‘v I'HB weeps NEWS About a thousand laborers left Toronto for the North west on Monday night to gather in the harvest. E. S. Schwabc, a wealthy manufacturer from Manchester, Eng, shot himself at the Windsor Hotel, Montreal. The lieut.-Governors of Prince Edward Island and the Nonth-West TerritoricshaVe accepted the positions of honorary yice- presidents of the Macdonald National Memorial fund. London bakers have reduced the price of bread from six to ï¬ve cents per loaf. The Norquay memorial monument was unveiled at Winnipeg last week. Last week 2,657 cattle and 3,335 sheep were exported from Montreal. Charles Quinn, a former resident of Hunt llton, has been killed in a brawl at Toledo. Calgary hotels are full of tourists from eastern Canada and the States. Rev. Father Girouard Was consecrated bishop of Athabaska-Mackenzie at \Vinni- peg on Saturday Hailstones as large as hens eggs fell at the Northwest Cattle Company’s ranch in the Foothills the other day. It is reported that a joint stock company has been organized in London, ling, to be styled the Canadian Superphosphate Manu- facturing Company, Limited. The English directors of the company are not yet ap- pointed, but the Canadian advisory board will be W. H. Nichols, of Capelton : Hon. M. H. Cochrane, Hon. C. Colby, Hon. 1". McLaren and Mr. Shirley, of Bedford, Mass. The ï¬rst load of new wheat was sold on Monday on the London, 0nt., market, and realized 93 cents per bushel of 63 pounds. The crop of fall wheat in the County of} Middlesex is reported to be exceptionally ï¬ne, and the yield will average from 35 to 45 bushels to the acre. At the meeting of the Grand Orange Lodge of British North America last week Mr. N. C. Wallace, M. P. was rte-elected Grand Master, and Mayor Clarke, of Toron- to, Deputy Grand Master. It was decided to organize ladies’ lodges, to establish a 1 Provincial Grand Lodge in the North-west Territories and British Columbia, and to hold the next meeting at Montreal. In his recently published book, “ The French-Canadians of N ew England,†Father Hamon, of the Society of Jesus, expresses the ï¬rm conviction that not later than the next generation the French-Canadians of the Eastern States and those of Quebec Will form but one people. GREAT BRITAIN. An order has been issued from Salvation Army headquarters absolutely forbidding the use of jewellery by members of the army. A scandal of a very serious character is impending over the Irish party, and the arrest of one of the anti-Parnellite M.P.’s for bigamy is within the possibilities. Messrs. Dillion and O’Brien appeared in the House of Commons on Tuesday and were \warmly received by both sections of the Irish party. Sir John Gorst, Political Secretary for t e Indian Oflice, intends making a tour in I eland for the purpose of enquiring into tire condition of the labouring class. The Dublin Freeman’s Journal has thrown over Mr. Parnell. Mr. Gladstone’s health is now almost com- 1 ple'tely restored. Mr. Spurgeon shows repugnanee to food and his' friends are again anxious. Parnell has made claim for £3,600 against Capt. O’Shea, lent during the period of the divorce proceedings. Curious disclosures are expected. The freedom of the city of Edinburgh is to be conferred upon Sir Daniel Wilson, president of the University of Toronto and a fellow of many learned societies. The British'Court of Appeals hasrevcrsed the verdict of the lower court giving $1,500 damages to MISS Wiedma nn in her suit against Capt. the Hon. Horace \Valpole for breach of promise. In the Imperial House of Commons Sir Michael Hicks-Beach said nospecial measure was at present necessary to restrain pauper immigration. The total immigration for June of this year is 200 less than in June, 1890. The St. James’ Gazette quotes to condemn the utterances of the Sydney N. S. \V., Bul- letin, which says :â€"" \Ve hope the Royal family will multiply to the proportions of the rabbit pestilence until the people of Eng- land ofler sevenpence halfpenny for each of their scalps.