Miscellaneous Items.

Feilding Star, Volume XVI, Issue 69, 15 September 1894, Page 4

Miscellaneous Items.

M. Burdeau, the new President of the French Chamber of Deputies, has risen froi" the anvil, having in early life worked as ft blacksmith. A society of young women has been formed in America who declare that they wili have nothing to do with young men who smoke. A hospital car is the latest railroad novelty in America. It is divided into comprrtments, and contains all tho appliances of an emergency relief corps. A genuine bust of Herod, the tuler of Judea in the days of Christ, discovered in Palestine, has been presented to the Imperial Hermitage at St. Petersburg. The first Board-school was opened in Castle-street, Whitechapel, and the " coming of age " has just been celebrated. In the 21 years the schools have increased to 246. An attempt has been made to smuggle Chinese girls into America in boxes. While removing a huge box, a sound was heard, and upon opening it four srirls were found nearly dead from suffocation. The Grey mouth Harbour Board is in a quandary, the manager of the Bank of New Zealand there having demanded of the corporation under what Act they are entitled to have a bank overdraft ; and the Board cannot tell him. Mr Siemens, the electrician, has submitted an offer to the Canadian Government for laying a cable under the Pacific Ooean from Victoria, British Columbia, to Sydney. He undertakes to* complete the work in three years. The offer is under consideration. At a meeting presided over by the Countess Aberdeen, a scheme was launched for holding an Imperial Exhibition of Woman's Work in London during 1897 or 1898. The*intention of the promoters is to sbow the progress made by women during the Queen's reign. A quarter of a million ounces of •ilver regularly every weak from a single mine is an unparalleled perfomaace, and justifies the claim of the Broken Hill Proprietary to be the greatest silver mine in the world But unfortunately silver {« a glut in monetary market at present. Professor Henry Druramond. tba author of " Natural Law in the Spiritual World/ has just published a remarkable book entitled "The Love Story of the World," which has been referred to as " The New Testament of the Science of Evolution." The author finds in " the divine energy of sex" the foundation of all religion and virtue. The book contains many remarkaple passages A coudlo of tourists staying at Loch Ness had a fancy one fine Sunday to go for a row on the loch. They met the boatman just leaving his house dressed in a suit ot glossy black and with an extra large Bible under hii arm. "We want to go for a row," said one of the tourists. " Dae yp not know it's the Sawhath ?" was the reply. "Ye'H not get a boat frae me the day ; forbye, I'll bae ye to know I'm an elder of the kirk. No, I'll not let ye a boat, but I'll tell ye whar I'll do for ye. Dae ye see yon green boatie doon - among the rushes ? ' • Yes.' ' Weel, she's ready, with the oars inside. Jist row oot to the middle, an' I'll come down to the bank an' swear at ye ; but never mmd — jist row on* an' I'll ca' tor the money on Monday/ A good story of Roberts, the billiards champion, is told. When he was staying at a hotel in Sheffield, he heard of a billiard sharp wbo was skinning all comers. The sharp was always boasting in regard to ' my pal, Jack Roberts.' Mr Roberts decided to have a look at the sharp H ■ walked into the billiard room one night. The smart man accepted the invitation to play Mr Roberts somewhat disdainfully. They bad a hundred up level; Roberts won. then he gave the stranger twenty and won again. The next time Roberts conceded 30 in the 100, and won again ; and at last the stranger underwent the humiliation, before the crowded company, ot getting a start ot 90 in the century and being beaten for the fifth time. Then he burst out, * Well, I'm blowed ; if I hadn't known different, I'd have sworn you were my old pal, Jack Koberts.' And at that the company dissolved into tears. An Irish farmer, who had been forbidden to shoot on his farm, went out very early one morning, thinking to have a shot before the landlord would be stirring, when be unfortunately met him. Pat, wishing to have "the first word, thus addressed the landlord — " What brings yer honor out s<> early »his morning?" " iteming an appetite for ray breakfast, Pat, but what the d brings you out shooting after being forbidden ?" (> Peeking a breakfast for me appe-