Monmouthshire Merlin

"You just look out," said an affectionate aunt to her graceless nephew, not to carry any of the follies of your youth into old age, because your old a<te will be sure to have follies enough of its own. °A United States senator, noted for inebriety, consulted a friend aB to what character he should assume at a masquerade ball. Oh, said the friend, "don't go disguised, but assume a new character—go sober."—American paper. An old citizen, in a country village, Deing asked for a subscription toward repairing the fence ol the gravevard, declined, saying: "I subscribed toward improvin' that buryin' ground nigh ontc forty year ago, and my family hain't had no benefit from it yet." The difference," said the Professor of Natura; History, between these fossil remains which ] show you here, and the lap dogs which thos< ladies in the audience are now fondling, is this. These fossil remains are petrified bones, and those lap dogs are bona fide pets." (Great cheering bj the students.)

THE DOUBLE MURDER IN NORFOLK. On October 25th, the prisoner Henry March was brought before the Earl of Kimberley and other magistrates, for final examination on the charge of wilfully murdering his master, Mr. Thos. Mays, and his fellow workman, Henry Didewell. Thepri- soner when first brought up, betrayed considerable emotion, which he soon suppressed, and then coolly listened to the evidence, and occasionally instructed his solicitor to ask questions of the witnesses. The witnesses were few in number, and their evidence disclosed substantially the same facts as have been already reported. Mr. Mays' housekeeper, in cross-examination, said the prisoner and Didewell frequently quarrelled, and on one occasion they fought, and the prisoner left his employment for a day or two in consequence. Prisoner stated to the Deputy Chief Constable that Didewell first knocked him down and then took up an iron bar to strike him, but he got it away from him and used it in his own defence. He further expressed regret that he had struck his master. The magis- trates fully committed him for trial on both charges of murder. He will be tried at the Winter Assizes to be held at Ipswich.

MR. SPURGEON ON VOLUNTARYISM. Speaking at a public meeting held on October the 25th at his brother's (the Rev. J. A. Spur- geon) chapel at West Croydon, Mr. Spu^geon re- ferred to the recent Church Congress. Many of the gentlemen, he said, who had lately adorned the streets of Croydon had manifested a fear which kept them quiet and well behaved, the one to the other, at their conference-that if they quar- relied and disruption ensued, they would have to resort to the horrible voluntary principle, and trust to the free-will offerings of the people. He was Bure they laboured under that great dread. Non- conformists, however, did not find much difficulty as to the cost of washing their surplices. His own expenses in that direction had never been very great; they could usually afford to appear in clean li aen-respect able and decent. The Church of England, too, had managed to exist without its church rates; nay, from the moment of their abolition she had seemed to re- ceive new spiritual life; and if they lived long enough to see her other false props knocked away he would prognosticate for her what had taken place in the Irish Church— she would become more vigorous and powerful than she had ever been; all that was good and had life and force in it would still maintain itself without dependence upon the State. Sarcastically hinting at the fact of his brother's goods having been taken under an execution levied for tithes by the Vicar of Croydon, he said he could not en- joy bread to pay for which other people had been taxed.

■ — BISHOP ELLICOTT ON THE CHURCH'S FUTURE. The Bishop of Gloucester speaks in a very desponding tone of the Church's future. Her in- ternal dissensions, and the lawless spirit which animates so many of her clergy, fill him with alarm. It would be idle to deny that he has grounds for his anxiety. But that is all the more reason why some such suggestion as the Bishop of Peterborough's should be taken into serious con- sideration. The Ridsdale judgment, we must re- member, only professes to be the more probable of two interpretations in a case confessedly most difficult. And it would certainly be satisfactory if some more direct mode of ascertaining the mind of the Church of England at the present day could be contrived. If it is wanted only in the interests of the weaker brethren, that is quite sufficient reason. But as for secret societies and auricular confession, which alarm the Bishop so much, they are hardly more than skin deep, and, unwhole- some as they are, can hardly have done much as yet to undermine the Church's health. They are con- fined, moreover, to a small minority of the clergy, nor do these number in their ranks many men of intellect or learning. The real danger to the Church lies in the determined self-will of that infatuated bodv which would rather see the Church disestablished than one little crotchet of their own condemned or forbidden. These are the men who justify the Bishop's anxiety; and who, if the Church is destroyed, will be her murderers. But the Church of England has survived worse langers than this. Nor do we believe that the temper of the English nation is at all inclined to such a solution of our ecclesiastical difficulties as .he separation between Church and State. We ilee no evidence of such a temper. On the con- trary, it is far more common among persons who sare little enough about the religious difficulty to meet with disapproval of the underhand man- tier in whish the Establishment is assailed than with any recognition of the wrongs which its ex- istence is supposed to perpetuate. While this is the case the Church can be in no great danger, whatever the turbulence and unpopularity of a small section of the clergy.-Standard.

