MISCELLANEOUS.

Waikato Times, Volume VII, Issue 400, 5 December 1874, Page 2

MISCELLANEOUS.

The Mount Alexander Mall relates tlio following : — Sometwelve or thirteen years siuco there lived a family in this neighbourhood, consisting of husband and wife and two sons, the latter from ten to twelve years of age. The husband becoming rather intemperate in his habits, and of peculiar temperament, a separation took place in the boat of anger, Mr Yottug taking the two children with him, and leaving his wife to do the best sho could alone. After being away some months, one of the sons came baok, and took up his abode with his mother, but for upwards of twelve years no tidings were heard of Mr Yottug or the other boy. Anxiously the poor woman toiled for the means of existence, and, after, selling off all her property, removed to a distant part of the country. , Here her anxiety was manifested by her constantly watching'-the various newspapers in order, if possible, to find any trace of the lost ones. By some means she-got Jiald of a copy of a local journal, and one of the first paragraphs which caught her eye was that of a young man, of the same naifle as her son, had met with an accident in a mine, from which he was not likely to recover. Her maternal instincts' were stiong, and she felt convinced it was her darling. With hot haste she came to tko institution and saw the matron, who gave her what information she could. In a few minutes she was introduced into No. 4 ward, and opposite the door lay the object of her search. With a rush she ran to tho bedside of the maimed young man, exclaiming, " That's my eon ; that's my son ! I know it is." But the patient only looked at her coldly, and m a singular tone asked her hovr she came to think so j sho must be mistaken. Mrs Yott-jg once more asserted blio was not mistaken, and utting down on the bedside told the young fellow certain circumstancesin his life which quickly brought him to a knowledge that ho was speaking to his mother ; but still he treated her with cool indifference, which went to her heart. She would not leave him in that state, and attended to every want. In about an hour after that an elderly man walked into the room, and took up his station at the bedside of the sufferer. The astonishment of Mrs Yottug may be guessed when she discovered that the incomer was her long-lost husband. Absencehad made him careworn and old, but had not cured him in feelings towards his unfortunate wife ; and, although ft mutual recognition took place, yet the breadth of the bed on which lay their son was kept between, and no word of reconciliation was passed, and although for thnteen long yearstho parties had been separated, and had met thus accidentally on what will, no doubt, prove the deathbed of their son, their antagonism seems as keen as ever. Side by side they daily watch the progress of the paralysis, which, must sooner or later deprive them of one of their offspring, yet they seem t> be incapable of forgiving each other. Such 1* a true picture of what is occurring at this present moment at one of our local institutions. It is to be hoped, howevtr, that both husband and wife may see their folly, and the love of old be renewed in their breasts, and cemented by a reunion for the time to come. The followiug account of an important invention in connection with telegraphy ia taken from the Neio York Times r — At the offices of tho Western Union Telegraph Company, a test was recently made of an invention which promises to be of almost more importance to tbe present age than were Morse's first achieremcDts to the people of his own time. The test resulted successfully, and it proved that four messages can be simultaneously sent on a single wire in opposite directions, and with no more liability to mistake than if an equal number of wires were used. To make the matter clear it will be neceisary to look a little backward. Morse took the first step in telegraphy (and the first is always the greatest) by the invention of a system by which messages could be sent between any two terminal points, and dropped at any way station on the circuit. The objection to his system was 'that the transmission of a single message occupied a wire entirely. And though electricians wero convinced that a different result could be done until so recently as three years ago, when Mr J. B. Steams invented the duplex apparatus. That was the second great step, and it instantly doubled the capacity of every wire which had been erected. By the Steams piocoas two messages can be sent simultaneously on a single wire in opposite directions between two terminal points. But this system, like the Morse had its objection — the message could not be dropped at any way station, except by the use of a repeater. Nevertheless, the invention was recognised as of immense practical importance throughout the world. A few days ago was taken a third great step, and one not inferior to either of the others. It needs only to be said of it, to recommend it to the least scientific, that in one instant it will quadruple the usefulness of the 175,000 miles of wire owned by the Western Union Telegraph Company. It ii a new process, a multiple transmission by which two messages can be sent simultaneously in the same direction over the same wire, and either message can be dropped at any way station on the circuit. Nor is this all. The old cuplex system can ba applied to the new invention and by the combination four messages can be sent simultaneously over the same wire in opposite dirtctioas between any two terminal points, And not the least recommendation of the discovery is that it calli for no changes ; tho old Morse key is used, without tbe need of any new class of operators — and with no duplication except as to parts of machinery as in the autsmatic telegraph. The invention is the result of the joint labors of Messrs George B. Prescott and Thomas A. Edison. And if rot scientifically, at least practically, a great deal of rrfdit is also due to the enterprising policy of Mr William Orton, the president of the company. Of course, it is needless to add that the new sjstem will be speedily put in practice by the Western Union Company, by whom the patent is controlled. It will maka itself feh in more ways than one. For instance, the Western Union Telegraph Company have been forced to erect 60,000 miles of wire during the last three years, and, oi course, at an immense expense. An indefinite future like that could not be very satisfactory to stockholders. But this year scarcely 2,000 miles need be erected, and every wire is practically lonr. But without further enlargement, itnd almost in the words of Mr Orton, the discovery may be called the solution of all difficulties in the future of telegraphic science. The London correspondent of the Ncio York Herald, writing to that journal recently, says : — " Here is a good story, which has not jet found its way into print, but for the truth of which I can vouch. Lord G/eorge Grordon, a young man of four-and twf nty, wishing to marry a certain young lady, went quite recently to ask the permission of his father., the Duke ot Argyle. The Duke, a pompous little man, replied in effect : " M_v son, since our bouse has been honoured by being united with the royal family, I have thought it a right to delegate decision on all such matters to jonr elder brother, the Marquis of Lome ; go, therefore, and consult him." The Marquis of Lome, on being consulted, said : " My dear brother, m cases of importance like this, I should think it right to ask the decision of the Queen, the head of tho royal family, into winch I have married." The Queen, on the matter being laid before her, declared that since her terrible bereavement she had been in the habit of taking, no steps without consulting the Duke of Saxe-Coburg, the brother of her deceased husband. To the Duke the case was then referred, and from him a letter was received telling hisdear sister-in law that recent political events had induced him to do nothing, even as to giving of advice) without theexpress concurrence of the Emperor William, bofore whom he had laid tin matter. The Emperor William wrote a very long letter, declaring that, though he was surrounded by counsellors, there was only one who had, on all occasions, proved himself loyal and faithful, and without whose advice, he (the Emperor) would give no decision ; therefore he had referred the matter to Prince Bismarck. And it is narrated that when the Prince was made acquainted with the subject' he roared out "Grott in Himmel! what a fuss about nothing ; let the boy marry whom he pleases, so long as she is young and pretty." [This is a skifc on royalty from a republican pen, and is quite in keeping with the literary dish usually piouded to New Yorkers by their London correspondent.} The prevailing opinion that the old pastures will carry more stock thiough the summer if the cattle are all kept off until late, or until the grass gets a good start, and will afford the stock all they cud eat, is an opinion not founded in fact ; and the practice of keeping cows in the yard on diy hay until turned into flush food, making so great a change in a day, is of doubtful propriety. The grass will alwajs start first on moist places, and if cropped when young and tender, will be eaten more or less all summer ; but :f left to get a large giowtb, as it coon will, it becomes less palatable than the grass growing on the dryer portions of the pasture, and will be rejected by the stock unless diiven by hunger to eat it. On pastures well uDderdrained or naturally diy, and also on pastilles newly seeded, the difference is not so great ; yet on these we find that the grass first fed off in spring will be kept short all summer. There is not the least danger in the change of food fiom early cut hay and roots to grass, if made while the grass is small. But if the cow is chan ged fiom late cut hay to a full supply of good grass theie is gi eat danger from a too sudden excitement of tho milk-pioducing organs. We would, theiefoie, advise feeding roots within a short time af ttr cows come in, if they have not been fed all through the winter. If they have been fed, increabe the quantity from d»y to day until the cow has all she needs ; nnd when she is turned out to paetuie lessen the quantity of roots as the quantity of grabs increases, until the change is effected. The cow should have all the hay she will eat night and morning while the change is being mado, nnd so long as she will continue to eat it. The number of times the cow is fed during the day is not as important as strict punctuality in the time of feeding. Therrfoie if twice feeding is regarded sufficient, or if three feedings per day are prefeiredj fix upon the exact time to feed, and feed by the clock. The cow is a better time-piece than many old clock, and being .also a creature of hnbit will, if not fed at the time, at once become impatient of delay. The fact should be kept in view that the usefulness and profit of the cow does not depend altogether upon tho qu antijy and quality of the food she eats, but also upon the comfort afforded and the degre e of quiet she enjoys. It is better to feed less than the cow requires at legular intjcivals^ than to feed at ii regular tunes all bho will cat.

