aaron and the patriarchs. Near the screen separating Henry the Seventh's chapel from the choir, decorated with sculptures re- presenting scenes in the life of the Confessor, are the coronation chairs of carved oak. Beneath the older one is the famous stone of Scone, on which the ancient Kings of Scotland, and the still more ancient Kings of Ireland, sat when DR. JOlIN F. BRIDGE, ORGANIST AND CII0IEJIA3TER OF WESTMINSTER ABBEY. they were crowned, and asserted by antique ecclesiastical legend to be the very stone on which the patriarch Jacob pillowed his head when he saw the vision of the angels and the ladder. It was trans- ferred from Ireland to Scotland at an early period, and placed in the abbey church of Scone in 850. Edward the First brought it to England in 1296, and since then it has been beneath the chair on which every sovereign of England has sat when receiving the crown. The other chair was made for the coronation of Mary, joint sovereign with her husband, William the Third. In the choir are the tombs of King Sebert, of Edmund Crouchback, second son of Edward III., and his Countess; also of Aymer de Valence, Earl of Pembroke; and of Anne of Cleves, wife of Henry VIII. Dr. John Frederick Bridge, formerly chorister at Rochester Cathedral, ia the organist and choirmaster of Westminster Abbey likewise Doctor of Music, Examiner of Music for the University of Cambridge, Professor of Harmony at the Royal College of Music; also a member of the Board of the Royal College of Music. I The choir-boys of Westminster undergo a thorough and special training in a school maintained exclusively for them. The average age of entry is between nisse and 10 vears. They are subject to a vocal examination for admission, which is open to all comers. Each boy receives a first-class education in returra for his services, and is expected to remain in the, choir until his voice breaks. Some of the men choristers have remained in the choir since they first entered as boys, and are musical professors of repute. Many old choristers are singers of renown, notably Mr. Edward Lloyd, the famous tenor. The Westminster organ is now a very fine instru- ment, and has undergone great changes during Dr. Bridge's regime. It was originally built in 1730, and bears a tablet to the effect that Gull. Hill et Filius. Hoc organurn fecerunt." In 1884 it was repaired and brought to its present state of excellence by means of the money subscribed by some Americans and colonists, foremost among them being Mr. Searles, of Methuen, Mass., U.S.A., who defrayed the expense of the famous Contra Posaune, 32 feet metal pipe. In an interview with Dr. Bridge, he pointed regretfully at the vast array of pipes, and suggested that another good-natured American or colonist should subscribe for their encasement in carved wood, humorously adding that for the necea- sary E1500 the donor would raise to himself a monu- ment larger than any in the Abbey Dr. Bridge does not think that the early training of voices injures them, unless it is continued when the voice is breaking. Mr. Edward Lloyd was not considered a phenomenal; singer as a ohorister, but Maas' reputation as a chorister at Rochester still lives in the memories of many. No less than six cathedral organists were choristers at Rochester at about the same time, under the train- ing of Mr. H. Hopkins and his cousin, who succeeded him, viz Dr. John Frederick Bridge, of Westminster Abbey; Dr. Joseph Bridge, of Chester; Dr. Armes, of Durham; Dr. Crow, of Ripon; Mr. Wood, of Exeter and Mr. Ford, of Carlisle.

TELEPHONES AND DISEASE. The danger of a possible communication of infec- tious diseases by the medium of the telephone has recently been exercising the minds of the postal authorities in the Pomeranian city of Danzig, who I ordered a scientific investigation of the subject. The results of the inquiry have now been officially made public, and they are, on the whole, of a re- assuring nature. The exhaled air which comes in I contact with the instrument every time it is used is proved to be germ-free. Should, therefore, any particles which may be on the telephone plate be communicated to persons using the telephone this cannot occur through the simple breathing of air, but only under certain conditions, namely, if particles ejected by diseased, especially consumptive, persons alight by chance on the microphone and there dry in. But even this con- tingency is easily obviated if the settlement of dust in the apparatus be prevented by frequent wiping with a damp cloth. The risk of taking a disease by infec- tion through the use of the telephone must then be regarded as very slight, especially as we have it on 1 scientific authority that it has never actually been established that where a person who was in the habit of using the instrument had contracted a contagious disease this was communicated by the medium of the telephone.- Iron.