IMPORTANT SPEECH BY M. GAMBETTA. PARIS, Oct. 25 (Evening).—The following is a summary of an important speech delivered by M. Gambetta, at Chateau Clemon, in support of M. Juienen, one of the 363:—He attacked the conduct of the Ministry in the last elections, and, after pointing out the results of the act of the ICth of May, said; "France has replied to the minority which dismissed the majority in the last Chamber, 1 My policy, the laws I wish adopted, the adminis- tration 1 claim, and the functionaries I requiro are those of that majority.' I affirm that with- out the pressure which has been exercised at the elections, there would not have been only 330 Republican deputies, but a Chamber which would have been almost unanimously Republican. Yes, without fraud and rob- bery, the figure 400 which had been prognosti- cated would have been exceeded. We shall shortly see on which side are found the probity and honour of Fiance." M. Gambetta then at- tacked the Empire, which had always given back France smaller than it had received from her. He expressed surprise that the old Monarchical parties, which were composed of men of honour and honesty, and who had always fought against the oppressive attempts of Caesarism, should have hidden their flag behind the flag of the Empire. It was necessary to react against these profitless illusions. He considered that, gra- dually, as the Republic became installed and strengthened, by the very benefits which it could and ought to procure for Democracy without diminishing legitimate influences and truly na- tional traditions, every one would be able to take his place as a good servant of the country. He added, When persons entertain hopes which cannot be realised they would do better to keep them in the secret recesses of their hearts, and conduct themselves always in conformity with political truth, and the reality of things. This alliance will be concluded when the wish is ex- pressed-when the persons exasperated by the con- flicts of the tribune of the press shall be appeased. Perhaps in this very plaoe this rapprochement may commence. I most disinterestedly desire it." M. Gambetta defended universal suffrage, pointed out the necessity of education, and showed the importance of the voting paper which pronounced a sovereign decision, as to the good or evil which would follow. He added: "Rural electors, the day you vote you govern; you are the masters. The Republic we desire is a Republic of order, progress, reflection, and general interests. We have a horror of agitation. We do not seek trouble or disorder, and we do not wish to carry on a policy of caste. I am a man of order, but not a man who courts power for power's sake, nor am I the enemy of those who govern France. I am ,.tie enemy of no one; but I am the foe of un- healthy ideas, and of despotism whatever be its yuise. We have not invented the spectre of clericalism. That unfortunately exists. I have never attacked religion or its ministers when they have confined themselves to the sphere of religious morality and sentiment." M. Gambetta con- cluded as follows:—"Have confidence in the majority which is about to re-enter upon its func- tions. It is resolved to do its duty—its entire duty, and will know how to make the authority of France prevail without exceeding the bounds of legality."

THE NEW LORD JUSTICE. We understand that the Hon. Alfred Henry Thesiger, Q.C., has been appoir ted to be a Lord Justice of the High Court of Appeal, in the place of Lord Justice Amphlett, who has resigned. Mr Thesiger, who is the son of Lord Chelmsford, was born in 1838, and was educated at Christ Church, Oxford, where he graduated B.A. in 1860. He was called to the bar at the Inner Temple in 1862, and was created a Queen's Counsel in 1873.-Times.

Lord Leconfield has given a sum of £ 15,000 towards the maintenance of the Church of Ireland in the County of Clare. Summonses against about a score of book- makers who ply their business on stands sur- mounted by coloured umbrellas on racecourses having been taken out by the Staffordshire police, two cases were heard last week, at Elford, when Samuel Stokes, of Birmingham, and J. Adamson, of Bilston, were fined Y,5 each for offences under the Betting Act, committed at the recent Lichfield meeting. REFUSING TO TAKE WINE.-The.re was a noble youth who, on being urged to take wine at the table of a famous statesman at Washington, had the moral courage to refuse. He was a poor young man, just beginning the struggle of life. He brought letters to the great statesman, who kindly invited him home to dinner. "Not take a glass of wine?" said the great statesman, in wonder- ment and surprise. "Not one single glass of wine?" echoed the statesman's beautiful and fasci- nating wife, as she rose, glass in hand, and with a grace that would have charmed an anchorite, en- deavoured to press it upon him. No," replied the heroic youth, resolutely, gently repelling the proffered glass. What a picture of moral grandeur was that! A poor, friendless youth refusing wine at the table of a wealthy and famous statesman, even though proffered by the fair. hands of a beautiful lady. No," said the noble young man, his voice trembling a little and hia cheek flushed, -1 I never drink wine; but"—here he straightened himself up and his words grew firmer—"if you have a little good old rye whisky, I don't mind trying a snifter!"—American paper. A SCOTCH HORSE DEALER AND HIS MONEY.—In the course of a proof taken by Sheriff Dove Wilson, Aberdeen, an amusing explanation was given by one of the witnesses, a hawker and horse dealer, for not putting his money in bank. He could not write, he said, and he could not read writing, and receipts for money (he was being examined as to a receipt) were of no use to him, except to I licht" his pipe. He once put his money into the bank, but he would see them far enough "afore" he did that again. On being asked why he objected to banking his money, his reply was, "Oh, weel, ye see. I put in the JE50, and nae very lang after I cam' into the toon and got on the spree, without my wife kennin'—(laughter)—an' in I goes for my money, but they wadna gie m't because I couldna sign, unless I had two witnesses. So says I to them, says I, Faith ye'll nq play that pliskie on me again'—(laughter)—an' the deil a bawbee hare they gotten frae me since." (Much laughter.) On being further asked if he had taken the JE50 out, his reply, with an emphatic and significant shake of the head, was, "Of coorse I did." WAGNER'S ORCHESTRA AT BATREUTH.—There are in this wonderful and most perfect machine thirty- two violins, twelve violas, twelve violoncellos, eight double basses, four flutes, four oboes, one English horn, three clarionets, one bass clarionet, four bassoons, one contra-fagotto, seven horns, four tenor and bass tubas, three trumpets, one bass trumpet, four trombones, one double-bass trombone, one double-bass tuba, eight harps, and the usual number of drums. As may be imagined by connoisseurs, this orchestra is, above all, rich in the volume and majesty of its base, the six- teen-feet tone" brass and wood instruments helping to produce effects of the highest grandeur; but at the same time the balance is as perfect as anything can be. As for the unity, precision, and delicacy of its playing, one can easily suppose that the finest artists of Germany, under such a conductor as Hans Ricter, and with unlimited opportunities for rehearsal, leave nothing to desire. But, as a matter of fact, the Wagner orchestra does more than meet bare requirements it oppresses the ear and mind, so to say, with a sense of full and ripe perfection. Difficult though the music be, the tide of sound rolls on with unbroken smooth- ness, reflecting lights and shades with infinite delicacy from its surface; while the fact that it streams upwards from a hidden source impresses the imagination to an extent not dreamed of, per- haps, either by Wagner or by Gretry before him. —" Letters from Bayreuth," h J. Bennet. DISTRESSING DEATH OF A FRENCH COUNT.—Mr. St. Clare Bedford held an inquiry at Soho, last week, into the circumstances attending the death of Monsieur le Comte de Lally Tolendal, aged 65, who was found dead in the coal cellar of the house 65, Dean street, Soho. Alexander Chevalier, of the Society Bienfaisance, said that he knew the deceased, who had latterly been a pensioner of the society, and received the loaves nearly every morning. He never asked for them, was apparently too well bred actually to beg, but witness made him up a parcel and gave it each time he came, which the deceased acknowledged with a bow, and then left. Witness had under- stood that he was entitled to £120,000 on the death of a relative, but that he dared not go back to France. Did not, however, know if he was a political refugee. He always appeared ill, and was very thin and emaciated. Occasionally he visited a rich English gentleman, and was not then seen for some days, but he always turned up after the lapse of a week or two, and was ap- parently as poor as ever, but never owned it, studiously keeping his place of residence to him- self. He was a thoroughly sober man, and a most courtly gentleman. Sarah Clarke, a charwoman, deposeq, that she told the deceased that he looked ill, upon which he "drew himself up and said, I Yes, yes; I must go and see my physician. She found him dead in bed on October 24th, and sent for the doctor. Dr. Saville deposed that death had resulted from disease of the heart and semi-starvation. The place where he lay was a mere cellar, and totally unfit for human habita- tion. Mr. Green, the coroner's officer, said in all his experience, which was very large, he had never come across a worse case, and he thought the sanitary authorities ought at once to take steps to disinfect the place. It here transpired that the sanitary officer was on the jury, and he rose and protested against what had been said, but eventually he a, confessed that he had not seen it for six months. After some strong remarks against the sanitary committee of the parish, the jury returned a verdict in accordance with the medical testimony