†President Emmett, of the American Na- tional Federation, in reply to an address presented to him at Queenstown, said the Irish in American Will always give material support to the party approv ed by the Irish people, but not a cent to a faction. Correspondence is raging in the London newspapers upon the question as to whether domestic servants are bound to wear caps. This has arisen froma recent legal decision, to the effect that a servant's refusal to wear a cap was not an act of disobedience justify- ing her discharge. UNITED STATES. In a row in Orange, Texas, fourteen men were killed and two are missing. The trouble was between robbers and cattlemen. The Farmers’ Alliance of Kansas have thrown over both the old parties and will nominate a full ticket of their own. The San Francisco Journal of Commerce says the wheat crop of California this year will be double that of last year. All the publishers and editors of the morn- ing newspapers in New York have been in- dicted for publishing more details than the law allows of the recent electrocutions at Sing Sing. A split occurred in theUnited States sugar trust owing to a reduction by one of the re- ï¬ners. It is expected the reï¬ners will sell granulated sugar at four cents per pound in Philadelphia before long. On Friday night Henry Bartel, a New York bar-tender, While trying to take down a box of cigars from a. high shelf grasped hold of an electric wire, received an electri- cal shock and fell dead. Chicago had a $1,000,000 ï¬re on Mon- ‘IQJ _ Heavy rains in Mississippi have flooded thousands of acres of corn and cotton. The Chicago barbed wire trust went into effect on Saturday, and an immediate in- creasc in the prices may be expected. Kansas farmers are said to be holding their wheat in response to the \Vashington circular. It is stated that an important reciprocity treaty has been conclude-.1 betWeen San Do- mingo and the United States. A movement of considerable magnitude is now on foot to arrange for the deportation of negroes from the United States in U.- herin. The Dakota harvest is over and it is said the yield in all sections has been very abun' dant. Dennis Quigley, of Paterson, N.J., is said to have fasted 60 days as a cure for indigesv tion, and with success. Abraham Backer, dealer in commercial paper in New York, has assigned, with lia- bilities calculated at $4,000,000. IN GENERAL. Fifty-ï¬ve hundred Italians sailed from Genoa for America last week. A despatch from Hobapt Town, Tasmania, announces the failure of the Bank of Van Dicman's Land. Fourteen employee of the water works at Essen, Germany, were crossing the River Ruhr in a boat, when the boat capsized and all were drowned. Alexander, the youthful king of Servia, has arrived in St. l’etcrsbuig on a visit. The Bank of Rome is said to have been saved from suspension by a large loan from the Pope. Gambling in the casinos at the watering places in the north of Spain has been pro- hibited by the Government. The New South Wales Legislature has re- jected Sir Henry Parkcs’ motion in favor of granting the franchise to women. The rioting in China is on the increase, and the native feeling against the Christian missions is unusually bitter. The alliance between France and Russia is said to amount to a possible co-operation between their respective fleets. French capitalists, including Eiffel, the engineer, are talking of building a great tower on the summit of Mont Blanc. Floods have succeeded the drought in India, and hundreds of people have been drowned, as well as great numbers of live stock. The ï¬nal budget of the German empire for the year 1890-91 shows a surplus of 15,~ 148,201 marks over the estimate. A boom in grain freights by lake and water has occurred, owing to contracts being let for shipment of the great Wheat crop of the '«Vest to European markets. The Berlin public have been fcrbidden to visit the mausoleum of the late Emperor Frederick save on the dates of his birth and death. A man named Guereler, recently arrived in Berlin from New York with the avowed intention of challenging the Emperor to ï¬ght a duel, has been placed in a lunatic asylum. The inquiry in constantiuople regarding the young English girl rescued from com- pulsory marriage to a Kurd, has brought to light the fact that a considerable number of young women from western Europe are detained in the harems of Asia Minor. â€".__._â€"__ The World‘s Wheat Produce. The New York Sun, as a result of careful inquiry into the subject of the year's food supply, lately estimated that the total reâ€" quirements of importing countries will be 405,000,000 bushels, and the surplus of ex porting countries 355,000,000 bushelsâ€"â€" which means a deï¬cit in the world‘s supply of 50,000,000 bushels. Bradstreet’s forecast, :owever, is more favourable. Its estimate, both as to the probable production and re- quirements of food products, is as follows :â€"â€" 1M 1'( |RTING COUNTRIES. Total. . . ..1,454,000,000 388,800,000 According to this estimate, as will be seen, the probable requirements are shown as exceeding the exportable surplus by 32.