The North Wales Times

WEEKLY NOTES. "r, \J'J'r,r" Several Acts of Parliament come into force with the New Year. The most important is the Irish Local Government Act, establishing County Councils in Ireiand.5 There are also, among others, the Acts founded upon the Benefices Bill, the Prisons Bill, and the Ine- briates Bill. The latter cannot however come into operation for at least two or three months. In this instance it is required that the Home Office rules, which will govern the working of the Act, must first lie on the table in both Houses of Parliament before they can become effective in law. These special rules have been under the consideration of Committees acting for England and Wales, and for Scotland, and for Ireland, but it will be at least four weeks after the meeting of Parliament before they caa have the force of law. —o— The application of the Inebriates Act involves a new departure, and for the first time, in this country, it establishes the principle that habi- tual drunkenness is to be regarded like lunacy, and to be dealt with and controlled by the State. Four convictions for drunkenness within a year, will bring the offender within the category of habitual drunkards, and the Courts may then order the convicted person to be detained for a period, not exceeding three years—in an inebriate reformatory. So far as the management and discipline of these estab li-h ents has been determined, it appears that offenders will be treated like prisoners under- going sentence, and any attempt to escape will involve the usual consequences of prison- breaking. They will have to work so many hours a day, but they will have many privileges, such as the option of wearing their own clothes, the liberty to purchase luxuries, including to- bacco, and the use of reading and recieation rooms. Of course certain conditions attach to these privileges. The Government appears de- sirous of carrying out the Act under a system of certified reformatories, but it. is quite cer- tain that there will have to be State maniged establishments which will not be merely homes ot comfort and luxury for the absolutely worth- less and irreclaimable. —o— It is satisfactory to learn that British trade is improving in Egypt. According to a report just issued by the Foreign Office, the imports from this country were 9-500,000 more in 1897 than in the previous year. The chief item is for textile goods, and in cottons and woollens, this country still virtually commands the trade. It is in iron manufactures, and cheap hardware that Germany and Belgium are chiefly making headway in competition with British goods. In native products, Egypt is rapidly growing in wealth. The cultivation of cotton, sugar, and maize is being largely extended, and there is probably no country i11 the world, which, at the present time has a better prospect of agri- cultural prosperity. the flourishing condition of the country is proved by its expanding revenue, and the enormous increase of the population in the principal towns, that h-us taken place in the last ten or twelve years. All this time the Soudan has been going to ruin under the Mahdist tyranny, and it will be years before it can present a very profitable field for British enterprise. Hitherto what trade there was has been in the hands of the Greek, and it is of tliat box wallah' or pedlar character, which British traders are mostly disposed to leave to others. But in Egypt it is different, and here there is a market ready to hand which is capable of extensive development. The acting British Consul strongly recommends manufacturers in this country to join the British Chamber of Commerce, which was started at Alexandria about two years ago. He also urges that commercial representatives visiting Egypt should have a knowledge of French or Italian, or preferably of both these languages. —o— In his report on the Trade and Commerce of Egypt Mr. Alban, our acting Consul-General, regrets that British manufacturers will not take the trouble to give metrical weights and measures, and prices in francs in their busiaess dealings with that country. This is one of the stock complaints of our Consuls all over the world. At Buenos Ayres this neglect is said to be 'a great drawback to British trade.' At Amsterdam the Consul urges the necessity of adopting the metric system. At Bremen it is stated that the attempt to deal in piece goods by the yard simply courts failure. Similar accounts could be quoted indefinitely. It has been urged again and again that the adoption of the metric standards is necessary for the saving of time both in school, and in the coun ting house, and our Consuls abroad are prac- tically unanimous in emphasising its impor- tance to our foreign trade. The Select Com- mittee appointed in 1895, reported that the metric system should be legalised, and in two years rendered compulsory. Perhaps the most important argument in its favour is that similar recommendations have been made by the Com- mittee on Coinage, Weights, and Measures, in the United States, where it is suggested that the metric system should be made compulsory on the first day of the new century in January 1901. -0- The French Naval Budget for 1899, shows a considerable increase over that of last year. It provides for the building of six submarine vessels, and is specially designed to increase the power of France in torpedo-boats, and fast cruisers. There is of course no mystery as against which Power these preparations are particularly directed. It is briefly that France must never again be caught in such a position of weakness as to be compelled to submit to the dictation of Perfidious Albion. It is a pity that the French people cannot get rid of this old and insane animosity, which really has no counterpart on this side of the Channel. Since the Norman Conquest there has been war* be tween England and France for no less than 262 years, and there is no one in this country who is not of opinion that this aniount-of fighting ought to suffice for all time to come. During the same period, there have been numerous wars with Spain, HollandMenmark, and other countries, but they have been nothing as compared to our struggles with France. Up to the reign of Elisabeth there were 15 Anglo-French wars, ranging over 200 years in duration, the longest being the '.lIun- dred Years War '—which with one brief inter- val raged without intermission from the reign of Edward III. to that of Edward IV. After that, there were three more wars with France before the commencement of the terribly war. like eighteenth century, which culminated in the Napoleonic wars. It was these last strug- gles which commenced in 1793, and weujt on until their final conclusion, in 1815, that sent up our National Debt from about 2401 Bullions to over 800 millions.

