Barry Herald

ALL OVER A PENNY STAMP. The Hampstead Board of Guardians have scored a great, triumph hy extracting one penny from the Inland Revenue Department which they had unlaw- fully collected. The department had pointed out that a cheque of the board's was unstamped, and that there was a £10 penalty for each case of such neg- lect. To save delay the guardians' clerk had affixed a penny stamp, but discovered later that boards of guardians could not be compelled to do so. He Wrote to the authorities, who replied that the point would not be pressed, while his contention could not be admitted, and they returned the penny stamp. Miss Viner suggested that the stamp be framed and the clerk thanked.

ATTACK UPON AN OFFICER. Lieutenant M. G. Crofton, of the 2nd Battalion Lancashire Fusiliers, Chatham, has been the victim of an extraordinary outrage. A man broke into his quarters at two o'clock in the morning, and, arming himself with a Cretan pistol which was hanging upon a wall, sh'uck the sleeping officer a blow on the head with the butt end of the weapon. The assailant made his escape in the darkness, but apparently re- turned whilst. Lieutenant Crofton was away at the hospital having the wound dressed and stole two watches and other property, together the value of £60. A soldier in the Lancashire Fusiliers named Frank Massey was subsequently found to be attempt- ing to pawn the siolen watchcs, and was apprehended by the police on the charges of making the mur- derous attack upon Lieutenant Crofton and of burglary. The prisoner was brought before Mr. Athawes. stipendiary magistrate at Chatham, but was remanded, the injured officer not being in a fit con- dition to attend.

DEATH OF LADY MARGARET HOWARD. We regret to announce that Lady Margaret Howard, sister of the Duke of Norfolk, died at Arundel Ctmtte at seven o'clock on the evening of the 10th inst. Her illness had lasted for nearly three years. The Dtike.ofi Nor/plk* Lady Mary Howard, Lady Edmund Talbpt and Miss Talbot, Dr. and Lady Philippa Stewart* and o^her relatives were present at lhe last. There is widespread sympathy with the. duke and the rest of the family in their bereavement,? for at Arundel and,,Q^sewhere Lady Margarettwafc,greatly belovecL A largo number of messages of condolence have reached the duke from various members of the Royal family, his political colleagues, ivnd dignitarjea in the Roman Catholic Church. Lady Margaret Fitzalan Howardwas the youngest daughter of the 14th Duke of Norfolk, by his marriage with the youngest daughter of the first Lord Lyons, and was in her 40th year. One sister of Lady Margaret's, Lady Minna Howard, is a Carmelite nun; another, Lady Etheldreda Howard, is a sister of charity.

NEW COUNTY COURT JUDGE. Mr. William Mulholland, Q.C., a barrister of Lincoln's-inn.who has been appointed Judge of County Court Circuit 26 (Staffordshire), is 56 years of age. He is the eldest son of the late Mr. J. S. Mul- holland, MJ)., of Belfast. He was called to the Bar at the King's-inns, Dublin, in 1865, and in 1875 to the Bar at Lincoln's-inn, receiving silk in 1894, and being elected a Bencher of his Inn in 1897. He resides at Wimbledon. Mr. Mulholland, who is a brother-in-law of Lord Russell of Killowen, the Lord Chief Justice, his lordship having married his sister in 1858, married in 1876 Rosa, daughter of Mr. Charles MacMahon, of Dundalk.

ONLY BACHELORS ELIGIBLE. The Rev. G. A. Cooke, who has been appointed chaplain to the Duke of Buccleuch, vacates the living of Beaconsfield, Ducks, on December 14. The living is in the gift of Magdalen College, Oxford, and no one but a bachelor can be appointed. Singular to say, Mr. Cooke is the first rector of Beaconsfield who has resigned the appointment during the past 200 years; his predecessors (numbering 11 since 1700) having died during their incumbency. They are nearly all, if not quite, buried at Beaconsfield.

ABOUT RUSSIAN TEA. The report published by the Russian Government Commission as to the results of the tea crops on the experimental tea plantation in Tchakva, near Batoum, shows that all the three crops collected produced exceedingly good tea. The Commission classified the tea under two qualities, and, accord- ing to Commercial Intelligence, came to the conclusion that the first sort could be sold retail at two roubles a pound. As the best Russian tea is sold at two roubles eighty copecks a pound, the two-rouble tea corresponds to English tea at about 2s. 3d. This price of two roubles was fixed with regard to the fact that the tea was prepared, not on the Chinese hand method, but on the Ceylon method, which is con- sidered by the Commission much better.

PENSIONS TO OFFICERS. NEW REGULATIONS. The Queen, deeming it expedient to provide in a more equitable manner for the grant of pensions or gratuities to officers who may receive in action wounds of a very severe nature, but not equivalent to I the loss of a limb, has directed that amendments shall be made in the Royal Warrant approved on May 30 of the present year. It is ordered that: An officer who has received in action a bodily injury certified by the regulated military authority to be very severe, though not equivalent to the loss of a limb, may, at the direction of our Secretary of State, be allowed a gratuity of from three to 12 months' full pay of the appointment held by him at the time of the injury. If at or after the expira- tion of the period for which the gratuity has been awarded the injury be certified to be likely to be permanent in its effects, the officer may be granted a temporary pension at half the rates prescribed in the scale laid down. Such pension shall be re- newable from year to year, at the discretion of our Secretary of State, according to subsequent reports of the regulated military authority. If the temporary pension is renewed for five years, and the bodily dis- ability continues, the pension may be converted into a permanent pension'" It is explained that the gratuities include all emoluments of the nature of pay of which the officer was actually in receipt when wounded, except double pay for service on the West Coast of Africa. Allow- ances are excluded.