The cheapest and most efficient filter on a small scale, may be thus made : Take a very lwge common garden flowerpot, over the hole in the bottom place a piece of sponge, on which put a layer of Bmall stones, fill the pot two-thirds of the way up wittx a miituie of one part coarsely powdered freshly tyirne& charcoal, and two parts well washed, clear, sharp sand, on the top lay a piece of thick flannel, whioh is to be piessed down m the centre, securely over the rim. The flannel will form a basin, into which the water to be filtered is to be poured, when it will be found to flow out lapidlyand perfectly clear; the flannel, which separates the grosser impurities, should be frequently removed and washed, and the sand and charcoal changed two or three times a year. The action of this filter is superior to many of those sold at high prices, and it possesses great recommendation of being readily cleaned. An example of the brutality displayed by some men, when actuated by jealous rage, was displayed by George Eskdole, a professional diver, living at Nott street, Sandndge, when he discovered an opposite neighbour, one J»mes Frederick Melton, a cork cutter, visiting his (Eskdalo's) wife at her own house. The visit is said to have been a thoroughly harmless one, the parties being old acquaintances from having at one time lived next door to each other, and Melton had merely gone there to tell the woman about fetching some money due to her when the husband entered, and, crying out that he had long suspected the pair ot improper inti* macy, and would now have his revenge, blacked Melton's eyes, knocked him down, and, seizing his nose between hi» teeth, chewed it as a dog would gnaw a bone. When at length Melton was thrown out of the house on to the sand, Eskdale repeated the outrage, and has succeeded in reducing his victim's nasal organ to a hideous pulp. He wan summoned to appear at tho Sandridge Court to answer tho charge of assault. — Age, October 8.