NEW YEAR HONOURS. I ftw Majesty the Queen has been pleased to confer the following New Year's honours: VISCOUNTY.Lord Cromer becomes a viscount of the United Kingdom. PEERAGES.—The Right Hon. Sir Philip Currie, G.C.B. Sir Joseph Russell Bailey, Bart.; Sir Henry Hawkins; Mr. Robert Thornhaugh Gurdon. J'RIVV COVNCIU.ORS.—Sir William Walrond, Bart., M.P.; Sir Charles Hall, K.C.M.H., M.P.; Colonel Saunderson, M.P.; Mr. William Kenrick, M.P. BARONETCIES.—Sir Henry Thompson, F.R.C.S.; Mr. Wm. Henry Hornby, M.P.; Mr. Francis Tress Barry, M.P. Mr. John Murray Scott. Us TOUT noons.—Mr. Fortescue Flannery, M.P.; Mr. John Furley: Mr. Edward Lawrence; Mr. Henry Evelyn Oakeley; the Lord Provost of Glasgow; Dr. Herrmann Weber; Mr. Arthur Strachey, LLJD., Chief Justice of the High Court at Allahabad; Mr. William Mure, late Senior Puisne Judge of the Supreme Court of the'Mauritius.

ST. MICHAEL A-;n ST. GEORGE. G.C.M.G.: His Excellency the Right Hon. Sir Charles Scott, K.C.M.G., C.B., her Majesty's Am- bassador at St. Petersburg; Major-General Sir Her- bert Chermside, R.E., K.O.M.G., C.B., her Majesty's Military Commissioner in Crete. K.C.M.G.: Bontros Pasha, Foreign Minister to his Highness the Khedive; Mr. Henry Howard, C.B., H.M. Minister at the Hague; Mr. Edmund Fane, II.M. Minster at Copenhagen; and Colonel Jamea Hayes Sadler, late Consul-General at Valparaiso. C.M.G.: Cap!. Sir E. Chichester, Bart., II.N.; Major Henry L. Gallwey, D.S.O., Acting Commis- sioner in the Niger Protectorate; Major James Bor, R.M.A., Deputy Assistant Adjutant-General, and the following three officers of the Uganda Administra- tion Dr. T. E. Macpherson, Dr. R. N. Moffat, and Mr. W. Grant. Lord Cromer was formerly in the Royal Artillery, from which he retired in 187t) with the rank of major. He- was appoinied a European Commissioner of the Public, Debt i;i Egypt, a?id one of the Controllers- fiemrai representing England and France in the management, of the finances of Egypt. At the close of 1880 he accepted the office of Finance Minister in the Council of the Viceroy of India, and in May, 1883, he was recalled to Cairo to succeed Sir Edward Malet as Agent and Consul-General. Ten years later he was pressed by the Queen to become Viceroy of India, but refused the appoint- ment. The creation of Lord Cromer a Viscount of the United Kingdom is a natural sequence to the high praise showered upon him by the Prime Minister, by Lord Kitchener, and others well quali- fied to speak of the important part he has borne in Egypt generally, and in the recovery of the Soudan. Mr. R. T. Gurdon was member for one of the divisions of Norfolk until 1892, when the Radical barrister, Mr. Higgins, Q.C., unseated him. He re- covered the seat two years later when the Q.C. re- signed. At the general election in 1894 he was defeated by Mr. Fred Wilson. Sir William Hood Walrond is the active Conser- vative Whip. He was formerly a captain in the Grenadier Guards, from which he retired in 1889. He represented East Devonshire in Parliament from 1880 to 1885, since when he has sat for the Tiverton division of that county. He is Patronage Secretary to the Treasury, and was Junior Lord of the Treasury, 1885-86 and 1886-92. Sir Henry Hawkins, the great criminal judge, resigned his office the other day. Everybody knows all about him, especially the criminal classes. Sir Philip Henry Wodehouse Currie, who is to become a peer, has spent a long life in the service of his country. In 1856 he became attached to the Legation of St. Petersburg, and in 1863 he acted on the Special Mission to the King of Denmark. In 1876 ho was Secretary to Lord Salisbury's Special Embassy to Constantinople, and became private secretary to Lord Salisbury a year later. He was Secretary to the Special Embassy during the Berlin Congress in 1878, and subsequently filled various other secretaryships of the highest import- ance. Created a K.C.B. in 1885, he became a Permanent Under-secretary of State for Foreign Affairs in 1889. From 1893 he represented Eng- land in Russia, and a few months ago he was appointed as her Majesty's Ambassador at Rome. During the Cretan crisis of two years ago Sir Philip came into very prominent notice, consequent upon the frequent; representations he made to the Sultan in connection, with the demands of Great Britain and the other Powers forming the concert, of Europe. Sir Joseph Russell Baily is 58 years of age, and Lord-Lieutenant of Brecon. He represented Hereford- shire from 1865 to 1885, and from 1886 to 1892 sat for Hereford City. Sir Charles Hall was appointed Recorder of the City of London in 1892, since which year he has sat in Parliament for the Holborn Division of Finsbury. For seven years previously lie represented West Cambridgeshire. From 1877 to 1892 he was Attorney- General to the Prince of Wales. Sir Henry Thompson, the eminent surgeon, ia rapidly approaching the completion of his 78th year. He has been called the Apostle of Cremation."

