Papurau Newydd Cymru
Chwiliwch 15 miliwn o erthyglau papurau newydd Cymru
16 erthygl ar y dudalen hon
FIELD AND FARM.
FIELD AND FARM. NITRATE AND STRAW Nitrate of soda produces a grtlat increase in straw. In some cases (as Prof. John Wrightson points out in the" Agricultural Gazette ") this is not desirable, but in most years an increase in straw is accompanied with a satisfactory increase in grain. The grain must in a sense first exist in the straw. The ear is nourished from the straw, and filling is regarded as a process of migration of nutrient matter from the straw to the ear. A strong growth of straw is, therefore, closely related to an abun- dant yield of corn. An addition of three to five cwt. per acre of salt is considered by many practical farmers to check the growth of straw, and to throw the energies of the plant more to- wards the formation of grcvin. This is probably the case, or salt would not be so generally et-edited for stiffening straw and causing it to be more fruitful. In cold and wet seasons the undue growth of straw is certainly favoured by nitrate of soda, and this is sure to be followed by an attack of mildew. The dark green colour of the growing straw is accompanied with a broad flag and close growth, which help to exclude the air, and the condition becomes favourable for the develop- ment of blight germs. It is in such circumstances that wheat actually suffers from applications of Tiitrate of soda. There is, therefore, an element of risk in its application which regular users are content to run. WARBLES IN CATTLE. A considerable sum of money is annually lost to British farmers owing to the existence of warbles in ca ttle, the injury to the hides of animals slaughtered for beef being estimated at upwards of one million pounds sterling. In addition to this, we have the further loss of thriving in the animals, both fatting and store beasts, as well as the pain caused to them by the warble sores. The assertion that the loss on the hides does not fall on the farmers, but on the butchers who sell the hides is entirely a fallacy. Knowing the prevalence of warbles, the butchers make allowance for warbled hides and licked beef when buying fat stock, and the real sufferer is thus the farmer. It seems a pity that this monetary loss and suffering to the animals should take place, as by a little care and attention the warble fly might be exterminated, and cattle and horses left in peace. I have (writes Samson") actually heard witnesses declare in court that warbles in animals were, like boils on human beings, healthy. The only relation be- tween the two is that both are painful and weakening, preventing thriving in man or beast. Boils in man arise from poverty and impurity of the blood, and the idea that they are healthy is that the impure matter, if it did not exude in the shape of boils, would work worse internal mischief; but the inference is plain, that if the blood had re- mained normal and healthy there would not have been boils. Warbles in cattle are the result of eggs deposited by the warble fly in the hides of the animals during the hot days of summer. In the autumn and winter months these eggs penetrate the hides of the beast and develop into maggots, drawing their sustenance from the tissues of their host. I have counted as many as twenty of these warbles in the back of one animal, and it thus is certain that there must be a considerable amount of suffering, preventing proper thriving, as well as causing damage to the hides, and consequent loss « of value per lb. when it comes to be sold. In the openirg months of the year these warbles or maggots are coming into life, and on passing the hand over the backs of cattle and horses they will be felt as so many peas. This is the best time for treatment in order to save the animals from pain, and also for the extermination of the pest, for if the maggots are left to grow to maturity, in the summer months they roll themselves from the backs of the animals on to the grass, come into the fly stage, and begin a fresh attack. Each maggot has a very fine breathing pore through the hide, and if, as the late Miss E. A. Ormerod, LL.D.. told us, a small piece of fat or smear is placed on the top of each warble, after parting the hair, the maggot is suffocated, the animal is saved further suffering, and the future crop of warble flies lessened. PRESERVING EGGS. I Eggs will now be becoming exceedingly plentiful as after the rest of winter many of the hens will be recommencing to lay, and moreover all the later hatched pullets will also be coming into full lay, and thus the markets will be flooded, and as a con- sequence the price of eggs will be very low. The great advantage of being able to preserve eggs so that they may be kept from the cheap to the dear season must be apparent to everyone, and it is a surprising fact to those not closely connected with the trade to what a great extent this preserving of eggs is carried, out. Although many excellent methods of keeping eggs during a period of several months have at one time and another been dis- covered, yet it must be admitted at the outset that there is no known method by means of which it is possible to preserve an egg in a perfectly fresh condition, and I do not (says E. T. B.") advise using preserved eggs for boiling purposes. More than this, preserved eggs should never be sold as new-laids, because, however well they may have been kept, yet they are not new-laids, and have no right to be disposed of as such. There is always a ready sale for preserved :eggs, chiefly for cook- ing purposes, and I know of a case in which a lady preserved over 3000 eggs for a period of six months, and retailed all these at one penny each during the scarce season. This shows a consider- able amount of profit, and it pays well to preserve eggs, as there is always a ready market for them. There are several excellent methods, blitperhaps tic best of all is by means of water-glass. This is an in ven- tion of very recent years, but it is the method most commonly adopted at the present time. Water-glass