Flintshire Observer Mining Journal and General Advertiser for the Counties of Flint Denbigh

gilt WILLIAM ARROL, of Forth-bridge fame, has built himself a substantial mansion, which is called Deafield," overlooking the Firth of Clyde, on the k Ayr- hard-headed knight travelled through the same town about 30 years ago, unsuccess- i? j10'employment as a blacksmith. /?! +H*r BXANDBR' assistant-superintendent of the Great Northern Railway, originally joined that company wheu » |a(j a telegraph messenger. At one «Wif widely known among the railway servants as .walking time-table," on aocount of his remarkable ability to indicate the whereabouts of any train on the line at any given time, without pre- vious reference to a printed time-sheet. AT a large dinner party given in London recently, the peaches placed on the table borethe monogram of their owner traced distinctly in the velvety bloom. In order to produce this unique effect, it appears letters were out from P?Per, *Qd pasted on the peaches while growing. When the fruit was ripe, on removing this, the letters were found picked out in most delicate green, the rest of the fruit being rosy and deep-bued. LORD EBURY has lived to see the demolition of Millbank Prison, which occupies the site of the house in which he was born in 1800. IN 1814, after a week's dense fog, a frost com- menced in January which lasted without intermission until the 20th of March. It was at this time that the last frost fair was held. Booths were erected from Blackfriars to London-bridge, various amuse- ments attracted vast crowds of people, and a sheep was roasted whole and sold in slices under the name of Iceland mutton." The removal of Old London- bridge, with its narrow arches, has increased the u scour" of the river, and it is unlikely that the Thames will ever be again so completely frozen as to render a frost fair possible. THE Prince of Wales always carries about with him a very fine gold smoker's companion for the pocket. There is room for three different sizes of oigars, half- a-dozen cigarettes, sufficient spaee for about half an ounce of tobacco, matches, and a midget briar- wood pipe.

THE CRISIS IN EGYPT. KOBIII REDCOATS JOB CAIRO. Her Majesty's Government have determined to make a slight increase in the number of British troops stationed in Egypt. This decision has been arrived at in view of recent occurrences which threatened to disturb public security in that country. THB REINFORCEMENTS. The Press Association learns that the important step of despatching further troops to Egypt was con- templated on Sunday, when, contrary to his practice, Mr. Gladstone received two or three members of his Cabinet more immediately concerned in the matter. Before Monday's meeting the military authorities had been placed en rapport with the state of affairs, and ordered to hold themselves in readiness to supply drafts for Egypt. The War Office telegraphed to Malta, Cyprus, and to points in the Red Sea where troops coming from India might be intercepted, and the authorities received answers that the number of troops desired could be landed at Port Said within 60 hours. Recently the British force in Egypt has been gradually reduced, until at the present time it does not comprise more than some 2000 soldiers on the active list; but, in addition, it is believed that the Egyptian troops officered by Englishmen would remain loyal to their commanders. It is unfortunate that the Sirdar of the Egyptian army, Colonel Kitchener, has been away in connec- tion with the recent Mahdist incursions. General Grenfell, the late commander of the Egyptian forces, is now at the War Office, and he has been able to give the Government the benefit of his know- ledge and advice. Mr. Alfred Milner, who has also returned from Egypt, has also been called into council. The latest information from Cairo is that up to the present the native mob has not gone further than to insult British residents, but it is necessary to put this down, so that the Khedive may not be deceived into believing that there is an outburst of native opinion against the foreigner. The utmost secrecy is observed as to the tenour of the latest instructions to Lord Cromer, but 10 days ago, it is understood, he was given power to threaten a change in the regime at the Abdin Palace. The additional force will not be large, but will be sufficient to demonstrate how quickly this country can send reinforcements. There was some idea of making a demonstration by the Mediterranean fleet, but it is believed that this will not be necessary. There are in Egypt three full regiments of foot—the 1st Dorset, 1st Devon, and 1st South Staffordshire— one squadron of the 1st Dragoon Guards, a battery of artillery, and a company of engineers. A WARNING TO THE KHEDIVE. In a later despatch the Press Association says We understand that Lord Cromer has been instructed to inform the Khedive that for the safety of the European residents in and visitors to Egypt, Great Britain finds it necessary te increase the force now in occupation. It is also understood that, in conse- quence of the insulting attitude of the Cairo crowd, towards ladies particularly, it will be necessary for the British troops to exercise control over the whole of the city.

