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

A xovEt, system of fire alarm signals by rocket bombs has been established in the suburban districti of San Francisco, to enable the remote engine houses to quickly summon assistance from the city forces it; cases of great emergency. A bomb, something like a rocket, ie thrown 300ft. straight upward from a mortar, where it bursts, making a brilliant white light and a very loud explosion. THE expenses incurred by the City of London Corporation in connection with the administration of justice at the Central Criminal Court amount to about £10,000 a year.

NEWS NOTES. THE news from Corea cqptinues to be con- flicting and difficult to understand. It would appear, however, that there has been some hard fighting, and, perhaps, after a little while we may hear the rights of it. Both the Japs and the Chinese seem to be exerting themselves to the end of distorting the news to exaggerate their gains or cover their losses. We await with interest communications from the special emissaries of enterprising British newspapers, who may be trusted to defeat even Oriental wiles. THERE have been some pleasant, as well as valuable, experiences in the cavalry camp at Churn. After a brisk battle between the officially-sorted forces near Chilton on Satur- day, the men and horses returned to camp. Fires were lighted, and men of both brigades bivouacked round their cheery blaze. Beer was brought in from the canteens for the consumption of the tired troopers, and sing- songs—the entertainment being participated in by the officers-were the order of the evening. FoR military reasons, and temporarily only, the bulk of our soldiers are being withdrawn from Cyprus. The step is, however, entirely without political significance, and those people who profess to be afraid that there is any danger of Britain abandoning the island in any way may re-assure themselves by reading a note to the effect interpreted here which has been ^e Colonial Office. IT is stated that a startling discovery has been made at the Royal Smokeless Powder works at Waltham Abbey. Just as the ingre- dients used for the making of cordite were being passe d through the mixing troughs and under the knives in one of the incorporating houses a stone about an inch square was dis- covered in the highly inflammable composition the other day. Had not this fragment oi hard basaltic rock-for such it was—been dis- covered before the blending with gun- cotton and nitroglycerine, Z, tha friction of the mixing must have occasioned a most terrific explosion, fearfully fatal, in all probability, in its results, as some two hundred men are employed in the immediate vicinity oi the incorporating department. It was on-strict inquiry, conclusively proven, that the stone had got into the mixture through the carelessness of some boys employed in minor duties on the night shift. Had it-as it would have done in about a minute but for its discovery-gone under the blending knives, we should now cer- tainly be deploring an appalling catastrophe. Those boys will, no doubt, be seen to. THAT was really a very startling accident at the Elephant and Castle Station on the London, Chatham, and Dover Railway some six weeks ago, whereby a large piece of coal was dislodged Z, 11 from the bunker of an engine going through at a good rate. Four persons standing on the platform at the time were injured as a conse- quence and the Board of Trade inquiry leads to the conclusion that the chunk of coal must have been insecurely placed. The recommen- dation—a very sensible one-is that for the future the bunkers of all tank engines should be secured with railings placed closely enough together to obviate any such mishap. There are times when long journey trains rush through stations-after a preliminary scream—at express speed; and at these stations are sometimes situated in a sharp curve, the oscillation and lurching is frequently great at the particular point. In the event of the platform at such places being crowded with excursionists waiting the passing of the fast train for the following of the vehicles by which they are to travel the danger of blocks of coal being shot out amongst them from the bunker- heap of the flying train, under present condi- tions, is very real. WE all know the adage that the best way to preserve peace is to be prepared for war. The Emperor of Austria believes in peace, but approves the manufacture of guns and ammu- nition. Several delegations were received ia formal audience by the Emperor at the Castle of Buda, the other day. Replying to the addresses of their presidents, his Majesty announced his confidence in the maintenance and consolidation of peace. Nevertheless, the necessity remains, and my Government con- siders it its duty, like the other Powers, to allow no interruption to take place in the further development of the defensive strength of the monarchy." THE Manchester, Sheffield, and Lincolnshire Railway extension to London is now, we gather, fairly under way, as the principal tenders have been accepted. The length is 112 miles. Start- ing from Annesleyin Derbyshire, the line passes through Nottingham, Loughborough, Lutter- worth, Rugby, and Daventry to Quamton Road, 21 miles north of London. Then itjoins the Ayles. bury and Buckingham extension of the Metropol* tan, and terminates in a large passl ngar station in Edgware-road and Marylebone-rcaa. The esti- mated cost for the first four and a-half miles from the terminus is £ 542,000 a mile. It will include four tunnels. The other portion of the line will be far less expensive. The total esti- mated cost is £ 6,500,000. THE parish clerk of a village which is within a short distance of London has been called upon to resign the position which he has held for many years past owing to an unfortunate blunder which he made in connection with the publication of some banns of marriage. The names of the contracting parties were asked in the church in the usual way, but when the bride and bridegroom met at the altar of a distant church it was found that the names had been transposed. The officiating clergy refused to proceed further with the ceremony, and it became necessary for tha bridegroom to secure a special license before he could legally claim the hand of his fair partner. A CURIOUS request has been made by a con- vict in South Australia who was sentenced to death the other day by Chief Justice Way. The man was found guilty of murdering his mate while on tramp up country, and he is anxious that he should be shot, instead of being executed on th e gallows in the usual way. He presses his wish very strongly on the Chief Justice, who may, no doubt, give the man the choice of his mode of death if it is in his power to do so. Had he, like the jester of the King of Scando- roon, asked to be hanged on a gooseberry bush the case might have been otherwise. The cun- ning royal buffoon received a respite until the bush should have grown strong enough to bear him, it may be remembered.