HOW BROTHER OFFICERS DIED. HEROIC INCIDENT IX A RECENT NIGER DISASTER. Further details of the British reverse near Yelwa, on the Niger, last October, have reached Liverpool. It will be remembered that the little force, which consisted of Lieutenant Keating and Corporal Gale and 14 native soldiers, while parleying with the local chief for the hire of some canoes, was attacked by overwhelming numbers of natives. After a stubborn resistance both the officers and 12 of the troops were kiiled. The disaster was marked by one of those heroic deeds of self-sacrifice which Britain has learned to expect from her soldiers. It appears that Corporal Gale was first shot by the .blacks, and Lieutenant Keating and his men endeavoured to save him. Lieutenant Keating cut down several of the enemy, and managed to bring Gale, badly wounded, to the riverside. They were putting him into a canoe when a second shot struck and killed him. The natives were in thousands, and simply over- whelmed the small British force. Mr. Keating's body was recovered. Elsewhere on the Niger the little British gunboats Heron and Jackdaw have been actively employed. During the operations against the natives of Ilia the Heron bombarded several villages with her six- pounder Hotchkiss gun, though with doubtful results, as the villages were on the reverse side of a high hill. As showing the part played in the Sierra Leone fighting by the 1st West India troops, which are now quartered at their full strength in Freetown, it is said that on April 1 there were 30 white officers fight i ng in the Karene district, and on July 9 only 12 remained. The rest were either killed in the fighting, by fever, or invalided by wounds or fever, and the loss in the rank and ille was in the same proportion.

ACCORDING to reports just issued great improve- ments are noticeable in British Central Africa, rar- ticularly in regard to Nyassaland. ON Wednesday at Parkhurst Prison a convict named Williams attacked another convict an l inflicted fearful injuries with a mattock. A BRUTAL murder is reported from Cloonfad, where a dozen men attacked a young fellow named Hoban, who was beaten to death. "I AM too wicked to live r-ny longer" was a sentence in a Jetter left, behind by William H. Bond, an Ipswich clerk, who has committed suicide. Tr is expected that t'.e retirement will take place very shortly of the newly-made Privy Councillor, Mr. Kenrick, M.P ior North Birmingham. I AT the ripe '.ge of 92, there died on Wednesday the Rev. Jrdeph Walker, the oldest clergyman in Northamptonshire. He had held the same living iince 1843. IT if reported from Naples that two Chil Guards entered a house at Al Flocco, and after mitrdering tite mistress, maltreated a girl of 14. They have been arrested. AT the Leicestershire village of Bitteswell a coroner's jury on Wednesday returned a verdict of "Wilful murder" against Peter Hubbard for the murder of his agedifnole.

MR. HOOLEY'S BANKRUPTCY. I In the London Bankruptcy Court on Saturday, ap- plication was made to Mr. Registrar Brougham to ex- tend the time for appealing against the trustee's decision rejecting a proof for £ 53,000 against the estate uf Mr. Hooley. It appeared that the proof was put; in ou behalf of M. de Jurada, Sir Henry A. Isaacs, and ui hers, the claim being for commission for negoti.it ing a loan of X3,562,000 for the purchase of certain quicksilver mines in Spain, &c., by Mr. Hooley. The proof was rejected by Mr. Basden, the trustee,'and the 21 days within which to give notice of appeal had expired. On the application of Mr. J. T. Davis, his honoiiY extended the time until after the hearing of the motion, which he directed to be entered in Mr. Justice Wright's list forthwith.

Two Blackpool bank clerks, aged respectively 17 and 18, who absconded with £ 1000 which, with the exception of £ 40, they expended in a few weeks on the Continent, were on Wednesday each sentenced to four months' hard labour. PnirJCE Victor Napoleon is described by his sup- porters as very sanguine of the success of a bold 1 stroke for tho Presidency or the Throne of France, and is even believed to be preparing for a coup d'etat. There are decided differences of opinion as to his chances of success. While France may be thought ripe for some change, it is questionable whether she will consent to place her fortunes again in the hands of the Bonaparte family. Earthquake shocks have taken place at Con- stantinople, and it is noted that a glow appeared at the same time over M ount. Olympus.