- 000,000 bushels. For the Canadian and American farmer therefore the outlook would appear to be an encouraging one. A good harvest is likely to be accompanied by a good market. While it is probable, however, that there will be a marked de- mand for all of the New \Vorld’s surplus product, it is not expected that the price of wheat will become exorbitant, since the deï¬ciency in the European supply is not so great but that other food products could he made, if need were, to serve in place of it. A Highlandman, placed at the bar, com- plained bitterly that he should be placed in such an awkward position so far from friends and home. The judge felt kindly toward him, and saidâ€"â€"“ Be calm, young man ; you may rest assured that, although amon ,strangers, full justice will be done you.†Probable Requirements Production. for 1801.50, France . . . . . . . . . . 248,000,000 80,000,000 Italy . . . . . . . . . . . . 104,000,000 24,000,000 Germany . . . . . . . . 76,000,000 24,000,000 Spain . . . . . . . . . . . 68,000,000 8,000,000 United kingdom 64,000,000 160,000,000 Austria . . . . . . . . . 40,000,000 32,000,000 Belgium . . . . . . . . . 16,000,000 32,000,000 Portugal . . . . . . . . 8,000,000 4,000,000 Greece . . . . . . . . . . 8,000,000 2,400,000 Denmark . . . . . . . . 4,800,000 ‘ 1,600,000 Holland . . . . . . . . . 4,000,000 16,000,000 Scandinavia . . . . . 4,000,000 3,200,000 Switzerland . . . . . 2,000,000 13,600,000 West Indies, etc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20,000,000 Totals . . . . . . . . . . (306,800,000 420,800,000 EXPOKTIXG COUNTRIES. Probable Exportablc Poduciton. Surplus. United States... 520,000,000 152,000,000 India . . . . . . . . . . . . 264,000,000 44,000,000 Russia . . . . . . . . . . . 192,000,000 64,000,000 Hungary . . . . . . . . 120,000,000 40,000,000 S. E. Europe. . . . 112,000,000 40,000,000 Turkey-in-Asia. . . 56,000,000 12,000,000 Australasia . . . . . . . 44,000,000 6,000,000 Canada . . . . . . . . . . . 40,000,000 8,000,000 Argentine . . . . . . . . 44,000,000 4,800,000 Algeria, Tunis, and Tripoli . , . . . 24,000,000 12,000,000 Persia . . . . . . . . . . . . 16,000,000 2,400,000 Chili . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14,000,000 1,200,000 Egypt . . . . . . . . . . . . 8,000,000 2,400,000 ‘ turcd. (,‘ANNIBALESJI ANIONG SAVAG ES. Prevalence of This Horrible (‘Ilslom in Many Paris of the “’orld. Most civilized people have little idea how widely the custon of cannibalism yet vails. The practice is still found in nearly every part of the savage world. It is only within the past eight or nine years that we had any idea that millions of people were still addicted to the custom. lnstances of cannibalism have from time to time been re- portcd even among civilized people. It well known that «luring the crusades well founded charges of cannibalism were brought against a large number of the defenders oi the Cross. In 18.32 an Englishman killed an old woman, boiled her flesh in an Irish stew and ate her. About the same time a married man in Great Britain killed a man whom he met in the forest, cut his Victim up, hid the pieces amid the under , wood, and took them home one by one, where heand his “'1va ate them. A year 'latcr he rcpeited the experiment upon the body of a child. In 1872 a young Italian was brought to trial for cutting two women to pier-cs and caring parts of their bodies. Italian lughwaynn-n have been known to‘.broad daylight, accompanied by feast on the flesh of those they have cap- Thus the famous assassni, Misdea, b tasted of having eaten parts of the bodies of his companions. Of course, these are ab- normal cases, and are the results either of great. natural depravity and crtu or of inâ€" 1 sanity, says the (.