POLITICS IN A BEEHIVE. A Vienna correspondent of the Daily Telegraph writes: A public accustomed to read of wars, rumours of wars, dynamite explosions, and railway collisions at its breakfast every morning, cannot be reasonably expected to grow excited over an item of intelligmee that deals with such a tame subject as the busy bee. The only exciting and irritating point about a bee is its sting, and- the only people likely to feel at all keenly on the subject are those who happen to be in the position of the lady thus described by the poet: Her lips were red, and one was thin, Compared with that was next her chin Some bee had stung it newly." And yet it would seem that there were still ) some possibilities unrealised before the latest meeting of the Austrian Horticultural and Apicultural Socie- ties in Vienna, at the Bee Exhibition, which is still open to the public there. A discovery has been made there which is the talk of the capital at the present moment, and the truth of which is vouehed for by hundreds and thousands of visitors, besides being duly attested in writing by 13 trustworthy and com- petent witnesses, including members of the aristo- ei-acy, scientists, and physicians. And this discovery is of a nature to overthrow all the theories about the political constitution of bees, which play such a pro- minent part in politioal and scientific literature. Heretofore it was looked upon as an established fret, which could not be called in question by the most sceptical, that each community of bees was distinguished by its ultra-monarchical principles and its loyalty to one queen. The members of the hive would never hear of a pretender, still less of a duumvirate or a triumvirate, and any attempt to bring about such a change in their political system I would have produced a revolution. But the lawful queen herself would not allow things to go to any such extremes. The moment a rival presented her- self, she would, speaking figuratively, attac' tooth-and-nail, and the duel would end only death of one or both. We have changed rll now," the Austrian bees seem to say to their hum visitors. For Professor Gatter, of Simmerh has just exhibited a thriving hive, the members of which are governed conjointly by two queens, and the bees apparently approve the innovation. Nay, what is still more remarkable, the two monarchs get te along most satisfactorily, and without the slightest friction. Not only are there no signs of rivalry, jealousy, or attempts at those feminine amenities which are the last resort of cultured females of the human race when compelled to endure each other's society, but the two queen-be" are positively affectionate—so affectionate, indeed, that one might be tempted to suspect that one of the two was a king in disguise, if such a hypothesis were not rendered absolutely untenable by the strongly accentuated physiological characteristics of the queen- bee. One of the greatest authorities on apiculture, Dr. Dzierzon, whose name is favourably known throughout the world in connection with several ingenious inventions for the comfort of bees, sat for hours at a stretch, observing the conduct of the two queens. They approach each other from time to time without the slightest antipathy, and on two or three occasions actually caressed each other most tenderly, and then separated quietly and peacefully, followed by their devoted suite. Professor Gatter has just received the first prize for his sensational exhibit, which is attracting crowds to the Bee Show, and the members of the Apicultural and Horticultural Societies of Vienna are proud to think that no such extraordinary spectacle as this was ever witnessed or recorded in the history of bees. The document drawn up, signed and duly attested, will be preserved in one of the museums of Vienna, and copies of it will be sent to apicultural societies throughout the world.