RETIREMENT OF TR A. BUCHANAN. Sir A. Buchanan is about to retire on his well- earned pension, and will be s^cjeoded in the Em- bassy "at Vienna by Sir Henry Elliot.

MR. COBBETT AND THE CLAIMANT. Mr. Cobbett applied before Mr. Justice Lopes, on Wednesday, to show cause why a writ of habeas corpus should not be issued to bring up the Tich- borne claimant. The motion was refused.

LORD BEACONSFIELD AND THE MANCHESTER CONSERVATIVES. Mr. J. W. Maclure has received the following letter from the Earl of Beaconsfield, in reply to the resolution passed at the annual meeting of (the Manchester Conservative Association, held at the Free Trade Hall on the 11th inst.:—"10, owning street. Whitehall, Oct. 22, 1877.-Dear Mr. Maclure,—1 have had the honour to receive n expression of continued approval on the part of the members of the Manchester Conservative ssociation of the policy pursued by her Ma- jesty's Government in regard to foreign affairs, and desire, through you, to convey to those gen- tlemen my thanks for their confidence and sup- port.—I am, yours truly (signed), BEACONSFIELD.— John W. Maclure, Esq."

WIRE ROLLING EXTRAORDINARY. The Warrington Guardian reports that the Pear- son and Knowles Coal and Iron Company, of Warrington, have of late turned special attention to the rolling of exceptionally long lengths of wire rods for fencing and other purposes, and with this object have adopted Mr. J. J. Blackly's patent 'our high wire mill, the results obtained from vhich, both in length of rods and amount of work mrned out, are believed quite without precedent. Last week in two shifts of ten hours the extra- I )rdinary quantity of 40 tons 9 cwt. 2 qrs. of No. I finished puddled wire rods were rolled in this nill, the individual rods ranging in Weight rom 45 lb. to 70 lb. each, and the average pro- luction of the mill during the whole week was 18 ;ons 2 cwt. 2 qrs. of No. 4 iron per shift of ten lours. One distinguishing advantage obtained in ;his mill is, that in consequence of the arrange- nent of the mill only one-half the number of men isually employed are required.