GLOBE Furnishing Company, L.¿ J. t. ,J ",4 t-' "¡, o 12 to 18, Pembroke Place. Liverpool. FURNISH FOR C Sn, cr on OUR SPECIAL HIRE PURCHASE SYSTEM at CAStL PRICES. T $V-ll NOTE.—Our Hire-Purchase System is erur. Iv diftex- out from any other, and has been highly com- mended by the whole of the Local Press. œ I#" €3y> NO SECURITY REQUIREP NO EXTRA EXPENSES ON OUR HIRE Rt'HASE SYSTEM. The fair and equitable manner in which our busi- ness is carried on, and our reasonable terms and low prices, are so well known throughout the North ci England ant,- Wales as to jender further coinicer>> unnecessary. & T E E; S. WE GIVE OUR CUSTOMERS THE PRIVILEGE OF ARRANGING THEIR OWN TERMS O? PAYMENT, AS THEY KNOW BEST THE AMOUNT THEY CAN CONVENIENTLY AFFORD TO PAY EACH or MONTH. AI Goods are delivered free, and no expenses vi any kind are incurred by customers. Furniture sent to any part of England or Wales. Private Vans it required, no charge will be made. An inspection of our Stock will at oncp satisfy in- tending purchasers that we give better value than 3n", other Hoiise furnishers on the Hire-purchase system in the provinces. FURNISH FOR CASH, or on our HIRE PURCHASE SYSTEM at CASH PRICES. Our New Prospectus. Large Illustrated Catalogue, Press Opinions, and Price list sent post free or application. GLOBE Furnishing Company, (J. R GRANT, Proprietor). 12 to 18, Pembroke Place. LIVERPOOL, Business Hours.—9 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturdays 9 to G p.m. Breakfast is often spoiled by the poorness of the Coffee. it m J can be made any strength by using t SYMINGTON'S Edinburgh Coffee: ^Essence. £ FREE SAMPLES 1 1 ASTHMA FREE SAMPLES of "ZEMATONE" ASTHMA POWDER & CIGARETTES Will be sent, prepaid, together witn 'fleaka! Testimonials of Radica) C-. rfs by O. FANYAU & CO., 90, Great Russell Street, W C., L-cri.i-n. SUPERIOR TO ALL OTHER PREPARATIONS. O Per Oent- OF HUMAN AILMENTS RESULT FROM A TORPID LIVER OR WEAK KIDNEYS. WARNER'S "SAFE" CURE Regulates the LIVER Relieves and Removes the I^tiarr mation from the KIDNEYS by expelling the poif noas Kidney (Uric) ACID. WARNER'S SAFE CURE Rests on its Reputation. BEGIN TREATMENT TO-DAY. DISEASE DOES NOT STAND STILL. For Sale by all Ohemiste and Dealers. Price 2/9 and 5/6 per Bottle. HUGH DAVIESS COUGH MIXTURE NO MORE Difficulty of Breathing. NO MORE Sleepless N'ights. NO MORB Distressing Coughs. DAVIES'S COUGH MIXTURE for COUGHS DAVIES'S COUGH MIXTURE for COLDS > DAVIES'S COUGH MIXTURE for ASTHMA DAVIES'S COUGH MIXTURE for BRONCHITIS DAVIES'S COUGH MIXTURE for HOARSENESS DAVIES'S COUGH MIXTURE for INFLUENZA DAVIES'S COUGH MIXTURE for COLDS DAVIES'S COUGH MIXTURE for COUGHS DAVIES'S COUGH MIXTURE for SORE THROAT DAVIES'S COUGH MIXTURE-Most Soothing DAVIES'S COUGH MIXTURE warms the Chest DAVIES'S COUGH MIXTURE dis solves the Phlegm DAVIES'S COUGH MIXTURE for SINGERS DAVIES'S COUGH MIXTURE—for PUBLIC DAVIES'S COUGH MIXTURE SPEAKERS THE GREAT WELSH REMEDY. 13kd. and 2 9 Bottles. Sold EveryjJtere. K Sweeter than Honey. Children like it. HUGH DAVIES, Chemist, MACHYHLLETH. THE MOST NUTRITIOus. E P P S'S GRATEFUL-COMFORTING. COCOA BREAKFAST AND SUPPER. •SHMxana 'iHrltfllfl BRIffi ■frxsoii nxxaxvofio QjUVOU MM<kPg( -mi} ucptafind tin; pirn attun? jo id) JO "ji X«|d sua ajant y 'aadiatuoQ tawqx«M '•aiiupvnh 'Mry jvrndoa 'mroifH IHEmMHK "81tPUJ.I.m id) JO "ji .I"le! sua ajant y 'aadiatuoQ tawqx«M '•aiiupvnh 'Mry jvrndoa 'mroifH IHEmMHK A MARVELLOUS GUINEA PARCEL Cor.ta,;nin(/ 1 Pair White Witney Blanket*. V lbs. weight 2i long Dy If wide 1 White Under Blanket, whippy both ende, long by 3{ wide 1 Handsome Mosaic design Quih fast colouxs, 3 long by 2J vide I Handsome Mosaic doodim Quilt Pair Heavy Twill Sheets, 2* by •nd S Cotton Pillow Cases,. Fnu Siie, Buttoned XaOa. WEIGHT SUPEBIOB QUALITY A1IQJ FDIIf;IJ. Estab. over &itt Carriage Paid on rtttipt 100 Years. of P.O.O. BROOKRELD'S, Market so., STAFFORD