BARLEY CULTIVATION. The annual competition for Prizes value Fifty Guineas, given by Messrs. Fison, of Ipswich, for the best samples of barley, was decided last week. A large number of samples were exhibited, and over three hours were occupied by the judges in deciding the merits of the different lots. The First Prize JE20 was awarded to Mr. A. Pulham, Brandoston, Wickham Market, for a fine parcel of Webbs' Golden Grain Barley, whilst the Second Prize JE15 went to Mr. W. Pepper, of Covehitbe, Wangford, who exhibited an almost equally fine sample of W ebbs' Kinver Chevalier Barley other prizes went to the same variety. That Messrs. Webbs' strains of Barley are greatly in advance of all other kinds is a fact that must be patent to all who are interested in the cultivation of Barley for Malting purposes. Their list of successes is a long one indeed, and includes that most coveted honour, the Champion Cup open to the world for the fifth year in succession.

THE POLL IN SOUTH DERBY. The result of the polling in South Derbyshire for the election of a member of the House of Commons in the room of the late Mr. Wardle (Liberal) was de- elaied at-Derby on Saturday as follows: ) Mr. H. Evans Broad (Liberal). 5806 Mr. B. V. Melviile (Conservative) 4553 Majority 1250 There are about 11,500 electors on the register. The figures at the two previous elections were 1886. | 1885. Mr. H. Wardle (L.) 5102 t Mr. H. Wardle (L.) 6186 Hon. E. K. Went- Hon. G. N. Curzon worth (C.) 3049 j (C.) ••• 4094 A 115-3 2092

TIIK VERY THING FOR WKAX MEN.—A combined Belt and Suspender (Mr. Harness's latest Electrical invention). It acts directly upos the vital organs by imperceptibly generating mild invigorating currents which pass from the spinal chord direct to the system. It cannot fail to restore impaired vigour, and speedily renew that vital energy the loss of which is the first symptom of decay. For varicocele and kindred troubles it is invaluable. No man should be without one of these perfect health appliances. Call and see them scienti fically teste(i, or write at once for particulars to Mr. C. B. Harness, President, Electropathic Institute, 52, Oxford-street, London, W. All communications are treated as strictly private and confidential. IN France matchmaking is a Government monopoly —we refer to the match of cor&Efrejrce. TIIB typewriter now clicks the fiat of emperors and kings as well as the business correspondence of nearly every big house in the world. In five years the intricate mechanical devices have wrought a revolution in epistolary transactions everywhere. Only recently an order was received by an agent from the head official a one of Russia's penal colonies in Siberia. The Queen of Hawaii now lisps her official utterances tea typewriter, and the little machine, made especially for her, records in the peculiar characters of tJte Hawaiian language. LJNUM CATHABTICUM FILLS, agreeably aperient, 9id, g. lid., 2a. Pd. Of all Oiiemlrts. ITALIAN papers teli of a Neapolitan nobleman who fought 14 duels during his lifetime in defence of his assertion that Dante was a greater poet than Ariosto. As he lay on his death-bed a short time ago he took pleasure in acknowledging that he had never read the works of either writer. K.\y'Ej TIC PILLS, specific in No viral YU, Paoeoahe, go.. and la, lid. postage, Id. Of all Chemists. TUB clergy of the Church of England, according to recently compiled statistics, are, as a class, the healthiest people in tho kingdom. There is less mortality among them than among gardeners and nurserymen, who are popularly supposed to live a typically healthy life. The Catholic clergy are less fortunate. They die more quickly than the average population. The curious may probably have many methods of accounting for this disparity, but one appears to be the exceptional zeal with which the parish priest penetrates the dirtiest and most miser- able courts, regardless of all manner of horrible and infeotioua diseases.

