Game Talk.

Bruce Herald, Volume II, Issue 49, 16 March 1865, Page 7

Game Talk.

{From Home Papers.') We learn that the Astronomer-Royal for Scotland, armed with a firman giving him full powers, is about to visit the Great Pyramid, with a view of investigating the "Meteorology" of that remarkable structure, to which he has recently called attention. Professor Smyth takes out magnesium wire, in order to photograph the inner chamber and more mysterious coffer. The commissioners appointed to assess the damages caused by the Sheffield flood, have, as it is reported, cut down the demands of many of the claimants, finding them based on mis-representations, which if correctly reported, are nothing short of imposition, and it is positively stated that persons have been paid or have been offered commissions on the additional sums they Jrfu»uld extract from the commissioners. The ' Monitour ' says : — A British agent a Mr Rassam, has reached the French settlement at Massouah, on the Red Sea, whence he was to proceed to Gondar in charge of an autograph letter from her Britannic Majesty, courteously declining the matrimonial overtures of his Abysinian Highness King Theodore, who, it is to be hoped, will thereon release from captivity Mr Cameron, kept there as a hostage pending the delivery of a formal reply to his proposal. The Lord Mayor of Dublin delivered the other evening a lecture on Irish manufactures, in the Industrial Exhibition /row being held in that city. At the close of the lecture, and while the vote of thanks business was in progress, some military oflicei's endeavored to force their way ji thro ugh the dense crowd towards the platTiorm, making at the same time sotto voce observations rather uncomplimentary to the audience in general and the lecturer in particular. They were called to order- to no purpose, and at last altercations arose which ended in a formidable row. Hands were laid upon the officers, a procaedinowhich they forcibly resented. It hap° pened that the band of the 7Sth Regiment occupied the orchestra, and some of the kilted gentry, who were walking about aided by the officers servants, joined in the melee. They seized the chairs, which they flourirhed so vigorously that they readily secured a clear space for them selves on all sides. All the chairs and tables were upset, some of the latter were broken, and a i emarkale scene of confusion was presented. The excitement in the galleries was great, and cheering, hissing, and hooting prevailed for several minutes. The soldiers being thus left a clear field soon beat a retreat. It was a considerable time before the people resumed their seats and the business of the tunng was proceeded with. Subsequent* four officers were taken into custody on a charge of having been disorderly by creating, with others, a disturbanca in the Exhibition, and breaking the furniture of the building. All the parties were liberated on bail, and appeared before the police magistrates the next day. The exhibition authorities, however, declined to prosecute, the officers having entered into explanations and apologised. They were consequently discharged. Their names were George J. Pitt Taylor, Douglas Graham (officers of the ?Bth Highlanders), John Delemere (officer in the 11th Hussars), and Charles Mahon (of the United Service Club). "We continue to receive choice specimens of politico-religion from the other side of the Atlantic. One speaker, a bishop, by the way, declared that God could not get on without Americp, and that He had discovered the silver mines of Nevada in prder that the North might not want for jnoney. Mr Henry Ward Beecher, if fire modest, was also more fierce. He J& that any man who beg-ged a vote for!