DARKENING. "j' -< -f"n, [If any reader who is in difficulty with reference to his garden, will write direct to the ad- dress given benesth, his queries will be an swered, free of charge, and by return 07 POST, —EDITOR]. Some correspondents omit to add their names, or merely end with initials. In these cases it is obviously impossible to reply.—E.K.T. SOWING SEEDS. GENERAL. It is now very fit and proper time to con- sider the sowing of seeds, so M> to have the re- quisite information at one's finger ends before z;1 the actual sowing season begins. STRATIFICATION. Some seeds are contained in hard, bony coverings, and require to lie in the ground for a lontr time before germination is effected. Nature sows some seeds as soon as they are ripe, to prevent them from becoming hardened, aslthey would do if allowed to dry. The same end is attained by placing the seeds in the soil during autumn, so that the winter moisture may be utilised to soften their hard coats, though, as mice are often troublesome, strati. iication in pots, boxes, &c, is preferable. Stratification is the term applied to the em- bedding of sf eds in permanently moist, sandy soil, or course sand, to hasten germination. A box, pot, or other convenient receptacle is selected, and partially filled with a layer of cinders or hot-sherds, to Insure perfect drain- age. This is covered with a thick layer of sand, on which the seeds are spread out singly, before being covered with another layer of sand, on which more seeds are put, and so on. Since free ventilation is necessary, four layers of seed and sand are enough, and the layers of sand should be only about two inches thick. The stratified seeds, which may be stood in a cellar, or even under a warm wall where pro tection can be given during frost, should be kept constantly moist, without being too damp. The time at which stratification must be com- menced depends. ,f course, upon the length of time the particular kind of seed to be treated takes to germinate, because it is not desirable that the young planes shall have giown out much before being transferred to the open. Some gardeners prefer to bury the stratified seeds, until the following spring, about 18 inches deep in a well drained sandy slope. THE SOIL. The soil for pots and pans, in which seed is to be sown, must allow of perfect drainage, with- out drying up too rapidly. A compost of leaf- mould, peat, or turf loam and sharp sand answers admirably, as, indeed, will any good potting soil, admixed with about one third its bulk of very sandy loam, or of course silver sand. A really good soil should fall apart after being pressed in the hand. DRAINAGE. All seed pans and pots must be thoroughly drained with pot sherds or other coarse mater- ial and this layer may be covered with dead sphagnum moss, on which is first placed the coarse siftings, the finest of the soil being kept for the top DEPTH OF SOWING. The depth of sowing of seeds is regulated by the necessity of covering them with just enough soil to keep them moist, without preventing free access of the oxygen of the atmosphere, so that the thickness of covering depends upon the size of the seeds and the porosity of the soil. When the seedlings will not be transplanted, it is, of course, necessary to take into considera- tion the fixing of the plants firmly in the soil. Out of doora a depth of two inches is enough for sunflower and other vigorously growing seeds, while medium sized and small seeds need a covering of from I to I inch. Seeds sown in pots can be covered with a layer of fine soil I from i to inch in depth, but, generally speak- 2 ing, it is sufficient to cover them with about their own thickness of mould. Minute seeds, such as Erica, Calceolaria, Gesnera, Achimenes, Mimulus, Lobelia, Begonia, Primula, Gloxinia, Carnation, etc., and spores of ferns germinate best if sown on the surface of well drained pots of compost, pressed down witk aflat board, and then plunged into a shallow tray of tepid water until the whole of the soil becomes moist, when the pot or pan may be covered with a sheet of glass to prevent evaporation, and placed in heat or in a c ol frame, according to the outside temperature and the hardiness of the species of plants. TEMPERATURE OF GERMINATION. All hardy and half-hardy plant seeds germi. nate freely in a temperature of fiom 50 to 60 degrees, while those of warm greenhouse I species require a temperature of from 65 to II 80 degrees, and stove plants from 80 to 95 degrees. THICK SOWING. Not only is seed wasted J)y too thick sowing, but the growth of the seedlings is injured by their having to compete with one another for air and food, so that thin sowing should be i a 1 variably practised. EXCESS OF MOISTURE. Excess of moisture is responsible for the rot- ting of many seeds. Indeed, by preventing the free access of the oxygen of the atmosphere, too much water is as injurious as too deep sowing. As a rule, the smaller the seeds the less moisture thay need and it is always more advisable to retain the original soil-moisture by preventing evaporation with sheets of glass or paper, or with light litter, than to water seed-beds frequently, and so cause them to be. come caked. Very small seeds mast not be actually watered, the necessary moisture being supplied to them by standing the pot or pan in a shallow vessel of water for a time, as pre- viously advised. METHOD OF SOWING. For ordinary garden crops, drilling is much preferable to broad-casting, because it permits of the ground being stirred and hoed earlier and more expeditiously. The distance between drills must, of course, be regulated by the space necessary to afford the foliage of plants abund- ant light and air if they are not all to be trans- planted. AQUATIC PLANT SEEDS. Seeds of those aquatic plants that have to be sown in ponds must be placed in balls of clay and dropped into the water. SHADING. Seeds that are sown in frames and pits re- quire shading during the heat of bright days, especially during late spring and summer. EARLY TREATMENT. When once the seedlings have appeared, the operation of pricking out must be effected as early as possible. Indeed, the welfare of the plants depends largely on early and bold thin- ing and transplanting. DAMPING OFF. Damping off is a fungous disease common to young seedlings and cuttings. The stems be- come brown and contracted near the surface of the soil, and in a very short time they rot and fall over. This ailment is much encouraged by a moist, close atmosphere, crowding and care- less watering; and plants are peculiarly sus- ceptible to damping off when only sufficient water is given to keep the surface moist, whiie the under-soil remains dry. At the first symp- tom of the trouble, admit air freely, and prick out the seedlings. THE CULTURE OF LILIES IN POTS. GENERAL. Lilies are probably the most beautiful of all bulbous plants, their stately habits variously 1 coloured flowers, and, in many cases, delightful perfume make them indispensible for green- house and border decoration. Nearly all the species are hardy in well drained soils. As early as the bulbs can be obtained,| partially cover them singly in well drained pots about half filled with lifrht soil, placing a little pounded charcoaluuder the !n«e and round the scales of each bulb. A light syringing will occasionally be necessary to suppy moisture until roots are formed and top growth commences, when the wots should be filled up. If a shift become ne- cessary, re-pot, the bulbs deeply. • Supply liquid manure towards flowering time, but discontinue the applications as the blossoms expand. Abundant water and air must be admitted when growth is fairly started. Ripen off the plants in the open air, a cool shed or under the benches after flowering, re-pot in autumn, and store for the winter in a cool, moderately dry place. v E. KEIP TOOGOOD, FIR.H.S., pro Toogood and Sons, The Hoyal Seed Establishment, Southampton.