RELEASE OF ANOTHER DYNAMITER. Thomas Callan, the dynamiter, has been released' from Portland Prison on condition that he should forthwith proceed to the United States, he being an American citizen. He was provided with civilian clothing by the prison authorities, and travelled direct from Weymouth to Southampton. He remained in that town until Sunday, when he took a cabin passage on board the Hamburg- American liner Fiirst Bismarck, in which he sailed in the afternoon for New York. Thomas Callan, alias Scott, belonged to the gang known in police circles as The Jubilee Dynamiters." He left Lowell, Massachusetts, in which town he resided, at the end of May, 1887, for New York, whence he tailed for Liverpool in the Inman steamer City of Chester, in company with a young man named Michael Harkins, of Philadelphia. Both men were arrested in November of the same year, and sub- sequently sentenced to 15 years' penal servitude each. It will be recollected that the first clue to their con- spiracy was found in connection with an inquiry into the mysterious circumstances in which a co-con- spirator named Cohen met his death in October, 1887. Gallon and Harkins gave evidence at the coroner's inquest on Cohen, and, thanks to the manner in which thev were questioned by Mr. Munro, then Chief Com- missioner of Police, further valuable facts were elicited which led to the arrest of both men by police acting under the direction of Inspector Littlechild. Several men who were connected with that conspiracy have since died. Harkins was released on August 12, 1891, on the ground of ill-health. As a matter of fact, he was suffering from an incurable disease—consump- tion-of which he died at his home in Philadelphia, in August, 1892, having survived his release a little less than a year.

DEATH OF LORD STRATHEDEN AND CAMPBELL. The death is announced of Lord Stratheden and Campbell on Sunday night after a few days' illness. William Frederick Campbell was the eldest son of the late Baroness Stratheden, by her husband, Sir John Campbell, who was himself created Baron Campbell. His lordship, who was born in October, 1824, was educated at Eton and Trinity College, Cambridge. He was a Liberal, and sat as M.P. for Cambridge from 1847 to 1852, and for Harwich from 1859 to 1860. His mother dying in the Itiet-uamed year, he became Baron Stratheden, and his father, who was at the time Lord Chancellor of England, dying in 1861, he inherited the barony of Campbell also. His lordship, who took a great interest in Indian and foreign affairs, was a Deputy- Lieutenant for Roxburghshire. He is succeeded by his brother, the Hon. Hallyburton Campbell, who was born in 1829, and was formerly in the East India Company's service.

SHOCKING COLLIERY ACCIDENT. A shocking accident has happened at the Dowlais Company's extensive new colliery near Pontypridd, which is in course of sinking. The sinkers, number- ing 27, descended the shaft at two o'clock on the afternoon of the 23rd inst., to the depth of 265 yards, and carried on operations until after six at night, when suddenly a huge boulder, embedded in the side of the shaft several yards above them, and weighing from seven to eight tons, became loosened from the place in which it was held, and fell upon the poor fellows working below. Six of the workmen were instantly killed, while a seventh received injuries, from which he died after being brought to the sur- face. Three others were badly injured. Several of the deceased were terribly mangled, and their remains had to be brought up iu sacks. Most of the men were married and have families. ,>

ENGLISH OFFICER KILLED IN BURMAH. has been some sharp fighting in the neigh- bourhood of Sima in Burmah, and another English police-officer has fallen. A concerted movement was made on the 17 th inst. by the garrison of the fort at gima and another column, for the purpose of opening the road between Sima and Nkran. Mr. Brooke-Mearw was wounded, and died on the 19th inst. Seven Sepoys were also billed. The movement was not successful, and the Kachins still block the road. Captain Atkinson, at the head of 285 rifles, and Captain Albap, commanding the Kaukkwe column, with 160 rifles, have started to relieve Sima,

FIRE AT WOBURN ABBEY. Â, fire broke out on Sunday evening atWoburn Abbey, the seat of the Duke of Bedford. It com- menced in one of the greenhouses, caused, it is sup- posed, by the ignition of an old beam used in the construction of one of the chimneys. The means of extinguishing fire at the abbey are ample and perfect, and the servants of the household were successful in subduing the flames, but not before they had ob- tained a firm hold upon the building. Had the fire extended the riding-school would have been in con- siderable peril His Grace was aroused, and did much by his presence, counsel, and help to avert the danger by which his property was threatened. The damage done to rare and costly plants and flowers is very considerable.

LORD PLAYFAIR ON EDUCATION. Presiding at a public dinner on the 23rd inst. in connection with the Yorkshire College, at, Leeds, Lord Play fair referred to the recent utterances of Professor Mahaffy and Lord Justice Bowen on the oharacter and tendencies of modern education, and expressed the opinion that the educationists of to-day have given up the belief that passive culture is suf- ficient for modem life, which requires that all its intellect should be translated into human activities. The resistance of the Universities to reforms in this direction, when they were first advocated 50 years ago, had brought about the establishment in the great provincial towns of colleges, which were doing most valuable work and adapting themselves rapidly and well to the genius of their several localities.