ELIZABETH'S LONDON. The London Reform Union secured a very lijirge and distinguished audience for its meeting the other night, when the Bishop of London lectured on London in the Age of Elizabeth." For chairman there was Mr. II. II. Asquith, M.P., and amongs the audience were Lord and Lady Ribblesdale, Sir Arthur and Lady Arnold, Mr. T. Lough, M.P., Mr. T. McKinnon Wood, the Rev. Prebendary Ingram, Sir Charles Elliott,, Mr. Hudson Kearley, M.P., Canon Wilberforce, the Rev. W. Hardy Harwood, the Hon. and Rev. J. J. Adderley, Canon Barker, and nfany representative London men. :1 The Bishop of London began by giving a sketch of the topography of London in the time of Eliza- beth. The people were grouped in the City, [andr what were now crowded neighbourhoods jveroi then open fields. iDr.^Creightoix said he had known an old lady in North London who lived to. be [105,. and she in her youth could remember going to see the cows milked in what was now Finsbury- circus, and then walking across the fields to the village of Islington. St. Marti n's-in-t]Ae-.Fielda told by its name its remoteness. Westminster was a village grouped round the royal palace ..there.. On the other side of the river was the.JittJg, ward-. of Southwark. There were: fogs, but no Smoke. The growth of London was jaist beginning, and con- tinued, in spite of all attempts to check it. But the Londoners lived in London, and villadom was un- known. The merchant lived over his place of busi- ness, and in the same street as the workman or the lord. The streets were either torrents of dirt or paved with black mud; coaches were introduced in 1564. The Thames was the silent highway of London, and 2000 wherries plied upon its waters. Londoners of the time of Elizabeth had learnt the truth that the dignity of public life needed adequate expression, and the Lord Mayor's Show existed then in much the same way as at the present day, save that the Lord Mayor went to Westminster in his barge. The water that Londoners drank in Elizabeth's day came from the Thames, and from conduits fed by streams from the northern hills. In the time of James I., the question became a difficult one, and it had remained a difficult one ever since. He could not describe the lighting of the streets, because they were not I ighted at all. It was a day of hard-headed and long-headed men, who were keen after business and after profits; indeed, he was not sure ,that as many secret commissions were not taken then as now. The amusements-of the people consistedr of bull and bear-baiting, and the exhibition of mon- strosities of all kinds. Gambling was very prevalent, and much of the life of the City centred in the tavern, which was the rendezvous for all who had news to impart, or who sought it. The London apprentice was a feature of the time, and he was given to expressing the prevailing feeling of the country upon foreign affairs in a somewhat vigorous manner. Dr. Creighton said the question might be asked What sort of men were there living in those days ? That question he answered by reading a collection of opinions of foreigners who visited England in those days, and whose opinions (seeing there were no newspapers) must be regarded as unbiassed. They all concurred in, the opinion that the English women were the most beautiful in the world, which he regarded as being a proof of their discernment and impartiality. They also agreed with singular unanimity that Englishmen thought very much of themselves, and very little of the people of other nations. So that it seemed as though the people of the time of Eliza- beth were then engaged in the. same task as that in which the people of the present day were employed— that of impressing foreign countries with the sense of our own greatness, of which we are so profoundly conscious ourselves. The Rev. Hardy Harwood moved avete of thankr to the Bishop for his lecture. BISHOP OUGHT TO HAVE BEEN A DRAMATIST. Mr. Bernard Shaw, in seconding, said thfe Bishop of London was not only, an eminent Churchman but an eminent citizen and an eminent literary man. Some time ago he read a work of Dr. Creighton's dealing with the times of Alexander VI. and Csesar Borgia, and after reading it he felt what a pity it was that the bishop was not a dramatist. If plays were written by bishops as well as sermons, they would have much more influence. As it was, he had to preach sermons in his plays. Dr. Creighton had mentioned that on Bankside might be found bear- gardens, theatres, and places of amusement." The endeavour to turn theatres into places of amuse- ment was still going on. Another characteristic of the days of Elizabeth was that copyright for authors had not been invented. Since then, however, an author had the profit of his works for 42 years, and no longer. He thought that principle might be well extended to the water supply and other matters affecting London. The resultof giving a man a right to his own productions for ever might be seen in the present appearance of the people of London; whilst if they waited to see the benefit of limiting this right to only 42 years they had only to look at the Bishop and himself. Canon Wilberforce moved, and Sir Charles Elliott seconded, a vote of thanks to the chairman, to which Mr. Asquith briefly responded.

SLIMSON Willie, where did you get that black eye ?" It's all right, pop. I've only been civilising the boy next door." MRS. FELICIA RIVERS: Dear, dear! I can't imagine what is the matter with the pianner. Every note strikes out of tune." Mary Jane: Be that the pianner, mum?" Mrs. Rivers: Yes. Why?": Mary Jane: "Gracious, I t'ought it vruz the safe, an' I put the meat anJ vegetable. in it this morn

A FAVOURITE FIELD FOR MISSIONARIES. The missionaries will probably be most concerned at the handing over of Samoa to Germany. It has long been a favourite field of the London Missionary Society, but there is also a French Catholic bishop, with a number of priests and nuns labouring under J tis jurisdiction. Mataafa, the German nominee to ] the Samoan throne, is a convert of the French j priests, and a most fervent, net to say fanatical, Catholic. So it will be seen (writes a Chronicle cor- I Respondent) that the religious situation in Samoa it decidedly mixed.

I.. cT, only buildings in the world which are earth- quake proof are the Japanese pagodas. There are } Biiany which are 700 or 800 years old, and as solid as when first built. The reason lies in their construo- tion. A pagoda is practically a framework of heavy timbers, which starts from a wide base and is in itself a substantial structure, but is rendered still more stable by a peculiar device. Inside the frame- I work and suspended from the apex is a long, heavy i beam of timber 2ft. thick or more. This, liangs. from one end of the four sides, four more heavy timbers, and if the pagoda be very lofty, still more, timbers are added to these. The whole forms an enormous pendulum, which reaches withiii 16in. of the ground. When the shock of an earthquake rocks the pagoda the pendulum swings in unison, and keeps; the centre of gravity always at the base of the frame- work. Consequently the equilibrium of the pagoda- 1 is never disturbed. A

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j CHINESE TEA1TS. "Will1 Cltiiiese development. Benefit the Western. World 7 is the subject of an article by John P. Young in the Forum. The writer says throughout California, where the Chinese, in spite of the mis- leading term "Chinese Chtap Labour," enjoy better j wages'than most of the purely labouring class of the Western world, he has seen Chinese, earning over j 2dol. ft day, sleeping in bunks crowded as closely to- gether as those in the steerage of an ocean steamer. Indifference to surroundings, the gregarious instinct, and parsimony seem to furnish the explanation of I this tendency. But these traits are not the product ¡ of a day they are the result of an intense struggle for existence extending through thousands of years; they areas much a part of the national character, j and distinguish the Chinese in as pronounced a manner, as their visible physical peculiarities, and, perhaps, are as ineradicable.

