GENERAL NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXIV, Issue 10479, 26 June 1897, Page 2 (Supplement)

GENERAL NEWS.

• CATS » THE churches. '' ■ ' Is Naples there is a race of cats wbl i .•' ' ' in the churchy They are kept Ju H the authorities on purpose to catch th. ■ I which infest all old buildinga the™ S? ft ; animals D»y often b9?4Bn >a|kl D £ among the congregation, or sittin-ffrVT ■ ' I before tl, ,ltar diiring (he tiwe Q f M^ r THEX Asn HOW, Sixty years ago the crimp had their own way in most of the l U !ein "?; ':'' i in England. It v u che BIM | "J* • F| foreign,going crews ta leave the dock,? " " state of intoxication, often ?q helnW .*'■' ! > endanger the natation p(SraJ* I This rarely byppenfnow, **}££s. 1 to individual firemen and sailor, • T 9n % ' ; as 7300 seamen took the total' ik.J.n 1,, •' pledca of the Mission, to Sejjffc-r,: ' year; and whole crews pi toUlahX'HpS are frequently met with. x?sJ§lf

IS ABVSdIMI, The Emperor Menelik on the *itj M March as& appointed the Swißj"<w *: M. Ilg, his Wirne Minister anVfe State Councillor, with the title oF|2?<sP lency, Further, M. Laß»ri|e, (feS'" " Envoy from 1 ranee to Abysjjnia haikT 1 made Duke of Lntoto, his nine collet • all receiving distinctions according toftmerits, M. Mondon, a French j, ur i in Abyssinia, has received the titlTli Councillor of Public Instruction as. *r«L3- , for his services, especially j n the dmU ' department. ' *** ONE HUNDRED AND SIX YIUBJI OLD. '•'. ."* | Among the inmates of Nazareth Horn, Hammersmith, i 3 an old lady, fa'tniliari' j known to all in the institution as mq m ' ' I nio," who, when the Queen ascended tk throne in 1837, had'already attained nearly half a century of life. This old ltd, who was born in tho middle period of ' George lll.'s reign, is now in her Ifjeth : ;iH i year; and, although naturally feeling iU ■ weight of her great age, is in remMkiM. possession of her laoulties and appetite mji'S? in good health. Mrs. Flynn has oiitliwdall her children and grandchildren save out,' •

A DIPLOMAT AND A CYCLIST, ..'"' '. , An American pap<r states that Sit Je|li£ Pauncefotecyclist. Nqtonlydsii'Sf s the distinguished diplomat indulge in tt,J|f; exercise during his leisure hours, but, qnh.f;Sl official visits in the same uncopvpntiomji manner. It is a daily occurrence. to'»-& him wheeling down Connecticut AwnwPii from the Embassy to the clepartqjgif^ ( •■(•?;*§; the Exeoutivß Mansiou itself. This ttiili.' American way of doing business has Urge]!" iM conduced to Sir Julian's personal popajjifjhf, : since coming to Washington. •-.',..',,' '•'. RENOVATIONS AT TUf VATICAN.'', - ! h'\] The Pope ha 3 thrown open the Bor&u'." rooms in the Vatican, after spending£2o,ooo in having them repaired: jjij.' consist of the Borgia Tower, th,rej .lam : halls, and the Hall of the which has '250 square metres of floor area. Thi ! 1 whitewash has been removed frgnj, frescoes, and the pavements restore), hm according to the original designs,'dJ'JS; majolica tiles. The work was done ii) fqii'{' years, and was hurried as much as pwjl4'H as Pope Leo was very anxious t{iafc :0% restoration should be completed bebrjj || died] '","M '