is the common name given to soluble silicate of soda, and it can be purchased it nearly all good chemists. There are, however, one or two firms who make a speciality of supplying it, and can send it out immediately in any quantity, j whether large or small. When bought it is about the consistency of treacle, and it requires to be mixed with 10 or 12 parts of water before being used. The eggs are placed in a vessel, the size depending upon the number of eggs to be preserved, and the liquid is poured over them so as to entirely cover them, and nothing more requires to be done. The eggs are kept in an excellent manaer, and I think this is the best way undoubtedly of preserv- ing eggs. One of the distinct advantages of tliia system is that more eggs can be added day by day, whereas with some of the other methods, when the vessel containing the eggs has to be sealed up, the eggs have all to be put down at one time. This is not nearly as convenient, as it is of the utmost importance that the eggs shall be absolutely fresh when put down and thus with some of the other methods it would mean that there would have to be a large number of vessels whereas in this case, one, if sufficiently large enough, is all that is required. THE MILCH COW ON TRIAL. I Every gyear (observes Mr. James Long) adds something to our knowledge with relation to the value of our native breeds of milking cattle, from the point of view of quality and quantity of the milk produced. There is certainly no form of test which is so extensive and which has been conducted so long as the annual test at the Royal Agricultural Hall at Islington in October. Let us examine the results of last year's work, and the cumulative results of several previous years in the light of the report which has recently appeared. Ninety-nine animals competed, and it will be re- membered by those who have followed this ques- tion, that points are allotted for the quantity of butter-fat produced from the weight of the milk, for solids other than fat, and for the number of days which have elapsed since calving after the first 40 days. Further points are deducted when an animal produces milk containing less than 3 per cent. of fat, or 8i per cent. of other solids. Animals of each breed are not eligible for the prize unless these reach a figure which represents a minimum number of points. Excepting in the case of the Shorthorns, the Jerseys, and the cross-bred cattle, the entries were not numerous, although there were 8 Kerries and 7 Red Polls. First, we turn to a question relating to the solids of milk. It is shown by Mr. Whitely, one of the judges, that during the past 12 years 59 Shorthorns have produced milk containing less than 3 per cent. of fat, together with 18 Red Polls and 16 crosses, but that there have been only 6 Guerp- ■eys, and Ayrshires. Last year of 34 Shorthorre IS fell short, and of 30 Jerseys, only 2. With regard to the solids other than fat, in the 12 years previous to 1902, 122 Shorthorns fell below 9 per cent., and, in addition, 65 Jerseys, 29 Guernseys, 40 Kerries and Dexters, 37 crosses, and a number of Red Polls and Ayrshires. Last year, 25 Short- horns and 11 Jerseys fell below this figure, as well as some animals of every other breed.
I GARDEN GOSSIP. r-
GARDEN GOSSIP. THE pruning of young fruit trees that have been recently planted should receive attention. KEEP your young Ten Week Stocks cool and dry damp and heat play havoc with seedlings. REPOT young plants of Malmaison carnations. These require a rich soil to bring them to perfect- tion. EXCEPT in the coldest districts, the pruning of Roses should now be completed. THERE is no better tomato for growing outdoors than Comet. DON'T coddle Tomatoes in much heat and moisture; to do this is but to make an opening for disease. A FEW tops of Chrysanthemums, struck now, will make useful plants if grown to a single stem, and very fine flowers may be produced.^ m BALSAMS should never be watered heavily when in a young state. These plants are often in an unhealthy condition from this cause alone. QUASSIA water is one of the most easily prepared insecticides we possess, and effective withal. TWIGS and branches of Larch in their early delicate greenery are very beautiful if mixed with flowers for indoor decoration. TRITOMAS (Red Hot Pokers) delight in a warm and rather elevated position, and dislike disturb- ance of the roots. BE sure you don't cut the grass of lawns too closely the first time or two of mowing, or the young grasses may be crippled and die. PLANT out a good number of Seakale sets, so that a plentiful supply is ensured for next winter. Is is quite unnecessary to have raised beds of Asparagus on light land. So seed now if new beds are desired. THE best Seakale is that produced outside in May the crowns may now be covered, for blanch- ing the growth, with ashes, or have the earth ridged over them. PLEASE note that the leaves of Ficus elastica variegata are quickly discoloured if the plants are subjected to a low temperature and moisture is allowed to settle on the foliage. BEDDING Geraniums that are making strong growth should have the points of the shoots pinched out; nice bushy plants will then be provided for planting-time. WHERE there are no means of increasing Dahlias by cuttings, and there is a desire for more stock, the clumps of tubers may be split up, and potted separately. BAMBOOS will thrive in low, wet portions of the flower garden it is all the better for them if such positions are slightly protected from cutting winds. SOME of the plants of Odontoglossum enspum may now need repotting, though most of these orchids would receive attention in August or Sep- tember. PEAS.—These are better now sown in shallow trenches, which by and by can be filled up. Deep sowing of this kind is a great aid to the plants in preserving them from short spells of drought. Where pheasants and;vermin:abound, a 2-inch layer of soot forms a splendid protection, and in due time the Peas discover its value as a fertiliser. TRANSPLANTING ONIONS.