WILLS AND BEQUESTS. I THE LYTTON FAMILY PAPERS. Probate duty has been paid on £ 75,270 19s. Id. M the value of the persona estate of the late Earl of Lytton, who died at the British Embassy, Paris, on the 24th of November, aged 60 years. His will bears date the 12th of February, 1886, with a codicil made the 27th of August, 1889, and the executors are his wife, Edith Countess of Lytton, and Mr. Charles William Earle, of 4, Cadogan-gardens. It was Lord Lytton's desire to be buried in the mausoleum at Knebworth by the side of his sister, and that the expenses of his funeral should not exceed E5 in addition to the cost of the coffin and the trans- port of his body to Knebworth. He wished that no. conventional symbols of affection" should be furnished for his funeral. He beaueaths to William Henry Todd £300, to Miss Katherine Plaistow, of Bury St. Edmunds, a life annuity of £ 50, and to Lady Lytton £ 500, such jewellery, horses and carriages, and some other effects as she should choose, the furniture of her boudoir at Kneb- worth, and two-thirds of the income for her life of bis jesiduary estate. He bequeaths also to his wife for her benefit his manuscripts and all his copyrights in any works, whether published or not, including the benefit of any contracts for the sale or publication of any such works, and he charges the remaining one- third of his residuary estate with the payment of a life annuity of F-400 to his son, the Hon. Neville Lytton, unless or until he shall succeed to the entailed Knebworth estate. The portions of Lord Lytton's daughters are to be made up to £ 5000 each (account being taken in respect of one of them of a reversionary legacy of £1000 bequeathed to her by the late Mr. John Forster), and all the residue of his property Lord Lytton leaves in trust for his successor in the estate entailed by his grandmother. Lord Lytton's will continues And as regards all the written and printed records of my administration in India, which will be found at Knebworth House in bound volumes, I request my said wife to endea- vour to obtain the assistance of some statesman or writer in whose ability and character she has con- fidence for the production of a complete record of my Indian Administration. And wheteas there now exist in the hands of persons unrestrained by any sense of honour or decency certain letters which I believe to be garbled, and certain written statements which I know to be wicked and cruel falsehoods re- lative to the domestic life of my father and mother and whereas also there is no misstatement, however impudent, and no imputation, however baseless, which biographers are incapable of adopting in their pursuit of sensational novelties about the private lives of eminent persons; therefore, it is my wish and request that immediately after my death all letters and papers bequeathed to me by my father should be collected by my wife and placed by her under lock and seal in a box or boxes, unless this has been pre- viously done by me." (The box or boxes are to be kept in the muniment room at Knebworth, and transmitted to the testator's eldest son, or whosoever may succeed him as Earl of Lytton.) And I do furthermore earnestly request my said eldest son, or whoever else may succeed as Et',rl of Lytton, to bequeath the said papers on the same conditions, and with the same request to his or her successor in order that the heirs and representatives of the name rendered illustrious by my dear and honoured father may at no future time be without the means of refut- ing if necessary the calumnies originated by Rosina Lady Lytton. For which reason and with which object I do hereby exhort my wife and my executors not to destroy or permit to be destroyed the above- mentioned letters and papers, which contain the com- plete refutation of the said calumnies." Probate duty has been paid on £383,541 12s. Id., as the value of the personal estate of Mr. Daniel Britten, of Ke-nswick, Worcestershire, and of 7, Hanover-terrace, Regent's-park, one of the Deputy- Lieutenants for the City of London, who died in December last, aged 83 years.-Probate duty has been paid on £ 88,322 6s. 6d., as the value of the personal estate of Sir Thomas Wathen Waller, late of 16, Eaton-square, F.R.G.S., of the diplomatic ser- vice, who died on January 29, aged 87 years. The testator left most of his property to his son General George Henry Waller, who succeeded him in the baronetcy and died on February 9, aged 51 years.