DIGIIOMANCY, In Paris a recent comrauuicatipn of. ft,'.,. Ferre , to the Biological Society has giia. ' rise to a nsw game in French society, Tin •■ learned doctor shows that " the impressjoe V left by the fingers and toes allow one to ■ gauge with absolute certainty thedejreiof intelligence in individuals. The fingeciv:--' having been dipped in ink, when pre*sed ' on a level surface leave behind an itnpreision which contains for a fharp and prifc. . tised eye the inast astounding revelitiojiar The more numerous, fine, soft, and pronounced the lines of the finger, the higher ; • the intelligence of the individual-is de»e..': loped." Digitomancy has, therefore, como a very favourite pastime in Parisian society. . ■ . ' ' POSIAL PKOGRESS.IN AJJEBICA. ;, S I Itis highly appropriate that this year , * congress of the International Postal 'j should be held in Washington. This in the. fitot time for more than twenty years fifthi ■ v Union's existence that America has beer) ineecing-place, though now the ' nation in the world in postal imporUia.': There are in round numbers 200,000 port offices in the world, of which 70,000, a.-, more than a third, are in the United SUtsi,: '■■'•■ The growth of the service, like everything■■■'.■ ■ else iii the country, has been In 1789 there were 75 post offices; in UM •'/• there were 903; in 1825 they had inwMieJ. ■ V to 5677; in 1873, to 35,731; and in 1884 It' M 50,000. In another double decade probity .< •• over 100,000 post offices will be required to handle the postal business of the Republic 1 More than a billion letters a year, paying • full postage, besides postal cards, ie no* ; the approximate measure of the correepon- ■:■ doncb of the country, not to mention , ' thj : printed matter that comprises a large put of the total. The International P«U! Union has done more in the last twenty-tw 1 ; .j ■ years to develop and improve facilities fa intercommunication between the nations i the earth than all previous organisations. ■ . SIR JOHN MILLAIS , PICTOBES. .!'!./': At a salo of the late Sir John lliUaur 1 , ' pictures at Christie's a portrait of a roan by.'-' '-■';: Holbein realised 3000 guineas; a figure- | subject by Van Dyck, 1050 guineas; asi.';-; two of Sir J. Millais' own works, "TW V I

Naturalist" and a landscape, 1700 gqiwM and 1050 guineas respectively. ■. : ■■::

A CDBIODS BEQUEST. The famous Leland Stanford University . in America has just received a curious bequest) in the shape of a life insurance policy, which has recently been written bj; the Mutual Life of New York on the life of ']' Mrs. Stanford, the widow of the farocrirf M railway millionaire. If Mre. Stanford withiu the next ten years the Univer?it|| ■ : will receive a million doilars, but it iM ■■/.';. survives that period the company will j»y it two million dollars. This is said to the largest life insurance policy ever Usiidbyone company, and the annual premium ■ 170,000 dollars. Mrs. Stanford is 71 year!' old, so that it would require rather more tl)w five year 3 to ensure the company against" loss.

STKAXGB ADVENTURE OF A SEAMAN. ; ',' ''. A remarkable case of kidnapping, KM . - >. heard at Liverpool Assizes, when the BritUb) ■■/,-, Steamship Company, London, owners of the 8.8. Hounsloon, were sued with the, captain ■ and first and second officers, by William _-- Sloane, a seaman. Sloane'd story was that . in September last he went aboard the ship at Galveston to ask for a man who owed , him money. Tho steamer was about tytp|| sail, and Sloane alleged that he was prevented leaving, notwithstanding his pro- , testations, and locked up until the ship was ; . at sea. Hβ was then offered rating as an ; M A.8., and, on declining, was threatened to be treated as a stowaway. Ho was allowed |g|| to go ashore at Liverpool. Sloane W«?f|||. that he was now quite destitute. ppi||| defence sought to show that the man had - U undertaken to join as an A.B. The judge held that no action could lie against tb.f shipowners, as, ilthough the captain had. authority to engine men, he had none to , : kidnap. The first officer was also relieved; ~ of responsibility. The jury, however, (Wigl against the captain and second offlCWiV - awarding Sloano £50 damages. ','• • •< LEGACY DUTV. - ■ '■■ '-l/x$ To inherit a small sum of money appear! ,' t to be a somewhat expensive affair in ItalyIn a little town of the Borcanga there diM«|g some months ago a young man, who lei' . behind him 4 lira 58 contesimi, or not quit* 4s. This sum, which had been depoJitW;|ll in the Post Office Savings Bank,>b«c»tn« the property of the father on the young man's death. As the amount was so trifling m the father deemed it unnecessary to mail a declaration of the legacy as the law pre- ■ ,'- ; scribes, especially as the stamped paper on 04 ■which the declaration has to be made would . v cost I lira 80 centesinii (about Is Sd). : . : ;j. Three months afterwards, however, he received a demand for the payment to.tna v| local State treasury of 14 lira 48 centeaimi (lie sd) as legacy duty and fine for omitting , to make the necessary declaration. rial father, thinking a mistake had been made, , took no notice of this demand, with tne . result thai; a few daye ago an official callw upon him and demanded the immediM* .. t payment of 18 lira (14s 3d). The man had ,-•. not .sufficient money in hand, and tnl. officisl consequently took possession'of the { ■ .man's furniture. • The cost* of this team O brought) the total sum to 30 lira (233 9d), which the poor man had to pay tne_eanie -.,j evening to avoid the; Bale of his goods by, auction—that is to t»y-he paid £13i M»* . a legacy of-3s'7di ■■•".-: ■.<■ .. •-■• :, |g