INTERESTING CUTTINGS. The Queen has a large number of scrap-books filled with newspaper cuttings and handsomely bound. This department is superintended by her secretary, who obtains from the Press-cutting agencies all the paragraphs which appear in the world's Press concerning her Majesty and her family. This is done as a matter of course. The cuttings ase sifted, selected, and pasted, and the result is a very complete account of what was thought and said about our lioyal Family by the contemporary Press. The Que>sa has, in addition, other scrap-books which are filled by her express superintendence. The cuttings in this case consist of any paragraphs which may happen to attract her interest or fancy. Among them is an account of the wreck of the Birkenhead, the report of the drowning of one of the Highland Guard stationed at Ballater, and obituary notices of Lord Beaconsfield, Mr. W. H. Smith, and the Co' >it<s de Paris. These acrap-books form quite a f: all library. mm

PAUPER'S GOLD. Nothing is usless nowadays- not even a defunct pauper. Often they are owners of rings or tiny trinkets, not pawnable, but still containing as much auriferous value as not a few modern gold mines. These have to be collected and also converted into cash by means of the melting-pot. In the Holborn Union the melting process takes plaee once a year, and has just been accomplished for the present season. The jewellery dealt with is what is found on paupers who die friendless and unclaimed in its various establishments. Rings, chains, brooches, and trinkets have been melted down, and produced a bar of gold estimate d at 11 carats, and worth about £ 40. A good portion of it was got from the plates of artificial teeth. On one set of artificial teeth there was at least four pounds worth of gold. The proceeds are paid into the comman exchequer of the union.

IN some of the German towns, when a man is con victed of beating his wife, he is allowed to go to his work as usual, but his wife gets his wages, and he is locked up only on Saturday nights, and remains in prison until the following Monday. The punishment usually lasts for 10 weeks. THE latest thing out in the way of clubs bears the title of the Six-finger Club. Each member of this particular club must have at least six Angara on one hand. An elaborate report drawn up by the secre- tary shows that there are 2173 persons in tho world with six fingers to each hand, and 431 with seven fingers. One individual, indeed, is the pioud possessor of eight fingers on one hand. CHINA'S Imperial Canal is the largest in the world, and greatest in point of traflic. tie length is 2100 miles, and it connects 41 citios situated on its UMIIS. It was completed in 1350, after 600 yearn apeut on its construction. 0 TUB mother-in-law of the Japanese Mikado was recently ill of a malady which puzzled the physicians. The Mikado, knowing that doctors rarely agree, had 423 of them to attend her yet, strange to say, she got well; and now the doctors are wondering that she recovered. THE railway companies of Great Britain pay a daily average of E1700 in compensation, about 60 per cent. being for injuries to passengers, and the remainder for lost or damaged freight. IN the manufactures of Great Britain alone the power which steam exerts is estimated to be equal ca the manual labour of 4,000,000,000 men, or more than double the number of males supposed to inhabit the globe. TUEES are felled by electricity in the great forests of Galicia. For cutting comparatively soft wood the tool is in the form of an auger, which is mounted on a carriage and is moved to and fro and revolved at the same time by a small electric motor. As the cut deepens wedges are inserted to prevent the rift from closing, and when the tree is nearly cut through, an axe or hand-saw is used to finish the work. In this way trees are felled very rapidly, and with com- I paratively little labour.

FOUR FAMOUS SWINDLERS. ROBSON'S UTTLB FLINg. Nowadays we live so rapidly that we quite forget the folk who were notorious but a decade or two back. There were swindlers in those days just as there are to-day, and some of their careers are worth recalling. Take Robson, for example. He is still remembered by a few of elderly City men in London. For a while the young man lived the life of a fashionable rouÆ, spending money right and left taking tho" Priory" at Kilburn, dressing in the very height of fashion, driving the most elegant cobs, and giving the choicest dinners. And all this time he was a mere clerk in the ser- vice of the Crystal Palace Company, at a salary of E150 a year. Ominous whispers were heard. How did he live ? Whence came his money? Some said that he had been successful on 'Change others, that commercial speculation had enriched him. None knew the truth, for Robson was forging the transfer of share certificates to a daring extent; and between the years 1853 and 1856 he had made £ 27,000 by his nefarious deeds. The proceeds of these forgeries were used, as we have said, to provide him the means of a life of dissi- pation. Alas! the end soon came. One day his superior, Mr. Fasson, asked him to produce some certificates. He said they were missing or at Kilburn. His inter- rogator seemed to grasp the awful truth as a sudden inspiration he insisted on driving to Kilburn with Robson, who was now in a fever of dread. The pair drove to the suburb. With a sangfroid worthy of him, Robson ordered lunch, chatting and laughing as it was consumed but his guest allowed him no rest. Where were the deeds ? Unable to answer, Robson hurriedly collected ■duables, and leaving the secretary at the luncheon :able fled to Elsinore. He was captured by detectives within a few days, and his miserable career termi- nated, so far as the public were concerned, when h« was sentenced at the Old Bailey to 14 years' penal servitude.