THE HEROISM AT BLANTYRE. (From the London Telegraph.) We should ill discharge our duty if we made no •eference to the gallant fellows who throughout a ierrible day and night'f ought for the lives of their brethren against the most formidable agents of leath. A short time since the whole country looked on with pride and admiration while a little band of Welsh colliers showed all the qualities of the highest heroism. It is true that the con- ditions of the struggle at High Blantyre dif- fered somewhat from those at Pontypridd, but the danger in the one case was hardly less than that in the other. Every foot of ground between I the bottom of the shaft and the spot where the rescued miners lay was gained only at the cost of a hand-to-hand combat with an insidious and powerful foe. Time and again the brave deliverers were driven back, taking with them those of their number who had been stricken down. But the British miner can fight with as much strength and majesty as the British soldier. If one fall in th' imminent deadly breach," another coolly takes his place, and carries on the assault witll a sublime unconsciousness of any odds that may be against him. So it was at High Blantyre. When a disabled hero was brought to bank and care- fully covered with earth to free him from the influence of the poisonous gas, ten more were eager to descend into the depths and risk a simi- lar fate, or worse We are glad to think that there are thousands upon thousands of men in these islands who know that they themselves would have done the same had they been present. Yet few are able to realise the circumstances amid which the noble Scotchmen proved their bravery and devotion. A battle-field is ghastly enough, and its horrors might well appal those who look upon them. The soldier, however, has all the excitement of personal conflict, and sometimes a burning thirst for revenge, to sustain him; whereas in the High Blantyre mine the res- cuers struggled against an invisible foe, whose destructiveness was evidenced on every side in lliw inoot Kor-riblt) fvr1..Uo. The blJecta.cltl in the pit, we are told, was sickening, for along the sides of the gallery were strings of dead bodies, most of them as frightfully mangled as though the direst engines of modern warfare had been employed against them. Let us honour the men who so well achieved the victory of humanity amid scenes like these. The other day we paid a tribute of admiration to Welshmen, now it is Scotchmen who claim a like reward. Englishmen are equally proud of both, not less because they knew how to win victories like that of this week than for their historic courage in the tented field.

EDUCATION OF THE YOUNG. (From the Times.) We send the children to school and we keep them there; we teach them their letters and the elements of ciphering; we give them some smat- tering of history, geography, music, and a little grammar; but they have hitherto left school without sufficient intelligence to make a prac- tical use of these acquirements, and when they want to acquire technical education at a Me- chanics' Institute they have to begin with a renewal of their elementary instruction. It is certainly more than time that this grave de- fect was remedied; but we are disposed to think there are considerations to be taken into account which may afford us some encouragement. In the first place, the imperfect acquirements of our scholars have been due in great measure to their irregular attendance; and though this defect is now being rapidly remedied, the improvement has not yet had time to have much effect. It has yet to be shown that our present methods of teaching, if applied with due regularity, will be unequal to the task required of them. But we have also been work- ing hitherto at a disadvantage which diminishes year by year, but which has weighed very heavily upon our earlier efforts at education. What- ever instruction a child may receive at school, the standard of its intelligence and the energy it be- stows upon its studies are mainly dependent upon the disposition of its parents. After all, it passes fewer hours at school than at home; and if it finds that its father and mother seem chiefly to value school for the purpose of getting rid of it for part of the day, if it never hears any mention at home of the ideas which its teachers have been trying to instil into it, the impression made upon its mind by its lessons will easily be obliterated. If a child does not live in an atmosphere of some degree of intelligence, it will not, in ordinary cases, become intelligent. But until lately the scholars have, to a large extent, been the children of uneducated fathers and mothers, and the ideas of the school have been left behind within its walls. Every year lessens this difficulty, and in proportion as the scholars of the new gene- ration grow up into more intelligent parents may we expect the work done in our schools to become more and more efficacious. Nevertheless, these very disadvantages have probably reacted upon our system of teaching and upon our teachers; our elementary education has probablj been far Itoo mechanical, and has failed to cultivate duly the intelligence as distinguished from the mere memory of children. It may be doubted whether the remedy for this defect is to be sought so much in such an extension of the subjects of study as Mr. Forster seems to favour as in a wider and less pedantic study of the subjects already recognised. A little standard English j literature would probably go further to open the minds of children than such an elementary knowledge of the natural sciences as it is alone possible for them to acquire. The latter are the proper subjects for mechanics' institutes, and the schools would do better to leave them in the main to such institutions. But it is sufficient to have urged, as Mr. Forster has done, that the problem now pressing on us is that of improving the quality rather than the quantity of elementary education; and the solution will doubtless be soon discovered.

On Wednesday the crank of a newspaper train on the Great Western Railway broke between Acton and Ealing. Further delays were caused through the breakdown of a goods train. Traffic had to be worked on single line. THE JESUITS AND THE TEMPORAL POWER.—A correspondent at Rome telegraphs that Padre Curci, an ecclesiastic with great influence over the Neo-Catholics in Italy, is threatened with ex- pulsion from the Society of Jesus for advocating the surrender of the temporal power, and a reconciliation with the Italian Government.

