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New Zealand Tablet, Volume XI, Issue 29, 16 November 1883, Page 27

Mr. John Burns, of Castle Wemyss, has recently had provided for him by the Post-office telephonic communication between his office in Jamaica street, Glasgow, and his house at Wemyss Bay, a distance of thirty -two miles. This new feature of telephonic science is said to be the longest private wire in the world. It is what is known as a metallic circuit — that is to say, it consists of two wires through which the current of electricity passes round and round, up one wire and down the other and always in the same direction, and the two wires are "twisted." Ordinary telephone and electric wires consist only of one wire. An American journal, in publishing statistics as to the immense quantities of land held by English noblemen and others in the United States, reports that Sir E. J. Reed, M. P. owns no less than 2,000,000 acres; the Duke of Sutherland, 400,000 ; the Earl of Dunmore 100,000; and the Earl of Dunraven; 60,000 acres. Messrs Phillips, Marshall, and Co. own a farm of 1,300,000 acres ; the heirs of Colonel Murphy, 1,100,000 acres ; H. Diston, 12,000,000 acres ; and the Standard Oil Company, ,1000.000 acres. It appears that nine men own a territory equal to that of New Hampshire, Massachusetts! and Rhode Island combined. Then there are the great railroad corporations, whose free gifts of land from lavish Congresses amount to upiEards of 200,000,000 acres. Eleven of these corporations only have-«j|gd. 120,000,000 acres. The Northern. Pacific Road* had •grari^Hnounting to 47,000,000 acres, and other grants made have ranged from 1,000,000 acres upwards. The following was published some years ago in a New York newspaper: — "The gentleman is distinguished from him who is not a gentleman by moral qualities which have justly won the highest place in the respect and admiration of the world. The gentleman restrains his passions and subdues his selfishness ; he considers the comfort of others before his own ; he respects the personality of those ■with whom he is brought in contact ; he never takes an unfair advantage ; he is scrupulously regardful of his own honour, doubly scrupulous if the honour of others be committed to his keeping ; he may lack mental culture, but he is never without moral refinement : he may have an unpolished exterior, but never a base nature • courage he bas, but shows it less in facing danger than in meeting responsibility ; if not always sincere, he is always reliable ; and to him may be safely committed all that others hold most dear, in simple reliance upon his honour ; he is a man whose manly traits are penetrated and modified by the gentleness of woman's nature, and who still preserves and endeavors to constantly act upon the manliest of instincts— magnanimity."