£ 70,000 IN TIINEB YEARS. The second of our famous swindlers is Walter Watts, a flash-in-the-pan who appeared on tho London horizon with all the brilliancy of wealth and wit in the year 1844. He had carriages and horses, consumed the finest wine, was a devoted lover of the theatre, and ultimately became proprietor of the Marylebone, subsequently building the Olympic. In his case, too, all the world asked the question, Whence came his wealth? The curious, indeed, tried to follow his brougham as it went Citywards in the morning, but the astute forger invariably alighted at the corner of Lombard-street and walked to the office of the Globe Assurance Company, where he was a clerk on a salary of F-200 a year. His system of getting money was simple. He had the company's pass books and banking accounts in his own hands, and these he altered to an alarming degree, netting by his misdeeds C70,000 in the course of three years. Incredible as this statement appears, it was a fact, and we can only marvel at the extra- ordinary system adopted in the office, which allowed such proceedings to remain undiscovered for three years. Watts was generous enough with his money. He had a superb house in St. John's Wood, another at Brighton. He lived in a style worthy of a rich man, and he had the credit of introducing the famous actress Mrs. Mowatt to this country. And what an end that of his was! Conveyed to Newgate, tried and sentenced, we sec. him in the infirmary of the prison. It is midnight, the warder at his side sleeps stealthily, in the gloom, the wretched man rises from his bed the rough sheet serves him as a rope; a nail in a window as a gallows. The warder awakes and looks for his prisoner, but Walter Watts, the brilliant, the gay, the generous, is before a greater Tribunal.

LEOPOLD REDPATH. The career of Leopold Redpath, while resembling those narrated above, has a contrast. Watts and Robson were men who loved the glitter and tinsel of life Redpath was one who passed as the philan- thropist, the benefactor of mankind. It was in the office of the Great Northern Railway I Company that Redpath first obtained that oppor- tunity of forging the transfer of certificates and the receipts for dividends of which he subsequently made so great a use. It came out at the trial that the total sum of which he defrauded the company was £ 30,000, but some think that the true amount was never assessed, and that his defalcations were really on a larger scale. His proceedings illustrate again the alarming laxity that once prevailed in the management of public offices; for at the very hour when he was paying dividends to imaginary shareholders, and forging certificates for non-existent holders, the auditors of the company presented an account to the directors informing them that everything was in the most satisfactory state. } And what, you may ask, did Redpath do with his money ? Well, he kept open house at a lovely spot near Weybridge; he bought the rarest. wines that money could secure, he gave to the poor with an extravagant liberality, became an Almoner of Christ's Hospital, and a member of the Patriotic League. His dinners astonished the town, his benefactions drew upon him the eulogy of the poor, the gratitude of the destitute. He walked through the streets of Weybridge to be idolised, worshipped. The undoing of this bold impostor came about in a curious manner. Mr. Denison, one of the directors of the company, was on the platform at King's-cross with Lord D-. Redpath came up and to Mr. Denison's surprise, Lord D- was most affable to him. What can you know of one of our clerks ?" asked the amazed director. Oh," replied the nobleman, he is one of the most brilliant fellows in the town, gives the best dinners, and has the best wine of any man that I know." Denison was alarmed. A rigorous examination of the company's affairs was ordered. Redpath fled to Paris a detective burst into his beautiful home at Weybridge, and the innocent young wife learnt that her benevolent husband was a forger, who was charged with appropriating nearly E40,000 of the company's money. The arrest soon came. Leopold Redpath crossed the seas to serve as a convict for the term of his natural life.

TUB GREAT ROUPKLL CASH. We have space but for a glance at the next swindler whose career comes before us. This is the famous Roupell, a man once highly honoured, of a good family, an excellent speaker, and so sound a politician that he was elected M.P. for Lambeth. But Roupell was poor, and, not seeing a clear way out of his poverty, he commenced to play with the crime of forgery. The temptation came to him to create an imaginary deed of appointment as though made by his father, and, by the production of other forged documents, to secure the property of Norbiton Park Farm, near Kingston. The scheme was bold and the man's daring was equally bold; but, in the trial, the flimsy and badly- executed work was at once shown up, and the aristo- cratic member of Parliament exchanged the honours of his career for the convict's cell. His sentence was for life; and while this created no surprise, the details of his career were for many months the talk of London. He is now a free man.-Evening News.