‘mg/raphim/ .lltLyntjm. Another class of cannibals are those whose hunger has compelled them to devour their fellow creatures. “'110 has not heard or read of some of the innumerable cases where shipwrecked sailors have. by common con‘ l sent, slaughtered one after another of their companions, to eat their flesh and drink their blood? Cannibalism is prevalent in some parts of the world where very little has been heard of the practice. In the Shah States, between Burmah and China, a race who are known as the Shah Chinese live among the moun- lains, use poisoned arrows and theblow-pipe, dispense almost wholly with clothing and indulge in cannibalism, especially in the more remote hills toward the Chinese fron- tier. It is said they eat their parents to save them from the misery of old age. Until within the last few years little has been known ofcannibalism in the Niger region. In 1888, however, an event occurred there which attracted wide attention. The people of Okrika had u quarrel With a section of the ()goni tribe, on the Bonny River, and planned a diabolical scheme of revenge for the injuries they thought they had suffered. They invited the Ogonis to a friendly palaver. Their unsuspecting victims to the number of 150, were lured into a trap, captured and eaten. The victims included women and children, and to such a height had the taste for blood arisen that the Okrikans com- pelled the children to drink the blood of their victims out of calabaslies. Mangled remains and remnants of human beings were strewn in all directions, and parts of human bodies were observed float- ing down the Bunny River. Consul Hewitt, who was on the neighboring Opopo River, heard of the massacre and induced some leading chiefs to proceed to the scene and endeavor to prevent further atrocities. In the end ten of the prisoners who had not yet been killed were rescued in a deplorable state. The cannibal tribes near the Niger delta, in Angola, and in the Congo Basin are prob- ably the only nativesofAfrica who habitually eat human flesh. Some tribes in East Africa indulge in cannibal practices during religious exercises, and they also sometimes eat the bodies of enemies slain in battle, believing ' that they are thus imbued With the virtues of the victim. The home of the number of inan~eaters is undoubtedly found in the Congo Basin. Vt'e had no knowledge of their existence until several years after Stanley travelled down the great river. They undoubtedly number some millions of people. The Arumwimi,one of the northern tribu- taries of the Congo, is a hotbed of cannibal- ' Lieut. \Vester tells of one king in . ism. that country who ate nine of his own wives. A few hundred miles further down the river are the Bangala, whose great villages were estimated by Grcnfell to contain 110,- 000 people. Cannibalism among them, ac- cording to Lieut. \Vester, is a part of their funeral festivities. Upon the death of any one of considerable importance it has been the custom to ilecapitate about twenty pre- .’ .r isi greatest . Romilly witnessed the whole of the exciting scene. It was not long before the assailants, overpowered by the men they had come to annihilate, rushed for their canoes and put out to sea as fast as they could paddle. 9 They left behind them a number of the slain ' and Romilly described in his book, “ The ‘\Vestcrn Paciï¬c,†with considerable detail the process of cooking and serving human flesh, as practiced among the savages of New Ireland. In brief, the bodies were cut up and the pieces were roasted between hot stones for many hours, and were ï¬nally served to the crowd in burning hot chunks, wrapped in banana leaves. ._._~_â€"O__â€"â€" Tliclr Prices to [he Foe. During the assault on Delhi, in the Indian Mutiny (September, 1857), it was necessary that the third column of attack should gain . an entrance through the Cashmere Gate, and e to this end a party of engineers were told of? ' to blow in the gate with pmvderbags. The . ofï¬cers told off for this hazardous duty were Lieutenants Home and Salkeld. The non- lcommissioned ofï¬cers were Sergeants Car- 1, michael. Burgess, and Smith. They started in ‘ native .1 sappers and men carrying the powderbags. l At the double they made for the Cashmere Gate, at ï¬rst unperceived by the enemy, and lfollowerl at a distance by the column of ,attack. Lieutenant Home with his bugler 1 was first down into the ditch. Then the * Sepoys caught sight of them, and as the exploding party crossed the drawbridge they received a smart ï¬re of mnsketry from the ' walls, but reached the gate in safety. Now occurred one of the most brilliant episodes 1 of the siege of Delhi. Home had planted his h lg, but on Sergeant Carmichael advanc- ing with his powder on his shoulder, he was i shot through and through. Smith then ' went forward, and placed his dying com- l rade‘s bag in position, havingalso placed his ’. own, and prepared the fuses. Lieuten- } ant Salkeld stood ready with a slow 1 match in his hand, but, as he was lighting it, he was shot through the arm and legs. In falling, he held out the match,and ; called on