General News.

Thames Star, Volume XIV, Issue 4395, 3 February 1883, Page 2

General News.

Railway anc j tramway employes in Sydney are agitating for an increase of wages.

A new war correspondent of excellence baa been dicovered in the person of Mr Burleigb, who, daring the Egyptian trouble, supplied news to the Central News Telegraphic Agency. The Pall Mall Gazette says : This gentleman, Mr Burleigb, who is now considered to be an Englishman with a, long training on the American Press, was entertained at a banquet at Willis' Booms, when many pleasant and well-deserved compliments were paid to him. Even Sir Garnet Wolselj overcame his notorious horror of special correspondents so far as to praise Mr Burleigh, "who did bis work so pluckily and so well in Egypt. He was always in front, and his messages home were clear and. full of information." Mr Burleigh's career has been fall of incident. An ex-Confederate soldier and an old Garibaldian, he has'seen much of war as an actor as well as a spectator, and this no doubt stood him in good stead. He was first in the trenches at Tel-el-Kebir, and the first correspondent to enter Cairo. So far as telegrams are concerned, Mr Burleigh may fairly claim to have taken in this campaign the position 'which used to be held by Mr Forbes." "It is quite refreshing to hear of this man, bat we want to know something about those Kings he has met, Princes he Has drank with, and generally any movements he has made in Royal society. Same as Forbes you know. The use of the electric lighten > warfare seems not as yet to be thoroughly perfected. An experiment was made with, it by the Superb, lying off Kamleh, but, iv the, cautious language of the ■ Times correspondent, wietfier it Was;an advantage or otherwise is an open question. Inasmuch as ritheKofficerrinV, charge of- the picket, whose duties it was supposed were to assist, coinplained that it was generally' on his own men that the light was thrown, while all around them'was wrapped in a' more than Egyptian darkness, it seems rather as though on that occasion at least it was very much otherwise. Indeed (re* marks a home paper) one feels inclined to say of it much what Sam Weller said of the dark lantern with which Mr Pickwick proposed to guard from discovery the mid* night loves of Mr Winkle and Miss Allen. —" Werry nice things if; they're managed properlyf^ t>ht irhe;n you don't w»nt jo be seen, I think they're more useful arter the candle's gone than when it's alight."

" They tell me, Mr Browne has a great ear for music,'' said Fergusson. ■'.,. ''Yen" replied Fogg, " i knew he had a great ear—^two of them in fact; but I did not know they were for music. I supposed they were for brushing the flies off the top of bis head."

The coat-tail flirtation is the fastest. A* wrinkled coat tail bearing dirty toe marks means " I have spoken to your father."

Too much. Responsibility.—" Hare yer got any chilluns in dis heah house?" asked Matilda Snowball of an Aastin lady, to whom she wanted to hire herself as a cook and wash lady. " I have only one child, a little baby." "Den I ain't gwine ter hire myself ter no family whac ■ dar am no chilluns, or whar de chilluns am so small dat all de breakin' ob de dishes am put off on me." . J4