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Waikato Times, Volume XX, Issue 1661, 27 February 1883, Page 4

I>r mo^r^i times the ,avt of adulterating wine has been brought to gioat pcrfcetjou, ,for it consists nob moi;cly, blonjling of wines of different qountrj^ afld vintage, but in the use of material? ■\yhic,li,ai;o i eutii'cly l foreign to tlio grape., ]?qrfc/vyanc, for example, is manufactured fi'toni, ,Beni Carlos, Kiguoias, and tt<id Cane, with ft touch oi mountain, to soften the mixture arid give it liclincso — the body and flavor being produced hy. gum-dragon, and the colour by " berry -dye," which is a picparation of German bilberries. I o this is added thc_ washings of brandy casks ('• bnm(ft/-coice") and a little bait of tartar to form a crust. riheny of the brown kind and of low price is nringled>\vith Cape and cheap brandy, arid* is flavoured with " br.indy-cowe," sugar candy, and bitfcei almonds. If the colour be too high it is lowered by means of blood, and softness is impaited to it by gum benzoin. Pale sheriies aie pioduced by means of plaster of Palis or gypsun), by a process called "plaateiine," and the elFeet of it is to lemove the natural acid (tartaric and malic) as well as the colour of the wine. In this way a jwle, dry, bitter, and subacid wine is produced, charged with the sulphates of lime and potash. Large quantities of what aie called clarets aie manufactured from inferior French wine and rough cider, colour being imparted to it by turnsol or cochineal. Madciia is produced from Vidonia, with a little mountain and Cape, to which are added bitter almonds and sugar. Kven Vidonia and Capo are adulterated with cider and rum, caibonatc of soda being used to correct the acidity. Coiimiioii Sicilian wine is transformed into Tokay, Malaga, and Lachryma Christi. Champagne is produced iiom rhubarb stalks, gooseberries, and sugar, the pioduct being largely consumed at balls, laces, masquerades, and public dinners. Of late, too, since the investigations of Petiot, Thenard, Gall, Hnssman, and others, the manufacture of wmc fiom sugar and the refuse husk or mark of the grape has been hugely piaetised, insomuch that a great part oi the wine of France and Germany has ceased to be the juice of the grape at all. In point of fact, the pioeesses of blending, softening, fortifying, sweetening, plabteiinq, etc., etc., aie cairied on to such an extent that it is hardly possible to obtain a sample of genuine wine even at fast hand ; and books are written on the subject in which the plainest directions are given for the fabrication of evciy kind ot wmc, there being druggists, tailed "breweis' dtuggists," who supply the agents of adulteiation. These are as follows: — Eldci-liciry, logwood, J3tazil wood, ied s.iundeib' wood, eudbean, ied beetroot, etc., for colour ; hthaigc, lime of caibonate of soda, and caibonate of potash, to concct acidity ; catechu, logwood, slow leaves, and oak hark, tor a&liingcncy ; suLpUato <){ lunc, gyp&um, or Spaniali eaith, and uluiti, for removing colour; cane sugar tor giving sweetness and body ; glucose or staich biig.u fen aiLilicial wine ; alcohol for foitifying; and ether, cbpi'uaily acetic ethei, ior gi\ ing bouquet and flavor.