PRESIDKNT KKUGKR was a dead shot when he was a boy. On one occasion he was being chased by an infuriated buffalo, and was in danger of being overtaken and killed, when he turned round in his saddle, raised his rifle, took aim, and shot the buffalo through the forehead. His horse was "in gallop at the time, so that he must have been not only a crack shot, but also a splendid rider.

orn Lot DON CORRESPONDENT. It is evidently anticipated at the War Office that one result of the present struggle in South Africa will be to strengthen the popularity of the short service system as an aid to the recruit- ing sergeant. This is largely based upon the splendid fashion in which the public is sup- porting the claims upon them of those men in the Reserve who have already been called up to the colours. It cannot be too strongly emphasised that this is the first time since the short system was instituted in our army not far from thirty years ago that the Reserves have been sent out to fight; and their share in the recent work of mobilisation was, therefore. regarded in the light of an experiment. The highest military authorities, and Lord Wolseley among them, had some shade of misgiving on the subject at the outset, for hearty believers as they were in the theory of the short system, which necessarily includes the formation of a reserve, they could not be entirely satisfied until they had seen it work in practice. It has now worked in practice well, for not only have the employers of reservists come well forward to make matters as smooth as possible for the men, but the public have handsomely subscribed I towards assisting, where necessary, their wives and families while away on service, and are prepared to do much more in that direction if it be needed. And the remembrance of all this will be a valuable aid to recruiting in the future. Rumour has once and again had it within the past twelve months that a squadron of the United States Navy was about to cross the Atlantic on a visit to onr ports, and now it seems to be fairly certain that in the new year this much talked of visit will be paid. Arrangements, it is understood, are at this moment being made between the Governments of Great Britain and the United States to this end: and there is scarcely any necessity to say that. whenever and where- ever the American vessels arrive, they will be most heartily welcomed. It is thought possible that Portsmouth will be their first port of call, but there is a marked wish in political as well as purely official circles that other ports shall be visited, for this would give an excellent opportunity for the British public to attest the true cordiality of its feelings towards our kin beyond sea. That feeling, it is known by all acquainted with the subject, had the result of preventing any possibility of a European combination being formed against the United States during the war with Spain last year: and the reciprocal feeling on the other side of the Atlantic is a source of strength to Great Britain at this present juncture. The visit of the German Kaiser to England has furnished an opportunity for once more testing British, and especially London, feeling towards him. Concerning that feeling, indeed, there has been no European monarch of our times concerning whom it has so strongly, and even so violently, fluctuated, though our fathers were able to give us something of a parallel with the Czar Nicholas I. But at this moment, certain old antipathies have faded away, and there is a very general recognition of the fact that, while the Kaiser is naturally and most properly concerned in the first place for the welfare and prosperity of his own country, he is at this moment no foe to ours. The Anglo-German Agreement, re- cently signed, and having chief relation to Samoa, may be taken as proof of this; and it is very certain that the London populace gene- rally would at this moment be prepared to give the Kaiser a very hearty welcome. Not to Chancery-lane is it that the casual visitor to London would usually proceed in search of an oasis, yet we are learning this week that one is veritably to be found there. The narrow piece of ground by the side of the extension of the Record Office, not long since completed, has been converted into a garden, which has been turfed and planted with shrubs and flowers, making a welcome relief amid the stone and brickwork around. There is a striking contrast between the flowers and shrubs outside and the ancient and dusty documents within but even the student, as he goes to his toil in the splendid building, can scarcely but be cheered by the new oasis. He will regret in perpetuity, however, that, in the process of preparing for the erection of the Record Office extension, the his- toric Rolls Chapel was destroyed. Opinions will continue to differ as to whether so drastic a step was necessary but even those who feel compelled to answer in the affirniative cannot avoid sorrowing over the disappearance of so venerable and interesting a pile. j The Lord Chief Justice, in his long-to-be re- j membered address to the new Lord Mayor of London on the Ninth," in- cidentally touched upon a point that much concerns both Bench and Bar. He noted that Parliament had this year authorised the addition of a judge to the Chancery Division of the High Court of Justice; but he intimated that, in the opinion of himself and his brethren, two more judges needed to be appointed for the Queen's Bench. This expression of opinion had the more point at the moment, because there were then only five judges out of the total number left to carry on the Court business of the Queen's j Bench Division at a period which may be considered the busiest time of the year. ) Seven out of the whole fifteen were away from London at the assizes in various parts of the country, one was engaged at the Central Criminal Court, one was taking com- pany and bankruptcy business, and one was in early attendance at Chambers, facts which of themselves speak volumes. The somewhat startling suggestion is to be heard that next summer will see many of our men wearing a top hat" made of straw, a form of headgear which may prove eool but will certainly be startling. The idea of a straw top hat" is not entirely novel, for one of the newest and richest members of the House of Commons was sufficiently courageous to wear one at Westminster during the very hot days of last summer. Even its designer, how- ever, is scarcely likely to have claimed that it was a thing of beauty while the natural fragility of the material of which it was constructed would prevent it from being a joy for ever. Yet the idea is said to be likely to be developed next year, and it will be claimed in its favour that a" top hat" of straw is cooler than any other form of that head-covering, whether white or black. Fashion, of course, demands that men in good society shall appear in a hat of this shape, and, although now and again we hear of some hardy innovator who has declared his intention of defying fashion, we have not yet reaped much fruit from his efforts. The Prince of Wales, who is virtually the arbiter in regard to the details of men's dress, has not yet signi- fied his intention to wear a straw topper and one very much doubts whether he ever will. There appears to be a likelihood that an Anglo-American athletic meeting, organised by the leading universities on the two sides of the Atlantic, will be arranged for next year; and the Oxford University Athletic Club is under- stood to agree with that of Cambridge, that the Easter Vacation would furnish the most suitable dates. Difficulties, however, appear to exist upon this oint; and until these are removed it is impossible to speak with any certainty as to the details of the meeting. It is premature to say, for instance, as has been asserted in some quarters, that the Oxford and Cam- bridge athletes have already been chosen, although, of course, those in the inner circle may be able even now to make a fairly shrewd guess at the list. The last such struggle was so interesting, good-humoured, and well-contested, that it will be a pleasure all round to see another arranged and, as the matter is in very good hands, an excellent result may confidently be anticipated.. R.

