MULTUM IN PARVO

Otago Witness, Issue 3277, 3 January 1917, Page 47

MULTUM IN PARVO

The first Russian women entitled to jail themselves engineers aro 47 pupils of the higher technical schools, who have been permitted to do so by special authorisation of tho Czar. Owing to Iho high prices necessitated by the English match tax tho Home trade sales had fallen off more than 50 per cent. The United States possesses 250,000 miles of railway—well over a third of tho total for tho whole world. Russia cemw next, with 46,000, and Germany next with miles. Tho first lighthouse was built on Eddystono rocks; but the present lighthouse is tho fourth erected on this spot. The first two were wooden structures, one of which was wrecked and tho other burnt. Tho third was stone, and stood well for 120 years, till the present—the fourth —was built to replaco it in 1882. —lt is a fact not generally known that at least two but of every five horses do not lie down to sleep. Tho horse that sleeps m a standing position rests one leg at a time, depending on the other three to sustain the weight of his body. The salary of tho Archbishop of Canteibury is £15,000; of the Archbishop of York, £10.000; of the Bishop of London, £IO,OOO. Tho next wealthiest sees are Durham, £7OOO, and Winchester, which is £6500. —-The Danube is the second river in inferior only to the Volga. It is 1725 miles long, drains 315,360 square miles, and carries four-fifths of tho commerce of Eastern Europe. Ninepence a bushel is being paid by some farmers in England for acorns, which aro gathered by village women and children, and are used freely for feeding stock, chiefly pigs and sheep. Glasgow magistrates are imposing sentences of hard labour to repress the misdeeds of organised bands of hooligans, who enter shops at night and demand to bo served with refreshments under the threat of smashing tho contents of the premises. Driving an automobile over the same roads on which he drove an ox team and waggon more than 60 years ago is the achievement of a pioneer settler of Manhattan, Kansas, now in his eightieth year. Two weeks after purchasing tho car ho was driving it over the paved streets of the city which he helped to found and build. Tho death has occurred of Eli Cornwell, the father of the boy hero of the Jutland battle, John Travels Cornweil, V.C. An old soldier who had seen service for many years, ho was serving in tho Royal Defence Corps. What is said to be the largest wheat cargo the world has over seen recently left Port Arthur, Ontario, in a freight carrier for another Canadian port. Tho ship carried 490,720 bushels, equivalent lo over 100,000 barrels of flour, or about 30,000.000 loaves.

—ln regard to its number of days, November has probably " wobbled " more than any other month. In the old calendar, when the year had only 10 months, November was allotted 30 days. Later on it was reduced to 29. Julius Caesar raised it to 31, but soon after it was again chopped down to 30, and at 30 it has remained. The total length of the wire in the sheathing and core of the world's cables made since their introduction in 1857 is sufficient to reach from the earth to the moon. When the sea is about three miles deep, and the ship is steaming at its usual rate, ?'n paying out a new line, over two and a-half hours will pass before the cable reaches the bed of the sea. By the time the cable has settled to rest the ship is 25 miles away. The loss incurred by the nation owing to the impossibility of obtaining sugar for jam-making in the home has been computed at four million pounds sterling, a sum that would have erected and equipped 30 factories that would have produced 150,C00 tons of sugar. After recent heavy rains a gold nugget weighing about 9oz was picked np on the fvto of the old Amazon lead, Tarangatta, N.S.W. It bore the mark of a pick, having evidently be/m turned out by one of the early-day miners. Professor Cleveland Abbe, a wellknown American meteorologist., known as " Old Probs," died recently in his seventyeighth year. He was the founder of the modern meteorological system and the originator of the daily weather report indicating the probable fluctuations of the coming 24- hours. What is believed to be the largest profit ever made on a small investment is credited to an American gentleman. A year ago he bought £3OO worth of common stock in the General Motors Company of America, and rccentlv sold his shares' for £20.000. Had he waited till next day he could have made another £IOSO. The company in question is making munitions lor the British Government. A boy not jet 15 years of ago displaced remarkabb coolness and pluck in tha North Sea. The vessel on which he was. signal boy struck a mine, and was sinking fast, when ho noticed another stcar. or approaching the mine field. Regardless of his own safety, he worked the signals, warning the approaching steamer to turn back, and was successful just as the vessel ho was on sank. The plucky boy and eight of his companions were picked up End landed. —-Dredgincr tin in Siam was carried on last year with much success. For 1915-16 the dredges showed an increase of no le,~s than 57.7 per cent., with a total of 2787 tons of metal, against 1800 tons in the previous 12 months. During most of the past 12 months 13 dredges were at work, and the number is boi'mr increased. Except in Siam, the output of tin has shown a serious decline. The national wealth of the United States has increased durintr the past foir vara from about £37.000.000.000 to about £46.000.000.000. Some idea of what tins means in potentaiai power cm be •-■< cured by a comparison. The wealth of the entire Brit ; sh Enmiro in 1913 was about £24,000.000.000. The wealth of America is now nearlv double that amount. The Whitehaven coal mine runs nut under lh" Irish Sea for closo upon three miles, and Workington, a near neighbour of Whitehaven, used to have submarine gal lories; but one? day the sea broke through and drowned nil the unfortunate minora who were in the workings. At Bo'noes, a port, on the south side of the Firth of Forth, coal mines run out below the water till they almost, meet those on the opposite ccort; and off the county of Durham, too. there are several great submarine coal mires, including the famous Monk Wearmouth colliery the workings of which are so extensive as almost to form a city under the sea.

■ —Among its many other peculiarities, South Africa includes the " sneeze-wood " tree, which takes its name from the fact that one cannot cut it with a saw without sneezing. Even in planing the wood it will sometimes have tho same effect. No insect or worm will touch it: it is very bitter to the taste, and its specific gravity is heavier than water. Tho colour is light brown, the grain running very closo and hard. For dock work, piers, or jetties it is a most useful timber, keeping sound a long while under water. Who could fail to be heartened by the story of Private Thomas Alfred Jones, of the Cheshire Regiment. Noticing on enemy sniper 200 yards off, ho went out, and. though one bullet went through his helmet and another through his coat, he returned tho sniper's firo and killed him. Ho then saw two more of the enemy firing at him, although displaying a white flag. Both of these he also shot. On reaching the enemy trench ho found several occupied dug-outs, and, single-handed, disarmed 102 of the enemy, including throe or four officers, and marched them back to our lines through a heavy barrage. He had been warned of the misuso of the white flag by tho enemy, but insisted on going out after them. A glorious exploit, now fitly rewarded.