THE QUEEN'S BULLFINCHES. The late Sir John Cowell was always a great mar- tinet in regard to the carrying out of the strict letter of the law (says Woman), and sometimes carried matters to extremes. As the Queen has a number of pet bullfinches, whose clever tricks and pretty piping delight her Majesty, it is forbidden to anyone to have a cat in the Royal household, or at any rate anyone whose apartment is near the Queen's. A late house- keeper at Buckingham Palace was very partial to a certain tortoiseshell feline, who, like herself, had enjoyed several years of otium cum dignitate in the deserted Royal residence. Some enemy of tabbies, and a busybody about other folks'affairs, informed Sir John that this forbidden favourite reigned in the Jhouse- keeper's apartments. Sir John paid a visit there, and finding a law-breaking grimalkin basking in front of the fire, he ordered his immediate extinction or removal beyond the Royal policies. Its admiring mistress did not, however, intend to part with her darling, and so next day packed him up in a basket, took train to Windsor, where the Court then was, ind desiring an audience—which was granted to such an old servant—she poured forth her grievance, and opening the basket out popped Master Tom. The Queen was immensely amused, and gave willing sanction to the feline gentleman remaining a guest in her town palace, on condition that he was securely shut up on the very few days that her Majesty's feathered favourites are at Buckingham Palace.

THE NEW EVIDENCE IN THE MAYBRICK CASE. The importance of the new evidence in the ca&e of Mrs. Maybriok (says a correspondent of the Morning Post) cannot be duly appreciated without comparing it with the old. Assuming its veracity to be unques- tioned, it affords the key to much that was mysterious at the trial. It will be recollected that in the house, after Mr. Maybrick's death, a large quantity of arsenic was found, which bofh the Crown and the prisoner failed to trace to its source. It could not have been derived from Mrs. Maybrick's fly-papers. The quantity was too large. Much of it was in powder, mixed with charcoal; some was in crystals of white arsenic, and none apparently containod any of the fibre of the fly-paper, which, had it been derived from that source, could have been separated from it only by careful filtering or straining, of wh.ch there was no indication. This arsenic has now been traced to its origin. Mr. Valentine C. Blake swears that he gave Mr. Maybrick about 150 grains of arsenic in the February before his death. It was in three parcels, one of white arsenic, one mixed with soot, and one mixed with charcoal—which latter mixture is not sold by chemists, but was found in the house after Mr. Maybrick's death. There seems to be no reason to doubt Mr. Blake's statement, which, indeed, there is much to confirm. Mr. Nation, his employer or partner, swears to having supplied him with the arsenic which he describes, and having twice sent him to Liverpool for a business interview with Mr. May- brick in the early part of the year 1889. It is note- worthy that very soon after Mr. Blake states that he supplied Mr. Maybrick with a packet of white arsenic Mrs. Maybrick for the first time expressed to two different persons her alarm about the white powders that her husband was taking. It was also subse- quent to obtaining this supply that Mr. Maybrick told Sir James Poole that he was taking poisonous drugs, and it was long afterwards that Mrs. Maybrick bought the fly-papers. Whatever her object in purchasing them may have been, she would hardly have done so had she known that there was an abundant supply of arsenic in the house. Mr. Maybriok procured the arsenic from Mr. Blake fey telling him that he was an arsenic-en.ter, and found it difficult to supply his needs in Liverpool (Blake nad just been describing to him a manufacture in which he used arsenic). That he was an areanic- eater was disputed by the Crown at the trial, and has since been strenuously denied by the advocates of Mrs. Maybrick's guilt. It was admitted that he took arsenic as a remedy for or preservative against malarial fever in America. But the sole evidence of his using it in Liverpool was the evidence of Mr. Heaton, a retired chemist, who identified his customer only by means of a photograph after death. The arsenic in the house could not be traced to Mr. Maybrick, and it was contended that his general statement as to taking poisons most probably referred to strychnine or nux vomica, net arsenic. But, besides the evidence of Mr. Blake, further evidence of arsenic-eating is now forthcoming. Mr. Maybrick told Mr. Bancroft that he took it for longevity and fair complexion. Captain Fleming saw him shake it like pepper over his food at lunch, and on one occasion he said he was going to take enough of it to kill the captain. He said to Mr. Blake It is like meat and liquor to me when- ever I feel weak and depressed. It makes me stronger in mind and in body at once." The fact that he was an arsenic-eater is thus placed beyond dispute, and he evidently used to take it in considerable quantities. And this suggests a crucial question, viz., Was there more arsenic found in his body than might have been expected from a man of his habits ? The medical witnesses for the Crown admitted that the quantity found was small, but pointed out that two grains had been known to kill. But from Mr. Maybrick's statement to Captain Fleming it is evident that two grains would not have killed him. He could apparently have taken as much, with impunity, in a single dose at lunch. Some stress was laid at the trial on finding arsenic in the food and medicine. ef But the evidence of the new witnesses is to the effect that Mr. Maybrick used to take it in his food or drinjc rather than by itself. And when it Is once established that he was an arsenic-eater, there is nothing improbable in his attempting to procure some when cut off from his usual supply by being confined to bed. In no case was the amount of arsenic found larger than his habits seemed capable of accounting for. Mrs. Maybrick's purchase of the fly-papers is fully explained. The lost prescription for her arsenical face-wash (by Dr. Bay, of Brooklyn) has been found in her Biblo and verified from the books of M- Brouant, chemist, of Paris, who once compounded it for her. Madame Ruppert swears tkat over 10,000 of her lady clients iiF-d such face-washes, and that most of them resorted to fly-papers when they could not procure arsenic otherwise. The glycerine is also briefly touched on, but the recent conviction of a Leeds chemist, who ivasfined £ 3 for selling glycerine containing three times as large a proportion of arsenic, disposes of this branch of the case. The bottle appeared to be fresh and unopened when handed to the nurse, and the quantity of arsenic in it was too small for the purposes of a poisoner. It will be recollected that medical witnesses for the Crown admitted that the symptoms during life and post-mortem appearances afforded no decisive indica- tion of arsenical poisoning. The diagnostic thine," Dr. Stevenson said, was finding the arsenic." But it now appears that from Mr. Maybrick's habits as much arsenic would probably have been found in his body if he had been killed in a railway accident or an explosion, and that therefore its detection in the boby afforded no clue to the cause of death. Nor indeed would proof that dwvth had resulted from slow arsenical poisoning be sufficient to bring home guilt to any person. Persons who habitually indulge to excess in alcohol, opium, or arsenic often kill them- selves eventually, and Mr. Maybrick's domestic anxieties may have induced him to indulge more freely than usual in a stimulant of which he had practically an unlimited supply.