Smith to take it. Burgess, who " was nearest, tool; the match, but was unable to ignite it. As Smith Was handing him I some lucifer matches, Burgess was shot 5 through the heart. Sergeant Smith was now , alone, or rather thought he was, as he had i lost sight of Lieutenant Home for some time. The moment was a critical one : and l aslie was applying thelight, a. port fire went off in his face. There was a confused fog of smoke and dust as he scrambled into the ditch and presently a. deafening crash. The gate had been shattered by the explosion ; - the bugle sounded the advance, and with a loud cheer the 52nd charged through the broken arch. Smith, who had escaped the fallen masonry, was crawling in the ditch, dazed and almost blinded, and came across Lieutenant Home, who was also safe. They endeavored to minister to Salkeld, but were driven away by an incessant ï¬re from the garrison. Home then followed the stormers, and Smith and the buglers managed to rescue the dying ofï¬cer, and, despite his orders, re~ moved him to a place of safety. For these achievements, Home, Salkeld, Smith, and Bugler Hawthorn were promptly rewarded with the Victoria Cross. Lieutenant Salkeld , died, and Lieutenant Home was killed at l Malagurh. It would be interesting to know if the other two heroes are alive at the pre- sent day. The Origin ofFairs. The fair season is approaching. Many people think that fairs are of modern origin. 1 Such is not the case. They are very ancient l I. both in idea. and design. They were of Saxon origin and were established in France by Charlemagne about the year 800 and in England by Alfred the Great 86 years later. \Villiam the Conqueror was, however, the i ï¬rst monarch to give extended encourage- : merit to fairs in the British Isles. The idea of national and international ex- positions is modern. National expositions began in France in 1708. The ï¬rst was due to stagnation in three important industries, carpets, tapestries and china. The exposi- ’tion was instituted by the French govern- ment and was so successful that similar ones, growing wider annually in scope, were fre- quently held. There were eleven between 1798 and 1849. In the ï¬rst there were only 110 exhibitors; in the third 540 and in the eleventh nearly 5,000. England had also perceived the value of national expositions slaves, who accompanied the deceased person and had offered prizes through the society of in the other world. Half of each body is arts for the best, exhibits in carpets, pone. buried by the,s1de of the dead Mgala, avid lains and tapestries in 1756, The ï¬rst at. the other half is cut up into small pieces and tempt, at; international exhibitions was boiled for the funeral feast. When half of made by England in 1851. The ï¬rst the Wiltel“ in the great kettles Where the f00d international exposition in France fulï¬lling ‘5 preparing has evaporated. the least is fe~ all the conditions that the term implies was gnrded 15 really and the commlmity PM“ held in 1855, the second in 1867. London takes of the banquet, consisting solely of held a, second in 1862, Vienna one in 1873, human flesh and vast quantities of native New York unsuccessfully attempted one, beer. Grenfell and Von Francois ï¬ve or six Philadelphia succeeded in the attempt of years ago found thousands of Cannibals along 1876, Paris held another in 1878 and her the Clluap?t alllllenl? 0f the Congo, Wthh last in 1889. Special international exhibi- they ascended I for more than three tionshavebeenthedirectoutgrowthofthese, hundred miles- The names dld “05 pre- like the international agricultural exhibi‘ tend to deny their weakness for human bitions of Denmark and Austria, the in. fleShg They Share Wllh the Manyema the ternational ï¬sheries exhibition in London, Pecuhanty 0f, Preferrmg to eat me". and the cheese exhibition in Paris and the they do “Ohklu Women for fOOd' They re‘ naval exhibition now in London. There peatedly oï¬ered to give the explorers women was a health exhibition in London in 1886 513V?