—In the course of the next few days glass-raised Onions may be trans- planted to their quarters in the open. Many good gardeners grow all Onions in this way, and when properly prepared by growing cool, the little plants receive no harm from frosts, and when one grows a good few thousands, getting them early out ot the way is an important consideration. A LITTLE Box FOR SWEET PEAS.-SWOet Pea growing is becoming quite a mania. Well," said an enthusiast the other day, were anyone to call me a Sweet Pea or even a Lathyrus odoratus maniac, I should not attempt to deny it." Many of us are looking forward to rare times this coming season, and hope many readers will participate in the pleasure. See that your plots are ready, be less free with the dung-fork, and more generous with the little box. The box should contain super- ¡- phosphate, by the way. UNCOMMON LOBELIAS. Lobelias are ever popular, but it is nearly always the blue that is grown. White comes in for a fair share of sup- port, but the red Prima Donna makes little head- way. True, the colour is not the red of Lobelia cardinalis, but some of the seedlings are really a bright crimson. Another pleasing variety is Goldese, or golden leaved. It is less coarse than the old Golden Feather so much used in conjunc tion with Lobelias. YOUNG VINES.—About this time young Vines from last year's raising are fit to plant. It is notorious that early planting, or while the buds are still dormant, not infrequently results in the Vines declining to break at all, or sometimes they make just the slightest attempt at growth. Left till now, the buds will have developed to the size of the point of one's finger, and when caught at this stage, and allowed to come on without any attempt at forcing growth, there is little chance of failure. VIOT,AS.-Autumn inserted cuttings are now well rooted, and should be at once planted in the posi- tions they are to fill. A slight addition of well rotted manure is advantageous, but much dung is hurtful. The soil, however, can hardly be too firmly compressed. Those who are in search of a first class white should give Marchioness a trial. It is not widely known, but is really one of the best. PANSIES.—Where these are cultivated for large blooms, the soil should be thoroughly prepared, a compost made up as for pot plants being the best medium. But short of that an efficient rooting material may be prepared by turning over the soil to a depth of 18in., mixing, in the process, a dres- sing of decayed manure, old potting soil, and some good artificial. To make certain that the mixture is alike throughout, turn it over a second time, patting it down in the process, and a well trenched bit of ground will be ready to yield large blooms. SNOW IN SUMMER." Where permanent edgings of that very desirable edging plant Cerastium tomentosum have become worn out, the present is a suitable time to renew them. The exhausted soil should be exchanged for fresh, and then portions of the plant inserted three inches apart each way. It is not essential that these possess roots, but of course rooted pieces fill up quicker and more regularly. Cerastium still in good condition should be cut over close to the ground, weeds extracted, and a dressing of fine soil and manure neatly furnished as a top- dressing. HARDY ANNVALS.-A select number of these is a necessity in every well appointed garden. They should be chosen with care and treated with as much respect as your most splendid Orchid, and, my word for it, not a few people will be surprised to discover so much beauty in flowers so common. Circumstances have led one urban gardener to sow all annuals on a bit of ground by themselves, after- wards to be transplanted to the places in which they are to bloom, and on the-whole, perhaps this is the best method. The seeds should H sown now as soon as possible.
1OUR SHORT STORY. I
OUR SHORT STORY. I THE LAST WORD. I AN HOTEL EPISODE. I That has always been my opinion, or, at least, always since I stopped letting mamma form my opinions for me," said a distinctly pleasing feminine voice behind him. Colton turned casually around from the table in the corner by the wall, where he was writing his usual Sunday letters, not so much because the hotel stationery—it was at a northern resort-is both excellent and inexpensive, as because his own room was lonely, to see who the speaker might be. The great room was filled with men and a few women, seated at the small tables chatting, while the waiters moved silently about. The table a few feet from Colton's elbow was now occupied by a wholly charming girl and a young man who Colton instantly decided was unworthy of her. In the first place he was a touch too good looking, and in the second place his clothes fitted his figure too well, so Colton thought, for a man evi- dently in his senior last year at college. Colton turned back to the table, not to write, but to listen. I'm glad to hear you say so," the student said, continuing the conversation begun before entering the room. I've found lots of girls, up-to-date girls, too, who didn't agree with me. But what will you have to drink ?" Lemonade," said the girl. Oh, try a glass of wine," urged her companion. "No, thank you," she answered, with that pecu- liar half laugh those who know women are aware is the expression of finality. Colton mentally scored one for the girl, while her companion, calling a waiter, ordered a lemonade for the lady and something else for himself. "Yes," the man continued, "I have always said that it was unjust and silly in a country so uni- versally respectful to women as ours, to deny a girl the opportunity of making chance acquaintances, say during a long railway journey, or something of that sort. If a girl is going a long railway or steamer trip, and if there is a young man seated near her, evidently a gentleman and of her social position, why on earth isn't it all right for her to accept his offers to make her more comfortable and to pass away the dismal time of the journey in conversation pleasant for both of them ? I can see no harm in it." Nor I," said the girl. "I have always thought that, as