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{dies of old ided that. Iducivovto [5 sum ill #0 about we: live ‘1] appro~ in the front of Rim the jes con- ' wn is placed 'sealed 3 hen. Broken, :- well .l minesâ€" in to the I, which .artinâ€"a. use any 3. In a : horses at high. mtown Persian > which rithout m how values , world rises a. length, 3. The a relic pied ge ~mney >f aha descent them. 3 who $817118]. ‘ rapid- quanti- than the and will IS sup- n. from Ire oi” a velvet 5h has those of is vill- ”wax-g! ventee, lawuy fly to u] of.- It trees, re, have placing date a. LlViSed mam-y :ongng ‘tinental In ex- m the erfnme ugh the and it .th her E! m a rat that .10 with five mm and is stenta *ay, it is the stony re ice n: ided 1 uagy are COB. 1 takes a. mis- ‘ the or“. r in- States. State: English lights, rnding average Eyfl THE WEEK’S NEWS. CANADIAN. Horse stealing is uncomfortabl in the neighborhood of Newcastlzfaiflflent It is announced that Hamilton is to be divided and will, after next election, have two members in the Provxncial Legisla- ture. The transactions at the Montreal clearing- house amounzed in 1892 to $590,043,000, as compared with $514,607,000 for the previous The Continental Union of St. George’s Societies wiil probably hold its biennial meeting at Kingston, Ont. The President has nominated Henry M. Moore, of Washington, as U.S. consul at Three Rivers, Canada. Mr. John Jacob Astor, the young Amefi. can millionaire, is in Montreal for the pur- pose of enjoying the win her sports. Circulars are being sent to the newspaper proprietors of the Dominion, asking them to contribute copies of their publications to be placed in the Canadian pavilion of the World’s Fair. A young man named Calvin Dennis, while engaged in felling trees on the farm of Mr. Edward Henry, Winona, Ont., on Saturday afternoon, was struck by a broken limb,a.nd received injuries from which he died on the following morning. The Montreal Minerva thinks that. by abolishing the present system of judicial decentralization a saving of $50,000 a year could be effected. Chief Justice Begbie, in Victoria, B. 0., on Thursday, gave judgement in the case of the Crown v. The Seal schooner Oscar and Hattie, charged with killing seals in Behring Sea. He held that the seizure was perfect- ly legal; and ordered the schooner and cargo to be condemned. A Cleveland syndicate, having leased the London and Port Stanley railroad, intend establishing a line of vessels between the port and Cleveland in the spring. The fire which destroyed the residence of Mr. Frank Thomas, at Elkhorn, Man., is responsible for two deaths. Mr. Thomas’ moffner was burned to death at the time, and now news has been receiV ed of the death of Mr. Walter Hatflding,who had sustained severe injuries. fl. Maybrmgiewalléwod needles t6 pro- "duce efi‘usion of blood to create the impres- sion that she was in the final stages of con- lumption. Mr. Hall, the Quebec Provincial Treas- urer, declares that a tax on personal prop- erty would be impracticable, as it would be diflicult to collect without the introduction of costly machinery. Mr. O. T. Masson, superintendent of stores in the Richelieu and Ontario Navigation Company, died vety suddenly in Montreal, Tuesday, while waiting in his lawyer’s office to see his legal adviser. It is proposed to establish a. relief bureau at Ottawa, with a. paid official, whose busi- ness it will be to investigate all cases of distress in the city. Mr. Peter Mitchell, who has returned to Montreal from New Brunswick, states that the wmter fishing through the ice on the Miramichi is exceptionaily successful. Two Montreal firms have efl'ected a. corner on seal oil, which is in large demand in the United States, and they expect to realize handsomely on the transaction. Vice-President Shanghnessy, of the Cans.- dian Pacific railway, says that one train each way was delayed by snowslides on the Rocky mountains, but that for the past two days trains have arrived at their destination very promptly, and are now running prac- tically on schedule time. Rev. Henry S. Lunn, a. Wesleyan minis- ter of London, with the son of the Bishop of “'orcester are making arrangements for a. Christian reunion and a. pilgrimage to Jeru- salem. A cable from London says that Manitoba wheat is highly appreciated, and that it is considered Superior to the product of the Western States. The quantity this year is very large, but there is no falling off in the quality. Mr. Ben. Tillott, the Labour leader who was an unsuccessful candidate at the last