WHAT TO DO WITH ANARCHISTS. A writer in the Journal des Debats suggests that the Anarchists should have the free use of a small portion of the world's surf race whereon to carry out in practice their theories of lawlessness. He thinks Kerguelen Land, in the Indian Ocean, would be suitable place for the experiment. It has a fair climate, it is 100 miles long by 50 miles wide, the soil is productive, and it is far away from the influences of our existing civili- zation, with its exploiters and capitalists.' Let facilities be afforded, says the writer, to Anarchists to go there to live without police, or judges, or capitalists, or any of the other classes whose existence makes society so obnoxious in their eyes. After the experiment should have gone on for 10 years, a com- mission might be appointed to enquire into the abate of the island, and the result could not fail to be interesting.

A WIDOW'S WHIM. A curious story of a widow's whim comes from Edinburgh. About two months ago a man named M'Intosh, who belonged originally to Armadale, came to this country from America for the purpose of undergoing an operation in the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, he being accompanied by his wife. Un- fortunately, he did not rally from the effects of the operation. The remains of the deceased were in due course interred beside of those of his father and mother in Bathgate Cemetery. The widow, how- ever three weeks after the interment, having decided to return to her home in the State of Ohio, deter- mined to take all that was mortal of her late hus- band back with her, and being a woman of decided character, nothing would put her past her notion. An order from the sheriff for the exhumation of the body was obtained, and the remains were sent t j Edinburgh, where they were inclosed in an air- proof lead coffin and afterwards sent to Liverpool, where the widow awaited, and she is now on her way to America with her sad belongings. It is said that her whim will eost her about £ 300.