I told you. If one has common sense, such things can be managed all right. The trouble is, girls put our theory into practice too young, when they don't know the world, and get frightened into primness. Now, if they'd only wait till they are grown up and sensible like you," said the man, with what Colton decided was undue effusiveness, i! how much more delightful a time they could have, with something of the freedom in getting fresh view- points from strangers a man enjoys." Colton stole another look at the girl. Yes, she was decidedly charming. He began to wish he were a hypnotist and could make the man ask her when she would return to town. Just then she glanced at him. He turned back quickly. Could it be possible ? No, he told himself; in the train, perhaps, but not here while her caller was with her; it was only his hope of reading fulfilment into what was not there. As the dramatist said, there is a limit to all vanity, even that of a 'Varsity man. Again, haven't you been forced to wait alone sometimes for a long time in a place where it was not wholly pleasant for a girl to be without an escort ?" continued the young woman's companion. Such situations are bound to occur. Now, would not it be much more pleasant for you if a nice man, perhaps seeing your embarrassing position, spoke to you, to feel free to accept his friendliness in the spirit intended, and to chat with him to pass away the tedious wait ?" I should feel quite free to talk with him," said the girl, if he behaved himself." And if he didn't you girls have always a way of artistically taking us down," said her companion, with a wordly snigger (so Colton mentally styled his laugh). Rather!" said the girl. But I'll tell you what makes me angry," the man went on. "That is to have a girl, when she has met a man in this fashion and found him per- fectly presentable, introduce him to her friends as Mr. So-and-So, whom I met in the Spa,' or other- wise invent a lie to cover up what needs no cover- ing. Even from a worldly point of view, lying is to be indulged in as rarely as possible. Besides a girl, though she needn't go out of her way to stick up for her principle, shouldn't back down from it when- when- When she's caught what she wants," laughed the girl. Let me help you out with a phrase. No, you are quite right. I've known girls to do just what you say. It's a touch of their feminine timidity that causes them to do it. Of course, as a matter of fact, they don't need to make any ex- planation, one way or the other, when they intro- duce a chance acquaintance." I'm glad to see we agree so thoroughly," said the man. Colton turned, for he did not like the tone. The flirt!" Colton muttered, and dropped a book from the desk with a loud noise. It had the desired effect, for the man straightened up. His cigar was burned out, and he remarked to the girl: j If you'll excuse me I'll get a fresh cigar. I know the kind I want, but I've forgotten the name, so I cannot order from the waiter. You don't mind being alone a minute, do you ?" Certainly not," she said. I shouldn't think she would," thought Colton, as he watched her companion go out the room. Five, ten minutes, passed, and he uid not return. Colton stole a look at the girl. She was sitting alone at the table, looking about her nervously, for the room was now filled almost entirely with thirsty men. Fifteen minutes passed, and two large specimens of City men entered, portly and red faced as the indirect result of fortunate specu- lations. They approached her table, the only one with vacant chairs. Her nervousness increased. She looked embarrassed and very lonely. Should he or should he not? Colton debated. Wasn't I the game worth the candle, any way—or rather ¡ the snuffer ? Just then she glanced at him again. The City men were almost there. He I ueciuea. Pardon me," he said, but when a girl is forced to wait alone in a place where it is not wholly pleasant to be without an escort-" You have good ears," she interrupted coolly. Then you acknowledge that they have not de- ceived me," he replied, sitting down, for the City men had turned away. They have not," the girl said, but the con- versation you took the liberty of overhearing, like the chair you are sitting in, was not meant for you." True," returned Colton, nor was the chair reserved for those broad, departing backs from London, if I mistake not." Thank you for that," said the girl, softening a bit. I should thank you for that. But you have done your duty now—they are gone." Oh, no, my duty is not done-they may return!" said Colton. But so may my escort," the girl said hurriedly. A touch of feminine timidity. Colton smiled. And you know you two agree so well," he added mockingly. The girl acknowledged the touch by shifting ground. "But I haven't time to find out if you are presentable," she said. My ancestors came over with the Normans," Colton answered meekly. "Oh, everybody's did that!" said she. Your point," laughed Colton. But my name is Talbot. That should pass me," I am bound to believe you," the girl retorted. You would never need a John trumpeter." Then they both laughed. And from a mutual laugh there is no return. Presently the student came back, and started to ask pardon for his delay. The girl interrupted. Let me introduce Ito you," she said, pausing to watch Colton's face, my friend Mr. Talbot, whom I met last summer in Paris. Isn't it too bad that he's got to run away to make a horrid call ? Mr. Adding- ton, Mr. Talbot." Colton braced to the shock, and said blandly,— I am delighted to meet you, Mr. Addington. I wish you had been with us last summer at the Crawford House." The Crawford House," exclaimed Addington. 1 thought Miss bates always went to Bethlehem." Colten backed off and gathered up his letter. Perhaps it was Bethlehem," he said, looking straight into the girl's face. One meets so many girls in a summer it is hard to keep them differentiated." Then he went on his way. Not long after he might have been seen in his lonely room writing to his college chum on the t holy joy of having the last word.
