QUEER FACTS OF HISTORY.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 66, 7 March 1908, Page 4

QUEER FACTS OF HISTORY.

THE FIIWT -COLX-SWEATEi;.'' "Coin-sweating," which so often inures in the Uld Bailey (London) Calendar, is a very, very old crime. .More than six centuries before Christ there was a coin-sweater, one Alexander oi Hytautiuni.

He was chief ollicer of the public Ire.t--ury, and he amassed an immense and -uilden fortune by 'clipping" lite money in -u skilful a maimer that his frauds could onlv he discovered bv weighing. The llyzaniine-s j. a vc him the nickname of "'I he File," from his making such dcxieroiis ii„. ol that tool. Whem-o probably mines ||„. modern term oi "lilc" applied to thieves, pickpockets. and cunning, hardheaded scoundrels.

AX OMXJItI'S THAT IT'SKT \ DVXASTY.

It is not easy to imagine thai so liaiiiilcss and necessary an adjunct of civilisation as an ordinary omniinis once bore an all important part in the destiny of an ancient and illustrious ,h----llitstv.

■_ol such is t|„. case: lor in ]«:(» the accidental overturning of an omnibus in the streets of Paris proved the ruin and ' l( -"' , "'' i < f the elder branch of the llourbons.

H.v this -ireet accident was suggested the tiist idea of a barricade, "which, seized on In the Communists, chan-cl tiie whole science of revolutions, and enabled the Parisians to successfully rood against ihe priest-ridden Covernmeiil of Charles A.

CAHDLXAL W'OLSEV IX THE STOCKS How many of his enemies in later years would have almost sold their heritage to have seen the proud cardinal in this position. \et once at least he .suffered the punishment,' and justly, too. When quite a young man Wolscy held a curacy at Lymingtou, Hampshire, and during a village festival s o far forgot the reverence due to his cloth as to get very drunk.

Ihe villagers, scandalised by the sight ol their .parish priest staggering about, went in search of the Lord of the Manor. .Now this worthy happened lo be a very precise old man, and he forthwith ordered W'olsey to be put in the stocks. Amid the jeers of the village hoys the inline ruler of England was haled oil by two muscular vokels. And in the stocks he sat until, according to custom, sunset liberated him.

AX ECLIPSE .NEARLY DEFEATS AX ARMY. When Alexander the Great was on his inarch to Babylon during the night an eclipse of the moon occurred, nearly total, which spread panic among the soldiers. The army was a huge horde siieli as Alexander had always won his victories with, and he had news that Darms and all his hosts were close at hand.

Hut the terror of the eclipse was on the mercenaries. They threw down heir arms. |„- o p«re.l to lly. and some. I«>ldc>. would have attacked Alexander. Ihe battle of Arbela, which «ave the Ireasure-hcsts of Jlahvlon to the conqueror of the world, would have .-, against Alexander but for ],j H *,] »*»•*. He then, and then ollorcd a great ,acr,t ß ,. t „ llu> 0(Is wit , , "■'■emony. and with his own p opliet Arista,,,,-, and certain Egyp.ian as.roogers who accompanied l )h „, ptm . him „ } '.,,""'"': .< '»■ """'J favoured ~„. ." k V nlll (the moon) (]„, j>,,,. forTlo''TVI*',•*«!>*■ 1 *',•*«!>*■ '' , ' rte, "''''l vieto the -Macedonians, one of the fo.v l""l>liec,es which has ever come true.

AX ASSAULT OX MR. SPEAKER Ihe sanetitv of t| l( . Sne-,1-,.,- i • law of ..allnent UimV ; s : ""• rr ki^ ,,f '"«■»* ■' -edVrion' l ° '"-' ""<"' <** H Has in ij 1( , iiij,.,! i, ■■ «'"«; i. ...at .S^ngrv'T:;;;;:,;;' ra,„e,l t eir Petition "n s ml-,' . ■' r " ot "' ""' '<>'"!-'■-' I»'ecep.!Z. S H-'t' J f ,;ott ''^i'- l «' plane, t|„. ,s 1H . ilkt ,,. l , s . ; ..•e,,,r H .hiH, would, of •„,;,,':.' we ' , f ;';:' /° y* m. «■„ .■! ■ -^Utdtnrrr •"^-"^-of,,,,.;:;,*!:;,^:;::!;';; 1

TUI ' ; '■'"l'svTrnvKVDuj, „ F ~,, UC.ION. -; 1 J, 1 "''MH-ui.. X of Ki„g Edward VI Is .e,' !;.;' ' ""''"' r •"' ''i-tosta..,- (0 IV il s " l ' , ' l ' ltil,,l, ' emblem of • ,'■ ■ ilpiemaey.-,, q II;lillt | i(U| , h velvet turned up with

. ll "* ';«""; dp of Maintenance, and -" -acred ,s ,( th . tt „„ , |am]s , mt ally i.....v linger it. Tll „ s H|( , .; ■n l. balanced ,t som,wl,at after th, ot a c0n.,,,,-,,-, „, )011 ~ w]| ; (( ,

J ?>"„ T X - '" '"" JrM '«" V' if «.» .eld a, symbolic of || le Over-lord, ... being granted to vassals and feuda--01 , „!,„,„ |,c , onl wi ,, lM ti) , ( o 'hat ,t implies, as nothing cl.se could. He s„, a lhc Mngs of England.