"A SfMPLB FACT ABOUT" KEATING'S COUGH LOZENGES. Ask throughout the world, in any country that can be named, you will find them largely sold. There is absolutely no remedy that is so speedy in giving relief, so certain to cure, and yet the most delicate can tak« them. One Losengegivea ease. Sold in 13td tins. LORD BUTB, who has just been appointed Lord Lieutenant of Buteshire, is one of the most interesting figures in the peerage. He baa not only immense wealth and great position, but high character and considerable ability. He is a scholar, an antiquarian, and, when a boy, was something of a poet. The story of "Lothair" was, of course, founded on his reli- gious experiences, but the character of that remark- ahle spoony hero as little as possible resembles Lord Bute's singular independence and tenacity. One of his peculiarities is that he has always declined to at- tend Court, by way of marking his deep sense of the treatment to which his aunt, the ill-starred Lady Flora Hastings, was exposed in the earlier part of the present reign. KAVS COMPOUND, a demulcent anodyne expectorant, for Coughs and Colds, &i)d.. Is. lid. Of ail Chemists. PADBRBWSKI, the celebrated pianist, usually prac- tices from ten in the evening until three o'clock in the morning, and then sleeps until noon. Before playing he always holds his hands for some time in hot water. CsLt»Ro-uN8B«j> Cough Lozenges, Post Free, 7d Of CttemUto. I ON a recent evening, at the Theatre Scribe, in Turin, a white ball was given, when the whole house was decorated with winter scenery—ice, snow, glaciers, and all the picturesque accompaniments of I the season. JLAYS OMfremro, far (Jon?*) and Gald*. Asthma and Btonchitis are Immediate]; relieved by It. SCIHNTIWC riflemen say that people with blue eyes j always shoot the straighteet. 1 IT is supposed that the average depth of sand in the desert# Africa is from 8Qt\ to 40ft. |

A ROYAL MASKED BALL. A masked ball was given in Berlin at the house of the Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Meiningen the other night, and was attended by members of the Royal House and the whole Court. During the early hours, it being strictly forbidden to take off the masks, a wide field for intrigues and all sorts of jokes were given. Of course, special efforts were made to find out what disguise concealed the Emperor, who is said to have changed his costumes several times. One saw Maltese knights and Knights Templars, Venetian nobles, and German knights in magnificent costumes of the fourteenth century, horsemen of the time of the Thirty Years' War, French marquises, pilgrims, ladies in Watteau costumes, and costumes of the Werther, Directoire, and Lutzow Corps periods. Even Buffalo Bill, with his revolvers, was present. There were also Mashers who wore modern evening dress, but with a white coat, and shirt collar, and handkerchief of black. A polonaise opened the ball, and was fol- lowed by a round dance. After this a signal was given, and the dominoes and masks were taken off. Everybody recognised everybody else, and exclama- tions of astonishment and general hilarity followed. In the door appeared an officer in the uniform of a cuirassier of Ffederick the Great's time, white, dark blue, and silver, with the large white-plumed, three- cornered galloon hat on his white wig. All the members of the military suite were also in uniforms of the Great Frederick's time, historically true to the smallest detail. The Hereditary Princess of Meiningen crept out of a brown domino, and appeared as a noble lady of the time of the Fronde. She wore a skirt of yellow satin trimmed with dark green velvet leaves puffed high round the waist, a green velvet corsage trimmed with gold, and a high pointed hat, encircling which was a string of diamonds. The Hereditary Prince of Meiningen wore a real Persian costume of red gold-embroidered satin. Out of one of the carious and most humorous disguises stalked a knight handsome and fair, and of the Lohengrin type, with a winged helmet, white gold brocaded coat, and leather and steel armour. In front of his tunic was the coat of arms of his Royal House, and a black eagle adorned his silver shield. It was Prince Henry. At his side walked his wife in a Spanish costume, with a gold-coloured damask petticoat trimmed with black lace, and a blue velvet topskirt trimmed with silver. Princess Frederick Charles appeared as a Princess of the Italian Renais- sance period. Duke Ernst Gunther of Schleswig- Holstein was a bard in a turquoise blue velvet and yellow silk. Princess Margaret caused general sur- prise by her clever likeness of Queen Louisa. She had on a white dress with a short bodice, the low neck being richly trimmed her hair was powdered. At midnight the Hereditary Prince of Meiningen, as the host, announced that the 11th anniversary of the Imperial couple's wedding day had begun, and all the guests congratulated his Majesty, who was in the best spirits.—Glasgow Eveninq News.