TRINITY COLLEGE SCHOOL, a famous Canadian institution, founded on the model of the English Rugby, has an astonishing number of old boys at the front, and more are going out with the Canadian contingent. THE corps of volunteers enrolled in Paris to assist h Boers numbers 250; it includes Belgians, Greeks, And Danes. A clothier has promised forty complete outfits, and the owner of a nine-knot steamer has offered them a passage on payment of the-cost of the coal. But money is lacking.

NEWS NOTES. -1 THE QUEEN said some very appropriate and winning words to the cavalry of the Household Guard at Windsor apropos of the despatch of a composite regiment to the front in South Africa. Her Majesty is pardonably proud of her Guards, and well convinced that they will always do their duty wherever called on, and the Queen devoutly prayed that God would protect them and bring them safely home again. The fine body of men under Colonel Neeld's command cheered their sympathetic Sovereign to the echo. IT is distressing to find that some of the Boers have on several occasions undoubtedly abused the flag of truce, drawing off British hostility for awhile under its pretext, and then taking a despicable advantage of humanitarian action on the part of the enemy. It behoves President Kruger and General Joubert to deal drastically with offenders of this ilk, if they would have us consider the Transvaal soldiery a civilised force. IT must be admitted that there have been many satisfactory and well-ascertained in- stances of praiseworthy attitude towards pri- soners and wounded on the part of the Boers; so that it would scarcely be fair to cast per- sonal blame on the Transvaal chiefs for all the unruly acts of those they are responsible for. There must be a great many deplorable things in war yet it should be generally conceded that where white men use the white flag, the meaning of its display is to be respected instantly and to the uttermost. Otherwise the re will be inevitable reprisals, for in the heat of conquer- ing battle your ranker will passionately remem- ber the slaying of a wounded comrade, and then the revengeful spirit engendered is sure to surmount discipline. Let us hope that we may hear no more of this. OUR men who were taken at Nicholson's Nek have been most humanely treated by their captors, even to the extent of finding the prisoners in tobacco; while the fallen Boers in durance vile at Simonstovvn are loud in their laudation of the foe who is holding them in hostage. This is better read- ing than the last. Let each side exert itself to the utmost of its resources while the battle rages; but afterwards let friend and foe remember that they are expected by the world to have naught of savagery in their methods. MR. FREDDY TREVES—one of the world's most skilful surgeons has self-sacriScingly gone out to South Africa to act as consultant in the war. They do say that his practice is probably the largest in all London and this should show what a splendid example of patriotism Mr. Treves is setting. Indeed, we may congratulate ourselves on all hands as to the generous spirit enkindled in Britain by the war; for every non-combatant almost vies with all others in eagerness to do his little best to exhibit practical sympathy in the cause of the soldiers of the Queen who have been ordered south." LORD SALISBURY'S speech at the Lord Mayor of London's Guildhall Banquet has afforded general satisfaction up and down the country, not only because of its lofty and confident tone, but also on account of its plainness of meaning. He has let the world at large know that we are t hunting in South Africa for neither gold nor diamonds, nor putting forth our strength for territorial aggrandisement; but that we are simply making sure that the rights of every subject of the Queen shall have full and equal respect. And from this resolution we shall allow no nation to turn us. There is no mis- taking that Britain is in earnest. THE amicable agreement between Britain and Germany—with the United States as accessory—over the Samoa question settles at once and for ever what threatened sometime back to cause trouble. It is a most satisfactory conclusion. France does not seem to like it, but herein France is a nation of no account. THE Lord Chief Justice's remarks concerning the subject of civic honesty in connection with the mightiest commercial community in the univense should have a good effect. Without any personal reference or reflection whatever we may agree that what Lord Russell said was fully warranted in the circumstances. London City cannot emulate too closely the condition in which it was considered the wife of Caesar should ever be. WE are to have the Columbia over here racing in English waters early next spring. Though the Shamrock could not beat her at New York some of our ships may give the Ame- rican yacht a good trying up." She will be received in the same hospitable and sports- manly spirit as was extended to Sir Thomas Lipton and his boat over the herring pond." THE Soldiers' and Sailors' Families' Associa- tion, of which Colonel Gildea is the moving spirit, doing really splendid work in organising the distribution of the relief funds which are being raised on behalf of the wives and the little ones of Tommy Atkins now upholding the English flag under Sir Redvers Buller in South Africa. It is fortunate that such a thoroughly well-managed organisation should be in exist- ence with just the needful machinery for a great national task at an emergency.

THE BOLINGBROKE HEIR. The announcement made in some quarters that Canon St. John is the heir of the late Lord Boling- broke has been dne. according to an official statement, to want of knowledge of the true circumstances. At the funeral, which took place on Saturday at Lydiard Treeoze, near Swindon, the solicitor to the estate made the following communication to the mourners "The late viscount married late in life, and leaves a widow and a son, the Hon. V^ernon Henry. St. } John, who succeeds to the title as Viscount Boling- broke." The widow here mentioned and her son were among the mourners. The necessity for the explanation made by the family solicitor springs from attention having been directed to conflicting accounts furnished by various. publications of the circumstances of the late earl's life. Lodge states that Lord Bolingbroke married in 1869 a daughter of Mr. G. W. Medex and that she died in 1855, leaving two sons. Whitaker's Titled Persons asserts the 1869 marriage to have been void in law, and the two sons, Henry Mildmay and Charles Reginald, to be, therefore, incapable of suc- cession. Burke and Debrett content them- selves with merely indicating as heir to the titles Canon St. John, a grandson of the third viscount. 44 Dod also gives Canon St. John as the heir. The family solicitor, as above shown, now adds a hitherto unpublished fact.