WHAT NAPOUCOX OWED A DRI/M----MKR BOY. I" Andre Ktienne, Napoleon owed a debt he could never ropay Amlrc was a dru„„„er-boy at the UI V ; Vn '° la - Tl,e ™ ,i ' l «t Areola was .Napoleons Rubicon, for there it U';k decided that, he and he a| (111( . s | mll ,,, '"V 1 ."'"» ,""' <>f Ihe terrible re. »»"'»■ «••- he would not have won "ithum Andre.

His troops were fagged, footsore, and half starved. The battle was ,„t l! against them. All ,ee„,ed lost. Suddem v Andre leapl mlo (1,,., canal, and. hoi,'. »W !..» drum above his |„. 0 ,1. MWalll •>»". ami on the other bank beat an ii icsMtiinc charge. ~ Th " '•''■''"''l' -Idler, rallied, and ,'„ a ;:; """""", u ?* v- lrtol , «••> assure.. 11,,,, by this lad's hero- - were the fruits of genius brought '"Hull (he read, of t |, o vv„,. |(lv !!"im"in'i!i -\ l : , ;" l ".I ,ro v-'l the turning poim 111 i„. Metering career..

A HJXDiIW WHICH CAUSED \ WAK. " .-A imi* uar was 0 „, 0 ~,„ , ,

'-'"'."l"'- ."I- -Minis!..,-. Iy„n'„i-. „''- ",'j! '» tl"' park ;,i Wr-ai11,.-.. | '■ :'''"''.'," ;'"'l- «iM small,,- than ||„ rt . st -,-(,;* -nnvuis ,| ei ,i,.,|. , (Il( , K . h ; u| ■ " <l "» "UMsiiml. with u... r,'M,lt (l,„t "■ «'» |T<.v...l |„ |„. „•„,„. aI ( v iK-mre ,11 tl.« Courl. ,i,li,„|,,| „,,-

B"t »!«■ MinM,.r l„„| I,N rt'v,',,,,.: |,„- "I'll t1,.. ail-JIT ojacllhlti,,!! 11l:.L 1,0 "■"MM Imil iM'ti,.,- employment f,„- „ ■ noiiurc-li tlian tlii,| „f iii Sl || t i„„ |,|. f .,. ;;"."" s; '. 1 "' ■'■>«i..'.,ii,.,i i-,•„,„,. hv ,„•< in501e,,,,. ,n a ~,„„.. j| „.; tl| „„, |l(|W|l| .. """''' "!' ] y '■' y.'ais later in the :'"' , J '. v -"'fl<. after a mv wliidi ""'"'''■l Hi'' l»- of many lives and the '•speiiclitnre ~1 lnr.ro -inns of money

VoUKsIIIRK I.ADS \y m CON . VKIiTKI) TIIK WORM). il"' Mi—ii.n „i si. Aiimistine i- „!i,' '"' '!';■ ""'"! -' »-iKin- iiisUn.-es of vast I''""! I .'" ''""""- •'''"■" tnll' l -. Xothiiiir iti "-'■". '"'" ■ ■■■••rr trivial fhan'tl,,. m.-e.t,,,,. .„• ,;,,„,„■ „;,,, ~„. ~„,.,. i:»»!i• v,!,"'n,/" '• I,P * ll,v " '" i "'! i "' '!' " >'" f''''im./ , wi l i'!,'i,,. , "!!r,>!- iILi 1 "" ''' '" I'"'''-"' I" "".TV < l„isti Iv ".--iwanl. In- iii.pirt-,1 tin- jiMirm-v r.f SI. Aii-ii-tino. r-ioni Canierhnn-' 11,, lir-l I'mili-i, Christian ,-iv. from' Kent thr- fir-l K„, r |i.|, I ),, r-t !=,it kim„]om ai<i-f flic whole et.nstilnti,,,! „i f'hnrcii ""I In l-ntt1.,,,,' \, a tliift-t ~,„. -.■niifiiff eanie llie ( liri-tiairM- ~f 1;,.,-. manv. t|,..,i afi.-r a 10.,... interval, of V'.rlh Anieri.a.

Ami now tin. ~ir., i ~|- i),,,,,, i.,,i,i;,.'. I'a.rs i. ,>|| f ...|,,| „,-,,,. t1,,, „],,,,„ ~.,,,!! alile 5101,,.