general elections-in England, is at present on trial at Bristol, charged with inciting labourers to riot on the Friday before Christmas day. Baroness de Roques writes from Paris contradicting the story that her daughter, 1 ,_A.n-_ a- n-.. The extreme depression in the ehippin g industry is shown by the fact that there are 479 vessels with e tonnage of 856,000, laid Q in English and Scotch ports at present. The comet medal of the Astronomical So- ciety of the Pacific Coast has been awarded to Edwin Holmes, of London, Eng., for his discovery of the unexpected comet on No- vember 6. The Episcopal decrees concerning mixed marriages were read in the Montreal Roman Catholic churches Sunday. The decree for- bids Cctholics marrying Protestants except by special dispensation, the ceremony to be performed by apriest, and the parties bind- ing themselves to have their children brought up as Catholics. It is reported that two corn merchants 0 Dublin have failed, with liabilities amount~ ing to nearly £200,000. At the Wheal Owl mine, at Penzance, Cornwé‘l, while the men were at work, water from an abandoned mine suddenly rushed in and thirty miners were drowned. Mr. Gladstone has returned to London from the Continent. Ex-Premier Mercier has an article in the Courrier de Maskinonge, in which he says that the failure of the F tench-Canadians to succeed as they ought to is due to their fratricidal strife, and instances his own case to give point to his words. His downfall, he says, was brought about by the eflorts of The Earl of Londesborough is critically ill with typhoid fever. and his son and heir has been summoned to his bedside. his oivn countrynién. Gossip in London connects Lord W'olseley with the Governor~Generalship of Canada. It is officially stated that the Prince of Wales has no intention of, visiting the World’s F air. death: from typhus fever took North Brother’s Island, N. Y., BRITISH. Ed. R. Gimberson, an Omaha liveryman, shot his mistress, Mrs. Beach, fatally, and then committed suicide. A 3113an despatch say 3 Thomas Hanni- gan, of St. Catharines, Ont” was killed in a. saloon row there. Egbert Judson, a. bachelor aged 81, has just died :11 San Francisco, leaving a. for- tune of several million dollars. Joseph E. Barker, a reporter for The Boston Transcript, was killed by a. falling wall at a. great fire in that city Tuesday. Two sick sailors from the Spanish steamer Murcian arrived at Hamburg from New Orleans are declared to have the cholera. The fly wheel in Oliver Bros’. steel mill at Pittsburg burst instantly killing one man and injuring 12. The mill is badly wrecked and the machinery damaged. A Cincinnati despatch says all the iron pipe companies of the United States have combined. Four schooners are being fitted out at Seattle for the sealing season, and they will start out next week. No new cases of typhus fever are re- ported in New York city, and it is believed that the epidemic is now under control. A worthless fellow named Thrift mnrder- ed a. wealthy farmer in Georgia. because the latter would not. lend him a. quarter. Thrift escaped. Charles H. North, who three years ago was a. millionaire pork packer, is now in the House of Correction at East Cambridge, 318.53., for a. debt. of $703. All the friends of his prosperous days had departed, and heicould get_no baila "' - - .n .n .q It is sated in Washington that President Harrison is determined to strike a. blow at Canadian railways before the close of his Administration. He will probably recom- mend such a modification of the Consular Sealing law as will practically abrogate the bonding priyilogo. A pa:ty of Finlanders were quarrelling in a saloon at a Michigan village on Frida. night, when one of the number, John Be - hous, was stabbed. Erick Ranges went to summon Dr. Meloche, but the doctor declin- ed to go to the saloon. Ranges immediateiy shot Meloche, inflicting a. wound from which the victim died on Sunday. The murderer 13 in gaol. A Washington despatch says President Harrison will issue no proclamation abolish- ing the bonding privileges of Canadian rail- ways, but he will transmit to Congress a. message recommending legislative action in the matter. The Buffalo Courier is opposed to any interference with Canadian Railways. It says if Canadian lines are getting away the business from American railways it must be because the Canadian lines give better ser- vice, and to hurt the liberty of citizens in order to swell the profits of corporations would be a poor sort of patriotism. GENERAL. The truth of the