1 SEARCH FOR A TREASURE SHIP.
1 SEARCH FOR A TREASURE SHIP. In the eighteenth century a Spanish treasure- ship was lost off the lower coa.st of California. Some years ago a number of capitalists put their heads together to devise some scheme of captur- ing the submarine wealth. The hulk was found, after a lot of money had been spent, and there was great rejoicing among the originators of the plan, who had visions of a huge profit on their outlay. But there came a melancholy end to their beautiful dreams. The sunken vessel was found, and so was the money-what was left of it. The coins, however, had been worn smooth and thin by the constant grinding of the tides and currents on the re- morseless sand at the bottom of the blue Pacific. Some of the pieces were mere wafers. The silver was hardly worth picking up. One of the few coins rescued from the ocean grave was a Spanish half-dollar, coined seme time in the early part of the eighteenth century. Only the figure "7" is left, and that is dim and scarcely distinguishable with the naked eye.
ITHE ORIGINAL BUDGET. I
I THE ORIGINAL BUDGET. I It is difficult to realise that the term Budget, AOW so often in everyone's mouth, is a term less than 200 years old, the earliest mention of the word dating no further back than 1733. We bor- rowed it from the old French language'—bougette, meaning a small bag, in which in former times it was the custom to put the estimates of receipts and expenditure when presented to Parliament. Hence the Chancellor of the Exchequer in making his annual statement was formerly said to open his budget. In time (says the "Daily Chronicle") the term passed from the receptacle te the con- tents.
I SALARIES OF DIPLOMATS. I
I SALARIES OF DIPLOMATS. I WHAT AMBASSADORS ARE PAID. I Two years ago Lord Cromer's salary was in- creased by £ 1,000. He is now to receive a fur- ther addition of £ 500, which will raise the, sti- pend to £ 6,500. When Lord Cromer succeeded ) Sir Edward Malet at Cairo in 1883 Sir Edward ) was receiving £ 2,000, but as Lord Cromer had left the post of Financial Member of the Vice- roy of India's Council, which was at that time worth about P,5,500, to go to Egypt, it was neces- sary to make the salary approximate to that of the Indian appointment. Hence it was fixed at £ 4,000, with £ 1,000 personal allowance. As Lord Cromer was leaving a temporary for a permanent post he gained by the transfer. But in his case, as in that of almost all high officials, an increase (the London correspondent of the (( Glasgow Herald" writes) was slow in coming. With very few exceptions the salaries attached to first-class posts in the Diplomatic service have remained unaltered for generations. For twenty years past the only changes have been at Paris, where in the time of Lord Lytton the salary was reduced from £ 10,000 to £ 9,000 at Berlin, where it wa.s raised from £ 7,000 to £ 7,500, and subse- quently to £ 8,000 at Washington, where on the rank of the post being raised, £ 500 was added to the salary of £ 6,000; and at Madrid, where a corresponding reduction was made. In the second-class posts the Minister to China had cE500 taken from him, and had to stand a siege in Pekin for the reduced stipend, and when the siege was over he was sent by way of further "promotion" to Japan on £ 1,000 less salary. There cannot be much comparison between the claims made upon Sir Rutherford Alcock in the I time of the Shoguns nearly fifty years ago and those made in the Japan of to-day on Sir Claude Macdonald, yet the stipend of £4,000 has been maintained at the same amount. Our agency in Abyssinia is increasing in im- portance. Lieutenant-Colonel Harrington, the agent, is to receive a rise of £ 300, and to be given an assistant and a second secretary, and so the establishment which he started alone just five iyears ago at Adis Abeba will before many weeks consist of four officials. ——————————————
, COST OF THE DENARY STRIKE.…
COST OF THE DENARY STRIKE. j It is estimated that by the Denaby and Cadeby colliery strike, which lasted thirty-nine weeks, the district is the poorer by £ 234,000, which re- presents the wages sacrificed. Against this the strikers have received £ 39,000 in strike pay. The law costs as between the colliery company and the Yorkshire Miners' Association are placed at £U).OOO. In addition, the company are bringing an action for £ 125,000 damages against the associa- tion. The miners, who now return to work, are called on to pay £6 damages per head for throw- ing down their tools without proper notice, and they have also to pay several months' arrears of rent for the time they lived in the company's cot- tages until evicted.
WHITECHAPEL WIT. I
WHITECHAPEL WIT. "Well, man, what do you want me to do?" asked Judge Bacon at Whitechapel the other day of a young Jew. "Veil, mein honours, I do vont you to gif me advice," he replied. After listening with great patience to a long history respecting a shop dis- pute, Judge Bacon said, "I am not here to give you advice. From what you tell me you appear to have taken a shop without having had any agreement. Go and consult a solicitor." Applicant: Ach I 'arf been to zree, zey take mein monies, but zere is no satisfaction. (Laughter.) Judge Bacon I don't take your money, but I am afraid under the circumstances you relate, I can give you as little satisfaction as the three solicitors. (Loud laughter.)
I NO HELP FROM THE WAR OFFICE.