General M'Clellan and the sham Democracy, and especially if lie begged it of a soldier, would stand in no need of a day of judgment, inasmuch as he would be certain to g-o to heli without judge or jury. — ' Maritime Register.' At a meeting- of the Irish National League, held at Dublin recentty, a letter from The O'Donoghue was read. In this letter the honorable gentleman says: — Were it possible for me to be present at- the meeting of the league, I would feel it my duty to solemnly declare at this most critical juncture, my unalterable devotion to the fundamental pinacle of the league, viz, the right of Ireland to self government; and my firm determination never, under nny circumstances, to be, a party to the abandonment or postponement even for one hour of the struggle ior the restoration of our national rights. And moreover I would say that I beiieve it to be the duty of the National League to resist, no matter from what quarter it may proceed, any attempt to reconcile the Irish people to the domination of the English Parliament, or to persuade them that Ireland can prosper as she ought to prosper without the fostering care of a native legislature — in the words of O'Connell, ' the sole remedy for all her evils.' Earnestly do I thank God that the National League was established to hold aloft the national banner, to proclaim to the whole world that what Ire- ' land wants is nerher more nor less taan independence, and that -her children are resolved never to rest contented, never to cease to strive until an Irish nation stands supreme upon this island. For my part I look forward to the future with the' utmost confidence. lam convinced th;>t already the vast majority of Irishmen at home and abroad have rallied in spirit round the flag of" the league, and that it is for us now to pursue our end in the face of every difficulty, relying on the justice of our cause. At a meeting of the municipal council of Dublin, Mr John Barrington was elected Lord Mayor for the year 1805. Mr John Lyttle, the present Mayor of Belfast, and whose sudden departure for Harrogate during the height of the recent riots led to his controversy with the Marquis of Donegal, and the apology of his lordship for censuring him at a masonic festival, has been re-elected mayor for next year. Viscount Hastings, 'D.L., of Gaul tier; and Clash/nore, has been appointed high , sheriff of the county of Waterford for the ensuing year. His lordship's name stood second on tiie list as returned by the judges but owing to the probable absence of Edmund de la Poer, Esq., who was first named, but who has gone en a tour to New Zealand, Lord Hastings has been selected to fill the high and responsible office. : At a recent sitting of the Paris Aca- ;. demy of Sciences a paper was received from Dr Blanchetfc on three curious cases of constitutional lethargic slumber. One of them was that of a" lady 2-i years of age, who, having slept for 40 days at the age of IS. and 50 days at the age of 20 during her honeymoon, at length had a fit of sleep which lasted nearly a whole year, from Easter Sunday 1862 to March 1863. During this long period a false front tooth had to be taken out in order . to introduce milk and broth into her , mouth. This was her only food ; she remained motionless, insensible, and all her muscles were in a state of contraction. Her pulse was low, her breathing scarcely perceptible; there were no evacuations, no leanness ; her complexion was florid and healthy. The other cases were exactly ' similar. Dr Blanchett is of opinion that in such cases no stimulants or forced motion ought to be employed. A very wanton outrage was committed on a Protestant church, in the county Longford, the other ni<>-ht. The church has heen recently repaired, and the Hon. Mr King Harm an presen ed a stainedglass window on which St Peter was represented. This innovation on pure orthodoxy, it seems, gave olfence, and the window has been demolished. It is fair to state that the outrage is believed to have been perpetrated by a section of the Protestant congregation, and that no suspicion of participation attaches to the Catholics of the locality. Catherine Caffery, a young woman, was. summoned before the magistrates at Bellmullet the other day, by ' an English gentleman,' named Billing-ton, with whom she had hired as a servant. The complaint was that she had broken her engagement

by leaving his service previous to the expiry of her tenm The defence was, according- to the parish priest who appeared as the guardian of the girl, that it was dangerous to her virtue to ■continue in thoemploy, as four girls " r ho had preceded her in. the situation had been delivered of illegitimate children while in the complainant's service. The g-irl, however, stated that no attempt had ever been made on her, and Mr Billington, who supported his own case, declared that one of the persons referred to by the. priest had been found in tha bed of his man, owing, he said to the want of other accommodation in the aouse. Thereon the reverend guardian, of the defendant argued that although no attempt had been made on her, it was not after the girl had fallen that he should warn her and remove her from the (linger, while he contended that the statement of the co. aplainaat about one of the girls who had been in his service clearly established that his house was no place for virtuous girls to be in. The magistrates, however, sentenced the girl to a penalty of £3 10s, or in. default two months' imprisonment. She accepted the alternative, but the priest has since lodged an a>peal to the decision, and the girl remains out on bail, while five times the amount of the penalty has been subscribedfor her. Among the novel proposals of the day is one for the construction of a small battery in the cross-trees. The battery is to be made of strong iron plating, to be very small — -just sufficiently large to work a small rifled gun, which can be hoisted in time of action — and with which, it is thought, the decks of the enemy could be swept. The most recent arrival of note from America is the celebrated Commodore Nutt, a rival in some respects to his friend General Tom Thumb, but greatly his superior if the} r be estimated by their diminutiveness, for the naval officer weighs much lighter and possesses even /ewer ; inches than the military dignitary. Though rivals they are friends, as on the occasion of the marriage of the general the commodore helped him through the interesting ceremony by acting as best man, Miss Minnie Warren, the sister of the bride, acting as bridesmaid. The enormous number of 291,597,210 eggs have been imported into England in the first 10 months of the present year — not very far from a million a day. The Home Secretary has decided that Hatthews, the cabman, is entitled to the whole of the reward for the apprehension and conviction of Muller. The sum is £300. Meanwhile Matthews has been arrested by one of his creditors, and it is expected that claims for at least £000 will be lodged against him, so that the reward will speedily be swallowed up. It is stated as a new discovery that wonderful effects may be obtained by watering fruit trees and vegetables with a solution of sulphate of iron. Under this system beans will grow to nearly double the size, and will acquire a much mo:*e savory taste. The pear seems to be par- 1 ticularly well adapted for this treatment. Old nail; thrown into water, and left to r:.;st there wiill impart to it all the necessary qualities for forcing vegetation as described. Dr. Towgood, r>f Torquay, writes to the ' Times' to contribute another instance of the extortion practised by quack doctors. A. highly nervous lady, the widow _of a colonel, feared that she was suffering* from a disease, for which in an unhappy hour she was led to consult a quack residing in the West of England. He confirmed her fears and told her that a fatal result, could be prevented only by his care and skill. He refused a fee, saying that he preferred leaving the remuneration until she got well. After some time he sent in a Will for £800, which the lady paid. He then said that he would visit her occasionally as a friend, and continued to do so for a long time, the lady making handsome presents to the quack's family. At last the lady grew uneasy at the continuance of his visits, and he then sent in a bill for £1,100. The lady, by the advice of her friends, resisted this second attempt at extortion, and faced the ordeal of a law court. It was then proved that she had never suffered from the disease, and the jury without leaving the^box gave a verdict in her favour. The ' Narodny Listy ' of Prague relates the following curious incident : — One night last week, 3VL M — — , a magistrate,

when returning- home through a dark and narrow street, came into contact with a passeng-er, who instantly made off with all speed. The judge immediately felt for his. watch, and finding- that it was not in his. pocket he ran after the supposed robber and demanded its restitution. The man. hesitated for a moment, but at last handed him a watch. On arriving- home M. M was astonished to .see his own watch on the table. The next morning- he went to the-police-office, related his adventure, and g-ave up the watch which he had so strangely obtained- on the previous evening-. The officer on duty then informed the magistrate that a person had just called to complain that he had been robbed of his watch-: in the street mentioned, and the fact was. at once ascertained that the magistrate and the complainant had. mistaken, each: other for robbers. Lord Dunsany, who has never served a. a day afloat since he was promoted to therank of captain, will, in consequence of-his-seniority, being- higher than that of Captain Ommanney, be promoted to the rank; of reserved rear-admiral. The reduction of the postal charge be--ween England and France is now beingdiscussed in the French papers, which-, argue that as railways have now supplanted mail coaches, there can. be no reasonfor heavily taxing so light an article as a letter; more especially as newspapers are ■ transmitted at so cheap a rate. Perhaps one of the most curious features . of the day w;is the news boys upon the battle-field with the latest papers. Whilethe musketry was at its loudest, whilo the artillery was most sonorous, and when the passing- bullet vith its deadly "chirp" compelled one involuntarily to duck his head, the rag-g-ed- urchins on horseback might be heard calling; forth ' New York Herald' in stentorian tones. The quarterly communication of theGrand Lodge of Scotland was held in. the .Masonic Hall, Edinburgh, on Monday, at. which meeting it fell to nominate a successor, as Grand Master-Mason of Scotland, to the late lamented Duke of Athole. Tli ere was a large attendance of members, belonging- to Edinburgh, as also from. Glasgow and the provinces. The recorn--mendation of the committee, to nominate for the throne John Whyte Melville, Esq.,. of Mount Melville, was received with acclamation ; and he, being introduced bythe Grand Stewards, was warmly congratulated on his nomination. The following noblemen were also nominated, andagreed to act : — The Earl of Dalhousie,. Deputy Grand Master; Lord Longh--borough, Substitute Grand Master ; and ! for minor officers, Sir A. P. Gordon Cumming-, the Duke of Athole, Lord Dunmcre.,, ifec. A ludicrous incident has occurred inBelfast. A gentleman of considerable academic attainments and position undertook an extensive Continental tour this, summer, and found himself in the coursenl it in a Siberian town among- the Ural Mountains, where he became the guest of Russian trader. The host exhibited to the admiration of his visitor a boulder of niphrifcjj — a stone very extensively used for ornamental purposes — weighing 4OOlbs. avoirdupois. In the course of the conversation the^feraveller expressed an opinion, that it was worth at least 6,000 roubles, or between £800 or £900 sterling. Thetrader seems, from what followed, to have mistaken for a bid what was merely a valuation, and last week forwarded the boulder of niphrate to Belfast, with a little., bill for £700. Since the war began the Government of' the United States has ordered 75,000 00rf r Colt's new holster pistols for their cavalry, artillery, and military train. The various governments of our colonies, such as those of Natal, the Cape, New South Wales,, and Victoria, have ordered the same weapon for cavalry, artillery, and militarytrain ; and in New Zealand and Otag-'o the revolver carbines and pistols have been served out to the local troops engaged in hard work. If cavahy are to have firearms at all, a good heavy colt is as good a weapon as they can have, and for artillery and transport service it is at least a very useful adjunct to ordinary armament. — 'Army and Navy Gazette.' 'Up to the present time,' sajs the^ 'Europe' of Frankfort, 'no momument that we are aware of has ever been erected to the memory of a pig. The town of" Lunenburg, in Hanover, has wished to. fill up that blank, and at the Hotel de . Ville in that town there is to. be seen, &_