JOINTS for aluminium cables are not made very taBily as a rule, and this is rather a drawback to the use of these cables. Aluminium conductors have re- ceived much attention now that copper has so greatly advanced in price. Copper wires are msily jointed by twisting and soldering, but the latter part of the process often proves a difficult matter with alumi- nium wires. Below are given six methods of jointing aluminium cables, in which the use of Bolder is avoided. (1) The cable enda are thrust through a slotted tube of aluminium haring its end holes slightly coned; the ends are bent around through the slotted hole, burred by means of a hammer and hand vice, and then slightly drawn back. (2) Clamp the cable ends, the halves of a clamp being screwed together and made fast by a pin driven. through the threaded part. (3) A short tube is used having in it numerous set screws, so arranged that they bind the ends of the cable into the tube. (4) A double-coned aluminium tube is used in this method A round conical wedge, having an axial hole through it, is started on the middle wire of each cable end; when the two ends are thrust into the opposite ends of the coupling, the butts of the wedges meet, the wedges being driven home, and the cable being expanded so that it cannot pull out through the ends. (5) A simple ICrew coupling, having expanded ends, the whole being made in two longitudinal sections, is employed; it is particularly suited to cables of large diameters. The foregoing methods are all covered by German patents, but the following is an American method. Strips of aluminium sheet, having a thickness of one- quarter that of the wire, are rolled round a mandel toward the middle to form a kind of twin tube. To form the joint, a wire end is" inserted into each of these tubular channels and the whole is then twisted with two pairs of pliers -or with wrenches. A sub- stantial, if unsightly, joint is thus formed.

SIR M. HICKS BEACH ON COMMERCE. Sir M. Hicks Beach has distributed, at the London Mansion House, prizes gained by candidates at the examination under the commercial education scheme of the London Chamber of Commerce. The Lord Mayor presided. Before distributing the prizes Sir M. Hicks Beach delivered an address, in the course of which he said the movement arose out of a desire to do for commercial education what had been done for higher education. He was not a great believer in our want of success in commercial affairs, but he was perfectly ready to admit that our success might be very largely augmented if those with whom the interests of our trade and commerce lie were thoroughly educated for their work. But com- mercial education would not by itself go to the root of the matter. In his belief better discipline among children at home, greater and more wide- spread belief among parents in the inestimable value of good education for their children, and a thorough foundation in elementary and secondary education had done more to promote the commercial success of Germany than any system of commercial educa- tion, and unless these matters were well attended to here, their best-laid schemes of commercial educa- tion would fail. After further enlarging on this point, Sir M. Hicks Beach urged the desirability of attaching a Faculty of Commerce to the new teaching University of London, and expressed the opinion that commercial education might very properly form a part of the whole system of public education when properly organised under the Board of Education Act.

MAX O'RELL'S MISADVENTURE. Max O'Rell has lectured ninteen hundred times (says M.A.P.), and was never stopped but once, and that was a fortnight ago in Sunderland. There was an audience of two thousand people. One thou- sand nine hundred and seventy of these wanted to hear the lecture, but. thirty occupants of the sixpenny gallery refused to listen. This is why The Sunday evening entertainments in Sunderland usually con- sist of a little talk. perhaps a little music, and a pro- fuse magic-lantern display. The committee offered the people a change, thinking that Max O'Rell was amusing enough without pictures. But, the thirty in the sixpenny gallery differed with the committee, and they eventually carried the day, the more so as there were no police present. Max O'Rell says that he had been feeling a little languid, but the excite- ment stirred him up, and he has been in better I health ever since.

FROM PRISON TO "THE FRONT." I Two prisoners were released from Springfield Gaol, Essex, the other day, on an order from the Home Secretary. They had asked the governor of the prison to lay their cases before the Home Secretary, as they wished to j0:n the Army Reserves. The governor did so, and the Home Secretary granted their release.

AMERICA'S MINERAL WEALTH. The mineral production of the United States has aggregated 2030 millions sterling since 1880, which represents a gift of Nature equal to £25 per inhabitant, and for the past financial year the total is 140 millions sterling, which is equal to nearly £2 per capita. There has been a steady growth in the recovery of all metals and minerals. In 1880, the furthest date given in the Geo- logical Survey Report, just issued, the total value was 74 millions. In 1881 it was 80 millions, by 1887 it had stepped well beyond the 100 millions, and by 1890 it was 124 millions, and now it has passed the 140 millions. Here we have some indica- tion of the progress of the industries, as well as of the wealth of the States; for, unlike her agricultural, production, practically all the raw metals and minerals represented by this sum are worked into finished products within the States.

THE LADY DOCTOR VOLUNTEER. Lord Lansdowne has written to Miss Weir, M.D., daughter of Mr. J. Galloway Weir, M.P., for Ross and Cromarty, who recently tendered her services for the seat of war, stating, that, while he much appreciates the public spirit which has actuated her, he is not at present prepared to allow lady medical practitioners to join the military forces in South Africa. ——————

EXPLORATIONS IN CENTRAL ASIA. It is stated that another expedition is to leave St. Petersburg early next year for Central Asia, under i the auspices of the Imperial Geographical Society. This society differs in most respects from similar societies elsewhere a that it receives a heavy sub- sidy from the Gove-yment, ana that most of the ex- peditions by which R tssian interests in Central Asia and China have been forwarded have been sent out by it. It is not without interest in this connection, moreover, to note that the personnel of the proposed expedition, including several military officers, will be nearly 200 men.

THE IltON RATION. The "Emergency" or iron ration has been on trial in the 2nd Battalion Durham Light Infantry at Mandalay, and this is the regimental verdict: The ration is very neatly and securely packed in a cylinder "pemmican" to produce soup at one end, and cocoa at the other. The contents of the cylinder will make four plates of good soup, and four pints of excellent cocoa. The ration can be easily carried in the haversack, and all who have tried it are of opinion that both soup and cocca are nutritious and appetising. The ration is meant to sustain a'man and keep up his strength for 36 hours. This it would most certainly do, and with the addition of a little bread or biscuit one would be very well off. Ad the name implies, the ration is only used in case of emergency, and when the usual commissariat arrangement fails.

