MISCELLANEOUS.

Waikato Times, Volume I, Issue 59, 14 September 1872, Page 3

MISCELLANEOUS.

ITow Coffee was DISCOVERED. — Towards the middle of the fifteenth century a poor Arab was travelling in Abyssinia, and finding himself weak and weary from fat igue, he stopped near a grove. Being in want of fuel to cook his rice, he cut down a tree which happened to be covered with dried berries. J Lis meal being cooked and eaten, the traveller discovered that these hal('-burned berries were fragrant. He collected a number of these, and, on crushing the.in with a stone he found their aroma increased to a great extent. While wondering at this he accidentally let fall the substance into a can which contained his scanty supply of water. Lo! what a miracle ! The almost put rid liquid was instantly purified. He brought it to his lips ; it was fresh and agreeable, and after a moment the traveller had so far recovered his strength and energy as to be able to resume his journey. The lucky Arab gathered as many berries as he could, and, having arrived at Aden, in Arabia, he informed the Mufti of his discovery. That worthy was an inveterate opium-smoker, who had been suffering for years from the influence of the poisonous drug. He tried an infusion of the roasted berries, and wns so delighted with the recovery of his former vigour that, in gratitude to the tree, he called it tanhuct, which in Arabic signifies "force." And this is the manner in which eolfee was discovered.

iEglis, a weekly writer in the Australasian says : —I lately dropped npon something said by Lord Lnnsdowno of Lord , which might, I think, be regarded as applicable to the majority of politicians, not even excepting those of Victoria. (The speaker was remarkable for the sententious and speech-like proposity of his conversation.) "I have a high opinion," he said, "of his lordship's character. So remarkable do I think him for the pure and unbending integrity of his principles, that I look uyon it as impossible he should ever be guilty of the slightest deviation from the line of rectitude, unless it were mo*t damnably well wovh his lohHe."

The local editor of a w e ,tem paper wrote the other day, an item to the affect that "winter was lingering in the lap of spring," but the managing eelMor " Cl it it out." He said the idea was good enough, and original, and all that sort of thing, but it would not do "to publish, because the high moral tone of the paper had to be maintained in a town full of seminary girls. A southern newspaper gets very indignant because a northern writer has said that the women of tl e south are indolent, and then concedes the whole case by declaring that "they have done nothing" to deserve such an accusation.

For keeping hams trv the following : —After your meat is well smoked procure some cleen, dry woodashes, and have some water handy; take down the hams, moisten them a little so that the ashes will stick, put the ashes on them and give them a good rubbing, and hang them up again. Any person trying this will find that the meat will keep sweet and nice, and will not be troubled with any insects on the hams. The friend who gave us the recipe says: I have put mine up this way for three successive seasons and find it does well. —Ibid.

P ; A high-tempered husband quarrelled with his wife tlie other morning, arid getting the worst of it, he took his razor from its box and threatened to sever his jugular vein. His daughter fell on her knees and begged of him to desist, but he wouldn't do it. " Let the old fool cut his throat if he wants to!! exclaimed his wife. "Oh, that's what you want, is it?" retorted the husband. "Well, I was determined to get the best of you, somehow, and now I'll do it," he added, as he replaced the razor in its box. " Why, Emily, how do you do ? " "I am very well, Julia. I celebrated ray wooden wedding last week." "Why. I didn't know you were married. How did you celebrate it ?" "By marrying a blockhead."

W ncn a person disappears with a balance, as Mr. Simkins, the accountant has done, it is obvious that he is dissatisfied with the scale of remuneration. This obsei'vation ought to have its weight with employers. When the scales fall from their eyes on this point, their balances will remain in the a* hands.