story of the capture of the Empress of Austria. by brigauds is officially denied. The Pennsylvania Railway Company has openly declared war on all organized labour. It has declared that all its employes must sever their connections with organized lab- our bodies or their names will be erased from the pay rolls of the company. Gnnboats and troops have been sent from Buenos Ayres to quell the uprising in Cor- rientes, where fighting is going on. Typhus fever is raging at Zacatecas, Mexico, where there were 600 cases and 69 deaths last week. The weather throughout France remains exceedingly cold. In Marseilles there is skating, which is very unusual on the Medi- terranean coast. It is understood that M. Waddington, the French Ambassador to Great Britain, who is at present in ”Paris, will take with him a. strong protest against British inter- vention in ,Morocco. The Saar miners’ strike is practically over. There was a. big rush of the men desiring re-employment, but only a. limited number were allowed to resume work. The application of the new factory law, reducing the hours of labour in factories and mines, has caused a. reduction of wages throughout France, and there are many strikes in consequence. The rejection of the commercial treaty with Switzerland has begun to cause heavy losses to manufacturers in Southern and \Vestern France, with the result that many men have been discharged. A special cable despatch says the discharged employes, all of whom are Socalists,are exceedingly bitter against the Government. It is stated in Paris that M. Charles de Lesseps has consented to give the Govern- ment the fullest information regarding the Panama canal. with the object of showing that the Panama Canal Company was forced by oficials and the press to choose Between wholesale corruption and the threatened ruin of the enterprise, and also to secure for himself more lenient treatment. Amid royal pomp and splendour, Tuesday in Sigmaringeu, Princess Marie of Edin burgh was married to the Crown Prince of Roumania. Emperor William and a host of European royaiities were present. Instead of permitting the ~ United States man-of-war with Minister Thompson on board to pass through the Dardanelles to Russia, he was carried from Smyrna to Constantinople in the Turkish Imperial yacht, which Russia. regards as an intima- tion of Turkey’s firm determination not to allow Russian men-of-war into the Dar- danelles. It is asserted in Rome that Mgr. Persisco opposes the raising of Archbishop \Valsh to the Cardinalate on account of the Arch- bishop's opposition to the former’s mission in Ireland. A special cablegram from Vienna. says that the annihilation of game throughout Austria and Hungary during the excessive cold of the last three days has been beyond all precedent. In the Bohemian forests it is believed that two-thirds of the game will die if the present weather continues two daze more. n.‘ -1. France suffered one of its frequently re- curring crises Tuesday. The Ministry, feel- ing that the Panama canal investigation had reached an acute stage, and that suspicion rested upon some of their members, resign- ed in a body. M. Ribot, called upon by President Carnot, formed a new Cabinet largely from the material of the old Cabinet the most significent change being the omission of M. de Freycinet, who has for such a long period held the portfolio of the War Department. The Terrible Canadians May Attack 111m On Snow Shoes. The Chicago Inter-Ocean speaks serious- ly gs follows : A novel idea. of military operations in the great lake region in winter is outlined by Captain Thomas Sharp, U.S.A. After cit- ing the commercial importance of the water- ways between the lakes and the sea and the incalculable benefits of a. proposed canal sys- tem that will let an ocean steamer loaded at Chicago discharge its freight at Liver- pool, he proceeds to the serious question of who shall control the great gateway to this country, the St. Lawrence River. The dis- cussion of the commercial question need not be entered upon here, as all who have given the matter any thought at all know that the advantages ofa direct, adequate communi- cation between the great lakes and the sea mean the saving of many millions of dollars a. gear. , The vital thing in Captain Sharp’s little pamphlet is the explanation of the ease with which Canada could get possession of and control this source, and its traffic in the event of war with this country. The whole secret of the advantage as set forth in the facility with which the Canadian forces