MISCELLANEOUS.

Dunstan Times, Issue 939, 16 April 1880, Page 3

MISCELLANEOUS.

A family of eight persons have been murdered near Barcelona. A rich landowner, Fnlgenzio A. liercoznani, had in his service a workman named Manuel, who on arriving at the house for his day’s work, before daylight, found tho doors open, his wife and maid-servant deal in their beds, aud the master an 1 mistress of the house and their three ■laughters, aged 19, 17, an! 15, and a son aged 9, all likewise murdered. Another daughter, aged 5 years, was sleeping quietly beside a murdered sister, having apparently been covered by the bedclothes and unobserved. All the drawers had been forced,everything turned upside down. The murder hail apparently been committed with a hatchet. Suspicion immediately mil on one of the other labourers, a swineherd, who, with his two sons, has been arrested. The controversy which has raged for Id months with regard to the cause of tho explosion of the 38 ton gun on hoard the Thunderer was finally set at rest on Feb. 3. The companion gun, after having safely endured all the tests of opposing theoria’a, was at last submitted to the ordeal prescribed by the Committee of ssientilio men appointed to investigate the subject. It was loaded with a double charge, the fust consisting of a Palliser cartridge of UOlbs of pebble powder, an t a Palliscr shell of 1 1 Olbs, and the secon 1 of Sjlbs of powder and a common shell, with the two wads, fins corresponded exactly with what was Suspected to have been the double loading of the gun which burst so disastrously in the Sea of Marmora, and the experiment was attended with precisely the same result. 'The anticipated explosion took place, completely demolishing the gun, which cost L 3590, while tho numerous abortive experiments which had previously been tried involved an expenditure of many thousands more. But the great importance of the result is hold to fully justify the outlay.