The chemical composition of the epidermis of the heel is nearly the same as that of the, mat. ter of nails, horns, and hoofs. A WINNER. He wrote a catchy drinking song, The best of all by far, 'Twas bound to win, because«it hp,.i.. A stop at every bar.

ORDER OF THE BATH. G.C.B.'s.—Sir Hugh Owen, K.C.B.; and Sir Charles Lennox Peel, K.C.B. Jv.C.B.—Mr. Carey Knyvett, C.B.; Mr. Henry Primrose, C.B., C.S.I.; Professor William Chandler Roberts Austin, C.B., F.R.S.: and Mr. Edward Win-field, C.B. O.JVs.—Mr.. Charles Alderson Mr. Jasper Bad- cock Mr. Robert H. Boyce Mr. Evelyn Ruggles Bricn; Sir Charles Cameron, M.D.; Mr. Henry Lieut-Colonel Arthur Collins, M.V.O.; The I-loii. Sidney Greville; Mr. Frederick John Jackson Mr. John J. Jones Mr. Walter Langley; Mr. H. W. Sinipkinson; Mr. John Steele; and Mr. George Wilson.

REINFORCEMENTS FOR THE CAPE GARRISON. A draft 315 strong of the 1st Battalion Royal Berkshire Regiment stationed in Portsmouth left on Saturday morning by special train for Southampton, en route for South Africa, to join the 2nd Battalion. Before leaving the men were in- spected by General Sir Baker Russell, and though Battalion. Before leaving the men were in- spected by General Sir Baker Russell, and though rain falling heavily, the troops had a hearty send oil by their comrades and friendsin the garrison. Messrs. Donald Currie and Co. s steamer AVODÜale Castle sailed in the afternoon for Cape Town. She embarked four officers, 331 men of all ranks, nine women, and 16 children, the principal draft being I the above-mentioned one of the Royal Berkshire Regiment, from Portsmouth for East London. Major Ackin King, 5th Lancers, was in command.

NEW JUDGE. I Her Majesty has been pleased to approve of the name of Mr. Thomas Townsend Bucknill. Q.C., to be a Judge of the High Court, in the room of Sir Henry Hawkins, resigned. Mr. Bucknill is the second son of the late Sir J. C. Bucknill, M.D., F.R.S., of East Cliff House, Bournemouth, by Marv- anne, only child of the late Mr. Thomas Townsend. of Hillmorton Hall, Warwickshire. He was born in 1845, and, after being educated at Westminster and Geneva, he was called to the Bar in November, 1868, at the Inner Temple, and chose the Western Circuit, on which he has since enjoyed a. considerable practice both as a junior and as a leader. He took silk in 1885 and was appointed to the recordership ot Exeter in the same year, while in 1891 he was elected a Bencher of his Inn. Much of his time at the Bar was devoted to the Admiralty Court of which he was one of the acknowledged leaders, and that he was looked upon as an authority on the law of shipping may be gathered from the facts that for some years he has acted as one of the consulting counsel to the Shipping Federation and edited the last edition of A bbot on Shipping." He first entered Parliament in 1892, when he was elected as a Conservative for the Mid or Epsom Division of Surrey, defeating the Hon. T. A. Brassev by a majority of nearly 3000, and at the last general election lie was returned for the same constituency unopposed. Having his residence near Epsom, Mr. Bucknill has taken a considerable part in local affairs and served as a county alderman from 1889 to 1892. He is married to a daughter of the late Mr. H. B. Ford, of Clifton, Gloucestershire

A WOMAN'S PLEA Mrs. Randall Davidson, wife of the Bishop of Win- chester, speaking at the opening of a girls' club at Aldershot, in connection with refuge and preventive work, insisted on the necessity of showing the attrac- tiveness of goodness. She said she wished everything in connection with the club to be bright and delightful. Those interested in it. wanted to give the girls that might go there the same fun as they would give their own daughters or sisters; to let them have just as much enjoyment and pleasure as it was possible tc give, and yet, all the time, be aiming at what was highest and best. Goodness was so often made deadly dull. They wanted the girls who came to that club to find joy and goodness, and spread it all over the town.