“ 111 exUlla-DEG for me“, Who, they 941- and an inventions exhibition, which proved mined, would be Utilized for f00d: agreat stimulus. The colonial exhibitions Most of the Paciï¬c Ocean head hunters in London. the Indian and the various ex- are cannibals, though procuring food is only hibitions of industrial and decorative arts a secondary purpose of their forays. a great throughout the kingdom have all been pow- deal is heard by travellers among the Paciï¬c erlul in awakening new efforts and islands of the practice of cannibalism, but spreading knowledge 0f neW processes in all the natives generally know the detestation lmlllStl‘ies- And 50 ShOUldi and Will be our with which white men regard the custom, modern fairs or exhibitions, if too much at- and are very careful that they shall not see tention is 1101? Paid '00 their amusing and any evidences of it. Very few white men, lighter features. What is curious and ex- even though they live for months among traordinary in manufacture, invention and anthropophagi, ever see a cannibal feast, production should engage the major part of It was Mr. Romilly’s fortune a few years ago our attention. The main trouble with mod- to witness this custom in all its horrors in em fairs is that they are too crowded. Ex- the island of New Ireland, and he is perhaps hibitors are not given suflicient space to ex- the only modern traveller who from his own pose their articles of special value and in- observations, has been able fully to describe struction, and visitors are drawn together in it. He was paying a visit one day to a, tribe such immense crowds by special attractions that lived on the seashore when, without a on certain days that the exhibits are pas- particle of warning, a large number of war sed over in the-most cursory fashion, if in- canoes came into sight around a little cape, deed, they are Inspected at all- We are DOt and before the tribe on shore had hardly time wise enough to say how this order of things to seize their war clubs, the attacking party can be improved upon, but we can and do had reached the beach, jumped on shore, and regret that it exists. Like all other ventures were yelling their deï¬ance. They had come exhibitions must be made to pay, or they there for no other purpose than to procure will not be held, and the. majority of heads and incidentally to lay in a supply of _ People's minds arm 110" Suflimently sedate food. After some mutual recriinination and staid '50 make 1them desirous 0f devotin and very bad talk, such as most savages their attention entirely to the material an indulge in before their blood is wrought up practical side of life when abroad on an to the ï¬ghting pitch, they sprang at one outing. Nowadays everything has to be another with their clubs and spears and a made attraCtlve In order “ t0 mka†EVGD ,short and bloody battle was waged. Mr. our pills are sugar-coated. NAVAL AND MILITARY PROGRESS. Interesting Development In Tactics and Invention In Armament. Probably the most interesting features of the coming naval manoeuvres in England will be those between the Red and Blue Squadron. The former squadron will ren- dezvous at Milford Haven, where will be sought by the latter, and the means adopted for defense will probably prove of great practical experience for the future. The Blue Squadron is under command of Rear- Admiral James E. Erskine, and consists of ï¬ve large vessels and twenty torpedo boats of the seagoing type. The amount of ingen- ity to be displayed against these wily foes, having dashing young oï¬ieers and a speed of from twenty to twenty-three knots, willtax the faculties of the defending forces to the utmost. Of the torpedo flotilla, nine were built by Thornycroft and eleven by the Yarrow ï¬rm, four being of the same pattern as those recently furnished the Argentine lovernment, and they are regarded as the ï¬nest seagoing boats yet built. The bold stroke made by the torpedo flotilla last year when they came like a whirlwind from Alderney and descended upon Vice-Admir- al Tryon’s fleet will probably be repeated. At any rate the records made from such an organization cannot fail to be of the great- est value in the study of naval warfare. One great aid in the manoeuvres is to thor- oughly test the extensive hospital arrange- ments for receiving the wounded. England has recently launch ed the cruiser Edgar, which is the largest vessel ever built at the Davenport dockyard. Her displace- ment is 7,350 tons and she has 12,000 horse- power. Her steam trials, which are to take place next month, will be watched with great interest. The Melampus, the ï¬rstclass protected cruiser recently built for England, has had a trial of her engines, but owing to the foul- ness of her bottom she was not run for speed with forced draught. The vibration caused by her three-bladed screws was very severe, and these will be changed to screws having four blades. In her foul condition she developed a speed over the measured