IT 18 WORTH KNOWING if you have a cough that the quickest and simplest remedy—let alone its cheapness—is KEATING'S COUGH LOZENGES. One alone relieves coughs, asthma, and bronchitis, As a Cough Remedy they are simply unrivalled. Sold everywhere in tins 13fd. each; free for stamps, Thomas Keating, Chemist, London. ) TUB famine is slowly, but surely, being felt in Western India, and the Globe's Simla correspondent writes that it now overshadows all other considera- tions 1D the official world at Simla. It has already changed the programme of the Viceroy's tour, and has caused the postponement of a great number of im- portant projects of the Government of India. The intensity and extent of the distress, will so greatly depend on the weather of the next two months, that it is impossible as yet to say at all approximately how large a sum of money the Indian Finance Member will be called upon to provide, or what loss of revenue there will be. All that can be done mean- while is to organise arrangements for the coming campaign upon a scale sufficient to enable the calamity to be met, even if the worst comes to the worst, and the winter rains prove as deficient as the autumn ones have been. To this end the recalling of officials from leave has already commenced, while relief works are being ^sketched out and plans for distributing gratuitous assistance matured. A NOVEL way of illuminating a railway tunnel has been devised in Paris. Reflectors throw the light from many electric lamps 16ft. above the rails to the tides of the tunnel, where it is again reflected by I burnished tin, a soft and agreeable light. The' trains automatically torn the current on and off in entering and leaving the tunne'

GENERAL YULE'S MOTHER. One would have to go far and wide to find a more delightful old lady than the mother of General Yule (says .I.1f.A.P.), who has resided in Ealing for the past 50 years. Although over 80 years of age, she is re- markably active and intelligent yet, and, except for a slight deafness, has all her faculties perfect. I do hope the war will soon be over," she said recently. But I love to know," she added, enthusiastically, that my boy is doing his duty. This is the fourth war in which he has taken part, and, if he has been spared in three, he may be spared in four. My great hope is that I shall see him at Christmas." Mrs. Yule's kindly gaze at her visitor through her gold- rimmed spectacles is one to be remembered. Never- theless she conveys the Impression that she would have held an honoured position amongst the Spartan mothers of old.

PRESIDENT LOUBKT'S MEDAL. President Loubet has managed to hold office until now without his hiedal. In a few days from now (says the Chronicle) he will possess this important certificate of his election, as it is being struck at the Mint. On one side there is the President's head in profile, with,the words, "Emjle Loubet, President de la R^publimie Franchise," and on the other a figure of the Republic standing before the election ballot-box and dropping M. Loiibet's name into it, with the inscription, El u par l^toettibleeNationale Ie JS .JPevrier, 1899." Every Depute and Senator will receive one of medals."

A' MOTHER OF SOLDIERS. Mrs. O^Keefe,, thi; .widow of a sergeant in the Munster Fusiliers, has Received the following com- munication from the, Qun: The Commander-in- Chief having brought to the notice of the Queen the fact of Mrs. O'Keefe having at present seven sons serving in the army, her Majesty's private secretary is commanded to forward the enclosed present of £5 from the Queen, arid at the same time express to Mrs. O'Keefe the gratification with which her Majesty has learned of this remarkable and praiseworthy instance of voluntary service to their Queen and country in one home. Her Majesty the Queen thinks Mrs. O'Keefe has every reason to be proud of her sons."

A GIANT WAR CORRESPONDENT. A war correspondent at Ladysmith describes a Boer shell as wrecking the room of Mr. H. H. S. Pearse, the Daily News war correspondent, and then popping through the floor into the dining room of the hotel. Mr. Pearse, who does not seem to have suffered personally from this violent intrusion, upon his privacy, is (says the Star) a Devon man, and pro- bably one of the tallest journalists in England. He stands six feet four inches in his shoes, and has a military carriage gained as much by long experience as a volunteer officer as by many years of campaign- ing. Mr. Pearse's first experience as a war correspondent was in 15, when he accom- panied the Gordon Rehef Expedition, under the command of the ill-fated Sir Herbert Stewart. He took part in the desert inarch from Korti, and wa* wounded in the square at Abu Klea, narrowly escaping with his life from the meloom which Colonel Burnaby was killed. In 1896 Mr. Pearse went as special artist correspondent for the Daily Graphic with the Sirdar's advance on Dongola, and was present at the battles of Hafir and Firket, for which he received the Egyptian medal with two clasps. He was content with acting as military expert at home for the Daily News during the Spanish American War. He started for the Cape on September 9 at less than 10 hours' notice. In addition to his expert knowledge of n aval and military work, Mr. Pearse has a great reputation as a hunting correspondent, and as Plantagenet of the Field he is regarded by all hunting men as one of the greatest authorities on horses and hounds in England.

THE Queen of Roumania, Carmen ylva," is so passionately fond of flowers that she is positively unable to rest happily in a room where there are no blossoms. As to writing without the neighbourhood of flowers, that she has declared to be quite out of the question. Nearly all her literary works have been composed out of doors, in a roofless room, built of reeds and surrounded by a hedge of rose bushes, in the hollows of which are cunnningly concealed cages of singing birds. The floor is of mossy turf. In one corner a tiny fountain pours forth perfumed waters; in. another swings a luxurious silken ham- mock, which the Queen can rest and dream. Her teat is a mossy bank, her desk a lichened atone, sarvfid into the shaDe of a writing-table* I r,

PIGEON MESSENGERS IN WAR TIME. A gossipy article appears in the Daily News on the uee of war pigeons by Continental countries. The article is prompted, of course, by Sir George White's message the other day. In Germany, for instance, a sum amounting to about £2500 is annually sec aside in the War Budget for the training and support of war pigeons. Every fortress and camp on the frontier—so we learn from a recent account-has its columbary supplied with trained birds, housed for emerger-des. The pigeons belonging to the German War Department number about 10,000, but in addition all trained birds in the country are ntimbered and registered, and can be claimed by the authorities in time of need. These pigeons may not be sold or taken out of tbe country without leave from the military authorities, and thur registration is compulsory under severe penalties. The German military pigeon system is by far the most extensive and complete in Europe. In 1891 is was estimated that there were 250,000 birds in France avail- able for collecting intelligence, and the number has doubtless since then considerably increased. The shooting of pigeons is prohibited, and a strict census is kept of the birds in the country. The principal pigeon-training station in France is at Chalons, but there are depots in all the frontier towns and fortresses. In our navy the communication of intel- ligence by means of pigeons is now officially recog- nised as a part of the great system of signalling. In 1896 the first naval loft. was established by the Admiralty at Portsmouth, and now there are two more pigeon stations, one at Sheerness, and the other j at Dartmouth. Experiments are made with a view to training the birds to keep up communication between ship and share. There are over 1000 Homing pigeons en the books of the Royal Navy, and the birds are under strict discipline. The pigeons used for military purposes throughout Europe are thobe known as "Homers" or "Homing Antwerps," and not the cluss usually known as Carrier pigeons." The Eng- lish carrier is a purely fancy variety, quite useless as a messenger pigeon. — <