THE BROMSGROVE TRAGEDY. The inquest on Charlotte Pearcey, the old woman who was murdered at Lickey End, near Bromsgrove, on the 13th inst., was concluded on the 23rd inst. The axe with which the murder was committed was identified by a Birmingham joiner, from whom it was stolen the previous day. He attributed the theft to a man who had been loitering about, and who answered the description of the supposed murderer. A youth said he saw a man answering to the police description near Pearcey's house shortly before the murder. The coroner remarked that the motive of the crime appeared to be murder and robbery, although only a few coppers were taken, and the only possible verdict was wilful murder. The jury re- turned a verdict of Wilful murder against some person or persons unknown."

BI-METALLISM. Mr. Chaplin was present on the 23rd inst. at a dis- cussion at the Surveyors' Institution in London on two papers read a fortnight ago on the subject of bi-metallism, and spoke at considerable length in support of the proposition that the attempt made since 1873 to carry on the business of the world with no connecting link between gold and silver has brought about the existing depression in commerce, trade, and agriculture, and that it is desirable to revert to the system which prevailed before 1873.

IRON AND COAL. ,(." In South Staffordshire and East Worcesterahire orders are still coming in slowly, both in branded and lower qualities, and inquiries show little change. Export business is dull. Australian orders are slightly better, but this branch of trade is still below the average. Indian and South American shipments do not show any increase. In the home trade, best branded bars are in medium inquiry for engineering and general smith's work, whilst specifications for the cheaper kinds are of a moderate character. Shoe bars are in fairly satisfactory request. Tire bars, chiefly in branded qualities, show a rather better sale, and some good inquiries are reported. Cable bars remain in much the same demand as ef late. Inquiriesare fairly numerous for ordinary qualities, but a quiet sale continues in the better kinds. Nail and bolt rods are in small inquiry. The small hoop trade is in a rather more satisfactory condition. Orders are slightly better, and the mills are more fully occupied. Orders for tube strips are of a medium class. Steel sorts have comparatively the largest sale. Orders are improving for cold rolled descrip- tions, and inquiries are mere numerous. Good Ord are. bare been received for plating bars, mainly in steel sorts. Fair inquiries are to hand for angle and tee bars, for bridge, roofing, and gasholder work. Makers of tin-plates and tinned-sheets are moderately engaged. The tone of the pig-iron trade is steady, and users and consumers are taking fair deliveries in execution of contracts recently entered into. Hot air, all mine, iron iB priced at from £ 3 to £ 3 2s. 6d. per ton; part mine and common iron being quoted at proportionate figures. The coal trade is well main- tained in sales of fuel for works requirements. The household trade is large. Prices are steady.

RAILWAY. RATES AND CHARGES, The Lancashire and Cheshire Conference on Rail- way and Canal Rates having consulted Mr. Thomas Waghorn on the operation of the Railway and Canal traffic Act of 1888 in connection with the recently- revised rates of the railway companies, the learned counsel points out that, by sub-section 6 of that Act, when a railway company intend to make any increase in the rates published in the "Station Rate Books," they shall give at least 14 days notice of such intended increase, stating in such notice the date on which the altered rate is to take effect, and that no such increase in the published rates shall have effect unless and until t^ie 14 days' notice required under this section has been given" The Chairman of the Conference, Sir J. J. Harwood, has accordingly addressed a letter to tfce members setting iorth Mr. Waghorn's opinion and unhesitatingly advises them.—" 1. To refuse to pay charges based upon rates higher than those in operation on the 31st of December last, unless and until due statutory notice of the increase has been given. 2. To tender payment for carriage of goods at the rates in operation in December last. 3. In cases where the Railway Companies continue to demand payment at increased rates, to write to the Secretary of the Railway Company, requiring to have the rates in question divided into conveyance and terminal charges, and to have the details of the terminal charges specified. 4. To obtain a precise copy of the entry of the rate as it appears in the Station Rate Book, having special regard to the distance as therein stated.

KING MILAN AND QUEEN NATALIE. Belgrade was en jete on Saturday. The town was gay with flags, bands of music paraded the streets, and there was a demonstration of popular enthu- siasm before the Royal Konak. In the evening the capital was illuminated, and a torchlight pro- cession marched to the Palace, where the young king was serenaded. Similar demonstrations took place on Sunday, fiays a Vienna correspondent, in the provincial towns and villages throughout the country. There can be no doubt that the reconciliation between King Milan and Queen Natalie and the ces- sation of the public scandals created by their quarrels are highly welcome to the Servians, who have a sort of impersonal reverence for the first King of Servia, while the ex-Queen has not a few personal admirers and supporters. The lalter, however, are, it is feared, bent on using the Royal reconciliation for party pur- poses. This promises mischief in the near future. The ex-Queen has already been recommended for the vacant post of Third Regent, and the ex-King is being held up to ridicule. He is represented to have approached the ex-Queen at Biarritz with trembling knees, and to have begged forgiveness of her in stammering accents. These are, of course, inventions, but before the Royal couple re-enter Belgrade, after the repeal of the Expulsion Act, many more such stories to damage ex- King Milan and benefit Queen Natalie are pretty sure to be invented by the Queen's party, who mean, if possible, to bring her to the helm of the State, and to reduce the Regents and her son, King Alexander, who is still a minor, to mere figureheads. This danger has been discounted by the Regent, M. Ristitch, who I now learn positively is really the author of the Biarritz surprise. The secret was well kept to the last between him, King Alexander, and ex-King Milan. Even the touching telegram of the young King to his father was drafted by M. Ristitch. The insinuation that, in his latest departure, King Milan has been actuated by pecuniary motives is, a Standard correspondent believes, quite unfounded. Some time ago the correspondent learned that the ex-King had a large sum of money deposited in different banks—so much that he could, if he so chose, live upon the interest of it. There is no ground for the statement that the Czar prompted the Royal reconciliation.

