MISCELLANEOUS.

Inangahua Times, Volume IX, Issue 1414, 9 July 1884, Page 2

MISCELLANEOUS.

"A woman in Georgia sehctelto snicide tbe other day. Heating a Ift ge kettle of water till it boiled, sh« plunged her head into it, and was found dead in that position. The French Cathedral at Montreal is the largest church building on the American continent. It •is made of limestone, and 15,000 people- have often been assembled under its roof. A preliminary return of the British army for 1888 (prepared in anticipation of the annual return) shows, that the average strength of the regular army during the year was 181, 971 1 as against 189,229 in 1882, the total for last year, having been the lowest for 20 years, except in 1870, when it was 180,444. The number of accepted recruits was however, 82,924 against 28,555 in 1882, and this was the highest total for over 20 years. Mr Samuel Osborn, head of the firm of Samuel Osborn and Co., Clyde Steelworks, Sheffield, was presented on April 22, at Sheffield, with a valuable testimonial, in recognition of the recent discharge by him of all the* liabilities of his firm. Tbe house failed in 1874, and a*coiiipositiou of 12s ia the

pound was accepted hy the creditors. The amount required to discharge the moral obligation was £28,000, and this sura was recently paid by Mr Osborn. The subscribers to the testimonial fund included most of the creditors. a A sect, called the Chrsitian Scientists hs been founded in Boston, the d°ctrine being that all things are cured i by the mind. The mindhealer sits , down with his back touching the back of the patient, and for one dollar an hour allows the divine influence to filter frem vertebra to vertebrae. The Australian subscriptions to the Parnell testimonial were £2,001, and £2,000 was transmitted to the National leader. Victoria subscribed £867, New South Wales £645, New Zealand £207, Queensland L 235, South Australia L7O, and Tasmania L 43. It is said in a letter from Khartoum that Gen. Gordon has had a Arabic text inscribed above his throne in tho palace, which may be translated as «• God mles over the hearts of men," and that in the reception chamber, where he receives daily the crowds who' come into his presence, it is conspicuous. The religious reformatory impulse now apparent in parts of Rnssia has come from the Gospels themselves, and them° ve mentis an earnest and increasing one. 'The doctrine preached is purely evangelical, but discards many of the restrictions made much of in Western Europe. Five bandits who committed murders at Tombstone, Arizona, have been hanged together in the presence of a large crowd. A gallery was built overlooking the gaol yard, to which an admission fee was charged. The •crowd, however, destroyed the gallery, and seven persons were injured in the ■melee. The funeral of the celebrated Irish piper, Patrick Bohan, took place on April 9, in Glasnevin cemetery. When the Queen and the Prince Consort visited Ireland in 1861 Bohan played before them onboard the yacht Victoria and Albert in Kingston Harbour, and during the Prince of Wales' visit he played at the Chief Secretary's Lodge in Phoenix Park. Baron Bothschild recently gave a dinner party of sixteen courses, each course representing some country or nation by the food or dish served. The oysters were from France, the soup Russian, fish from Norway, beef from England, game from Scotland, and so on to the end of the epicurean cltapter. "Pigskin is used extensively for saddles, because it is the only leather that all the stretch can be taken out of. and there is no other leather that will stand *o much friction and wear so well. All the straps are made of dressed cowskin. There is no strength in pigskin, so it cannot be used for straps. ■