TOPICS OF THE DAY.

Press, Volume L, Issue 8476, 6 May 1893, Page 6

TOPICS OF THE DAY.

Nobody can say after A Modern reading the report of a "Man Hunt." recent trial at the Here-

ford Assizes that there is no idea of humour aurriring in rural parts of England. Only unfortunately the humour in some cases is of a peculiar kind. It was so in this particular instance. Six persons, including one miller and three farmers—all occupying a respectable position—were charged with causing the death of a man named Projser* It appears that

on the 13th of January laat the prisoners were carousing at an in% timl a grim and ghastly idea of "a little fun" entered into their hemuddled pates. It was bitterly cold night, and there had been a heavy fall of snow. The first exploit of the roysterers was to go to a shed whero a man named Cross was slooping, and drag him out into the open air. Ho fortunately managed to cscapo from his tormentors into tho inn Then four of thorn went to a cottage, dragged a man named Chappoll out of |,jj bod, rollud him in the snow, dipped hia head in a river, aud loft him exhausted on. a gravolbed. This was all rare sport—on the side of tho tormentors—and with shoutsoflaughte> they began to seek for fresh victims. They then came upon tho unhappy man Prosser. He in his terror jumped oub of » wiudow, and then the "man hunt" began. Before' ib was finished Prosser lml been rolled in tho snow, dipped in a tank or tho river, and chased, half-mad with terror, over numerou4 hedges and Holds. Finally hi« pursuers either lost sight of him or got tired and gave up the "hunt." Next morning he was discovered quite dead nuspesdod from a gate by a portion of his clothing. It appears to have caught while he was-en.! deavouring to climb over, aud Recording to the medical evidence the fright and exhauation from the long run had left him too weak to extricate himself. The two ringleaders in the " hunt" were seuteneei to twelve months' hard labour, and the read gob off with four months upieoe. The sentences are, in our opinion, extremely light, but, no doubt, the culprits have come to the conclusion that man hunting is not nearly such an exquisite joke as they imagined it to be.

Even the Sixth Standard

Decline boy, who knows every, of Heraldry, thing nowadays, would

probably find It difficult to tell us who or what Rouge Dragon is. Qos« Bequently to the majority of leaders tha announcement that a new Rouge Dragon it aboub to be appointed probably, conveys so very definite infonnatiou. Aud yeb tha event is nob without interest. Rouge Dragon is an important official couneoUd wibh Heralds' College, and is a very plo-J turesque personage, whether you look at him from a spectacular or au archa»logie*T poiut of view. Tho College of Arms, to which every ambitious Englishman; mart go if he desires to be furnished with hit correct armorial bearlugs, ia presided over' by the Duke oi Norfolk, as hereditary Earl Marshal, under whom serve Garter Principal King-of-Arma, with Clarenoteus aud Norroy uuder him, besides six heralds, named Chester, Windsor, Lsnoaiter, Richmond, York and Somersob, and four pursuivants—Bluemantle, Portcullis, BoAp Dragon and Rouge Croix. The parsiihsnte and heralds wear a tabard with the Roysl Arms embroidered on both sides of it, end . form a striking feature in the " show " at Royal marriages, coronations and other exalted funotloua. It is on record thai when Rouge Dragon presented himself i& his official dress ou one occasion tb#. flunkey whose duty it wbb to announce hi»; was dumbfounded at the speotacio, aai stammered out in his agitation—" Thf; Knave of Clubs mistake which. anyone who has eeea the uniform will admit to have been somewhat excusable. It ii sad to learn that these gcrgeout officials have fallen on evil days. They are paid by fees, and according to the Loaded correspondent of the Argus the rich nobody in search of ancestors has become scarce, if not extinct. Now and then an American' turns up with a commission bo trace out his pedigree, bub on the whole the .bnainefw of the Heralds' College is rapidly deolmtojj,; They have tho consolation of their qualiit titles and gorgeous trapping*, but even the latter, ib is said, are growing shabby, being'; handed down from, one holder of the glßcs; to another. Surely the day is nob at litt»<l when against Heralds' College, as against' many another ancient institution, tho fatal word "Ichabod !" will have to be written.

Ma. W. T. St«3ad, having In Praise apparently dropped Ooutifc of Matjtoi, is now " baominjl" Eucalyptus, the efficacy of eucalyfri&t oil, possibly with a goo« deal more justification. Some of the state* ments made as to its virtues as an antiseptic are certainly' very remarkable Mr Bteso quotes extensively from a paper read by Mr J. Brendou Curgenven at a meeting of the Medical Officers of Schools Association* This gentleman'atserts that the experience of the Medical Officer of Hoalbhibr BexlejV inKont, where Tuckor's Oleusaban Euo*« lyptus Disinfectant was tried, enabled, the Local Board to dispense with tho building of an infectious diseases hospital there. The Modioal Officer, reports that in 157 consecutive cases of scarlet fever treated in their own hemes there were only two deaths. In all the other cases the recovery appears completfl. There has been no spread of infection, fttiil the district is nowf roe from scarlet fever. The ratepayers' money has therefore been saved, apd the patients have been- treated at home at the oost of a few shillings. When tiW „ disinfectant is properly used ib absolutely prevents the spread of the disease, *-* scarlet fever breaks out in a home full of, children, and by simply usiug the disUrita*: tant the disease ia arrested with its nf*t victim, none of the other children taking la-. fection. In one tesb case tbe father was AO convinced of its efficaoy that he eonfiflad two of bis children in ths same room wits, the patient for eight days, and idhwM them to play on and about the bed of brother, who was suffering from a »bft«_> attaokof scarlet fever, and there was no iufectiou. The mode of using tho wtw pti* Is to anoint the patient's body all over With it, to sprinkle it about the room, attd te administer ib internally in doses of three to six drops. If half of what Is told alwte* Oleusanan Eucalyptus in this paper Is true, it roust be a veiitablo speciflo for scarlet, fever, and a drug of almost priceless valufc (