A LABOUR DEPARTMENT. OUTLINE OF THB HBJOI. We are able to announce (says the Daily Chronicle) that the Cabinet has approved the formation of an extensive Department of Labour in connection with the Board of Trade. Department," not bureau," will be the official, and no doubt also the popular, designation. English terms, it is thought, are good enough to describe English branches of administra- tion. Anyhow, "department" would be the more correct, since the notion is the elaboration of the pre- sent trifling wing of the Board of Trade, not the set- ting up of an independent institution. As President of the Board of Trade, Mr. Mun- della is, of course, practically responsible for the scheme. He accepted the portfolio of the Board of Trade with his mind made up as to the establish- ment of a Labour Department which should be something more than a name; At the same time it It is understood that in the undertaking Mr. Mundella has had the warm support of the Prime Minister and the other members of the Cabinet. Not only has an appointment to meet the expenses of the department been made, but premises have been fixed upon for offices, What the apportion- ment is, cannot as yet be stated, but there is some reason to suppose that it will be found to be fairly substantial. Indeed, it will follow that if the depart- ment is to be on anything like a broad and thorough basis, the annual expense will run to a fairly large amount. One thing at all events may be taken for granted—there will be no more absolute starving of the Labour Department. Perhaps it would not be correct to say that more than the general lines of the scheme have been settled upon, and yet the whole scheme is in an appreciably advanced state. Both Mr. Mundella and Mr. Thomas Burt are engaged on it from day to day, and it may be assumed that the advice of men like Dr. Giffen and Mr. John Burnett, not to-, speak of im- portant outsiders, has been requisitioned. There are, however, a thousand and one details which require attention, and there may be a variety of alterations and modifications before the scheme takes its definite form. Still, it may be stated that it is not contemplated to make the Labour Department an executive one. Factory inspection is, of course, to remain under the. control of the Home Secretary, only the relations between the Home Secretary and the Labour Department in this respect will be very close. Primarily, and mainly, the functions of the Labour Department will be to collect, sift, and distribute the amplest information on the Labour market. Every effort will be made to do this in a manner commensurate with the importance of the subject. iCorrespondents are to be planted at the various trade and commercial centres of the country, and the department will have representatives in foreign countries—oftenest, no doubt, the English Consuls. • Before the Labour Commission, white lead making has been described by workers at it as an ini- quitously unhealthy occopation, while the masters have called it not especially unhealthy. Such a point as this the Labour Department would settle by direct inquiry, by the persofaal investigation of qualified men. The. department will almost to a certainty be furnished with some machinery of conciliation in the case of disputea and strikes. What the machinery will be, like other details in the undertaking, it remains to be seen. It may take any form short of compulsory interference. And there is no proposal to build into the depart- ment just yet any plank which would involve specific legislation. This Labour Department," a member of the Chronicle staff was told, is intended to be more complete and better than any Labour Department in existence better for its purpose than America's one, far better than the French one. For us to have a com- plete and worthy Labour Department, it is not neces- sary that we should have one separated from the Board of Trade or a Ministry of Labour. A properly- manned branch of the Board of Trade ought to be the most effective Labour Department." These words did not fall from the man in the street, and they were uttered by way of defence of the scheme here roughly outlined.