EXTRAORDINARY RUN WITH THE! MID-KENT STAGHOUNDS. The Mid-Kent Staghounds had a record run on Wednesday. They met at Harrietsham for an out- lying deer, and found it at half-past twelve. The quarry took them at a fast pace through the cream of the Bickham country on to Lynsted, Provender, Syndale, and Ospringe, and thence to Faver- sham. After skirting the town the deer jumped a high wall at the laundry, and then made for the waterworks. He then took refuge in the reservoir, and was then captured in the water. The run occupied exactly four hours, almost without a check. At the finish the hounds, only a couple short, were 30 miles from home. Only five members of the hunt finished. The horses and riders were thoroughly done up, but the hounds, although tired, were very fit.

DUKE AND DUCHESS OF MARLBOROUGH AT WOODSTOCK. The Duke and Duchess of Marlborough took part in a triple function at Woodstock on Wednesday. In the first place the duchess formally opened the new Council Chamber and reading room which have been constructed in the Arcade under the Town Hall, her Grace receiving a silver key as a memento of the occa- sion. The duke was afterwards presented with the honorary freedom of the borough on the motion, of the, Major, Mr. John Banbury, seconded by Alderman Clarke. The certificate of freedom which was handed to his Grace was beautiful!}' engrossed and illuminated. The duke suitably replied. Sub- sequently the Mayor gave a reception in the Town Hall, at which Mr. Charles Kusel, on behalf of the Royal Federation of Firemen of Belgium, presented the duchess with the badge of the ladies' order of the federation which has been recently created, and the numbers of which are limited to 25. The duchess is the first recipient.

MADMAN ON THE HOUSETOP At Plymouth on Wednesday, James Crabb was charged with being a wandering lunatic. He is a sea- faring man of burly physique, who sustained a sun- stroke when abroad and whose mind suffers occa- sional derangements. He mounted the roof of his house from a garret-window, and commenced a series of antics which soon caused the street to be crammed with people alarmed for his safety. He walked about the roaf like a cat, and displayed his ability as a sure-footed climber with evident pride. He then commenced to divest himself of his clothing, and sat down on the chimney-stack, which was smoking. This gave way, and a number of bricks and a quantity of mortar fell into the street beneath. Half a dozen constables of the Plymouth Police-force came on the scene and used every means to induce him to leave such a dangerous posi- tion. Ladders being mounted at the front and back walls, the man commenced crossing the roofs of the whole of the houses on the one side of the street, going from chimney to chimney in a most alarming manner. He had several narrow escapes. After over an hour and a-half he, of his own accord, climbed down the ladders erected at the rear of his premises, and was taken away to the police-station. On a promise not to repeat his conduct he was dis- charged.

A TELEGRAM from Vienna states that 20,000 Turks have now left Crete. A MAN was fined EIOO for an offence against the Licensing Laws in the Rhondda Valley on Wednes- day. NEXT month her Majesty the Queen will open a new children's wing of the Royal Isle of Wight County Hospital. BY a fire at the North Yorkshire residence of the Hon. H. Fitzwilliam, damage to the extent of C3000 has been done. THE estate of Harry Pleon, the music hall artist, with unsecured debts £672, went into bankruptcy on Wednesday. A SERIOUS mutiny has broken out in a reformatory at Aniane, near Paris, owing, it is alleged, to the ill- treatment of the inmates.