mile of about eighteen knots, which will reach at least twenty knots when her bottom is clean- ed and the propellers are changed. The Dutch cruiser Sumatra. has recently been added to the Netherlands fleet, and is now on an experimental trip. She carries a heavy battery, and with her speed of seven- teen knots she is a powerful vessel to encounter. One of the most poweri ul els ever constructed is the new British battle ship Sanspareil. Her battery is exceptionally heavy, consisting of two llO-ton guns, one lOvinch and twelve 6-inch. She also has twenty-one machine guns and four tubes for ï¬ring tor does. It is with such vessels that England intends to retain her supre- macy upon the high seas and protect her vast interests afloat. One of the recent inventions which pro‘ mises to have a useful future is that of Com- mander D‘Arcy-Irving, R. N., in the coni- bination of a line~throwing gun and a buoy. An exhibition of its usefulness was recently given in Chelsea during the progress of a naval Exhibition. The buoy is a goldbeat- er’s skin, attached to a small cylinder of compressed gas. The cyclinder is placed in an ordinary mooth~bore gun, No. 12 gauge, and ï¬red from the shoulder. The trigger is tripped in ï¬ring, thus liberating the com- pressed gas into the skin upon striking the water, and this constitutes the float. The small strong line attached is adequate to the task of hauling a person ashore. Among the most important recent inven- tions in the military line abroad is the sys- tem of “optic†ï¬ring devised by Captain de Freyssein. This system of ï¬ring enables a gunner to point and ï¬re his gun with mathe- matical precision without exposing himself and without having even seen the object tobe ï¬red at. The invention has been tried upon four of the vessels of the French navy,and it is now being ï¬tted to another vessel which has been placed at the disposition of the inventor. The aim is made by superposing the image of the object to be ï¬red at upon a central point of a screen placed behind the gun. By this means much better aim is obtained, and also greater rapidity of ï¬re. A Good Polo t. Apropos of the protection of seals in the Behring sea and the seizure of ships found violatingthe provisions of the agreementfora close season agreed on by Great Britain and the United States, the Montreal Witness makes an excellent point when itsays: “ \Ve do not see by What right American cruisers can interfere with Canadian sealers. If the sea is not a mare clausum under the dominion of the United States, neither is it a mare clausum under the United States and Great Britain united, and the two countries put together have no more dominion therein than either of them separately. The com. pact between the two countries cannot therefore establish laws for that sea.†It cannot be gainsaid that the United States and Great Britain have more interest in the waters than any other nation or country, but interest does not make a. right, and the high sea is open to every inhabitant of the world alike. England as the greatest mari- time power has the larger interest in the good regulation of trafï¬c on the ocean, but she cannot make laws by which other people will be governed, not even if she acts in conjunction with the United States as in this case. If either government seeks to prosecute trespassers or violators of the close-season decree, the probabilities are that a. nonsuit will be entered on the ground of the invalidity of the decree. __.___ The French In the States. The following table shows the population of the New England States, according to the census of last year, and also their French- Cauadian population, as given in the book recently published by Rev. Father Hamon, S. J.: French»Can. Total Pop. Pop. Massachusetts . . . . . . . . . . 2,223,407 132,000 Rhodc Island.. 345,343 31,000 Connecticut ... . . 745.861 24.234 Maine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 660.261 40,919 New Hampshire . . . . . . . . . 375,827 40,302 Vermont . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 332,205 33,204 4,692,904 301,059 The total number of Roman Catholics in these States is 1,201,000. The French- Canadians have twelve newspapers and 210 St. Jean Baptiste societies. “Group all these forces,†says Father Hamon, “around the common citadel. the Catholic Canadian parish, and you will see that the French- Canadians of the United States can legiti- mately flatter themselves with having good Chaim s of a stable fan.» "