PLANETARY OCCULTATIONS. BY A FBLLOW OF THB ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY. A.n interesting and extremely rare astronomical phenomenon, the occultation of a fixed star bright enough to be visible to the naked eye, by the planet Mars, occurred the other evening. The star in question is No. 1292 in Lablande's catalogue of 47,390 stars for the year 1800, and is of the sixth magnitude, so that it is distinctly visible to the naked eye on a moonless and clear night. 'Occultations of naked eye stars by planets are very infrequent occurrences, for as the five large planets beyond the earth's orbit never depart more than 2|deg. from either side of the ecliptic, and as there is on an average only one naked eye star to every nve square degrees of the whole surface of the celestial sphere, it will be seen that the chances of any of them pass- ing over a conspicuous star are very remote. The last occultation of a naked eye star by a planet oc- curred on the morning of May 23, 1892, when the sixth magnitude star, 73 Piscium, disappeared behind the disc of Jupiter. The phenomenon was observed at Greenwich with the guiding telescope of 15in. aperture attached to the photographic equa- torials, but under very unfavourable circumstances, as the planet was at a very low altitude, and the occultation took place in bright twilight. In the case of the planet Mars, stars usually disappear instantaneously, without any hanging on the litnb or diminution of brightness. This can be easily under- stood, aB even when Mars is nearest to us, his atmosphere, if in proportion to ours, would not extend more than one quarter of a second of arc beyond the planet's limb, a quantity smaller than the finest fibre of a spider's web used for mierometrical measures. Different phenomena have occasionally been perceived in the case of the planet Jupiter. His satellites have sometimes been apparently seen through the limb when in process of undergoing occultation, while the disappearances of stars have occasionally presented phenomena suggesting, according to Ranyard, that Jupiter has not a definite, hard outline, but that the limb is par- tially transparent, with here and there regions of greater opacity." In the case rof the dis- appearance of the star 64 Aquarei at Melbourne on September 14, 1872, Mr. Turner, who observed with the great Melbourne reflector. writes that" for about 10 seconds after disappearance the star could be seen through Jupiter's atmosphere as a speck of light seen through ground glass white at the occultation of a small star not visible to the naked eye, observed at Cambridge, U.S.A., on April 14, 1883, the star for about two minutes before final disappearance, alter- nately re-appeared and disappeared without obvious cause." Gassendi saw the bright star Eta Gett inorum suffer occultation by Jupiter on December 19, 1633, and Pound observed a disappearance of Castor on January 22, 1717, but unfortunately no instance of any obscuration of a really bright star by this or any other planet has occurred during the last century and a-half. Another kind of planetary occultation is that is which the planet is hidden behind the lunar disc. These occurrences are comparatively frequent, though, of course, owing to the comparative proximity of our satellite, parallax enters very largely into the question of visibility at any particular portion ef the earth's surface, e.g., a planet might be occulted at Greenwich, and yet pass quite clear of the lunar disc at Edinburgh, and vice versa. Thus there were no less than 25 occultations of planets as viewed from some portion of the earth in 1892 (all except Neptune were occulted); and yet the only two occultations visible in England were two of Uranus that planet alone actually disappearing on no less than 11 different occasions behind the- lunar limb. This year there will be 14 occultations of five planets but only two will be visible in England, and those both of the planet Jupiter. Photography is destined to play a great part in the future in this as in other departments of the science. A photograph was taken on July 11, 1892, at the Kenwood Physical Observatory, Chicago, of Mars emerging behind the lunar limb. The telescope was fitted with an objective, corrected for the actinic rays, of 12 inches aperture and 18 feet focus, and though the image of Mars is only 1-32nd of an inch in diameter, the polar caps ana other markings on the planet are clearly shown. The first recorded instance of the occultation of a plant by the moon is one of Mars, mentioned by Aristotle, which occurred, according to Kepler, on April 4, 357 B.C. Another observed in China occurred, according to Dr. Hind's calculations, on February 14, 69 B.C. The last occultation of Mars observed in these islands was noticed by the late Professor Grant at the Glasgow Observatory in t June 3,1878.

