GENERAL NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXII, Issue 7353, 13 June 1885, Page 2 (Supplement)

GENERAL NEWS.

Nsw Yoke ban a drinking-room > decorated with eleven thousand champagne corks. Traced on the ceiling: are all sorts of pretty ornamental designs and the names of popular actresses and singers. On the walls are more of these designs, with ether names woven in them. The ornamental work is made entirely of champagne corks. .Some, hare glistening metal tops and others are Strang with cord-like tendrils. To add to the unique appearance of the room the wall lights, which are electric loops, are inclosed in real chain* pagne bottles, sealed with -plaster of Paris which are held in hands modelled in bronze. Tiny champagne baskets, packed with corks, stand on brackets between the bottles.

The Paris Soir says that Denmark is on the eve of a revolution, because the unpopular Esdrnp Ministry, which has not the confidence of Parliament, is retained in office solely by the Bang's will. It has been in power since 1874. The Chamber has been four times renewed, and' each time has been more hostile to it than before. There are now among 102 members 78 calling themselves Irreooncilables, and they have agreed on a policy of complete obstruction until the Court favourite retires. A demand, the Budget being thrown over, for the Government to be allowed authority to provide for urgent expenditure, has just been thrown out. On the 31st March, the end of the financial year, either a deadlock must happen, the Ministy reliire, or a revolution take place. The Prefect of the Seine has sanctioned the erection of a cremation establishment in the Pere la Chaise, and has drawn up a plan of the same. This has been done after the opinion of eminent members of the medical profession had been taken, and the erection of such an apparatus pronounced by them to be quite free from objection from a sanitary point of view. For the moment only the human remains coming from hospital dissect* ing-rooms will be incinerated, but partisans of the disposal of the dead by burning enter* tain great hopes that small beginnings may have great endings, that in the course of a few years the prejudice against cremation, now very pronounced in France, will disappear, and that urns containing the ashes of the departed will replace the present system of coffins and graves.

The London Road Car company has once more proved that Sabbatarianism is sound economical policy. Last year they determined to discontinue Sunday traffic, and the Chairman states that there has been a very remarkable improvement in the value of their property. The traffic receipts have gone up nearly a thousand pounds over those of the previous year, although they ran six days as again seven, and the value of their stud of horses has increased twenty per cent, owing to the discontinuance of Sunday traffic, to improved feeding, and the weeding out of useless horses. Whatever may be said concsrning Sunday keeping, the fact that neither horSe nor man should work more than six days in seven is a great economical truth which -can never be violated without incurring in the long run financial loss. "

A small volume of statistics showing the work done by the post offices of the world has just been published at Florence. From this it appears that in ISS3, the latest year for which complete returns are available, there were in Europe 65,500 receiving offices, 41,500 telegraph offices, and 225,000 letter-boxes. The total number of persons employed by the various post offices was 356,000 ; and in the twelve months there was transmitted 3,653,000,000 letters, 546,000,000 post-cards, 1,046,000,000 booksand parcels, 1,672,000,000 newspapers, and 117,000,000 telegrams, the gross weight of the matter sent through the post being estimated at about SOO.OOO tons. The lowest charge for the conveyance of any letter or post-card was one centime; the highest was £5. The total receipts of the various offices amounted to £38,150,000, and their expenditure to £31,950,000. These figures are surprising when one . remembers that less than half a century ago the number of packages of all kinds that passed through the post offices of the world was well under 100,000,000.

Considerable interest is manifested in a plan devised by M. Berlin for the transmission of mails between Paris and London by pneumatic process. A few of the particulars of the scheme are as follows The pneumatic tubes or subway would be laid down alongside the existing railways for con* venience sake. The total distance between the two capitals is 299 miles, viz., Paris, to Calais, 186 miles; Calais to Dover (channel), 24 miles ; and Dover. London (rail), 89 milos. The pneumatic subway would be constructed of cast-iron pipes fifteen and a half inches in diameter and thirteen feet in length, . con* nected by means of india-rubber points. This arrangement has the effect of giving great flexibility and elasticity to the whole, and of making it watertight besides. The carriage suggested is composed of a wire* frame covered by a sheet of asbetos cloth with a metallic warp. This covering would have a kind of metallic brush coating, to enable the compressed air to dilate to a certain extent around the truck and cool the latter, thus counteracting. the heat produced by the friotion. A track would travel the distance between the two capitals in one hoar, and one could be despatched eveiry ten minutes. An engine of from twenty-eight to thirty horse-power would be sufficient.

One of the largest and most successful demonstrations, ever held in the town took place at Leicester recently to protest against the enforcement of the Vaccination Acts against 5000 defaulters. The demonstration met in sections, and marched to the market-place, where over 20,000 persons assembled. The procession, which was between one and two miles long, moved off amid lond cheers. Several hundred banners were sent by sympathisers in various parts of the country. The friends in Belgium forwarded a banner with the inscription in French: "Neither fines nor imprisonment will prevent vaccine from being a poison, nor the vaccination laws an infamy." Among the most noticeable features of the display were a horse and a cow drawn in vans as sources of vaccination, and an open bier with a coffin as the result. A large detachment of men who had suffered imprisonment headed the processien, followed by a still larger number who had had their goods seized and sold by public auction. The line of route was lined by thousands of spectators, and the streets were decorated with flags and banners. On returning to the market-place a crowd of oter 20,000 people assembled to witness the burning of the Vaccination Acts. Mr. Councillor Butcher presided, and ' congratulated them on the great success of the demonstration. Resoluions were then passed condemning the Vac« cination Acts, and demanding their repeal. The Acts were then fastened to iron bars and burned, amid the yells of the large crowd, led by the united bands. The crowd then sang "The Cause that is True'and "Rule Britannia," after which they quietly dis« persed. Three large public meetings were held at night, and resolutions passed con* demning the Vaccination Acts.

A Blue Book has been issued to Parliament showing the trade of British India with, foreign countries for the official year ended on March 3lst, 1884. The report states that .*• the steady increase in the dimensions of the external trade of India which has marked the record for a considerable period, with temporary checks from famine, is again a feature in the returns for 1883-84, the trade of the past year having been greater than that of 1882-83 by 4-57 per cent. The value of the imports of last year was in excess of that of the previous year by 3 "35 per cent. ; that of the exports by 5*49 per cent. The increase under both heads was entirely in merchandise, the imports and exports of treasure having fallen off to some extent during the year. There was an increase under some other heads which causes some surprise. Thus, the imports of boots and shoes doubled; malt liquor increased by 37 per cent.; printing paper quite, and woollen goods very nearly, doubled in value. All these are articles that can be made in the country, and, to some extent are so made now. But however much the manufacture of such artioles may develop in India, it is clear that no real impression will be made upon the totals of Government stores imported until the country is able ta make railway material generally. This head accounts for half the whole imports of the year. Out of the whole £2,750,000 which represent the value of the imports, not so much as 70,000 were shipped to India from places not within the United Kingdom, whictt practically holds the monopoly of the WPP'? to India of stores required by the State, vt the whole trade between the United Kingdom and India,' no less than 87 '85 per cent, was conveyed last year through the Suez O&nai, leaving less than 12* per cent, to be' br °3' round the Cape. v ; The value of thisi trade exceeded the value of the trade of i 'ranee with India carried : through the Gum • dj more than nine V times, the figures be,ng Rb77.91.96.972 for the United Kingdom, &~« 15,72,094 for France.;: