MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS.

Alexandra Herald and Central Otago Gazette, Issue 388, 15 October 1903, Page 6

MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS.

The moon moves round the earth art 6,273 miles an hour. , During the year ended June 30 last there were 4,200 eases of smallpox i* Tennessee. London public libraries have o*#T 5,000,000 volumes. Their joint issue is 27,000,000 volumes. j The Chinese, in their theater in San ! Francisco, have adopted the custom '. of pelting bad actors with stale eggs. I An English cycling policeman has had the satisfaction of capturing his man at Exmouth, after a ride of 40 miles. Canada has the largest forest in ihe world. It is in the Labrador and Hudson Kay district, and is, roughly. 1.000 by 1,700 miles. There are five river? in the world which drain over 1,000,000 square miles. They are the Amazon, La Plata, Obi, Congo snd .M :.s>.i--"i'.i-Exports of horses ;:nd mules in Missouri ki>; year brought a return of 59.000.0C0. a:.:i a great deal of the money came from foreign countries. There is r; •- <■'.. r exercise thai can be indu'giii :: ::! ?o relatively little cost that can ccmrare with swimming for giving gem ral healthful exercise. A successful Kansas farmer declares that he feed- n.;<h:ng to his-fattening hogs but ear ei.tr:: and cold water, and that he cleans the feeding floor after every meal. A Magdalen in pink and white robes kneeling in prayer in a cavern was sold for $2,600 at Chrystie's, in London. It is a large Murillo, five feet by four. Three Cupids playing musical instruments hover above the head of the penitent. It is a rather curious faxst that while we all know what "life" is, still the term in philosophy lacks a strict and adequate definition. It is said to be difficult to find for it a definition that does not include more than is necessary, or exclude something that should be -taken in.

A set en t Bookkeepiuer. The archaeological excavations that have for some time now been in progress at Delphos have lately brought to light various inscriptions of great interest. These inscriptions give a complete illustration of a perfect method of bookkeeping that the ancients used, and which, essentially differing from modern inventions, is much more simple and probably more accurate. The inscriptions are carved on different colored stones, white being used for putting down "receipts," while stone of a gray-blue color were employed for the "expenses." Those discovered were probably used by the famous Temple of Delphos, and refer to expenses for marbles, which appear to haVe been much dearer then than now. Minute examinations of the inscriptions have not yet been oompleted.—Chicago Tribune.