News and Miscellany

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Mar 23, 1911

News and Miscellany

Notes and clippings from the daily and weekly press

— One of the marvels of the wireless was the picking up of a message at San Francisco, sent from the steamship “Korea,” 4,492 miles away, in the Pacific. The message came faintly, but clearly enough to be made out.

— March 13, Russia sent an ultimatum to China, insisting upon a closer adherence to the treaty of 1881, which has been the subject of negotiations between the two countries for some weeks past. It is claimed that only the immediate execution of the Chinese treaty obligations toward Russia can interrupt an advance of the Russian army, which is prepared to occupy Chinese territory.

— Five powder-mills owned by the Dupont Powder Company were blown up March 9 at Pleasant Prairie, Wis. More than 3,000,000 pounds of powder and dynamite were exploded. The force of the concussion was so great that it was felt in five States; the village of Pleasant Prairie was totally destroyed, many buildings were wrecked in contiguous sections of the country; one man was killed, and a number were injured. It is reputed to be the most destructive powder explosion on record.

— Ninety persons, mostly children, were burned and trampled to death in a fire that destroyed a moving-picture theater at Belogoe, Russia, March 5. Forty persons were injured, many seriously.

— It is proposed to inoculate the army mobilized along the Mexican border with typhoid virus, for protection against the possible spread of that disease among the troops. Practical immunity is claimed as the result of this remedy.

— In his determination to stamp out the rebellion in Mexico, President Díaz has ordered shot all persons detected in the act of highway robbery, raiding, train-wrecking, cutting telegraph or telephone wires, or even throwing stones at passing trains.

— A revolution has been in progress in Paraguay for some time against the government of Col. Alberto Jara, who was recently elected president. Friends of former President Condra are behind the revolt. Martial law has been proclaimed in Paraguay for a period of five months.

— Starting at midnight, March 10, time was annihilated in France for nine minutes and twenty-one seconds. On the stroke of the hour all clocks were stopped for the time indicated, to comply with the law, making the time of the republic the same as in all places within a radius of fifteen degrees, in which the time is regulated from Greenwich, England.

— Stirred by the belief that the revolutionary movement has reached a critical stage, the insurrectos in the states of Chihuahua and Sonora, Mexico, are reported to have become very active in tearing up railroads and cutting telegraph wires. According to reports, numerous towns are under siege, and thousands of women and children are cut off from food supplies.

— Hudson Maxim is reported as saying that the United States is now possessed of the greatest war explosive known, one of his own manufacture, and one that is exclusively controlled by this government. The projectile does not explode on contact, but can be sent through the armor of a ship, exploding when reaching the interior, where its work will be much more destructive.

— The mobilization of United States troops along the Mexican border has actively continued during the past week. It is planned to mobilize an army of 20,000, and a number of war-ships have been sent to the Gulf of Mexico. The purpose of the administration in this mobilization has not yet been satisfactorily explained. It is believed that the government has advices and information not generally known, as to danger to life and property in consequence of the insurrection in Mexico, and that in pursuance of the policy of upholding the Monroe doctrine, it proposes to assume responsibility for the protection of foreigners. For lack of definite information, there is much criticism throughout the country regarding what appears to be an unwarranted action. It is believed, however, by many that when full details of the situation are made known, it will be seen that President Taft has acted with discretion.

— At Virginia, Minn., March 11, twenty-six workmen were crushed to death in an open mine by an avalanche of ore, ice, and earth.

— The erection of a new building in New York hardly seems a matter of great importance, but one just begun is an exception to the rule. It is to be the tallest building ever erected. It will be 750 feet high, fifty feet higher than the Metropolitan tower, and nearly 150 feet higher than the Singer tower. The main building, which will have a whole block frontage on Broadway, opposite the post-office, is to be from twenty-seven to thirty stories in height, with a tower eighty feet square in the middle of it that will have twenty-five additional stories. The land on which it is to be erected cost $5,000,000, and the building is to cost $12,000,000 more. It will contain 13,000,000 cubic feet, and is to be of fire-proof construction throughout. The building is to be used for mercantile purposes.