MISCELLANEOUS EXTRACTS:

Southland Times, Issue 732, 4 October 1867, Page 3

MISCELLANEOUS EXTRACTS:

The cholera has broken out with great violence in Montenegro, and the Prince has, in consequence left with his family forYenice. . A Boston paper says that neither m iiit; oiiuLu iii»«x.»y, nr- in any of the departments of the State house at Hartford is there a Bible. ' We learn, says the ' Imperial Review,' from reliable sources that, in accordance with instructions from the Home Government, a portion of her Majesty's Indian forces are held in readiness to take part in any expedition that may be decided upon against Abyssinia. The ' Owl' says the Princess of Wales will leave England in the second week in August. Her Royal Highness will proceed on board one of the Royal yachts to Rotterdam, whence she will pursue her journey up the Rhine, on her way to the waters' recommended to her. It is not generally known that Mr Stanfield, the late distinguished Royal Academician, lost nearly the whole of his fortune by the disastrous failure of the Agra and.Masterman's Bank, and other similar concerns last year. Mr Stanfield had accumulated a fortune of something like £80,000, of which only a mere wreck was left at the time of his lamented death.—" Globe." The " South London Press" says that the lady who gave Mr Spurgeon £20,000 to erect an Orphanage has since ordered her plate to be sold for the same object ; and Mr Spurgeon asserts that the donor has thereby " set an example to all believers who have surplus and unused gold and silver which ought to be put to better use than lying wrapped up in a box." Philadelphia Theatre was destroyed by fire on the evening of June 19. The audience and players were got out in safety, but eleven persons, mostly firemen, were killed, and nine injured by falling walls. A few days before, twentyeight persons were killed by a steamtoiler explosion in the city. A Showee or Pebbles.— A Belgian paper, the " Gazette de Mons," relates that in the afternoon of June 24, during a storm which broke over Frameries, a shower of small pebbles fell from the sky. Several of them were collected, and found to be of the size of a small nut. The composition is of a sort of enamelled silex resembling jasper. A telegram from Hadersley in North Sleswig has announced that 1000 families in that district have had notice from the Prussian authorities to quit their homes within eight days, for refusing allegiance to the new order of affairs. A late Boston notion is to genera' c steam with the aid of waste coal-dust, ?ery fine, injected by a current of compresseed air into the space over the fire, where it burns with an intensely hot toe, and greatly increases the pwduc* tLoa of steam,

An Appeal on Behalf of Ceookes. — -In consequence of tbe report that Messrs. Taylor, of Mobray street, Crooke's employers, bad given him notice to quit their service, tbe Eev, E Stainton and other gentlemen waited upon them to solict an interview on the subject. Mr Stainton said they did not at all extenuate the crimes which Crookes had . confessed, but held them in the utmost abhorrence. They begged however, that Messrs. Taylor would reflect that the course taken by the G-overnment was not punitive bat curative. Crookes and others had confessed under the assurance of pardon, and supposing the examiners to be satisfied that Crookes had told the whole truth, he must be considered as a pardoned man. But he and his family must live, and supposing that Messrs Taylor, who had employed him for years, had no serious fault to find with his conduct as a work man, who was so likely as they to employ him still ? He could not expect work from people who knew only his bad name. If Messrs Taylor discharged him it would be to plunge him and his family into destitution. It would be practically to disregard his pardon and to throw him into temptation. The deputation, therefore hoped that Messrs Taylor would reconsider the question, and continue Crookes in employment, if they could do so injustice to themselves. Messrs Taylor replied that it wss far from being their wish to discharge Crookes. They had given him notice in consequence of the remarks made to them by various persons, but they were glad to be assured that there were other and more just views of the case, and they willingly agreed to continue Crookes in their employment. — ' Sheffield Independent." The Sultan Abdul- Aziz is reported to have said to the Emperor, in speaking of his journey : — " It is the Sultan who pays a visit to the Emperor, Turkey to France ; and Islainism to Chrissianity. Geneeositt of the Sultan. — "When the Solferino was firing a salute of 101 guns at Toulon, on the arrival of the Sultan, one of the guns burst. The master-gunner was killed and three men wounded. His Ottoman Majesty, on hearing of the accident, declared that he ! would accord a pension to the family of I the deceased, and gave a sum of money to each of the others. A Woman Inteeeed Aliye. — The " Journal de Pontarlier " relates a case of premature interment. During the funeral of a young woman at Mount Elorin, who had apparently died in an epileptic fit. the gravedigger, after having thrown a spadeful of earth on the coffin, thought he heard a moaning from the tomb. The body was consequently exhumed, and a vein having been opened, yielded blood almost warm and liquid. Hopes were for a moment entertained that the young woman would recover from her lethargy, but she never did so entirely, and the next day life was found extinct. From a Parliamentary return, it appears that the number of houses assessed to the House Duty in England and Wales during the year ending sth of April, 1866, was 608,305. The amount of duty was £987,819. Rather more than oaethird of the total number of inhabitad houses were under £30. The range of highest rentals is found in Middlesex and South Lancashire. In the latter the highest is £30,000, in the former £20,000. The average duty was £1 12s s|d per house. Sale of Sic Waltee Scott's Manuscripts. — By direction of the trustees of the late Mr Bobert Caddell, of Edinburgh, Messrs Christie and Manson sold at their rooms, in King-street, >St. James's, London, the original manuscripts of Sir Walter Scott's celebrated poems, and several of his novels and prose works. Amongst them was a portion of " Ivanhoe," which is believed to be the only remnant of that romance which Sir Walter Scott wrote with his own hand, as the late Mr John Ballantyne acted as his amanuensis for a considerable part of it, owing to the author haviug recently recovered from a severe illness. The manuscript of the " Lay of the Last Minstrel" was not preserved. All these interesting literary relics are in a perfect state of preservation, and uniformly bound in Eussia with uncut edges. A vast number of literary men were present. The following were the prices realised :— " Marmion," 191 guineas; "The Lady of the Lake," 264 guineas ; " The Vision of Don Roderick," 37 guineas ; " Eokeby" (in detached pieces partly, bearing the postmark of various districts), 130 guineas ; " Lord of the Isles," 101 guineas ; " Introductory History of Ballad Poetry," 54 guineas ; " Auchindrane," 27 guineas ; "Anne of Geierstein," 121 guineas; " Waveiley," " Ivanhoe," the " Bridal of Tremaine," and other papers, with autograph, 130 guineas ; " Tales of a Grandfather" (portion of the original manuscript, with autograph), 145 guineas ; " Caatle Dangerous," 32 guineas; " Count Eobert de Paris" (a portion only), 23 guineas. The sale therefore j realised 1225 guineas, Mr Hope Scott, Q»0«i w as amQDgafe the principal bidders,