kind of mausoleum to the memory of a member of the swinish race. In the interior of that commemorative structure is to he seen a glass class, inclosing a ham g i\\ in good preservation. A slab of black marble attracts the eye of visitors, who find thereon the following- inscription in Latin, engraved in letters of gold : — * Passerby, contemplate here the mortal remains of the pig which "acquired for itself imperishable glory by the discovery of the springs of Luneburg.' A new invention for extinguishing 1 fires has just been tried at Si Petersburg. About 130 pounds of a white powder were dissolved in a tub containing about 200 gallons of water. A large wooden con-g'?-:ction two storeys high was then set on fire, and the liquid being pumped on the flames, they were extinguished without the least generation of vapor or smoke. The wood attacked by fire was covered, after having undergone the action of the liquid, with a light coating 1 resembling varnish. Colonel Erskine succeeds Colonel M'Murdo as Inspector-General of Yolun^ teers. A reward of £200 has been offered by the Protestant party in Belfast for such in-> formation as shall lead to the conviction of the persons who, some nights sinoe, cut down the Cross in the Roman Catholic churchyard there. The Mayor of Belfast Mr John Lytle, has subscribed a large portion of this reward, and the remainder is to be raised exclusively among Protestants. The arrangements for holding* an international exhibition at Dublin next year are progressing satisfactorily. The Queen has formally expressed a hope that the undertaking-, which -is to enjoy her Majesty's patronage, may result successfully. Lord Waterfo.rd's Last Exploit.— One of the last practical jokes playod by my poor dear friend I believe, was performed in Piccadilly. A gentleman of the medical profession had stopped to attend a patient and left his rather old-fashioned cabriolet - — or what in those days was called a 'how d'ye do' gig — standing by the pavement, in care of one of those red jacketed Jads who n-et a living- by holding- horses iv the absence of any groom. Unfortunately tor die doctor, he had halted his vehicle just in front -of an old woman's apple and orange barrow y behind which she sat. polishing her fruit up with a very dirty apror. The temptation for fun was too too great for Waterford, who happened to dass by; so he went up to the old dame, and astonished her by bidding for her barrow, fruit and all. At first she cried, 'Get away with your imperence, do !' but, on being assured that her customer was in earnest, she named a sum which would have bought her four or five harrows' full of fruit; this, to her astonishment, was instantly given her. Having secured the barrow, the next thing he did was to go to the lad in the red jacket, who was minding the doctor's gig, and enlist him in his service. From him he obtained a sufficient piece of cord, with which he tied the barrow on to the gig, and then, in immensely amused anticipation, awaited the result. Presently out came the doctor spectacles on nose, looking gloomy and absent, as if in doubt whether he had mistaken his patient's case or not, and done his best to kill or cure him ; and giving sixpence to the lad, on whom Waterford had already bestowed half a crown, he got int » his carriage. Sitting, as doctor's in- 1 variably do, in the middle, he waved his whip a'ter the fashion of a conjuror's wand and letting it emphatically fall on his quuclrupea, with a jerk at his mouth to arouse him, the ' How d'ye do ' gig rattled on., and after it the barrow full of oranges and apples. Of ; course, over the stones all the fruit bumped about as if it were alive ; and the barrow as the gig proceeded, scattering' its tempting load in the most lavish way, soon collected a crowd of scrambling boys, who followed roai'ing- in its wake. The cheering- and vociferous laughter thus created, at last made the doctor glance behind to ascertain the why and wherefore. As their was a long- tail of scattered fruit, for it could not be picked up as fast as it fell, the spectacled charioteer looked too' far behind to sco the barrow that was almost under his nose ; nor did he discover it till it had been emptied and its wheel had come off, when a stree' constable drew his attention to the clattering appendage. A few nights ago a party of four *n.en, two of whom were armed, knocked at the &>or. of 4 ohn. Molloy, a .bailiff, who lives