CHERTSEY ELECTION. The result of the polling in the Chertsey Division of Surrey for the election of a member to represent the constituency in the Commons, in the room of the late Mr. Hankey (Conservative), was made known as follows: Mr. C. H. Combe (Conservative) 4589 Mr. L. J. Baker (Gladstonian) 2751 Majority 1838 The announcement of the result caused intense ex- citement in Chertsey, and great surprise was ex- pressed at the unoxpeeted largeness of the Conserva- tive majority. After the declaration of the poll Mr. Combe was drawn by his supporters around the town in his carriage. In 1886 Mr. Hankey was returned unopposed. In 1885 the figures were: Mr. F. A. Hankey (Conservative) 4560 Sir H. Le Marchant (Liberal) 2580 Conservative majority 1980 The division is a very widely-scattered one, and extends from the parish of Chertsey, on the border of Middlesex, down to Merrow, close to Guildford. There are between 10,000 and 11,000 voters on the register, and about 800 are out-voters.

FINEST SPRING MEDICINE.—Sir Astley Cooper's Sarsaparilla. Invaluable blood purifier. It cures Scrofula, Erysipelas, Eruptions of the Skin, Ulcer Sores, Piles, Costiveness, General Debility, Irritable Stomachs, Dyspepsia, &c., Liver Complaint, Coughs, Colds, Asthmatic and Bronchial Affections, so com- pletely and easily, that it astonishes and delights any person who uses it. Where Blotches, Pimples, Sores, and Acrid Eruptions develop themselves, this Sarsa- parilla is a perfect antidote. Insist upon Sir Astley Cooper's Extract of Sarsaparilla, and do not be induced to take any spurious imitation of this well-known Health-giving Extract. Price 2s. 61., 4s. 6d. 7s. 6d., and lls. each, of all Chemists, Stores, &c.; or, post free under seal, 6d. extra.— E. F. Langdale, Labor- atory, 72, Hatton-garden, London. Pamphlet free on receipt of post-card. Mention this paper. GERMAN judges are not promoted to the Bench from the bar. They start on their judicial career as assessors, receiving about E60 a year, and gradually work their way up to the higher ranks of the profes- sion, where they sometimes earn as much as £ 50J a year. The plum of the Prussian Judicature, in the way of salaries, is held by the President of the Court of Appeal, who gets JE700 a year. COAGULINE.—Cement for BroKsii Articles, ftd. la. Postage 2d. Sold everywhere, home and abroad. A LINE of telephone, the first that unites two Italian cities, has been opened at Milan, establishing telephonic communication between that city and Pavia. It is more than 30 miles long, and acts per- fectly. WHAT girl goes most upon the ice?—It's Kate, of o urse. AN American paper narrates the rather romantic outcome of one of the recent Sydney financial smashes. Two defaulters escaped from Sydney in a yacht. The journal above referred to now states that the pair have joined an organised band of opium smugglers, whose operations extend to all parts of the Pacific. The discovery of this band is said to be the result of the visit of the two men in question to Honolulu. The organisation is known to be headed by a notorious person, who, it is said, has associated with him men of means and standing in Australia, Canada, China, Hawaii, and the United States, who supply the requirements to carry on a contraband traffic in opium. A small fleet of sailing craft is engaged in the traffic, and are officered and manned by-the cleverest men in the business. The Hawaiian Islands and neighbouring atols offer secure and secluded harbours where these vessels unload their cargoes of the costly drug, and it is safely hidden from official discovery until opportunity arrives when it can be re-shipped, to be smuggled into the ports of Australia, Canaua, and the United States. THE success which has attended the Universities and Public Schools Missions which have been estab- lished during the last years in London and other large towns is remarkable. In addition to the Oxford House at Bethnal-green, a most valuable and thriving institution, Christ Church and Trinity have special missions of their own—the former at Bromley, the latter at Stratford. Cambridge is doing equally good work. Trinity has its mission in Camberwell; St. John's has built the Church of the Lady Margaret in Walworth Caius has established a mission and a university settlement in Battersea Clare has a mission in Rotherhithe, Corpus at New Cross, and Pembroke in Newington. Eton, Harrow, Charterhouse, Marl- borough, Merchant Taylors', and other schools sup- port or assist mission districts in London; while Haileybury maintains a lecturer at Agra, Bradfield supports the crew of a mission steamer in Central Africa, and Rugby assists the college at Masulipatam. lib is stated that there has been discovered in tha forests of India a strange plant, which possesses, to a very high degree, astonishing magnetic power. The band which breaks a leaf from it immediately re- ceivesa shock equal to that which is produced by the conductor of an indication coil. The energy of this singular influence varies with the hour of the day. All-powerful about two o'clock in the afternoon, it, is absolutely annulled during the night. During n rain the plant seems to succumb, and bends its head during a thunder shower. No shock is felt at that time in breaking the leaves, and the needle is unaffected beside it. One never by any chance sees a bird or insect alight on the electric plant. An instinct seems to warn them that they would there find sudden death. It is also important to remark that where it grows none of the magnetic metals are found—neither iron, nor cobalt, nor nickel-an un- deniable proof that the electrics force belongs ex, clusively to the plant.