EPITOME OF NEWS. o IN London society one of the most striking figures is the Countess of Caithness, the widow of the 14th Earl of Caithness, who is also Duchess of Pomar in her own right. Her ladyship holds religious opinions which are as novel as they are interesting. A believer in the theory of re-incarnation, she is under the firm belief that the soul of her unfortunate ancestress, Mary Queen of Scots, lives again in her body. THE nonagenarian baronet, Sir Harry Verney, was recently to be seen disporting himself on the ice in the splendid park adjoining his residence, Claydon House. Considering his age, which is over 90, he is very hale and hearty. At the servants' ball, held in Claydon House on Friday, 6th inst., the first dance was Sir Roger de Coverly," in which the baronet took part. The dance lasted nearly three-quarters of an hour, and the baronet, apparently unfatigued, went through all the figures. A YEAR or two ago the Hon. Frances Mary, eldest daughter of Viscount Monck, made a very suitable, if curious, marriage, for the charming young lady, who is deaf and dumb, was wedded to the Rev. Richard Aslatt-Pearce, M.A, who is similarly afflicted. The reverend gentleman is missionary to the deaf and dumb in Hants and the Isle of Wight. Six miles of newspaper cuttings on the death of Jay Gould were collected for his son. A MONKEY found its way into the gallery of a church at Leuchars, Fifeshire, and created such con- sternation by jumping from pew to pew that the service had to be stopped and measures taken to have the intruder ejected. DURING the last six years the Duke of Portland has won E 147,972 in stakes on the turf, and the Dowager Duchess of Montrose £ 79,465. Lord Calthorpe comes third with E63,933, and the Duke of West- minster comes fourth with £ 61,754. THE past year has been a bad one for great steam- ships. The Eider ran on the rocks, and was towed off a mere hulk, while her passengers escaped almost by a miracle the Roumania came, with almost every soul on board, to utter grief; the awful end of the Bokhara threw a gloom over the far East; the un- lucky Japanese warship Chishima, whose boiler burst at her trials and injured a number of her engineers, was sunk with 70 souls just as she got into inland waters of her own land; the Ravenna, which sunk her, had a narrow escape; and it is still doubtful whether the great Howe will be got off the rocks of Ferrol. Then, to close the year, the Nubian went down bodilv. This time the passengers were comfort- ably in their hotel before she sank. MR. CHARLES COBORN, of Two Lovely Black Eyes" and "The Man Who Broke the Bank at Monte Carlo fame, is perhaps the only music-hall singer who has had a university training. AN engine-driver on the Great Western Railway has a cat that loves railway travelling. For several years the cat has accompanied the engine-driver on his regular journeys, usually sitting on the tender. Sometimes, in fine weather, it strolls out to the front of the engine, and lies there for hours at a stretch. Sometimes it climbs on to the top of the engine, and sits there, undisturbed by: the shriek of the whistle. The cat used to belong to the engine- driver's wife, who is dead; and since then the driver has made a pet of it. IN order to restore one who is apparently drowned, first place the patient face downward for a moment with one of his wrists under his forehead. Draw out the tongue and keep it forward by tying a strip of kandkerchiof over the tongue and under the chin. Secondly, place him on his back with head and shoulders raised with a folded coat; remove all tight clothing from about the neck and chest. Grasp the patient's arms just above the elbows and draw the arms gently and steadily upward, until they meet above the head; keep the arms in that position for two seconds. Then turn the arms down and press them for two seconds against the sides of the chest. Repeat these measures alternately, deliberately, and perseveringly 15 times in a minute. Do not tire; remember there have been cases of recovery after suspended animation for five hours, and you will feel it a glorious reward when you see the dead returned to life through your exertions. As soon as a spontaneous effort to breathe is perceived, proceed to induce circulation and warmth. Miss RHODA BROUGHTON has very nearly come in for a share of an immense fortune. Mr. Henry Thomas Coghlan having died intestate, his wealth goes to his next-of-kin, and amongst these lucky per- sons, who are only four in number, are two cousins of Miss Broughton-namely, Sir Henry Broughton and his brother. The value of the estate to be divided has been sworn at no less a figure than E678,839, the largest left for many years by a man dying intestate. Sir Henry Broughton and his fellows in good fortune are cousins of the deceased; Miss Rhoda Broughton is a first cousin once removed; and the law does not recognise the lesser degree of rela- tionship until the higher is exhausted. The next- of-kin at present entitled to the estate claim through Mr. Coghlan's mother, who was a Broughton. The deceased derived a substantial portion of his fortune from his father, who left him £ 100,000, which he increased chiefly by means of his shrewdness as an investor. After the death of his wife Mr. Coghlan lived practically the life of a recluse, and scarcely ever saw in his whole lifetime the persons whom his intestacy has so handsomely benefited. This Sir Henry Broughton is grandson of the Sir Henry Broughton, of Broughton Hall. in Staffordshire, who was also grandfather of the novelist. Many of Miss Broughton's childish days were spent in this old place, where her father, who was a clergyman, held the family living in Cheshire. Her father, by the way, was a student, and himself grounded the future novelist in Shakespeare and the English classics, and imparted also the rudiments of Latin and Greek. She was brought up strictly, and the hours of study were long. But this parent was not an author, excepting his sermons, and it is somewhat of a surprise to learn that Miss Broughton's great gifts, her originality of style, her wonderful description of scenery, her subtle humour are in no sense hereditary. I do not believe," she says her- self, that any of my relations wrote a line in their lives." THE General Post-office in St. Martin's-le-Grand, London, erected some 