about three miles from Tullamore, King's County, and having* obtained admittance, one of" the fellows presented a pistol at Molloy's wife, at the same time demands ing 1 firearms. The woman, who was naturally "greatly alarmed, cried out, don't shoot me. This aroused her husband, who was lying- in a bed in an adjoining- room, and having- armed himself with a double barrelled gun, he came co the door, which the party were trying- to force in, and fired on them. One of the gang- cried out, I'm shot, They then fled from the house, and there is no doubt thct some of them have been wounded, as drops of blood were seen on the ground where the party were when h'red at by Molloy. Robbery of arms would appear to be the motive of this outrage. The Fenian conspiracy, it appears, is far from being extinct in the neighborhood of Skibbereen. A young man named Keane, an attorney's clerk, was arrested by the police a few nights ago, on the charge of administering an unlawful oath, and committed for trial at the Cork assizes The parish priest of Rath has denounced the society, and has in consequence been burnt in effigy. A scientific contemporary gives the following interesting information concerning the length of the materials which will enter into the Atlantic telegraph cable when it is completed : — There are seven copper wires to form the conductor. The entire length of the telegraph will be 2300 miles so that there are 16,000 miles of copper wire. Every portion of the copper wire is submitted to an electrical test to ascertain its power of conduction prior to being worked up. The next stage is to coat these wires with eight successive coats of the insulating material equal to an aggregate length of 18,400 miles. This core is next covered with jute, wound round it from ten strands, making 23,000 miles of jute yarn. Then comes the outer coating formed of ten covered iron wires. The iron wire itself is 23,000 miles in length, and each wire is covered separately with five strands of tarred hemp, 135,000 miles of the latter being required. Altogether the material empWed will have a length of 215.500 miles, or in other words woidd be sufficient to pass ten times round the earth, or to reach from the earth to the moon. In the Norwegian mines a singular custom is observed in paying the weekly wages of the men. They all present themselves on Saturday evening to the inspector, who having settled accounts with each, bids him turn round, and writes upon his black back the sum due to him. Thus numbered, the man goes to the cashier, who also turns him round to look at the figures, and paj's him without having a word to say. It is told with full detail, and every proof of "veracity, that a young fellow made a heavy bet that he and his friend would eat eighty-three dozen of o} r sters He warned them that his friend was a low, coarse fellow. N'hn'porte the spectators were willing to witness his perfromance and that of his friend. The layer of the bet ate a dozen, and then sent for friend. He was introduced, well prepared for the feast, having been starved for two days. The friend was an enormous pig, which made short work of the remainder of the oysters. The validity of the proceedingwas discussed, and it was foun I that fie sharp young man with the hoggish friend had rightly gained his money. Genera] Scott recently presented to General Grant a copy of his autobiography, on the fly leaf of which was written, " from the oldest to the ablest general in the world," Lest any one in the provinces should contemplate saving the expense of cards by the announcement, "no cards," some or the country papers are charging double price when the words " no cards," are added to the announcement of marriage. Henceforth that affix will inform the outer world that the marriage was conducted regardless of expense. An odd circumstance recently happened to Naudin, while singing at Madrid. In " getting up" as a soldier he omitted to remove several valuable rings from his finger; and when in the course of the opera he was melodiously bewailing his poverty, a voice from, the gallery interrupted him with the question, "why don't you take your diamond rings to the pawnbroker's f" There is now pending in the Court of Chancery a suit relating- to the will of the

i late Countess Beli, an English lady, married to Count Vitei'bo, to whom she be- : queathed the greater part of her property. . It appeal's that the A—ill is contested by her relations. It will give some idea of ; the different notions entertained in different countries with respect to the administration of justice, that Cardinal Antonelli, to fortify the cause of Gount Belli, should have writen a despatch to the British consul, requesting him, through the medium of Earl Russell, to engage the Lord Chnncelor's warmest sympathies in the Count's behalf. The request of the Cardinal Secretary of state having- been duly forwarded to Earl Russell by; the consul, his lordship sent a reply purporting that her Majesty's Government had no power to interfere with or influence the administration of justice. The colony is becoming* fimous for its religious feuds. The Rev. Mr Kotze minister of the Dutch Reformed Church, who belongs to the Liberal party, boldly declared in the Synod his disseni from the answer one of the questions in the Heidelberg- Cajehism j for this he was suspended, and, refusing to retract, was finally deposed. Against the whole proceedings he appealed to tbe Supreme Court of the colony, the judges of which ruled that the proceedings were informal, and therefore null and void. On this the Moderator of the Synod intimated that he would appeal to the Privy Council. Meanwhile the Presbytery of Tulbagh of which Mr Kotze is a member, declined by a bare majority to allow him to take his seat, the minority then protest, and in a body leave the court. Another case of alleged heresy — that of the Rev. Mr Cnryers — is pending; and altogether the Dutch Reformed Church is in an awkward dilemma between the civil courts and the recalcitrant members of its own body. In the English Church, again, Bishop Gray has intimateu his intention of re-enacting the far.cc of a diocesan synod — a make-believe court, which is gradu tilly falling more and more into disrepute amongst the liberal-minded laymen.