could operate in winter by reason of their being habituated to the use of snowshoes. W'ere hostilities declared when the snow lay deep on the ground, the Canadians could move into formidable ofl'ensiveness with such promptness as to be strongly intrenched in strategic positions before the American forces could be advanced to the borders. Comparatively few Americans along the northern border are accustomed to snow- shoes, and in the militnry service such a thing as snowshoe practice 13 unknown Cap- tain Sharp proposes that this practice he adopted as a means to our protecoion on the north against a. possible foe that has learned to mass its forces at a. given point despite the __dept_h of the intei'vcning snow. The idea. is not to be scoffed at. It sug- gests a mode of warfare that we may be called upon to encounter, and the great thing in a. nation’s defense is eternal pre- pared ness in every direction from which as- sault is to be feared. Moreover, the manu- facture of snowshoes for army use would establish a new industry that might employ a. goodly number of workmen. The arrival of the steamship Umbria with all well on board, after a voyage of nearly thirteen days, through a tempestuous sea and after mending a broken shaft while a fierce gale was sweeping the Atlantic, is an event in ocean travel that will naturally strengthen faith in the safety of the modern built ship. It is a long time since the At- lantic liners have had their seaworthy qualities so thoroughly tested as during the past two weeks, and the fact that they have come through it without any great disaster is a subject for general congratulation. No loss of life has occurred, and the year will ‘ close on the ocean without any regrettable mark on its record. It is only natural that there should be a conflict of statement among the passengers of the Umbria as to the conduct of Captain McKay after the breaking of the shaft of his ship. There were undoubtedly as many plans tosave the Umbria as there were men on board, but it would have been the grossest neglect of duty for the chief officer to have abnegated his right to command and al- lowed some discontented passenger to take control. Such a. situation as the Umbria found itself in demands the highest skill and the best experience, and no landsman can be expected to possess these qualities in such measure as a tried and proved steam- ship captain. There can be no division of lauthority on such occasions, and Captain ‘l McKay’s success in bringing his ship and 1 its passengers safely to port shows that he lbest grasped the situation and its needs. ‘ It is impossible, howev r, not to ask what might have happened 0 both the Noord- land and the Umbria had the breaking of their shafts been accompanied with the same results as in the case of the City of Paris I and the Spree. In the case of the last two steamships the shaft not only broke butit pounded a. hole in the bottom and let in tons of water. The water-tight bulkheads kept it from sinking the ship in calm weather and in an ordinary storm such as the Spree encountered, but the mind does not like to dwell on the possible result of a huge steamship freighted with human life, and with a fractured shaft and a hole in its bottom, placed at the mercy of such gales as have swept the Atlantic Ocean for two weeks past. - n From the experience gained from the accidents that have happened to four large steamships within three years, some device to strengthen the shaft, and when it does break prevent its staving a hole in the bot- tom, will doubtless be introduced. Mean- while, it is pleasant to note the fact that ocean traveling has become comparatively safer than land traveling. The Inter- State Commerce Commission reported that during the year ending June 30, 1891, the number of passengers and employees killed on railroads aggregated 2953, and that 33,881 persons had been injured. The num- ber of passengers carried. that year was 531,183,988, and the number of railroad employees was 784,285. What percentage the ocean travel is of the land travel in this country it is impossible to tell, but it is not probable that there has been a loss £3000 lives by the steamships that crosso the Atlantic in the last thirty years. Taking all the circumstances into consid- eration, the constant inspection of railroad tracks, the invention of life-saving ap- pliances, the ability to receive quick help when an accident occurs, and the conclus- ion is inevitable that travel on land tu-day is attended with more perils than travél‘ on