SOCIETY GOSSIP. I [FBOM "TRUTH."] The Queen's entourage are very anxious to hasten her departure for the Riviera. Since the Court arrived at Windsor her Majesty has visited thg Wolsey or Albert Memorial Chapel nearly every afternoon, and has usually remained there for aboui a quarter of an hour, engaged in meditation and prayer over the coffin of the Duke of Clarence and the tomb of the Dukø of Albany. This practice is by no means beneficial to the Queen's health, and it causes her to be in wretched spirits, so it is hoped that she will be induced to start for Hyerea on the 17th. Her Majesty is to hold a Court in the white'draw- ing-room at Windsor Castle before her departure fo| the Continent, in order that she may receive on the Throne," the Convocation of Cambridge University address of condolence on the death of the Duke of Clarence. The Queer's suite during her absence on the Con- tinent is to consist of Lady Churchill, Sir Henry Ponsonby, Sir Fleetwood Edwards, and Miss Phipps. Dr. James Reid goes as medical attendant, and there are to be about 45 servants. The officials who are re- sponsible for all the arrangements would be delighted to dispense with the company of the Indian domestics, who are absolutely useless, and they give an enormous amount of trouble, and are execrated by everybody. These Oriental menials are as tiresome and exacting as the Irish servants who are so amusingly described by Lever in his capital story, The Dodd Family Abroad." The Governors of Sherborne School may think themselves exceedingly fortunate to have obtained so excellent a head-master as the Rev. F. B. Westoott, after theirnottoo handsome treatment of Canon Young, who leaves at Easter. Mr. Westcott, who is a son of the Bishop of Durham, had the best possible testimonials from the Primate, the Dean of Wells, and Dr. Perceval. He has been an assistant-master at Rugby for the last eight years, and his University career at Cambridge was a most distinguished one. He is a brilliant scholar, an excellent teacher, an effective preacher, and a thoroughly practical man. T3i}<ler his guidance, Sherborne ought, in a few years to to restored to its former high place among the public schools of the country. Sir John Commerell is a very distinguished officer, who is eminently deserving of every honour which can be bestowed upon him, but his appointment as Admiral of the Fleet, over the head of Admiral De Horsey, is a flagrant irregularity, for which it would be impossible to find a precedent. Towards the close of the reign of George IV. a rule was made that pro- motion to the highest rank in the navy was to be regulated solely by seniority, and several times it has been the fate of famous commanders (notably Lord Exmouth) to be set aside in favour of officers who had no special claims, but who were above them on the list. Sir John Commerell is a persona gratissima at Court, and he is indebted to the Queen herself for this unexpected piece of promo* tlon. I understand that her Majesty insisted upon his elevation, but she did not carry her point without a strong protest from the Admiralty. The regula- tions of the Service ought not to be ignored in deference to Royal caprices. The beautiful monument of Shelley which Mr. Onslow Ford, A.R.A., has executed in marble and bronze, and which was originally intended to have been erected over the poet's grave at Rome, has been offered by Lady Shelley to University College, Ox- ford, and it is hoped that the master and fellows will accept the gift.