20 years ago, is already too small for the work that has to be done, and close by a new pile is rising, which, some time in 1894, will relieve some of the pressure. Eight floors in height, it will cover an area of 5661 square yards. The cost of the site, right in the heart of London, was the enormous sum of £ 326,450; the estimated cost of its erection is £ 170,000. The building is designed to accommodate the Postmaster-General, the Secretary, the solicitor, the chief medical officers, and the Receiver and Accountant-General's offices, so that it will comprise practically the administrative staff of the department. MANDALAT is crowded with monasteries. There are in Upper Burmah 11.894 professed monks and about 14,000 novices. FROM the returns compiled by Lloyd's Register of Shipping," it appears that, excluding war ships, there were 306 vessels, of 570,741 tons gross, under con- struction in the United Kingdom at the close of the quarter ended 31st December, 1892. AN omnibus has been started in Glasgow furnished with pneumatic tyres, which are protected from injury by sharp stones or glass by canvas and wire- wove netting. It has proved a success. There is no jolting and jarring, and the noise is reduced to a minimum. THE Earl of Meath has offered to give EW to be spent in supplying London Board Schools with Union Jacks, on condition that lectures of a patriotic character shall be given regularly, and that it be made one of the honours of the school to carry round the flag while the other boys sing "Rule Britannia ANOTHER English diplomatist has chosen for his bride an American heiress. The gentleman is Mr. Arthur Herbert, of the English Legation at Washing- ton, and the lady is Miss Helen Louise Gammell, who is described as heiress to the Gammell millions, which have steadily increased for nearly a century and a half, until at the present time it is difficult to estimate with accuracy the amount really possessed by the family." Mr. Herbert and his bride will return to Washington after their honeymoon for a few weeks, and then sail for England on a visit to the groom's family. THERE are now upwards of 3000 lighthouses m different parts of the world, the average cost of main- taining which is about £ 500 each per annum, floating lights costing twice this expenditure. SIR GBORGB REID, P.R.SA-, has obtained^ the Queen's permission to exhibit in the Scottish Academy his picture, painted for her Majes^. he christen- ing of the son of Prince Princess Henry of Battenberg at Balmoral in 1891. The work contains 28 portraits, nine being those of members of the Royal Family. JUDOll STIRLING was never a Q.C., having been promoted to the Bench straight from the junior bar, like Lord Justice Bowen, Lord Justice Smith, and Mr. Justice Wright. The explanation is the same in the case of all these judges. They were Attorney- General's devils. To be Attorney General's devil" is to be on the road that leads to a judgeship. Only two men who have occupied this coveted post have not reached the Bench and one is Mr Hem- ming, Q.C., who is an Official Referee, and the other is the Solicitor-General. IN France the certificatd etudes has proved the most potent instrument in maintaining a high stan- dard of school attendance, for it applies not merely to the picked scholars who prolong their education in the higher grade schools, but to the rank and file of French children. The system of these certificate d etudes is fully explained in Dr. Fitch's report, pages 280-281, to the Committee of Council 1890-91; and he strongly advocates the introduction of a similar examination in England and Wales. Already the Scotch people have it. THE marriage market among the higher classes has not languished during the year. Six earls have added six countesses to the ranks of the peeresses. One viscount, four barons, two baronets, and one duke have taken to themselves wives. A large number of honourables" have married well, several among them having taken American brides. SOME idea of the cost caused to the ratepayers of the metropolis by the epidemic of scarlet fever which has been prevalent for a good many months now may be gathered from a letter which has been sent to the local authorities by the Metropolitan Asylums Board. It was read at the meeting of the Hampstead Guardians this week, and stated that, in consequence of the fever, the expenditure of the Board for the past six months had exceeded the estimate by 4103,478. The share of this sum which Hampstead was called upon to make good came to E2162. IT IS understood that Sir F. T. Mappin, M.P., is in treaty for the purchase of the Rampton Manor estate, the property of Colonel Eyre, ex-M.P. for the Gainsborough division, which has again come into the market owing to the refusal of the Local Government Board to sanction its requisition by the Manchester Corporation for a sewage farm. Cottonopolis would have paid E60,000 for the property. THE translation of the New Testament which the British and Foreign Bible Society is now making into the language of Uganda is approaching completion, but it is not intended to issue large editions of it at first, so as to allow of further revision and correction. Meantime the Society is sending out those portions which are ready, and which include the four Gospels, the Acts, several of St. Paul's Epistles, and the Revelation; and from statistics made from May, 1891, up to last September, it appears that no fewer than 24,838 copies of the various books have already been forwarded to the country, in spite of the great difficulties of inland carriage. THE Prince of Wales's revival of interest in yacht- ing is probably due in part to the German Emperor, and in part to the Duke of York, both of whom are exceedingly fond of the pastime. It was in 1889 that the Vanduara, the Clyde-built wonder, beat the Prince of Wales's Formosa 17 times running, after which his Royal Highness sold his 100-ton cutter. The Prince sailed in some of the earlier matches with the Vanduara, and had his two sons with him, who delighted in the incidents of the racing. The Duke of York, it is said, will be his father's repre- sentative in the new yacht. CO-OPBRATIOH UP TO DATE" is, remarks the Daily Chronicle, the subject of the G.O.M.'s next volume, and then he gets to Dibdin's Remini- scences of a Literary Life'' and to a German volume on the