the ocean. And yet thousands of people ‘ every day take passage on the steam cars without a thought of danger, while the prospects of an ocean voyage awakens in many only thoughts of peril. The arrival of a thousand train loads of passengers at the Broad Street Station is looked upon as a matter of course, but the safe arrival of a steamship a little overdue is regarded as almost a miracle. It is nearly twenty-five years since the City of Boston went down at sea and left no one to tell the story of the loss. The repetition of such a disaster, it is to be hoped, has been made impossible by modern skill and invention. The events of the last two weeks, at least, strengthen the hope that a reasonable certainty of safety at sea has been reached. Artificial grass for the grounds of seaside cottages is one of the industries at Man- chester, Eng. A NEW DANGER T0 UNCLE SAM. The Modern Steamship. A Chinese Corpse and 3 Sci: Chlnee Me Side by Sid. A Victoria, B. C., desptch says :-â€"Lee Gee Tang, aged 35, was brought to the Chinese hospital two daysigo, died late last night and was buried thi afternoon. The man was unattended ad lay on a plain rough board which did service for a bed. Upon the same board was another sick Chinaman. Upon a seprate board was an aged paralyzed Celestil. Tang died last night and the corpse "ay for hours in the same room with the aid Celestial. It was all huddled in ditty, ilt-hy quilts and left just as it had died.’ Sveral Chinese junk tapers were lighted ad filled the room with repugnant fumes. N: fire was in the place and light was furnisbd by a dirty, greasy candle in a. more diry-lookmg bottle. This was the condtion in which the city l health officials fond the hospital when visited last midnight In another room was found the mad Chiiaman, who had been again turned over t» the tender mercies of the benevolent Chinse tyhees who support this institution. Tie crazy Celestial was seated on his board led. He was laughing and grinning. Thee were several pictures of Chinese demigds. An oil lamp was burning in their hmor. And a. large supply of lighted junks were set close to the insane man. It is not known whether the junks were supposed tofrighten away the insanity, but their proximity to the wretched Celes- tial suggested the idea. The only food found was a little boiled rice. The rice, the light- ed junks and the ugly looking demigods constituted thehospital. Mortality Rates as Affected by the Various occupations. Life insurance experts, and those inter- ested in mortality statistics generally, em- ploy in their business a. self-explanatory term known as “ the expectation of life.” Under this heading experience has furnish- ed valuable tables, by means of which the duration of different lives is reduced to a. practically accurate basisâ€"a basis rendered doubly reliable by reason of the fact that the results are based upon many independ- ent sets of observations obtained from widely-difierent sources. The similarity of the statistics thus obtained is remarkable. Charles Stevenson, a well-known actuary of Edinburgh, has contributed to the “ex- pectation of life” tables the most; recent in- formation on this subject in the shape of a. little paper on “ The Effect of Employment on Life and Health,” in which many curious facts are presented concerningr the relation of occupations to mortality rates. ‘ 1,,7 The lgi‘gest mortality rate in the indoor occupations considered is found among liquor sellers, a fact which explains the reluctance of life insurance companies to write insurance on that class of risks. Mr. Stevenson finds the average mortality among 1,000 liquor sellers to be 29.2, in- creasing from 12.2 between the ages of 20 and 29 to 13 from age 70 upward. He divides the liquor sellers into three classes â€"licensed grocers, hotel keepers and bar- keepersâ€"and shows the respective mortali- ty rates to be, from 25 years of age upward, 18.9, 26.8, and 33.4, respectively, which shows that the life risk of the average bar- keeper is an exceedingly hazardous quan- v.v-,- Among 1,000 gardeners the death rate is found to be 10.6; carpenters, 12.4 : shoe- makers, 13.4;stonemasons, 16.8; butchers, 17.8, and innkeepers, 21.4. This agtjees precisely thh the intormatigp’éiccfiea by Canadian life insurance companies, which shows the butcher tobe a. hazardous risk, second only to 3})". mnkeeper and saloon keeger. ‘ tity”. ‘ 1' V The most curious facts resulting from this investigation are those concerning the death rate among the clergy, a. class which the author has