I NO HELP FROM THE WAR OFFICE. The prospects of the National Artillery Asso- ciation, as disclosed at their annual meeting the other day, were shown to be far from cheerful. A depreciation of zE163 6s. 2d. appeared in the revenue account, the failure for the third time to hold the camp at Shoeburyness having natur- ally had a prejudicial effect on the association. A scheme had been submitted to the War Office by which competitions should be held in regi- mental camps by companies or batteries, and a grant of ammunition was asked for from the authorities, but the War Office gave an unfavour- able reply and expressed the view that the scheme would not justify the continuance of the mone- tary grant hitherto made to the association. The chairman (Colonel M. B. Pearson) out- lined a scheme for competitions which had been drawn up, but after a long discussion it was agreed to adjourn the meeting for three months, the question of winding up the association to be then considered.
THE PRINCESS'S GRIEF. I
THE PRINCESS'S GRIEF. I The Paris correspondent of the "Daily News" supplements the statement made to the "Petit Bleu" (Brussels), that the ex-Crown Princess of Saxon-y and M. Andre Giron had decided not to see each other again. When the lovers separated at Geneva, M. Giron made a statement to the effect that their separation was conditional. The Princess agreed to it because she hoped thereby to be able to see her children. Her mother's rights have been denied her. The other day she received an intimation that her sixth child, whose birth she is expecting, would be taken away from her if she did not break off completely with M. Giron. The Prin- cess, who had been in correspondence with her lover up to the other day, then decided, with a broken heart, to renounce M. Giron for ever. Her health has been affected by the King of Saxony's proclamation and his statements on her past life. The Princess, on learning of it, had a nervous fit, followed by prostration, and she said she wished she were dead.
ICRIMINAL ALIENS BILL.",
CRIMINAL ALIENS BILL. TEXT OF MEASURE INTRODUCED BY SIR HOWARD VINCENT. Subjoined is the text of the "Bill tc^ Ex,elude and Deport Criminal Aliens," which fias^"been introduced in the House of Commons by Sir Howard Vincent. The Bill is a temporary measure, which it is hoped may pass into law pending the more com- plete legislation on the subject which will follow the report of the Royal Commission on Alien Immigration. The clauses are those of that portion of the Bill drafted for the "Express" which deal with the question of exclusion and deportation in respect of criminal aliens only. WHEREAS the unrestricted immigration into and sojourn in the United Kingdom of criminal aliens is injurious to the social and moral welfare of the community Be it therefore enacted by the King's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows: 1. Any alien who has been convicted on indict- ment of a crime, or, in the case of foreign con- victions, of a crime that is classified as an indict- able offence under the laws of the United King- dom, shall be excluded from admission into the United Kingdom. 2. Any alien who is convicted of any offence under the laws of the United Kingdom may, in adidtion to any term of penal servitude or imprisonment to which he may be sentenced in respect of such offence, be ordered by the court to be deported. Provided always this shall not apoly to political offences. 3. An alien found in the United Kingdom in contravention of this Act shall be guilty of an offence, and, on conviction by a court of sum- mary jurisdiction, be liable to six months' imprisonment with hard labour and to be deported. 4. One of his Majesty's principal Secretaries of State may from time to time make regulations for carrying this Act into effect. 5. The expression "alien" in this Act means any person other than a British subject. 6. This Act may be cited as the Criminal Aliens Act, 1903, and shall come into operation on the first day of September, one thousand nine hundred and three.
11 AIILLIONS A-BEGGING."
11 AIILLIONS A-BEGGING." THE HIRSCH HERITAGE. While the alien problem presses, the ten millions which Baron Hirsch left to found a colony for poor and oppressed Jews is going a-begging. Mr. Zangwill, who is taking a leading part in the Zionist movement, made some caustic remarks on this extraordinary circumstance in conversation with the "Express" representative in London the other day. "Instead," he says, "of colonising with the money, its trustees, the Jewish Colonisation Association, have been applying it to miscel- laneous Jewish charities. "They have now quietly introduced a Bill into the House of Lords asking for powers which will enable them to use it as they please. They say, Help us poor millionaires. We cannot spend our money!' "True, they have taken in hand the Argentine colony and the Rothschild colonies in Palestine, but this does not interpret the colonising idea of the testator. "Now, Baron Hirsch's idea was to prepare a colony where the colonists when they arrived could earn a living. "The association publish no balance-sheets, but the parochial tone of their annual reports show how utterly they fail to grasp the Baron's idea. "They give such details as the number of ploughs and cows each individual colonist pos- sesses. All the ploughs and cows in tneir colonies' do not amount to the possessions of one big Australian farmer. "Another instance of the attention they devote to trivial details is afforded by one of their reports, which closes with the sentence, 'The German teacher has learnt Spanish.' "The founding of a. Jewish colony in Palestine such as Baron Hirsch conceived would do much to solve the alien problem. Baron Hirsch did not mention any particular place, but Palestine is the only land to which the Jews have a spon- taneous desire to go. "Besides, the fare to Palestine from Odessa is only 30s. "Think of it," concluded Mr. Zangwill. "Ten million pounds a-begging-a pound apiece for every Jew in the world
MEMORIES OF DICKENS.