THE DOWAGER DUCHESS OF SUTHERLANDS JEWELS. William Johnson, 46. described as a dealer, Sleaded "Guilty' on Wednesday, before Mr. fcConnell, at the County of London Sessions at -Clerkenwell, to an indictment for feloniously having in his possession without lawful excuse a quantity of jewellery, the property of Mary Caroline Sutherland, Duchess Dowager of Sutherland, which had been stolen outside the.United Kingdom. Mr. R. D. Muir, who appeared for the prosecution on behalf of the Treasury, said the charge was framed under the Larceny Act, 1896. On October 7 the Duchess Dowager of Sutherland was leaving Paris for England, starting from the Gare du Nord. At. the station her jewel case was put upon the seat of a compartment in a cor- ridor carriage by her maid. The duchess got in and put her purse and some other things beside it. Then, seeing a friend on the platform, she left the carriage and stood talking with him for a few moments with her back to the train. It was now clear that while she was doing so some person must have entered the carriage and carried oil her parse and her jewel case, which contained jewellery of the value of at least 925,000. She did not discover her loss, however, until after the train had started, and she and her husband. Sir Albert Rollit. M.P., who was with her. got out at the next station and tele- graphed to tlit, polke in London and Paris. These were all the facts as far as the robbery itself was concerned. It appeared that a woman, who real name he did not desire to give, as she was ¡ in fact married to a gentleman of blameless character, but who was passing as a Mrs. Ronald, had met the prisoner in April last at an hotel in I Brighton, and had been living with him since then in Brighton. London, and at various places on the Continent. The prisoner was absolutely penniless I and without occupation, but she was a woman of means, and she supported him and supplied him with money. About the end of September she separated from him after the last of numerous quarrels between them. After the date of the robbery she received a letter from him saying that he now had aU she required, and asking her to go back to him. She did not answer the letter, but about October 17 he saw her in a cab in Paris and followed her to her rooms. He there showed her a quantity of jewellery, saying that it was stolen, and that it belonged to the Duchess of Sutherland. She was so fascinated with the sight of it that she partly made friends with the prisoner again, and wore some of it that night, giving it back to him in the morning. While they were in Paris a French police officer came into Mrs. Ronald s room one day while the prisoner was sitting there with the stolen jewellery in his pocket, but, according to her evidence, he only gaped at the prisoner and went away again. About October 22 the prisoner and Mrs. Ronald came to England, separately, and the prisoner seemed to know exactly*what to do with a class of stolen property which ordinary persons would have found it exceed- ingly difficult to get rid of. On October 28 he went to a man named Levy, who called himself a general dealer, and whom he found in Duke's-place, Hounds- ditch. which, according to Levy, was a known market for diamonds. He gave Levy eight bril- liant cut diamonds, a large pearl, a large emerald, and two larger brilliants, asking him to have them made up for him as a ring, a pin. and a stud. Levy, who had known him for some months under the name of Jackson, but who knew nothing else whatever about him, accepted this valuable properly from him without giving him a receipt, and had the articles made up by a man named Headland, and afterwards gave them to the prisoner. It wns also found, by tracing certain bank notes which had be< >i in the prisoner's possession, that on October 24 he received a cheque for from a man mined Hinton, which lie had changed into notes at Hinton's bank. Hinton kept the Bruwn Bear public-house in Worship-street, but he was also engaged in business in Hatton-gardens, lie said ns a makei* of glass- letters. Hinton's account of the matter was that-tlie- prisoner came into his bar one day and produced £ 503 in gold from his pocket and asked him to give him a cheque for that amount. Hinton. who knew nothing of him except that his name was Jones, and that he drank a good deal of whisky and eham- pagne at the house, gave him a cheque for the money. Another person who assisted in dispos- ing of the stones was a man named Faulkner, I a jeweller. Faulkner had known the prisoner for five years, but only by the name of Harry. and he was. in fact, known to the police as Harry the Valet.' Faulkner had some of the stones made up for the prisoner into earrings. a pin. and a stud, and, curiously enough, he sent them to be made up to the same workman, Head- land. who had made up the others. Meanwhile, on October 27, Mrs. Ronald had, on the advice of her sister, gone to Scotland-yard and given information about the robbery, and on October 31 the prisoner called on her at Brighton, and she told him what she had done. She called him a thief, and said she wished to have no more to do with him. There was a violent quarrel, and he struck her. It was unnecessary to follow his further wanderings, but he finally came to a house in Fulham, where lie lodged with the woman who kept the house and a friend of hers. He was traced there by the police, and found with £ 800 worth of the stolen jewellery in his possession. It was obvious from the prisoner's past career that he was a skilled thief who did not waste his time on small matters. In LS91 he was sentenced to four months' hard labour for stealing a pocket-book at the Holborn Restaurant from a diamond merchant, which, fortunately, contained only a C5 note. In 1896 he underwent six months' imprisonment for stealing a dressing case containing property worth £ 30 at Charing-cross Railway Station and he was after- wards tried and acquitted at this court on a charge of attempting to steal a pocket-book from another diamond merchant at the Grosvenor Restaurant. He then went to Monte Carlo, and was imprisoned for 15 months for stealing bank notes from a gentleman there. For the last five years he had been under the observation of the most experienced detectives at railway stations and other places, and it said more for his skill than theirs that nothing had come of that observation. Mr. Geoghegan. for the prisoner, with him Mr. Percival Hughes, said that unfortunately for the prisoner he became infatuated with the woman who had been called Mrs. Ronald. He had a serious quarrel with her and afterwards lie was by chance at the station when the Duchess of Sutherland and her party arrived. lie saw the jewel case placed on the seat, .nd thought if he could steal it lie might be able to return to Mrs. Ronald and make up the quarrel with her. It was not, as had been stated in the papers, a preconcerted robbery by a gang of Con- tinental thieves who had been watching the duchess for days, but the prisoner acted on a sudden tempta- tion. Mr. McConnell: I see that, according to the depo- sitions, he said. If you want to get anything, you must get round the maid." Mr. Geoghegan said that that statement only rested on the word of Mrs. Ronald, which ought not- to be accepted unless it was corroborated, and there was absolutely no imputation to be cast upon the cha- racter of the maid. Mr. Muir proposed that sentence should be post- poned, to give the prisoner an opportunity of re- vealing what had become of the rest of the stolen property. Mr. Geoghegan said he had explained the prisoner's position to him, but he was afraid a post- ponement would not lead to any information being given. Mr. McConnell said that the prisoner might think differently after he had time for reflection. Mr. Grain, who appeared for the Dowager Duchess of Sutherland, said he was asked to state publicly that every inquiry bad been made, and not the slightest ground was found for supposing that the duchess's maid had anything to do with the robbery. Mr. Geoghegan added that the prisoner said be had never seen the maid in his life. Mr. MoConnell said he should postpone sentence until next sessions.