MR. GLADSTONE IN IRELAND. With a reserve in contrast with the sp aneity 6f his utterances for the last couple of yeurs, Mr. Gladstone has refused to deliver speeches in Ire- land. One or two letters have b-en written, but thesa have been strictly limited to the ex- pression of his resolution not to be drawn into any public declarations on Irish questions. Perhaps Mr. Gladstone, who has certainly devoted more attention to Irish questions than any other public man of eminence, thinks the affairs of that part, of the kingdom will for the present derive most advantage from silence, and had better be left to the operation of causes now at work th'an be dragged into the arena of political controversy. The truth is that questions which come home to the individual interests and opinions of men of our own time, apart from special tastes or studies, cannot be dealt with by a states- man of Mr. Gladstone's prominence without becoming by this very fact part of the subject- matter of political controversy. It may be, again, that the late Prime Minister has come to think there are more difficulties in the settlement of Irish affairs than were taken account of in a famous scheme of policy enunciated at Wigan and now be- come a part of history; that he would prefer to see more of Ireland and await events before making further declarations on Irish affairs. What- ever the motives of this reticence, we rejoice that he has resolved to observe it, for, notwith- standing the power and eloquence he brings to bear on any subject he discusses, it is difficult to conceive any useful object which could be served by Mr. Gladstone's intervention just now in the controversies which occupy attention in the sister island. The speech at Trinity College, Dublin, is rather a happy illustration than a violation of the rule which he has laid down for himself. No- thing could be in better taste, both as regards what was said and what was left unsaid. The students of Dublin share the enthusiasm of their countrymen, and would insist on doing honour to the distinguished man who had come among them, and whom they recognised as the guest of the university authorities. It was idle to sug- gest that, though receiving attention from the heads of the university, he was making a private visit, and was entitled to the privileges of ob- scurity—as idle as to remind representatives of Trinity College that he was the destroyer of the Irish Church Establishment, the statesman who had volunteered to fell the upas tree of Protestant ascendency. He was an eminent public man whose talents they admired, and who had come to see the place they were proud of. Old quarrels were forgotten, and the youth of Protestant Trinity, as its adversaries delight to describe it, not only gave Mr. Gladstone a hearty welcome, but insisted that their welcome should be acknow- ledged. Certainly, the short address with which their guest responded to this appeal occupies a place of its own among "vacation speeches" for its complete appropriateness.-Times.

MORALITY OF MUSIC AND DANCING. In what consists the abstract wickedness of music and dancing? The question is well worth asking; since the authorities to whom a clumsy system of legislation has surrendered the control of the amusements of the people seem primarily imbued with a conviction that music is an im- moral art, and that dancing is a performance directly leading to perdition. A foreigner, read- ing the result of some recent applications for music and dancing licences to the magistrates at the Surrey Sessions might imagine that we were still ruled by the stern Puritans of the time of the Protectorate, and that our chief governors were such people as Captain Bind their kings in chains and their nobles- with-links-of-iron, Lieutenant Hew-Agag-in-pieces- before-the-Lord, and Praise-God Bare-bones. At the recent meeting of the Surrey sessions bench, a licence for music and dancing for a tavern in Trinity road, Wandsworth, was applied for. It was shown that there was no intention to turn the place into a music hall-what harm would there have been if such an intention existed?—and that the landlord only sought permission to have an oc- casional dance. The licence was refused. A similar fate met the petition for a music and dancing licence for a tavern at Tooting, and for a public- house at Dockhead, the landlord of which distinctly stated that he did not want to promote dancing, but that three clubs were held at his house, and that he simply wished to allow the members to have the facility of a pianoforte accompaniment when they sang songs, without being open to the risk of prosecution from the police. A like denial met the request for a music licence only for a skating rink which has been constructed at great expense, which has been visited during the last six months by more than sixty-five thousand per- sons, and the proprietor of which has received a testimonial from the respectable inhabitants of the neighbourhood, declaratory of the decorous manner in which the rink was conducted. It was expressly represented that no "sensational" entertainments would be given if the licence were granted, and that the most exciting perform- ances would be those of a brass band at a few flower shows during the summer. Summing up the list of refusals, we have again to ask—in what consists the wickedness of music and dancing? It is worth noticing that while the Surrey Rhada- manthuses were thus sternly discouraging har- mony and saltation, several licences were re- newed and many transfers were arranged." The bench, which pounced on the licensed victuallerf who craved permission to have a pianoforte and « dance now and then, smiled on the mere gin- seller. As it is in Surrey so it is in Middlesex. Innocent entertainments are systematically in- hibited by the magistracy, but local influence is rarely unsuccessful in obtaining the renewal or the transfer of licences for the most profligate dram- Bhops.—London Telegraph.

ENGLISH AND FRENCH RACEHORSES. (From the Daily News.) It is by no means improbable that the splendid success of Prince D'Arenberg's Jongleur in the Cambridgeshire Stakes will lead to a revivttl of the question already mooted by Lord Falmouth and one or two other members of the Jockey Club, concerning the admission of foreign horses to take part in English races. Four years ago another three-year-old belonging to the same owner as Jongleur won with a very heavy weight, and four years again before that See-Saw carried within two pounds of the impost BO gallantly borne to the front on the 23rd; but the performance of Jongleur stands out as unequalled, and fully entitles him to be considered the best horse of his year over a short course. Those who are in favour of the motion which Lord Falmouth was to have brought on, but which, for some reason or other, has been allowed to drop, will find additional arguments in the fact that the first and third places in the last great handicap of the season have been filled by foreigners, and that this same handicap has three times with in the last five years gone to France. It would be scarcely accurate to say that the more or less frequent success of the foreign horses affects the principle at stake, but the oftener they win the more probable does it seem that they are as capable of holding their own against our horses at home as they are of beating them when they are sent over here. If the English Jockey Club should ultimately decide to make the demand for reciprocity, it is difficult iio- see what valid objec- tions the managing bodies of the turf in other countries will be able to adduce, for while their horses are sent over here to compete.for thou- sands they cannot well refuse to let English horses run for the much smaller sums which are to be won upon their own racecourses. To plead their inferiority to us may be very gratifying to our vanity; but we may be pardoned for suspect- ing that this plea is only an ingenious way of eluding our demand; and to say that their statutes do not admit of their opening most of their races to horses bred out of the country is absurd, for the statutes which they have them- selves made they can themselves unmake. As wo have before said, in this connection, it is not likely that Lord Falmouth's motion would do any- thing to alter the relative capabilities of English j and French horses; for so long as short distance races and the excessive strain so frequently put upon two-year-olds are working their natural effect, we shall find the foreigners, whose racing system is based upon a truer apprehension of what conduces to the joint development of stamina and speed, beating us oftener and oftener every year. But, whatever may be the indirect results of Jongleur's victory, it is impossible not to feel satisfied when one sees so good a horse winning one of the great handicaps of the year, though the delight of the spectators would have been none the less keen had the prize fallen to the second horse; for Belphcebe, who carried almost as heavy a weight as the winner, is the property of Lord IIartington, and the heir of the house of Caven- dish has already gained the good esteem of the racing world, many of whose members look to him as the future l*w-giver of the turf