transformation of the English Parliament. What special attraction has the county of Essex for the Priuoe Minister? He picks out a couple of books dealing with it, sandwiching between them a faithful relation of a wonderful and extraordinary abstinence" of an old-time fast- ing woman, Ann Moore, of Tutbury, Staffordshire. Oxford and Oxford Life and Russell I.IOwell's Democracy" naturally appeal to Mr. Gladstone, but why Dictionary of Islam ?" Eastern, too, is a History of the Parsee," including their manners, customs, religion, and present position, but "Mor- monism; its Leaders and Designs," is Western. No doubt Mr. Gladstone will read with a special interest just at present a Discourse "on the Union of England with Scotland. Essays Philological, Philosophical, Ethnological, and Archaeological," by Arehdeacon Williams, is another selection of the Premier's, and he closes the list with a number of works on London, which we hope is significant of his intention not to forget her next Session. THE labour of clearing the crypt of the parish church of St. Mary Woolnoth, Lombard-street, of its immense mass of coffins and mouldering remains is now complete. Among other coffins identified are those of the celebrated John Newton, the friend of Cowper, who at the time of his death in 1807 was rector of this parish. With this was also found the coffin of Mrs. Newton. Both coffins, which are de- scribed as in a good state of preservation," have been removed to an adjacent shed, preparatory to their re-interment at Olney, Bucks. It will be remem- bered that Newton was once curate of Olney, where he planned with Cowper the collection of hymns which bears their joint names. A writer in the Record who has visited the crypt of St. Mary Wool- noth stated that the coffins were found one on the other, in the middle of a stack of coffins" placed immediately underneath that part of the church where the communion table stands. Newton pub- lished a very curious sketch of his life, from which it appears that he was originally a mariner and a com- mander of a vessel engaged in the slave trade. A curious circumstance, as the writer in the Record observes, is that even after his conversion, and while he was "very much in earnest about spiritual things," Newton exhibited no signs whatever of compunction on the subject of the slave trade so true is it that it was the immortal labours of Clark- son, Wilberforce, and others that first awakened the national conscience to the iniquities of the traffic ia human beings. MR. LANB, Q.C., has already experienced the fact that in politics one makes curious acquaintances. He sat as a metropolitan police magistrate for the first time on Saturday, in the North London Court, in the company of Mr. Haden Corser. One of the persons brought before the tribunal was named Rason, charged with being considerably under the influence of liquor, and insisting upon making speeches to a crowd in the Seven Sisters-road. The accused, as he stepped into the dock, pulled his fore- lock and expressed contrition for his offence. Where do you come from ?" asked Mr. Corser. "From Bury St. Edmunds," replied the street orator, and I think I know the genelman on your right as having been down there at election times." THE yield of gold in the colony of Victoria during last year was 663,0000z.-41,000 oz. in excess of that ef the previous year, and the largest that has been obtained since 1886. SIR WILLIAM HART-DYKE is about to provide five acres of land at Swanley for cottagers' allotments. THERE is to be yet another Royal Commission. The latest is to investigate the Welsh Land Question. The Royal Commission on the Housing of the Wor Classes made its report about 10 years ago; some 0 its most important recommendations have remained neglected ever since. The Royal Commission OZ, Elementary Education reported five or six ye»r» • its recommendations lie altogether untouched-. Royal Commissions on Vaccination, • and Labour still continue their almost m PRINCESS MARIE is particularly novel and handsome blue linen qu^' e- -t- 111 white and ormmeMed -ith tar mrti»1S Md » coronet, which has been worked f ye Royal School of Art Needlework. THE Lord Acton, one of&- ^adstone sLords-in- Waiting, who has just upon^ hxs 60th year, is interesting to ns Catholic who »t for an English constituency sinoe the Reformation. A WIG AN lady ^years ago made up her mind that when she died her remains should be buried in a blue coffin- She gave the order at the time, and she having expired, the undertaker carried out the order. BER. JUSTICE STIRLING, according to the current Law Gazette, began his career as a law reporter, reporting cases for the Incorporated Council of Law Reporting. His features are those of a man who intended to make a gallant fight for success. The square jaw, the firmly set lips, and the well-buil forehead, proclaim the determination which Mr. Justice Sterling has always been known to They also suggest his nationality. His *°rd» 1P. one of the many Scotchmen who, finding the best thing in Scotland the road to England, have travelled south and acquired distinction at the Enghsh bw. He was born 56 years ago at Aberdeen, where his father ran the gedly race of a clergyman.

ASSURANCE MANAGER ARRESTED, The Cardiff police, on the 23rd inst., arrested Wm. M'Keohnie, local manager of the Scottish Legal Assurance Society, on a warrant which charged him with conspiring to defraud the society. Towards the end of last week Mr. David Fortune, the general secre- tary of the society, accompanied by one of the direc- tors, came to Cardiff to inquire into certain irregu- larities which had come to light in connection with the society's business. It is alleged that individuals have speculated on the lives of certain persons whom they have insured in the Scottish Legal Assurance Society, and that death certificates have been tampered with so that the names upon them have been made to cor- respond with those of the lives insured, and thus money has been fraudulently obtained from the society. Mr. M'Kechnie declared to the officials that he had always acted in good fith, and he was as much duped as anyone. Warrants, however, were taken out against him, and also against a butcher residing in the town. It is reported that other people are implicated, including one or two holding official positions in Cardiff.