MEMORIES OF DICKENS. INTERESTING EXHIBITION IN HONOUR OF THE AUTHOR. The First Dickens exhibition ever held in London was opened at the Memorial Hall in Farringdon-street, in connection with the newly- formed Dickens' Fellowship. The rooms were found to be crammed with pictures of Dickens, of the old coaching inns whereof he wrote, and with priceless relics associated either with the great author himself or with his characters. There was on show a gallery of pictures of the Dickens' immortals-Little Nell, Sairey Gamp, Captain Cuttle, Dick Swiveller and the Marchioness, Mr. Pickwick and the faithful Sam. Most interesting of all was the original Little Midshipman which stood outside the shop of Solomon Gills, that ship's instrument-maker so chock-full of science. There the Little Midship- man was with his sextant up to his perky nose, just as you see him in the pictures in "Dombey," taking observations across Farringdon-street, as he once took them across the Minories from No. 156. Hard by was a chair from the King's Head at Chigwell. It evidently escaped the notice of the Gordon rioters, for it was perfectly intact, though a trifle dingy. The exhibition was opened by that doyen of Dickens enthusiasts, Mr. Percy Fitzgerald. He wore a bunch of bright red geraniums, Dickens' favourite flower, and all the committee wore red ribbon in their buttonholes. It was peculiarly appropriate, Mr. Fitzgerald pointed out, that the exhibition was held on the site of the Old Fleet Prison, in which Mr. Pickwick was incarcerated for refusing to pay Mrs. Bardell's damages. Mr. Fitzgerald mentioned that a first edition of Pickwick was now worth -250, and if clean and complete £100.
SUPPLY AND TRANSPORT.
SUPPLY AND TRANSPORT. Colonel F. F. Johnson, C.B., has just been Appointed a colonel on the staff, 4th Army Corps, as Director of Supply and Transport, a new appointment under Mr. Brodrick's army corps scheme. Having joined the Army in February, 1874, from Trinity College, Dublin, Colonel Johnson has twenty-nine years' service. He has been adjutant of the-50th (Queen's Own) Regi- ment, and also of the Commissariat and Trans- port Corps, Woolwich. For three years Colonel Johnson was chief staff officer- in Jamaica. When in Ireland, as D.A.A.G., Belfast District, Colonel Johnson obtaine. several most useful ine ranges and training grounds for the Army. ° Finner, on the west coast of Ireland, and Bally- kinler, on the coast of county Down, were dis- covered by him. The North-Eastern District, when he was appointed assistant adjutant-general there in 1900, was entirely without any facilities for train- ing troops, but this year, owing chiefly to Colonel Johnson's energy, training rights have been acquired over about 6,000 acres of most suitable ground in the High Peak district of Derbyshire. Here two Militia brigades, the Sherwood Foresters Volunteer brigade, and a small mixed force of Regular troops will undergo that prac- tical training so much needed to ensure efficiency.
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Scene Little Willie, sitting down to tea with his grandmother, who is just about to cut ne cake. Willie (hastily): "Grannie, before you cut my piece of cake I want to ask you a ques- tion." Grannie: "Well, dear, what is it?" "I want to know if your spectacles magnify?" "Yes; a little, dear. "Well, then, will you please take them off while you cut my cake?"
—L8 IEPITOME OF NEWS.
— L8 I EPITOME OF NEWS. His Majesty the King, in addition to presenting, a cup for competition, has been graeiously pleased to accord his patronage to the Life Saving Society. A Russian, who is 7ft. lOin. in height, was exa- mined at the tecent meeting of the German Anthropological Society. A falcon has been known to fly 1350 miles-from, Paris to Malta-in 24 hours. The British Postal Department usls eighty mil- lions of envelopes yearly for telegrams alone- a quarter of a million per day. The newest sky-scraper in New York is the Etna building of thirty storeys and 455ft. high from the pavement. This beats all records. About 200 cabbies are to be sued in Johannes- burg for "loitering on the streets." Great Britain has a longer sea-coast line than any other nation in Europe. It measures 2755 miles, Italy coming second with 2172. Russia ranks third, and France fourth. The Customs Committee of the Norwegian Storthing recommend at five per cent. ad valorem duty on machinery of all kinds, including agricul- tural machinery. A horse confined in a small enclosure at Hayton in the United States, was recently attacked by a flock of crows which settled upon every available portion of the animal and pecked it to death. Scarcity of food probably drove the birds to desperation. Sir Wyke Bayliss, the President of the Royal Society of British Artists, is a great chess-player —indeed, he is a recognised champion." So devoted he is to the game that he has declared that, were it not for its sedentary nature, chess would be a sufficient recreation for all a man's leisure hours. A remarkable feature of the returns presented by the medical officer of health for the Blofield district of Norfolk is that the births of male children are about 30 per cent. above those of females. Of 268 births for the year 161 were male children and 125 were females. The Bishop of Peterborough has expressed his regret that the Rev. J. K. Taylor, rector of Ir thlingborough, Northamptonshire, had refused to publish the banns of marriage of one of his parish- ioners on the ground that he had not been baptised in the Church of England. Colonel Saunderson, M.P., has a beautiful country residence called Castle Saunderson, in I County Cavan. He is very fond of spending his leisure hours in boat-building. He is a certified shipbuilder, and