UNION LINE fr- t'hii-SOIT-TH-.EPRTCAW atMm"JI'DS. The Royal Mail and Intermediate Knimeri itji from Southampton every Saturday for South & -*• thr ea"'ns: at Lisbon, Madeira, and Canary Island! a15 Sd South <-<">"« Rd.. Southampton B°uth African House. M to 08, Buhopggata St. Within, I.ondoa^ Freehold Land for the People. Mile from Market Town of Alton in sunny Hampshire. Plot* 4Qft. x 200ft, £10, on main road; also large Building SitML Easy payments. Farms from 5 acres from iM an acre, in hilrll cultivation, lovely views, very warm, with sunny slope irreaft demand for houses, specially suited for Fruit and Poultry tarma. Estate nearly 2 miles long, part being very high MM bracing, rapidly increasing in value. Froe Conveyance. Leas than 50 miles from London, Winchester 15, Basingstoke ML Aldershot 12, Farnham 9, Southampton 27, Portsmouth 2 Apply to WK. CiRTga, The Hermitaw. Parkstone, Doraetu K' 'V JtftB" US '<■'■ y A.OENT3 Wanted for GOLD A M 21 B ENCOKS TEAST. BEST FOE BEKAD. tu £ H 19 4r|l H W'Ample,6atmip*, pnxi/rc«. BisohoLTeM# •* Importer. S5. Brooke St..T.onrion, <i, XDITt rom HOVUSWltM. li-pan paa&jtfcltt eoatalsglir UStol Domestic H'.fit*. Post free, la. f.jriT, M, llMi Tllie JLoad, Wandsworth Common, Laadoa.,1. wT FOUR GREAT HOUSEKEEPEWS i » BOOMS. nY OBZ, TBT ALL. t j';i— II 4 9 5 II In Half Time, with Half the 0ft I J < HI Labour, 70a ean produce Kore U 9 J a i |l Polish with Two Penny Packets |g 2 •§ < I V of Rising BOB than with Half- II S £ MM Dozen of ordinary BlacUead. aaB J# § 1 S gold ia 3d., 0d. ft l)- » 4ML Mo a 9 < Mo Scratches »c*r&C <%ay Bobbing. | fc 3 CHASCELLOR'S PLATE POWDER. Jf4 "There b BO preparation ofifhlch we know to equal I § • lt« excelJeace. —E-NQuiaa Within—3d. p«r bo*. Z 0 PLE 4L STARCH I TAINS :0' C 4 REQUIRES no addition or preparation. EJ 1 U < SAVM8 Time, Iiaboai, and Dmeertftiaty. f U < PRODUCES BeaumwWhlte Glossy Linan. å Vt J AIIIr your Grocer to get them for you. F J O. CHANCELLOR A Co.. LONDON, E.O. | ttrMB lpol BTAKOBIJW. A most valuable Uttle beak for those who do their itarching at home. Poit free for two a tamps. C. CHAHO*LI.O* II: Co., London. B.C. m m VIMOLIA .0 Foa THE SKI. SOAP (for Delicate Skins), {oniyPli.MIEfabut. CREAM (for Itching, Face Spots, &c.), l/ll. POWDER (for Redness, Roughness, &c.). 11-

THE CHELSEA PENSIONERS. I think the majority of the men do not want it broken up, and speaking for myself, I may say I should not like to see the place broken up, except I had sufficient to keep me outside." This is the opinion of an old Chelsea pensioner, expressed before Lord Belper's Committee recently He is fond of his home at the Hospital, and, asked whether he would leave the Hospital for less than 4s. a day, replied, No, it would not be worth while I ought to have 5s. to be anything near the mark, but I could do on a pinch with 4s." Air. J. E. Ellis, M.P., one of the Committee, asked another old private of the 97th Foot whether nothing less than 2s. 6d. a day, all told, would induce him to sacrifice the comforts ot the Hospital. No," was the half apologetic reply, because I am a cripple I was wounded twice in the storming of the lledan."

STOWE HOUSE. Stowe House, near Buckingham, where the Comte de Paris passed his last hours, is the property of the Baroness Kinloss. It is a noble, though not an his- torical, pile, containing some very valuable works of art. The walls are adorned with portraits by Kneller, Gainsborough, Lely, and other English andforeignoid Masters, and the hall has one of those richly-painted ceilings-the work of Kent-now so rare even in the stately homes of England." There are music, tapestry, jewel, and State-rooms, such aa befit the abode of a descendant of kings, together with aa armoury and a library containing 20,000 volumes. But of more dazzling beauty than the house or its furniture and decorations are the gardens and surrounding park. The pleasure gardens, which were laid out by the celebrated Launcelot (nick* named" Capability") Brown, blaze in late summer and early autumn with tens of thousands of gorgeou. geraniums and other bedding-out plants. Gardening at Stowe is not a work so much as a fine art. The park contains many gnarled oaks, and hard by are the beautiful Stowe woods. The rent paid by the Comte for Stowe has been probably nearer two thousand a year than one.

