GLEANINGS FROM THE PAPERS.

Samoa Times and South Sea Gazette, Volume 4, Issue 172, 13 November 1880, Page 3

GLEANINGS FROM THE PAPERS.

The Crown Prince of Germany has just done a kindly find pretty thing. Little Paul Brandt, a nine-years-old orpliH.ii, having exhibited u remarkable capacity fur music, i.v being educated gratuitously at a musical school in l'filin. On the Emperor** birthday the little fellow summoned up courage and addressed a note of congratulation to his .Majesty, embodying in this note a petition tor a new fiddle upon the pertinent ground that, his own violin '• scraped so awl'tdly " that he could hear with it no longer" A mistake in the address took the"note to the down Prince instead of to the Emperor, and the former immediately ordered inquiries to he made at the school concerning little Brandt ami his "scraping instrument." These inquiries revealing the truth of the hoys statement, the good Prince proceeded to purchase an excellent violin, which he sent as a Whitsunday gift, to hanpv Paul Brandt.

The commissariat powers of MVssjn Spiers and Pond (the Eiiroprm, 3f,u7 remarks; are marvellous. At the opmiinc of the (loyal Albert Dock they served the ihjnhur in :: hnilding 7 K>ft 'long hv 120 ft wide; •_'()() tables were laid for nearly -MOO guests, and 1 \ mile of table cloth was required. There were L'o.ooo forks, n ton of knives. 54,000 glasses. J.".,1100 phi(.e,, 5,-wt -ivipes. -.'OHO baskets ot strawberries, besides aprients. plums. oianges,,!vv., making altogetherlooo varied pyraiuidsof fruit. Besides the flowersused in decorating the interior of the lmilding. there wem placed upon thelahlesover ] 000 (lowering plants. An army of 1.".0 cooks and carvers prepared this enormous feast, and o()0 waiters served it. The whole of the stall', plant, linen, decorations, and utensils, as well as the varied and ample viands, were conveyed from Messrs. Spiers a'nd Pond's central depot to the oocks ;,, ■>(. !,„„.„.

From the Newspaper Puss Directory for ISSfI we extract the following rm thipresent position of tho newspaper press; ! Kingdom I 53.-> newspapers, distributed as follow.-, :—Kiixjla,,,] : Undo,,. Ml : I'mviuccs, lot:. - .—1401); Wale.,, n.V Scotland 170: Ireland, IW; [sles, it). Of these there arc; m daily papers published i„ bngland; 4 in Wales; 21) in Scotland; 17 in Ireland ; 2in the British Isles. On reference to the edition of thin useful directory for the > cur ISSI wo find the following intoi-cstiii" faots—viz., that in that year thero wen- published in the United Kingdom 563 jourmils : of these IS were issued duilv—viz.. 13 in Hngluud, 2 in Scotland, and 3 in Ireland; lint in ISBO there are now established and circtilatcd_ 1835 papers, of which no less than 15(i are issued daily, showing that th<> press of tile country has more than trebled during the last, thirty years. The increase in daily papers has been still more remarkable; the daily issues standing 156 against IS in 1851. The magazines now in course of publication, including the quarterly review?, number 1033, of which 28!J are of a decidedly religious character, representing tlio Church of Kngland, Wesloynris, Mothodisra, Baptists, Independents, Roman Catholics,andothcr Christian communities,