AUTUMN BIRDS. Mr. W. Percival Westell writes from St. Albans A fewjdays since you mentioned the birds singing at this season in and around London. In the country the skylark has re-assumed its trilling lay, and on these wet, gusty days of late may be seen suspended in mid-heaven singing as if his very life depended on a grand effort. No unpropitious elements damp the ardour of this little minstrel of liberty and love, and how we appreciate the delicate creature. A day or two since in a London restaurant I was advised to have" Larks on toast." The waiter informed me that they cost two shillings per dozen! Let us fervently hope that these were not Britishers. Besides the lark, the wren is singing most deliciously now. I heard him first from my garden on October 14. The song is very powerful now and well sustained. The mimicking, chattering starlings too, are very busy, and the bell-ringing note of the great titmouse is to be heard. The little hedge- sparrow is silent, though nearly always to be seen in my garden, but Robin Redbreast supplies the music. Travelling to town recently I noticed a flock of about 50 lapwings rise from some newly-ploughed land. How exquisitely the black and white plumage is shown off against the rich red-brown soil, and how picturesque the little company looks in the No- vember snnlight—wheeling round, and looking alter- nately like silver and black loaves, shimmering in the air.

A PRISON BREAKER'S REWARD. Two men broke out of prison at Coblenz last week. They were two dangerous criminals, and the police turned out to search for them, but did not effect their capture. At one o'clock on Wednesday morn- ing the prison bell began to ring vigorously. It semed that one of the criminals had returned, and humbly begged to be allowed to go back to his cell. After his escape he went to the home of his wife, who, it appears, showed her appreciation of his cleverness in breaking prison by throwing him to the door. The Independence Beige tells this story, and adds the moral: Of two evils, choose the less."

A NEW CLERK OF THE WEATHER. After more than 30 years' service, first as Director of the Meteorological Office, and since 1877 as secre- tary to the Meteorologicnl Council, the Clerk of the Weather," Mr. Robert Henry Scott, retires at the end of this year. The council have recommended to the Royal Society the appointment of Mr. William Napier Shaw as Mr. Scott's successor. Mr. Shaw, who is in his 46th year, is Senior Tutor of Emmanuel College, Cambridge, University Lecturer in Experi- mental Physics, and, although apparently unknown as a practical meteorologist, he has been for the past two years a member of the Meteorological Council, whose secretary he is to be in future.

THE WAYS OF JOHN CHINAMAN Engineering gives an illustrated article on John Chinaman at work on new railways. Our contem- porary recalls the fact that it was the opinion of the elder Brassey that the cost of contractors' work was not sensibly less in countries where low wages were paid than in those in which labour received higher remuneration. Wages are certainly very low in China, but this is balanced by the natural ability of the people to make a very little work go a long way, when they are paid by day wages, and by the inferiority of their methods, not to speak of their dishonesty when they are on piece- -work. Tbeir slowness is not due to want of strength. Most of the Chinamen at New-chwang are over 6ft. in height. In needs a great deal of ,muscular strength to build earthworks by their system, which calls in the aid merely of a pair of dilapidated baskets and a yoke, which is not even curved to fit the shoulders of the wearer. These coolies work in families or clans, and the ground is divided between them by parting walls of earth, so that there can be no con- fusion as to the taskv.f each.

"PECULIAR PEOPLE" IN INDIANA. The tenets of the Peculiar People" have evi- dently found acceptance in Indiana, for the New York Tribune reports that a man and wife named Chenowith, of Frankfort, were recently prosecuted for refusing to provide medical attendance for their child. The judge, however, directed the jury to acquit them on the ground that there is no law in Indiana requiring a parent to provide medical atten- tion for his children. He added that never before had there been a trial like this in the country. The State filed exceptions, and it is probable that there will be an appeal to the Supreme Court.

THE REMAINS OF A FAMOUS PIRATE. Paul Jones's body lies mouldering in some unknown place in Paris, where he died in 1792. Americans in Paris, including Mr. Vignaux, the First Secretary of the American Embassy, interested to find where the grave of the pirate and naval adventurer is, com- missioned M. de Ricaudy, a Paris journalist, to mako inquiries. This gentleman has found that Paul Jones was buried in the churchyard of the Rue Grange-aux-Belles, which ceased to be used as a burial-place in 1803, and is built over. According to the Paris Figaro, it has been decided to acquire the ground, demolish the houses and dig for the remains. How to identify what remains of the pirate's ashes is not explained.

NEW METHOD OF EXECUTION. America invented the electric chair for the termi- nation of the criminal's career, but America is not yet content. A new mode of execution is now suggested, one which is as nearly pamless as possible, and which would deprive the criminal's death of even those mental horrors from which no form of execution hitherto employed has been free. The plan is that the condemned cell shall be made a sort of lethal chamber, into which hydrocyanic gas can be pumped by an apparatus outside. The gas would speedily stupify the condemned, and he would pass uncon- sciously into death without even knowing how it came. The criminal need not even know the hour at which he was to die.—The Hospital.

HE (preparing to leave): I assure you, Miss Sweet, tb. time has passed away very. pleasantly thia this evening." She (abstractedly): Yea it is pleas- ant to know, that it is< past."

COLLECTING DOGS. The Committee of the Ladies' Kennel Association, anxious that as many dogs as possible should aid the Fund for the Widows and Orphans of our Soldiers killed in the Transvaal, are (the secretary informs us) organising a brigade of collecting dogs. Mrs. Stennard Robinson says: Every dog has many friends who would gladly respond to its appeal on behalf of those who were dear to our brave lost soldiers, and surely there could be no better advocate in the case of little children than their friend the dog. I beg to enclose the rules of the brigade, and j to ask the courtesy of your space for their publica- tion, in order that every dog owner may know what we are doing, and in the hope of getting recruits for the brigade. The following are the rules 1 RULES OP THE LADIES' BRIGADE OF COLLECTING DOGS. I 1. That the Corps shall consist of not more than 1000 dogs. 2. That, the name of the Corps shall be "The Ladies' Brigade of Collecting Dogs." 3. That each dog shall pay Is. to enlist, which fee shall be given to the Fund. 4. That each dog on enlisting shall receive a card authorising it to collect. 5. That each dog enlisting shall guarantee to col- lect a sum of not less than 20s., on or before the 10th of December next. 6. That each dog shall send in its collecting card with the amount collected on or before the 10th of December next. 7. That the whole Corps shall present themselves at Earl's-court Exhibition, on a day to be arranged in December next, to parade and receive their Colours, Decorations and Honours, as per rule's 8 and 9. 8. That the Ladies' Kennel Association shall pro- vide 20 medals and cups for the dogs who collect the largest sums. 9. The Brigade to have these presented to them after their Parade at Earl's-court, and be gazetted to their respective ranks in order of merit based on the amounts collected. 10. The Brigade to be permanent. 11. The headquarters of the Brigade to be the offices of the Ladies' Kennel Association, 5, Great I' James-street, London, where all inquiries may be made to the Recruiting Officer, Mrs. Stennard Robinson.