THE Chateau d'Eu, the residence of the late Comte de Paris ere he was exiled, stands in the smiling valley of Bresle, between Dieppe and Saint Yalerv. Its history goes back to Charlemagne, who erected a keep here against Norman incursions. It passed, however, to William, the second Duke of Normandy) who was living in 1026. Subsequently it went to the Lusignans, and then, by marriage, to the houses of Burgundy, of Cleves, and of Guise. In 1475 Louis XI. ordered it to be burnt in order that it should not fall into the hands of the English. It was re-built by Henry of Guise in the 16th century. In 1814 it was restored to the Duchess of Orleans, who had been despoiled of it by the Revolution. She bequeathed it to her son Louis Philippe, who was in his turn deprived of it at the advent of the Second Empire. In 1871 it was ceded to the Comte de Paris by the National Assembly,

FRENCH FISHERIES. The report on the French fisheries, iust issued by the Government, has to admit that the yield alcog the coast from Calais to St. Malo is diminishing rather than increasing. The fishermen, judging from observation, are hardy, active, and know their busi- ness, from a fish-market point of view, but they are soniefi-ines a little too active, and have not enough of the sportsman's feeling. If the take is decreasing it is largely due, in all probability, to constant and injudicious trawling. The sand beds of the coast are raked too much and too frequently, with the result that hundreds of immature fish aN brought up in the nets, many of them not as large as five franc pieces, and whiting not much larger than shrimps. If these were at once returned to the sea not much harm would be done, but while they are mauled over to select some for bait, -the majority of them perish, and when they are returned to the water they are good fish nipped in the bud. The French law provides against catching fish of this baby size, but it cannot prevent unsportsmanlike fishermen sifting the life out of those ocean inno- cents.

I CARTER'S LiTTLE • LIVER PILLS. k "ER ITTLE IVER FIL onwi pill Small DOli. Small Price. Forty in a Tlttl. Pnrely VegettMt. Care Torpid Liver, Bile, Sallow Complexion, aud ttick Headache. promptly: and care them so as to stay oured. Ghemiiita. It. ltd. BEAUTIFUL TEETH lor all who U39 daily on tho toot^ brush a few drop* of SOZO DO NT the plcaiantut dentifrice ia the world. Cleanses the teeth and spaces between them an nothing else will. Sot1ud and pearly white teeth, rosy lips, and fragrant breath ensured. Ask for SOZODONT. 2<=. fS

THE COUNTRY TEACHER'S LIFE. The life of the country teacher is not an enviable one. That is if you take a certain school inspector's observations to correctly represent the state cf affairs. This inspector Writes: There are five or six standards to be taught, single-handed, in the elementary sub- jects, with needlework, recitation, drawing, and sing- ing; and there is an infants' class, under the best assistant that poverty can afford, to be superintended, or, where there is no such assistant, to be taught. It is true that many teachers with special gifts have suc- ceeded but what of their less talented sisters ? I cannot but think that we shall have to be trnder, as examiners, in a good many cases, to prerent the ex- tinction of several very useful, though not very brilliant, little schools."

DiilNYS PUECH, whose marble figure of the Seine has causod him to be hailed as the hope of art in France, was the son of a starving peasant, and spent his youth in the most abject squalor. You must cultivate decision of character and learn to say 'No, said a father to his eon. Soon afterwards, when the father told his son to go to bed, the boy said No," with an emphasis that showed a remembrance of the lesson. BENEFACTOR How is your husband this winter, my dear woman ?" Poor Woman: I am sorry to say, sir, he is confined to his room." Benefactor: "Could I see him ?" Poor Woman Possibly, sir, if vou aDDlied to the county prison."

MELLIN'S FOOD For INFANTS and INVALIDS. Price Is. 6d. and 2s. 6d. per Bottle. MELLIN'S FOOD BISOUITS For Children after Weaning, the Aged and Dyspeptic. Palatable, Digestive, Nourishing and Sustaining. Price 2s. and 3s. 6d. per Tin. Samples, Pamphlet, and Prospectus post free on application to— MELLIN'S FOOD WORKS, Peckham, London, S.E.