GENERAL NEWS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume L, Issue 303, 27 December 1907, Page 4

GENERAL NEWS.

Next tu the United Stales, lbs Argeuline lias tlie largest percentage ol lorcign resideuts. Twelve uut of every uuuured people iu Argentina are iureiguborn. In the Crimean War 31 per cent, ul .ill the soldiers engaged were killed ur dK'd ul disease. In tne Franeo-Ueruiau >i ar tue Oerwans loci uuiy S'/ a per cent ■if their men. The Channel tunnel was first proposed by De Uramoud iu 1307. It was to lie iu tne lurm ul a metal telescope, M leet by 2411, to coal £7,000,000, and to M completed in seven years. In the great Civil War in America there wert used 12,000 tont> of powder and 42,000 tons of lead. With these supplies about !Hi,ooo men were killed on the spot or mortally wounded. A Canadian who is at present travelHug through New Zealand thinks it a niutake noi tu have the King's beau On the postage stinips. It was suggested that the present devices were in Uie ■attire of an advertisement, but the visitor Mid that, ibough he knew the people of Xew Zealand were intensely loyal, the absence of the King's head from tb« stamps was calculated to give people from other parts of the Empire a bad impression.

Beer! What an attraction it hast Jf it had been reported that the .Notth or South Poles were Bet in seas of beer, they would have been discovered by Britishers long ago. One day- last week two or three Jtaetihi settlers clubbeu together and procured a case of bottled Deer, which they intended should grace the festive board on Christmas Day. The case duly arrived, and was stored in the house of one of the party, tuvious eyes, however, had been cast on the beer, and when it was dark au enemy appeared on the scene and abstracted some of the bottles. Constable Clarke was appraised of the occurrence, and, thinking the remaining bottles might be called for later, hid himself iu the house on Saturday night. lie waited patiently until about 2 o'clock on Sunday morning, when the door of the house was suddenly opened by force, and two men made their appearance and went towards the case. When they had put some of the bottles in their pockets the constable dazed them by turning his '•bull's eye" suddenly on them. He then arrested them.

'"Pelorus Jack," who some time back became rather a bore to the average Xew Zealander, still charms the Americans. A few weeks ago the Boston Herald came out with an illustrated article headed with huge black type that ran halfway across a page, 'The Fish that Has Piloted Boats Twenty Years." The sub-heading was, -Pelorus .lack Shows Discrimination in the Selection of Craft, and he is Protected by a Koyal Order." The readingl- matter began soberly thus: -Pelorus .lack is no nature fake. " William U. Bain, of Bain Bros., Milk-street, tells the story. And William H. Bain can prove the story with photographs, documentary evidence (not written by Jack, by the way), and an order-in-council by the Governor of Xew Ziuland. . . .' He exhibits the in-

stincts of a policeman faithful to his beat, and he has certain prejudices and likings in the matter of steamers that niilmdr <-an explain." By tlie way that William 11. Bain ..poke to the American pressman, it seems that Pelorus Jack has a timetable of all vessels' movements, and hat, a watch to assist him to make dramatic appearances. It has been alleged that "Jack" dislikes the steamer Penguin, and gives her a wide berth, bat some of William 11. Bain's pictures were secured from the Penguin.

Miss Gladys Vanderbilt is said to be extremely sensitive about the origin of her family. Once at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel she noticed her father, the Old Commodore, as be was called, talking affably to a lady whom they had formerly known as "one of the tradespeople." "Why, father,** protested the girl afterwards, " fancy talking to that woman in a public hotel! Don't you remember »he used to sell us poultry!" "Certainly, my dear," responded the old man imperturliably, "of course I do. And I remember your mother when she •old root beer while I peddled oyste's way up in .Jersey." Miw Vanderbilt protested no more. The engagement was probably made during the recent Kuropean trip of Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt and her daughter. Tbey stayed a considerable time in Vienna, and were much in the company of the count, even visiting his estate at Hoispatsch. Count La«zlo Ssechenyi was horn in 1870. so is w,ven yi-ars older than his bride. Ilin fatber was the Lite Count Inire Szcch-i-nyi, famous as the Aiistro-Hiing.irian Ambassador to Ilerlin. He died in 1808. ami the title descended to the present Count. The Count is a lieutenant in the Hussars, in which lie has served a considerable time as a volunteer, and is a Chamberlain of the Court, ne is unusually handsome and is extremely popular in society circles. Among his intimate friends he is known as "lalla."