divided into three sections, namely, Church of England clergy, Noncon- formist clergy, and Roman Catholic clergy. One thousand cases investigated in each of these sections shows the death rate to be lowest in the Church of England clergy, Where the average is 10.2, and highest in the Roman Catholic clergy, Where the aver- age is 15.7. These figures suggest an inter- esting contribution to the study of celibacy in its relation to the mortality rate. The value of out-door exercise, with abundance of fresh air and a clear con- science, is amply set forth in a comprehen- sive table showing the number per 100 of the various occupations that attain the age of 70 or more. Again the clergy tops the list, with 42 out of 100 who attain the age of 70, while the farmers come next with 40, and the other occupations in the following order : Commercial men, (drummers,) 35; military men, 33 ; lawyers, 29 : artists, 28 ; teachers, ‘27, and physicians, 24. .. , l‘ vvwv-nv.~, â€",, fi__,s The apparently anomalous feature of these figures is that the military men, whose occupation seems to be most hazar- dous from a. layman’s point of view, in reali- ty attain a greater longevity than their less warlike brothers of the sciences and arts. This favorable position of the military man, considered from a life insurance standpoint, has come to be recognized in recent years to such an extent that one of the largest com- panies has recently waived all restrictions in the matter of 'litary risks, its experi- ence tables showing the loss of but one risk during the last three South Amexican revolu- tions. Jackâ€"“I’ll tell you what’s the matter, George. You don’t praise your wife enough. Even if things don’t go right, there’s no use growling. Praise her efforts to please, whether they are successful or not. Women like praise, and lots of it. " Georgeâ€"“ All right. I’ll remember it." GeorgeXatdinner, some day)â€"“ My dear, this pie is just lovely ! It’s delicious! Ever so much better than those my mother used to make. She couldn’t equal this pie if she tried a. month. ” George’s Wifeâ€"“ Huh! You’ve made fun of every pie I ever made, and nowâ€"" George “But this is lovely.” George’s Wifeâ€"“ That came from the Baker’s.” The Village Pastorâ€"Johnny, you tell me you have been E0 Sunday-school. The Bad Boyâ€"Yes, sir. The Village Pastorâ€"But, Johnny, your hair is wet. The Bad Boyâ€"Yes, sir, it's a. Baptist Sunday-school. A SICKENING SIGHT IDEED. THE EXPECTATION OF LIFE. Women Like Praise. A Resort to Dynamite Bombsâ€"Socialists Pomentlng Trouble. A Berlin despatch says :â€"A dynamite bomb was exploded in Gelsenkirchen this afternoon. Two small hotels which stand on either side of the alley in which the bomb was placed were shaken so that the windows broke and plaster fell from the walls. Al- though several persons were passing in the street hardly twenty yards away, nobody was injured. The man who placed the bomb has not been caught. He is supposed to be an Anarchist emissary from the Saar district, who has gone to the mining region aroaad Gelsenkirchen for the purpose of fomenk'v'ngg a. strike there in sympathy with the move- ment on the Saar. 0’ Ilsvuu vâ€" v..- ~â€"__- The miners in the district surrounding Forbach, in Lorraine, have been uneasy for some time, and the Socialists, taking ad‘ vantage of their discontent, have sought to incite the men to strike. They endeavored to get the miners to hold a meeting yester- day for the purpose of organizing a strike, but the Government forbade the meeting. Notwithstanding the prohibition, the min- ers attempted to assemble at the place agreed upon. A large number of police were pres- ent, however, and prevented the meeting from being held. Beyond mutterings and cursing, no opposition was offered to the ‘ police. The almost inevitable failure of the strikers in other German mining districts seems to have had no effect upon the Forbach miners, but this is due entirely to the ex- treme Socialists, who, by their pernicious activity, seek to gain recruits to their ranks. Numerous mmers’ meetings were held thia afternoon in the Westphalian and Rhenish coal districts. The Socialist e1em_ent wag I’ In most cases. however, the resolutions .were without effect, and the men continue to work, although, were strong leaders pres- ent, the whole working forces of both dis- tricts would be brought out within twenty- four hours. A thousand men struck near Essen, and at Gelsenkirchen there was a. partial cessation of work at nightfall. , ,,1A_A_ -LA_ well in evidence everywhere, and several resolutions favoring a. general strike were passed. ‘ , ,7 LL- ___-I.