THE SITE FOR CLEOPATRA'S NEEDLE. That the forecourt of tho British Museum is the predestined and appropriate place on every canon of taste appears so self-evident that we can hardly imagine anybody denying it. Whether one considers the dimensions of the site, the background of buildings, the pigeons, the asso- ciations of the institution, or its contents- everything is suitable. One only drawback there would be, and that would be the comparative insufficiency of the approach. Unluckily, this insufficiency is a drawback in another and more prosaic sense. It is said to be impossible, or at any rate highly dangerous, to attempt to carry the obelisk so far and by roads so unaccom- modating. This is, of course, a question for engineers, and if engineering cannot answer it she must give up her claim to Calonne's famous motto, "If it is difficult, it is done already; if it is im- possible, it shall be done soon." The site is so clearly the right one that we hope some fight for it may be made even yet. Again, Greenwich Hospital has been mentioned, and a very excel- lent adornment to London's dining-room the obelisk would make. Every conceivable requi- side of actual site is here, and the haze of the Thames sunsets would almost make up for the pigeons. There are certain abortions of the obe- lisk variety on the terrace already, but it is a peculiarity of the obelisk that larger or smaller specimens of its own kind have no evil effect on it, although it cannot suffer the nearness of approximations to the obeliscal shape. It is said, indeed, that Greenwich is too far from London; but this is surely but a feeble cavil, and there would be, it is allowed, no lack of appropriate association. Lastly there is the embankment, and the embankment practically meanq the river end of Northumberland avenue. If Somerset House were not so high above the level we need look for no better site than in the centre of its river front, but as it is, that is unfortunately out of the ques- tion. Nowhere else is there any suitable back- ground of buildings, and it cannot be too often repeated that such a background should be sought first of all. In default of it, it is thought by some people, whose opinion we only share very partially, that a meeting of many ways with suf- ficient centre space might afford a substitute, and such might certainly be found at Northumber- land avenue. The dangers, however, are many. We should have in the first place to take upon trust the character of the buildings to be erected; we should have in the second place to scheme against the still dangerous proximity of our old enemy the Westminster clock tower, and we should have a new one to reckon with in the shape of the Nelson column, the existence of which, by the way, would appear to have been for- gotten by those who have mentioned "the finest site in Europe" as a possible one for the needle. Mr. Wilson, we observe, seems for reasons which are not very clear, to regard Par- liament square and the embankment as the only two possible sites. If this is the case, it is pro- bable that the embankment is the one that should, and Parliament square the one which will, be selected. But if it is not really a case of Hobson's choice it must be pretty clear that while the British Museum is ideally the best site, the embankment is that one where least harm will be done, and where it is at least possible that a good effect may be produced. Of Parliament square it may be said that at its best it is only tolerable.-Daily News.

THE SCIENTIFIC EXPLANATION OF EARTHQUAKES. (From the London Telegraph.) The account of these dire phenomena which science has to offer is still vague and unsatisfac- tory. Their primary cause is probably gaseous combustion in the interstices to be met with at irregular intervals in the crust of the globe. Pro- bably an earthquake is simply the result of a vast explosion of gas fortuitously accumulated in one of these hollow spaces; and the wider the opening so proportionately v/ill be the dimensions of the resulting catastrophe. Nor does it appear that the proximity of volcanoes—which might naturally be expected to serve as safety-valves—necessarily secures immunity from earthquakes. Certain latitudes north and south of the equator seem to be singularly liable to this destructive agency; and it is noteworthy that, although San Francisco, the great emporium of California, which is only two parallels of latitude removed from Lisbon, has never been overthrown by earthquakes, it has often been sensibly shaken by them. Whether there is a subterraneous volcanic zone encircling the globe within certain distances of the equator is a question only to be solved by scientific inves- tigations. Buckle, in his interesting comparison of the religious characteristics of Spain and Scot- land, propounds the theory that the inhabitants of regions subject to excessive disturbance from volcauic action are more prone to credulity and superstition than peoples living under different topographical conditions. It is indisputable that the influences of local scenery and climate exert a potent influence in the formation of national character, and, on the assumption of the dis- tinguished writer named above, we should expect the people of Lisbon to be notoriously credulous and priest-ridden. Facts, however, would in- cline us to a different conclusion. In no Euro- pean capital, in proportion to its size, are the population characterised by more intelli- gence, vivacity, industry, and enterprise, de- spite appalling events in their history calcu- lated to leave upon their minds an indelible impress of gloom. In contemplating the ravages of nature on the Tagus, we see the stern lesson writ large that, regardless of the wishes and entreaties of puny mortals, the imperious laws which govern matter will have their way, and with severe impartiality show no favour to rank or class. Nevertheless, the sentiment is rooted in every philosophic mind that, amidst all the per- plexing and trying anomalies of existence, the tendency of those laws is, without exception, in the direction of a more perfect and happy world.