A <:itl'.AT (li'iiliis biiirt about the size of Langtiy'.s foot, lfc is to be pu ruined, howevoi, that. -»hi m has moicth.m 0110. Kin<: Locii XI , who died about four hundred years ago, way to be honouied by gi cat lotos in JAuio, tow aid tlio close Ot last year, as the founder of Fiench unity. "Vts," said the fawner, "barbed wire fences ai o very e.\pcn.si\e, but the luted nuiii do&cu'b stop and lest every time he has to climb it." In the neighboiuhood of the Thin inpiaii town ot Kosen there are aonie di&Uocd salt-woiks with considerable water power. The latter is now to be utilised for the clectiic lighting of the town and Jvosen will thus, >W«/r observes, be the hist (ieunan town to introduce the elcetne light for illuminating the whole tou n. Auvj'Ki \n law is ligoious as to children, and none under ten yoais of age are penniitted to woik in any factory. Childicn between tou and lwcl\o yeais old may enter a lactoiy when piovided with a niuuicjpal pcinnt, gum ted by the le(jucht ot paient or giuudinn. 'Jo get this permit the authoiitic* iet.eivc the right to decide whether or no the woik is suitable for a child — it the factoiy pursuit will be in an industiial school, 01 of a kind compatible with schooling, and its duration is also slnctly mgu kited. Tjtosk faimcis who aio in tlie muLst of •stacking (s-ays the Cunlttlmtif Jl'ii/Ji/ J'hss), bliould bear in mind that good .stacking us <us good as linlf thatching There ib an :\\t in stacking i\s thmo is m ploughing ;mkl sowing, rite principal thing to btudy is to lay the sheaves clo^c and keep the middle ot the stack high. Tlie mostc\.peiieiice(l li.mil on t)io Saim ■ ought to he put on as stacker, but in a Jew years we shall expect to sec the end of stacking days, and not .1 man will be able to build one. Mot one man in a hundred can even now mortise and put up a panel ot fencing, and it will .soon be the case with stacking and mowing, and the good old ayiiuultuial labouicr "Will soon lie a thing of the past in these days of mechanical inventions and peilectcd implements. Tin: MA.M'inxri-.R Cvnal.— The gigantic character of the woik which Mi Leader Williams, C. E., has undei taken in the construction of the Manchester (Ship Canal nuy be judged fi 0111 the fact that it is intended to be 84 miles 111 length. The width oi tlie Canal between Warrington .and Manchester will bo 100 ft. Thib 13 1 3ft wider than the Amsteidam Canal, and '22ft wider than the Suez Canal. Vessels will thus be able to pass each other at any point. Mr Williams intends to construct but three locks,, only two of which will be ie<]uiicd at high tide, when vessels of any tonnage will be able to come to Irlam, a distance of seven miles from the Manchester Docks. ' Mr Williams proposes to accomplish a notable feat of engineering skill. At Baiton the river is cios&ed by the aqueduct of the ]sai ton Canal, which is principally used at the point for coal trailic. "I propose here," says Mr Williams, "to construct a new aqueduct, the centre portion of which w ill be a wrought-iron caisson, which will swing on a central pier in a similar way to a railway swing bridge, leaving a wide opening for tlie passage of \essels on cither side. Even if a boat is on the aqueduct it will make no delay, but reliiain floating in it ba-sin while the caisson is swinging." Mr Williams, believes that he can complete the whole work fot £'u,<100,000. / The enormous indebtedness of Egypt, amounting to -was eieated in this way : Ismail Pasha ,was in part educated in France, and while theic he imbibed with eagerness the French ideas of splendour and material progress. A man of ability, and with unbounded ambition, he aimed to make Egypt n second France. Ho borrowed money in ' England and Fiance with, which to build railroads, factories, bridges, palaces, capals, roads, and to canyon every con> coivable internal improvement,, far in advance of th 6 ideas or needs of his people. Taxation, to> pay the interest on. hia enormous indebtedness and to run his expensive government, was laid heavily up'oii thoj people, until each cultivated acre paid an average of nearly §12 a year,, and 'every fruit tree and shrub i^aid' 'tribute. Thc'fcllaheen were forced ''to ' woi'k for ' Jiim, carrying out his' improvements, for nothing. He managed to get nearly onefifth of the land into his ' possession, and this was worked without pay to the "laborer?. ' The poor people laid all their trouble to the European.6 anfl European ideas. Arabi Bey was but the leadWi of the, oppressed ,and , rebellious, They "wi/Sli to blot out all Euro'jieaniu's'tiuitionii' 'arid'influ'ehecs, & 'feeling tlia.t'catthotjbp won^erednt, just' 'the r right'jf f ' .that the European uatjous have obtained*' ;