-L:__~ I'" â€"-â€"- v---" Reports from several other places show that a few hundred men here and there in Westphalia and the Dusseldorf district have left the pits, but as yet there is nothing likk a general strike.“ 1- n ‘ 1 ,,,,A_-___L -4. Men from the Saar district are present at most of the meetings to ask their comradm to support them by calling out all coal- miners in western? Germany. The Provincial Governor met and consul; ed to-day with military officials at Saar- brueck as to the best means of enforcing order, especially after the issuing of the Government’s ulzimatum, when men will be rendered desperate by loss of all hope of em« ploy menb. Remarkable Sheet of Water. The French Government has just sold to Mr. Chefneux the right to refine and ex- port salt from Lake Assal, one of the most remarkable sheets of water in the world. The Lake is in the district of Check, East Africa, only a few more miles from the head of the Bay of Tadjourah. The gentleman who has purchased the concession agrees ts pay into the Colonial ofiice the sum of $10.- 000 a year, and if, during the fifty years that he is to have the exclusive right to ex- port salt from Lake Assal, the annual prod- uct exceeds 50,000 tons, he is to pay a tax of twenty cuts for every ton in excess. The Government will designate a part of the lake where the natives may procure all the salt they want without tax or hindrance. All along the edge of this little lake. which comprises only sixteen square miles, ‘ is a. bed of nearly pure salt about a foot in I l t thickness. The water of the lake is so sur- charged with salt that it is impossible to sink in it. The bottom is apparently a. bed of solid salt. The heavy waters lave the bases of jagged and precipitous mountains which descend to the edge of the lake, mak- ing it almost impossible to travel around it. Mr. Chefneux will probably carry on his work by floating machinery on the lake and dredging in the salt bed at its bottom, though on the west side of the lake an enormous quantity of salt is in sight when the lake is at its lowest level. Very little was known about Lake Assal until seven years ago. The few men who had visited the lake were unable to tell whence it derived its water supply. The lake evidently had no outlet, and nobody was able to find a single stream flowing into it. The question was dismissed with the answer that the lake doubtless had subterranean afliuents, and it was left for Mr. Henry Audon, seven years ago. to solve the mystery and prove that Lake Assal was in- deed a very exceptional sheet of water. Mr. Audon spent several days examining the shores, clambering with the greates- difficulty along the rim of the lake. He was about to give up the fruitless search when he heard the murmur of a little water fall, and in a few minutes he stood on the edge of a large brook running into the lake. Much to his surprise he found that the water of the brook Was as salt as the ocean, and a. little while after it was proven beyond a doubt that the ocean itself is the source of Lake Assal’s water supply. The lake is about 400 feet below the level of the sea. It- is now known that three brooks from the Gubbet e1 Karab, a little land-locked bay at the extreme western end of the Bay of Tadjourah, conduct the waters of the Indian Ocean mind about ten miles to this remark- able depression. The salt, which the natives have gathered, perhaps for ages. along the edge of the lake, is carried to markets hundreds of miles inland. Charles Erskine, of Lincoln, a gold cum graduate, became suddenly insane on the street in Omaha, Neb. , and stabbed himself. A policeman grappled with the young man, and aftera. desperate fight disarmed him. Erskine was recently returned to his home from a. Keeley institute. To the victors will most certainly belong the spoils under this coming political dia- pensation in the United States. As a means of booming Hon. Isaac Pusey Gray, of In. diana, for the Postmaster~Genenlship. The New York Sun quotes the following words uttered by him : “ The Republican fatty, in its long_tw:en_ty-fog_r years’ lease 0 pow- er, has filled the offices exclusively with. Republicans. That was right. When the Democratic party obtains control of the Government, which will be on the fourth of March next, then we will expect the offices, as rapidly as can be done with safety to! no proper administration of Government 1:" fairs. to be filled with Democrats." DESPERATE MINES.