THE SULTAN'S SPEECH ON REFORM. It would appear a simpler and in the first in- stance a more important matter to establish, at all events, the administration of equal justice be- tween all inhabitants of the Sultan's empire; and there can again be no doubt that, so far as the meaning of such a reform is understood, the Sultan and his ablest Ministers are sincerely de- sirous of effecting it. But there are again indica- tions in the Sultan's speech that his mind is divertedfrom the essential points by considerations which are wholly premature. He thought, very justly, that what was wanted in order to secure and perfect the equality theoretically established between different races and creeds was one uniform code administered by the native judges." Nothing could be better than the adoption of an uniform code; but the Sultan goes on to say that he desires such a system, instead of the variety of consular courts of every nation accredited to the Porte, which lowered and impaired the powers of the Government, and led to the greatest com- plications and difficulties." These words, our cor- respondent observes, are by far the most impor- tant uttered by the Sultan during the conversa- tion. They show what his heart is most set upon; and that his good intentions are inextricably blended with dreams of a new Ottoman constitu- tion and the complete emancipation of his Govern- ment from all European control or interference. There are, no doubt, as we have often acknow- ledged, great anomalies and inconveniences in the jurisdiction of the consular courts; but a Sultan who imagines that the European Powers will at present entertain the idea of dispensing with them is living in a world of illusions. The consular courts cannot possibly affect the administration of justice in the interior of Turkey; and when Christian evidence is in the centres of Turkish life received on an equality with that of Mussulman, and when property of Christians is really as safe as that of Moslems, it will be time to deal with such a mere excrescence on the Turkish administration as the consular courts. Our guests may have been un- able to tell the Sultan unwelcome truths; but if he ever expresses similar sentiments to our Am- bassador, it is to be hoped he will be promptly undeceived. The objects, in short,, of the Sultan may be admirable; but it would seem that, like his ministers, he has the most imperfect idea of the methods to be adopted for attaining them. In- stead of endeavouring to get rid, in the first instance, of European Courts, he would probably do far more wisely to follow the example set by his vassal the Khedive, and extend their jurisdiction and autho- rity, It must need a long education before the Asiatic mind comprehends the principles of European and equal government, and, probably, it is by Europeans alone that they can be firmly es. tablished in an Asiatic empire. If tlie Sultan would accept this assistance in time, his empire might still become p.osporous; but if lie makes it his first object to administer it solely by native'- judges and officials, hw Lest intentions are fore- doomed to disappointment,—Tancis,

