MISCELLANEOUS.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume II, Issue 68, 15 August 1874, Page 11

MISCELLANEOUS.

The Speead op the English Language.— l noti c one striking change in Egypt. This is the astonishing spread of the English language within the last twenty years, resulting both from the numbers of English and American travellers who visit the liast, and the use of the language by travellers of others nationalties. French, which until •within the last few years wns indispensable, has been slowly fading into the back ground, and is already less available than English for Italy and all the Orient. I was a little surprised in Rome at being accosted by a native boot-black with " Shine up your boots ? " In Naples, every peddlar of canes, coral, photographs, and shell-fish knows at least enough to make a good bargain ; but this is nothing to what one meets in Egypt. The bright-witted boys learn the language with amazing rapidity, and are so apt at guessing what they do not literally understand, that the traveller no longer requires an interpreter. At the base of Pompey's pillar, to-day, a ragged and dirty little girl cume out of a fellah hut and followed us, crying, " Give me ha'penny! " All the coachmen and most of the shop-keepers are familiar with the words necessary for their business, and prefer to use them, even after they see that you are acquainted with Italian or Arabio. The simple, natural structure of the English language undoubtedly contributes also to its extension. It is already the leading language in the world, spuken by ninety millions of people (double the number of the Freuch- speaking races), and so extending its conquests year by year that its practical value is in advance of thab of any other tongue. — ' Bayard Taylor's Letters.' "Enlightened Englishman" — Described by Themsbxtes Those who read English papers are continually told about the wretchedness and depravity of the "low Irish." Let us sou how the low English compare with them. In an article entitled " The Vilest Specimens of Humanity," a correspondent of the ' Manchester Guardian,' describing the roughs of Lancashire, says : — " To my mind tho Lancashire rough of the Bolton and Blackburn districts is the vilest specimen of humanity on the face of the earth ; indeed, he would disgrace the lowest order of animals, and I think a cannibal or an Ashantee is a perfect gentleman compared to one of them. The villains never seem to think that kicking with the sort of clogs on they wear, is not one whit better than fighting with iron gloves, or armed with spikes ; and I dare aay even they would admit that this was rather too much of a good thing. There is nothing in ihe shape of bodily suffering so repulsive to my mind as the blows given by these vile brutes by their clogs, and I should infinitely prefer a bullet through my head to undergoing the treatment to which they often subject each other, and even their poor wives." Cpbiosities op Language. — The Hindoos are said to have no word for " friend.'' The Italians have no equivalent for our " humility." The Russian dictionary gives a word, the definition of which is, " not to have enough buttons on your footman's waistcoat j" the second is, "to kill over again ;" a third, "to earn by danciug." The Germans call a thimble a " finger-hat," which it certainly is, and a grasshopper a " hay horse." A glove with them is a " hand shoe," ■howing that they wore shoes before gloves. The French, strange to lay, have no verb " to stand," nor can a Frenchman speak ot " kicking" any one. The nearest approach he, in his politeuess, makes to it is ta threaten to " give a blow with his foot," the same thing, probably, to the recipient in either case, but it seems to want the energy, the directness of our •• kick." The terms, " upstairs," and " downstairs," are unknown in French. Tub Deposition op the Abchbiehop op Posen. — The ' Kurger Paznanski ' publishes an article upon the impriionment and deposition from office of Mgr. Count Ledochowski, Archbishop cf Gnesen and Posen, from which the following extracts are taken : " What will now become of all our ecclesiastical affairs ? Perhaps the Government, confident of its superior power and the forbearance of the Legislature, will take some precautionary measures without waiting for the result of the decision of the Lundtag on the bills to supplement the ecclesiastical laws of last May now before it, and introduce certain restrictions, which it will subsequently try to justify by pointing out their urgent necessity. But, no matter what happens, our course is clear and straight, and there is no doubt about what is duty. We will continue to give to Cfflsar what is Caesar's, but we will also faithfully and firmly give to God what is God's. At this moment our first thought turns again to our imprisoned Archbishop, who, in spite of his confinement behind the bars of tne gaol, is greater than his adversaries, who are surrounded by the glitter of worldly power. They wish to tear from him the character of the Divine mission which Holy Writ has impressed upon him. Vain efforts ! They may crush him, but to his last breath he will remain what he is ; and the faithful will ne^er cease to recognise and venerate in him the successor of the Apostles — the pastor to whom the Vicar of Christ has entrusted his flock." Mb Gladstone, it is said, rarely writes anything with his own hand, the gift of spontaneous composition, like Mr Lowe's, amounting to improvisation. His treatise upon the Greek drama is dictated from a few notes to a staff of shorthand writers, who visit the right hon. gentleman every morning, taking " turns," as they do in the •• Gallery," and passing them on to the printer in the course of the day. Thb Conscbipiion in Feance. — Last year from about 300,000 young men passing the examination for recruiting the army, 16,1)00 were discharged on account of having lost their brothers, or having been wounded in the war; 11,400 as being sons or grandsons of widows, or of people above seventy years of age ; 1600 as elder brothers or orphans ; 16,000 »6 not being strong enough ; 10,000 through lameness ; 8,000 from not being tall enough ; 3,000 for defects in the eyes ; 2,000 from having bad teeth ; 1,000 for being mutes, 1200 as epileptics, 600 as deaf, 80 on account of blindness, 1,000 through phthisis ; in all 89,000 were rejected. These are three kinds of cheques. A cheque to bearer, the banker is bound to pay over the counter by whomsoavor presented. A cheque to order he is bound to pay in like manner, \£ endorsed by the person to whose order it is payable. A crossed cheque he must pay, not over the counter, but onlj to a banker. To cross a cheque

however, it is not enough to draw two lines, the word's" " and Co." must be written between the lines — a fact of which many people are not aware. The Six Largest Steambhs. — The six largest steamers in the world are : the Groat Eastern, owned by the International Telegraph Construction find Maintenance Company, 674 feet lonsr, 77 feet broad • the City of Pekin, lately launched in the Dela wave river, Pacific Steam* Navigation Company. 6000 ton.", 423 feet long, 48 feet broad; the Ligurin, the Pacific Steam Navigation Company, 4,820 tons, 460 feet long, 45 feet broad ; the Britannia, White Star Company, 4,700 toni, 455 feet lon/;, 45 feet broad ; the City of Richmond, Inman, 4,600* tons, 453* feet long, 45 feet broad ; aud the Bothnia, Cunard, 4,500 tons, 425 feet long, 42£ feet broad. Railways and Population. — In the population of the world, China stands first with 425,213,152 ; the British Empire, second, with 199,817,000 ; and Russia, third, with 82,172,000. The U/iiteJ States are fifth. In density of population, Belgium comes first, with 451 persons to the square mile ; England is next with 389. Belgium, 1 mile of railway to six square miles of territory j Great Hritain has 1 to 8 square milas ; and the United States are eleventh, witli I to 56. Of electric telegraphs, Great Britain lus 1 mile to every 4 miles of territory ; Belgium Ito 5, and the United States, Ito 36.