models and builds with his own hands his yachts, and likewise sails them. The I Kaiser has a copy of Colonel Saunderson's two rater. Professor Hollis, chairman of the Harvard Athletic Committee, thinks the annual football, contest between Harvard and Yale is demoralising to the students. The game," he says, 11 arouses their worst impulses. Suspicions are rife, bets are on, and studies are entirely neglected for a week." So dangerous has the American game of footbaU. become that the presidents of the various colleges are considering the advisability of amending some of the rules, in order that science may take the place of the'brute strength which is at present necessary in the game. All agree that the "mass plays," which simply consist of hurling men at the enemy's lines with as much momentum as possible,, should be abolished. An American actress, Miss Elizabeth Tyree, recently gave at her flat an extraordinary dinner to her associates in the company of which she was a member. It was a fish dinner, the chief dainty being boiled Japanese telescope fish on toast. For the special occasion the walls of her flat were covered with seaweed and moss, and a miniature lake, in which real fish were swimming, formed the centre-piece on the table. The lady herself wore a green dress, the trimmings of which consisted of iridescent fish-scales. The servants were all. dressed as fish-wives, while the waiters appeared as Jack Tars. The venerable Wilheim Luitpold, Prince Regent of Bavaria, is over 82 years of age, and, with the exception of the King of Denmark, the Grand Duke of Luxemburg, and the Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, is the oldest of European ¡ rulers. He was called to the Regency at the age of 65 by the insanity of his nephew, King Otto, and has filled the onerous post since 1886. On his 80th birthday the inhabitants of Bavaria presented him with £ 85,000. The Prince has four children. 15 grandchildren, and one great-grandchild, little Prince Luitpold of Bavaria, born in May, 1901. It is generally know that Spain supplies us with; most of the oranges we eat, but few people are aware how enormous the industry has become. The Spanish orange region extends, however, over, eastern and southern Catalonia, Valencia, Alicante Murcia, Malaga, and Seville, and in parts of Valencia and Murcia the trees now grown in forests, the soil of the famous Valeneian "huerta" —lavishly manured with guano-being the richest in Europe. Here a single full-grown tree will fiield 1500, and at times as many as 1800, oranges in a season, fruit-bearing beginning when the trees reach their sixth year, and increasing till they are 20, when degeneration usually sets in. On the stage it happens sometimes that the hero is reprieved at the eleventh hour when on the scaffold, and there are cases recorded in history. Few, however, have been so close to death as Joe Campbell, a negro, who had been condemned to death for murder at Yaxoo City, Missouri. The negro had the halter about his neck and the trap- door was ready to be sprung open. Campbell then turned to the sheriff and confessed the name of his accomplice. He was instantly reprieved. Berlin has a. child exchange. The poorer people of the city, who cannot afford outings, send their chrildren to country peasants, and receive in return for an equal length of time peasant children who want to see the city. The plan has worked so, well that the charitable ladies who originated it are about to extend it. There is even talk of exchang- ing children between neighbouring countries, so that they would gain still more valuable experi- ence. It is said that when Lady Jeune first planned her scheme of the Children's Happy Evenings Association she was generally laughed at by some of her friends. One lady especially ridiculed the affair. Lady Jeune merely smiled at criticism, but when the association was working well she invited that lady to be present upon one evening. The critic was speedily turned into the admirer. 11 Ah., my dear friend," said Lady Jeune, "If no one had laughed at my scheme, it would have beem a sure sign that it would fail. Nothing worth doing is ever accomplished without ridicule." Mrs. Henry Sidgwick, the Principle of Newn- ham College, is a sister of the Prime Minister and a niece of the ex-Premier. Married in 1876 to the late Professor Henry Sedgwick, she and her husband were largely instrumental in founding Newnham, and the present success of the college is very largely due to their exertions. Two year. after her husband's death she was appointed Principal, and is undoubtedly one of the most in- tellectual and clever women in the kingdom. In her younger days she shared the studies of her brothers, and is accordingly a good Greek and Latin scholar. When the late Sir Hector Macdonald came home after the Omdurman fight he was invited! to dine at the Marlborough Club, and the King,, then Prince of Wales, crossed tho street to see him. "It is strange we have not met before," said H.R.H. graciously. "But ye have, sir," re- plied Macdonald simply, "for I was corporal ot the guard on the Apollo Bunder when you landed at Bombay!" During the same visit he was re- ceived at the War Office by the Commander-in- Chief, who had just ordered a letter to be written on form, say, C 332, and the clerk came back to report that the form did not fit the -aseq "I think you want S 119, said Macdonald. "How do you know?" was the natural query of the Field-Marshal. "Well, sir, I was orderly- room clerk when that form came out!" Miss Froude, 63, of the Waldrons, Croydon, sister of the late Mr. Froude, the historian, was taken ill suddently at a service of the local Ply- mouth Brethren, and died shortly after being removed to an ante-room. j