UNtON LINE for the SOUTH AFRfCftR lOW FIELDS. Sailings from SonthiHiTpton w«IJ Culls made at Lisbon, Madeira, and Teneriffie. Ajply UNION STEAM SHIP Co.,Ltd., Canute Kd., SoBthMnptoa^W Bouth African Honse, 94-98, Bishopsgate St. Within. TniLIiIAIlD AND BAOATBLig S> TABLES, A LARGE STOCK or NTKW AKD SEOMB» HAND TABLES always on hand. £ 0,ajPRl€E LMIW -G. KD WARDS, 134, KIKGSLAND ROAD, LONDON, KJ- HALFPENNY ON EVERY CAKE THE SHOPS SELL. ML E AVIV& ft I ff VINOLIA WAR N S a B FU N D. r s One Buyer in every dozen persons in the U.K. means zE7,000 for Soldiers' Families. L TOOTH-ACHE CURED INSTANTLY BY BUNTER'S — Neuralgic Headaches and all NerTe Bfi VB If8 ltV Pains removed by BUNTER'S rorn ■IHI' NERVINE. All Chemists, is. i^d. ■n ik (**i> >«Mi n ana are obtained easily, MfelK KB fls WB Ih H ftl Bl* quickly, and withomt DuS IWfc ffS HB ffl B Ba licity (if desired), tbrongk uMaSOnlllU tbe medium of Tfie Bazaai\ mmem »« «W Exchange and Mart which is freely iuw r 1 1 1 hy Private Persons for tk« AT /lis lyiM/lrt disposal of various'articles III Hit K I IIS of personal properry wtalefc IM IJtli XViJUvlU tliey nci longer require, a*4 for which therefore tbey art a rery modems price. For this reason Buyers alt over the country turn to the pages of The Jiazaar. Exchange and Mart Newspaper whe»> ever they require auvtlnne, and therefore wheoercr anyoM has anything whatever to dispose of, or when he wants an» thing, the pa^es of the saiue journal offer him a Sure and Speefly Market. In addition. The Bazaar, Exchange and Mart Newspaper Is a Literary Journal of an exceptionally ussful character, having a number of highly practical and illustrated articles on various Subjects of ititeicsr t" amateurs in connection with Art, playiM various Musie:il Instruments, Shooting, Touring, Fishing, Liter* lure, Caj-'e Birds, I'luito- Am:K AM CUfERQ chanics. IHyjs*. (iar.iemns, II|I||IVL.I||I Dogs. Horses, I'ouliry. Auia- ffiSl V WW BB11W tear Farming and tnmuner- « able other topics. Another • invaluable feature is that HT1TT /IHAffTlATl the Editor, with the assist- !l II if 11 IIMVI If HI auce of a large staff of (jLII | U UljUtlUll Specialists, gives advice or V X GET A COPT AND JUDGE FOR YOURSELF. At any BooJg. stall or Newsagent. Price 2d. Specimen Copy 3d. to stamps direct from Office 170, STRAND, LONDON, W.C. NOTA QUACK REMEDY —, GUT A VCRY OLD AND B IIVWLIL!^ WELLT/VEliMLDjb/ftE H WV biB W f £ & PEMNYR0YSL&; STEEL & PI I I C, FANR'IFT/ REMOV^ NIL OB- t.rnc!.i()n8,:Ln" relieve All L J « Distressing Symptoms. >\ 1 I Boies, 1/1~Jand ?|9, of all ■r-i HiiaJI |HH II Cliemims. Serwenreceipt _>Y ogJUmflfc"■»fcy of 15or34stamps,by K.T.. •) OW j,K & CO..Manufacturers,Dryden Street, F IjdTTlSMjiM. Bcirnrttf Imitations, /njuru>vs€r Worthless. "0F* & N & NEW ZEALAND1 RED TJCED FARES. The A eciit-General is prepared to receive Applica- tions from intending Settlers for Passages at Reduced Fares, by t.he Suaw, Sa-vill, and Albion Company's, and the New Zealand Shipping Company's Steamers. Application Forms and aJl particulars can be ob- I tained from the AGENT-GENERAL FOR NEW ZBALAtTD, I' 13, Victoria Street, London, S.W., and also from the Agents in the United Kingdom of the above CompaLiea.

COCOA—The National Drink. NEVER in the history of the world has Cocoa been so much held in favour as a national drink as it is at the present day. Yet there are Coooas and Cocoas. MBSSRS. FRY have gained no fewer than 275 GOLD MED ALS and DIPLOMAS, and their Pure Concen- trated Coco i in th<^ result of an accumulated experience OjllS^S^ ^aCCfl w known .Firm the rivalry e ng amongst rt, 9plls of latter-day vth. Chef'e i. no better Nueniørthllll buhUA > Of which Dr.I Andrew WIlson, ,F.R.S.E., ;,> Ð etc., says, "It is my \7:, SHUT ideal of perfection." JUST THRES Vv OHD3 arc necessary in order tojeet the # right Cocoa, viz., FH.v-S "UKW QOWOERATED.

¡; IT has been found that an apparatus for killing animals with chloroform in England would not work in India, because the high temperature prevented the concentration of the chloroform vapour. That this was the cause was proven by the fact that bY placing ice in the box the animals were readily killed. THJ Austrian Post Office is to try a "telegram card," pn which a person writes a message, and posts in the usual way, but the Post Office telegraphs the contents, which are delivered to the address by the postman. The plan is a combination of poet and telegraph, and seems useful as having a cost and opoi& intermediate between post and telegraph. i