General News.

Thames Star, Volume XV, Issue 4770, 23 April 1884, Page 2

General News.

An extraordinary mania recently seized a man named W. Peterson, a sailor, residing in a suburb of Sydney. He was drinking some beer in a public house when he was suddenly seized with what was apparently some kind of a fit, and Legan biting pieces out of the glass from which he was drinking. This conduct considerably alarmed his companions, who immediately seized him, but not before he had chewed to atoms and swallowed several pieces of glass. He was taken to the hospital, and seemed better, but when a glass of medicine was brought to him, he no sooner touched the glass than he commenced to behave in a. most violent manner most painful to hear. He was apparently utterly unconscious of his actions, and the attendants had considerable difficulty in putting him under restraint.

The report of the Victorian Shops' Commission has elicited a large amount of criticism. The moral aspect of factory life has chiefly engaged the attention of the commentators, and there b*s been a

stroug expression of opinion that ft moderate progress of. manufactures has hitherto bseti dearly bought at the cost of the physical, mental, and moral deterioration of a large proportion of the men and women of the future.

"There ia a very pessimistic Cone in many n«ws-letters from Paris at present. Says one, " The crudity of novels, the licentiousness of plays, the madness of gambling, and the cruel mania for duels go on increasing." Morality is represented as being at a low ebb, and poverty, distress, and depravity at full tide among the lower classes.

According to the returns obtained by the Royal Irish Constabulary and the Metropolitan Police, who acted as enumerators r.fc the several Irish ports, the numb • of emigrants who left Ireland during the quarter ended 31st December last was 10,590 (5216 males and 5374 females), being 356 less than in the corresponding quarter of 1882, but 1,330 over the average number for the fourth quarter of the ten years 1872-82. Under the heading of "The De'il's Brigade," a contemporary says:—A picked eleven of lawyers from Liverpool played a cricket match with a picked eleven of lawyers from Manchester. The day was beautifully fine, and a large company had assembled to see which set of lawyers had had the most practice. With the first over,' however, a dispute arose, and the twenty-two lawyers gathered round the umpire to argue the point. The argument continued with no sign of abate-, ment till five o'clock in the "evening, at which time the umpire died. Great astonishment is felt that he held out so long as he did. A Birmingham artisan named Simeon Shorter, evidently an admirer of Mr Glad> stone, lately made an axe for the Prime Minister's special use. Shorter made the axe of solid steel, and having accomplished his task determined to present it himself without ceremony. He accordingly set out for Hawarden, where he announced his errand, but at first had some liflle difficulty with the detectives. Mr^pft|d« stone greatly admires the implement, which is fitted with an old English oak handle. On ooe side of the blade are Mr Gladstone's armorial bearings, and on the other the Staffordshire " knot," with a poetical couplet. After taking refreshment, Shorter was presented with Mr and Mrs Gladstone's photographs and autographs.

A perilous experience was that revealed lately before the Victorian Steam Waviga* tion Board as having been passed through by the captain and crew of the chip Yarra, wrecked on the north west coast of West Australia. Far from any fit place of refuge, the vessel went broadside on to a re3f and commeacri to break up. Two boats were washed away, the third dashed to pieces. Tba wind was blowing hard, the sea high. The crew put together a raft and started on a voyage of 180 miles to tho nearest island, the captain having his wife with him on the frail craft. Five days' tedious work brought them after many perils to the island, where hard work and hard bargaining were required to induce the ntaster of another vessel to bring them back to some Australian port.

An interesting proof of the strength of the feeling of clanship comes from the other side of the Atlantic. Many years ago a number of families emigrated from the West Highlands and the Hebrides and formed a settlement in the counties of Richmond and Bobincon in North Carolina. The settlement still exists and flourishes. Many of the descendants of the o iginal settlers still speak Gaelic, andone of their clergymen ministers to them in that language. These people hare"' heard of the sufferings of their brethren at home, and their hearts hare been moved with pity. Their sympathy has taken a very practical shape. They have sen tan invitation to 50 families of struggling crofters to join them iv their adopted home. They guarantee to provide homes for them for one year after their arrival, to furnish them with suitable work, and to give them fair pay for their labor. Theexcellent Highland lady to whom the invitation was sent has already got 22 poor crofter families to agree to go out to North Carolina, *nd money to defray the expenses of their outfit and passage is now being raised by subscription. The sum require! is £9CD. Once landed on the American shore the crofters will travel free. The railway companies have agreed to carry them without charge from the seaport of Norfolk to the nearest railway station, and there they will be met by their kinsfolk, who will convey them in waggons to their destination.

It is stated that the play "Les Danischeffs," over ;which MM. Dumas and De Cor»in are at law, has brought the writers in about £35,093.

A French newspaper learns that a Birmingham firm, whose speciality is the manufacture of idols for sale in heathen lands, has lately issued the following' catalogue :—"' Yamen, the God of Day,' in brass, carefully Snished; ' Nirondi, the Prince''of Demons,' is very choice, the giant upon which he is mounted is boldly and rigorously designed, and his (whose P> sword is of the latest pattern; ' Baronum, the God of the Sun,' is represented seated upon a brass crocodile with a silver tail;' ' Bourberen, the God of Riches,' is very choice, and of beautiful workmanship; small demi-gods, and other inferior Rods in great variety." Our French content* porar'y says these gods are intended for " the Indians," which is sufficiently vague, to say the least. -, '' At an insolvency examination in Melbourne recently, it was shown in evidence that the bankrupt had made from £1500 to £2000 a week at mining in Queensland, his dividends in eight years amounted to £200,000. He afterwards went into squatting, and did business as a wheat and wool shipper, but he was unsuccessful in those lines. Not satisfying the court as to what had become of £1000 worth of jewellery he had bought for his wife, he was sent to gaol until he could do so. The insolvent was at one time a member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly. '

A cafe at Berlin, Unter den Linden, takes in 750 papers. 367 of these are German, 106 belong to Austro-Germany. 58 to France, and 63 to England and America. The rest are of 20 different nation* or languages—Turkish, Servian, Armenian, Bulgarian, Finnish—nay, even Chinese and Japanese being amongst then}. No Thames papers are on, the list. The proprietor pays nearly * 20,000 marks (£1000) a year for subscriptions to these papers and for salaries to three persons who have no other business but to keep them in order, and always up to the latest issue.