A STRAXGE REVOLUTION. If I had never met that old cow! Dear me, to think of it! If I had never met that old cow I should have turned down the lane instead of cross- ing the common, and I should have met Mark Hunter at the minister's party. And I know he would have proposed to me; and I had resolved that, if he did, I would say yes. And then, of course, I should have married him, and—I might as well tell you that if I had signed my name that day it would have been Kitty Crosby. And I was lighteen years old, and was said to be pretty. Mark Hunter was the most elegant man I knew, and that had decided me in his favour, for I had more beaux than one, let me tell you. To be sure, I did not know many very elegant men. Furzbush was quite a rural place, and though goodness thrives out of town, elegance does not. So I walked along Bean Lane, with my package under my arm, that bright autumn afternoon, quite resolved to take the gift fate held out to me, for Mark loved me dearly, and I—well, I liked him very much. Most of the matches of Furz- bush were made up at the minister's. Mine would have been, perhaps, if I had not met the cow. It was old Farmer Griffin's cow Sukey, and she had the reputation of being the worst-tempered cow in Furzbush. She stood across the road and lowered her horns at me in a way I did not like, and rather than pass her I made up my mind to cross the common and climb the hill. And so I gathered up my light muslin dress and plunged into the long grass. Sukey looked after me mali- ciously, but I thanked fortune that she did not follow. Across the common I went, measuring the distance to the hill with my eye, and never remembering I should pass Hokey Pokey's cottage until I was close upon it, and I saw Hokey Pokey himself reading at the door. Hokey Pokey was not his real name. We called him that, we girls, for fun. He was a youngish man, who had come from goodness knows where, and lived all alone in this out-of-the-way place, with only a man servant. He never made friends, and no one knew him. When he came to church he never even glanced at a girl. He was rather well-built, and might have been handsome if he had not been marked with the smallpox; but his manner offended every one. So we nicknamed him out of spite. He never knew it. The servant called him Mr. Howard, and seemed to know nothing about him. There he sat now, with his nose in a- book, and never glanced up as I went by-which was setting himself up to be better than St. Anthony, you know; and for my life I couldn't help turning my head, after I had gone on a little way, to see whether really and truly he hadn't taken a peep. And when I had looked, and saw that he was watching me, of course I felt ashamed, and I looked the other way in such confusion that I took no notice where I stepped; and then and there the earth opened and swallowed me. I was up to my waist in water, and the green bank was high over my head, and I was clutching at something that kept me from sinking lower, and then the aperture overhead was darkened, and some one peered down at me and cried: "Good Heavens! Hold on-hold fast, can you —try! I'll get you out: hold fast! I've got a ladder. I'm coming." And down into the depths of the water dropped a long ladder, and down it came a man, and I was half helped, half carried to the top of what I now began to guess was a well. I was a good deal hurt and dreadfully fright- ened, and it was only my duty to faint away, as' soon as I was on dry land. I did it. The sky grew black, and there was a ringing in my ears, and over I went into the arms of the gentleman who had rescued me—Hokey Pokey himself, and no one else. When I came to, I was in such a pretty room as I had never seen before. My host stood beside me, and looked at me with the finest eyes I had ever met in my life, and with the sweetest smile. "You are better?" he said. Oh yes," I answered. And Fm sorry not to have been stronger, but.it was so sudden." "No one ever passes over this common, you see," said my host, "and the well-curb would have been built before night. You are sure you are not very much hurt, Miss Crosby;" and I wondered how he knew my name. It was such an odd adventure. If it had not been for that old cow of Griffin's, I should have been at the pound party, and Mark Hunter sitting beside me, and, well-but that old cow had come along, and here I was, wrapped in a great travel- ling cloak, lying on a lounge in Hokey Pokey's cottage, and he kneeling beside me, feeling my pulse—that was the next thing-and telling me the colour was coming back to my face. If I live to be eighty I shall never forget how, after- ward, he arose and went to a little buffet, and took down a decanter and a glass, or how he poured the wine and brought it to me. A streak of sunlight kissed the glass, and flung a red gleam over his white hand. It was the whitest, most elegant hand, with dimples at the joints. Why had I never known that he was the most elegant man in Furzbush before? Yes, and despite those scars on his face, one of the handsomest. I drank the wine, and feeling quite myself again, talked as we waited for the little waggonette, which soon arrived. Oddly enough, he seemed to know much more about me than I knew about him, for he not only drove straight to my home, but pointed out my little brother sailing his boat upon the pond. At last I could not restrain my curiosity. "I did not know you had ever seen me before," said I. Then he turned his head and looked into my face. I am going to be very frank with you," he said. "I have watched you very often, not imper- tinently, I hope, but because I feel greatly in- terested in you. When I betook myself to that out-of-the-way place yonder, I had taken a vow never to speak again to a woman. I had in- deed. When I saw you I wanted to break it; but after all you might be no different from others who-but I shall not begin a dis- quisition upon women. I wanted to know more of you, r.nd fate has brought fulfilment of my wish. Having spoken to you, I have broken my vow. May I call to see that you do not suffer from this accident ? I shall let people know who and what I am now. If I wish to be received by them I must assure them that I am a gentleman in position, of course. Having done so, may I eallonyou?" I said I should be happy to see him. And as I spoke some one passed us on the road, stared, bowed, reined up his horse for a moment, and then drove on furiously. It was Mark Hunter. He had been to our house, I knew, to call for me, and I fell to wondering—well, to wondering what would have happened if I had not met that old cow of Griffin's. Meeting her had changed my life. I knew that very soon. I knew it when, growing well again, I learnt what Mr. Howard really was. And I knew it when he told me the romantic story of his life-the story of his young first love, who jilted him because his beauty was spoiled, and who had eloped with a French so-called count, with a skin like satin, who had served the ends of poetical justice by being very cruel to her. But I knew it best of all when he one day told me that I had restored his confidence in womanhood. That is more than ten years ago. I crossed the ocean since then, and my home is far from Furz- bush. But sometimes, when in the gloaming I see the gentle, soft-eyed kine come over the meadow to answer the pretty milkmaid's call, memory takes me back to that long vanished time when one old cow, turning me from my path, changed all my life for me. There is a Mrs. Hunter at the house on the hill, I hear but I am sure that it was on Fate's chart that I should have held that place and that title. And Mark Hunter was very, very nice. Never. theless, I am glad that I met Griffin's cow that day.

LORD GALWAY, M.P., ON THE EASTERN QUESTION. Speaking on this question at the annual dinner of the Sturton-en-le-Steeple and District Plough- ing Society, at Rampton, on Friday, October 26th, Lord Galway said it would not be settled when the belligerents ceased fighting. It would be most important to us as a nation what terms of peace would be made, and he felt some little doubt himself what position England might be in then. They had great interests at stake in India and the east which other European powers had not, and it would be difficult for us perhaps to find what justification we might have to interfere in terms of peace. He was not an advocate for rushing into war, but it would require all the consideration and ability of the Government of this country to guide us through the difficulties when we came to the terms of peace. He felt strongly that they must all look with some feelings of satisfaction to see a nation with which we were allied in the Crimean wai gallantly defending themselves against an ambitious and aggressive power. He was sur. prised to read that a nobleman, at an agricultural dinner at the southern end of this county, said he hoped the result of the war would be autonomy for these provinces. He was perhaps rash enough to think that after what had passed the last ten or twelve months, the idea of autonomy was an exploded theory, because it was proved to be utterly impracticable. Look at Roumania under Russian despotism; was that autonomy fit for any province? He asked for time for the Turkish government to carry out their reforms. But be the end of the fighting what it may he hoped we, as a nation, should hold our own, and that peace would be established on a firm and lasting basis.

j THE CLAIMANT. Mr. Guildford Onslow writes from the Grove, Ropley, Hants:—" I observe in the Ttme-i of Mon- day, the 22nd of October, a paragraph headed the Claimant,' in which it is stated that he was full of complaints and grievances, and had. been fre- quently punished for acts of insubordination, hence his removal.' Now, as the friend of the Claimant, I trust you will do me the favour to insert this letter on his behalf as an act of common justice to one who cannot defend himself. I beg to deny that he has been punished for insubordi- nation and the first class, to which he has at- tained, owing to his uniform good conduct, is sufficient proof to justify the denial I make."