[FBOM "TUB W ORLD:1 The Council Chamber, where the Queen held the Investiture at Osborne lately, is in the centre of the main block of the building, as distinguished from the Pavilion,, where the Queen's private apartments are. It is a very fine apartment, decorated in a light style in pale colours, with elaborate cornices richly gilt. The ceiling is divided into panels, which are r painted and heavily gilt. The room is lighted by three oblong windows, which look down on the Grand Terrace, and command magnificent views of Osborne Bay and the Solent. The principal work of art which adorns the wall is Landseer's Deer Pass, a huge canvas, which occupies one end of the room and hangs over the long divan. There are also early portraits of the Queen and Prince Albert (full- lengths by Winterhalter), and a bust of the German Emperor. One reason why the Duchess of Edinburgh dislikes staying for long at Devonport is the insufficiency of the accommodation, which does not at all square with the ideas of a princess who is accustomed to the mag- nificerice of Russian palaces. Admiralty House is, in fact, scarcely big enough to accommodate the duchess, her children, and suite in the fashion to which r she is accustomed. It has, moreover, none of the accessories of a palace. There is no courtyard and no garden. The door opens directly on the street, and the house joins another. When the duchess goes out driving, the carriage has to wait for her in the public street, and she has to go to it under the eyes of passers-by. Government House, on the other hand, the residence of Sir Richard Harrison, the Com- mander-in-Chief of tha district, is a very fine build- ing, nearly twice the size of Admiralty House, and has spacious grounds attached to it. L The Duke and Duchess of Connaught are to leave f Poitsmouth on Friday, the 18th, for Hy&res, and they will reside for about a fortnight at Costebelle» at the Hotel d'Albion. The Duke and Duchess in- tend afterwards to make a short tour in North Italy, and they will return home through Germany. The 't children of the Duke and Duchess will probably stay, during their absence in the Isle of Wight, at Os- borne Cottage, which the Queen has placed at their disposal. Times are said to be bad-they mostly are bad nowadays-.trade is depressed, and the ordinary f charities of the metropolis are all advertising the discouraging fact, from hospital to soup kitchen, that their incomes are gradually decreasing, and in the I face of all this the Freemasons seem but to ask to 1 have. One of their three great charities, that fof granting annuities to decayed masons and theif widows, has been going just 50 years, and to cele- I brate the event had a dinner last week of some 14} hundred covers." Lord Mount Edgcumbe, the masonic ruler of Cornwall, presided, and enjoyed' the unprecedented satisfaction, before he left the, chair, of announcing a collection of close upoiH £ 60,000! j The death of Miss Clongh, Principal of Newnhain College, which occurred on Saturday, will be lamented by all who are interested in the subject of the higher education of women in every part of the world, and by everybody who admires and appreciates a strong individual personality. She was the sister of Arthur c Clough, the poet, who died in 1801, and to whose* deathbed-side at Florence she hurried, arriving It1 time to close his eyes. From her early girlhood she had been an educational worker, and her lectures and articles stimulated, if they did not create, thfl* interest in girls' education which began some five-and-twenty years ago. Another outcome of he'i energies was the University Extension Lectures, which! were not widened so as to include men until, undo* ? Miss Clough's auspices, they were a pronounced success for women. When, in 1875, Newnham waS opened, she was prevailed upon to accept the Princi'j palship. Then it consisted of one small building! now of three large ones. The success of this supposed) hazardous experiment is mainly owing to M:IS' Clough's strong individual exertions, to her unceasi0^ vigilance, her earnest devotion, her remarkable tac | and powers of organisation, and her most unselfisb and altogether charming character. A sirikivg:, portrait of her, seated in a large armchair, in grof dress, painted by Mr. J. J. Shannon, was greawl admired in the New Gallery last summer. |

INFORMATION received by the Cheshire poliee sbo^l that the burglars who forcibly entered P°Jn!°J Towers, Cheshire, the temporary residence of Al Turner, a widow lady, on Thursday night of 1$0 week, got clear away, with jewels valued at clog upon £ 2000, the first estimate of EIOOO bel 0 greatly under the mark. The spoils include a ia"loo .0 cluster ring valued at £100, several diamond rlllbJ 14 gold, diamond, and topaz brooches, a very antique brooch of uncut jewels; gold watc | bracelets, bangles, &c. A RESRECTABLY-DRESSED man, giving' the Jj Roland George Lush, was charged, at Warri°8 Jj! on Saturday, on his own confession, with b9 gfl murdered William Parsons, at Andover, ?eara ago. He states that he struck atal effect, and that another man was tried f0' offence and acquitted. The prisoner was remR,> J j jmd the Chief Constable of communicated with to inquire as to the trtt& jir •tary. gl