Worth of Note

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Jan 9, 1901

ANOTHER serious battle has been fought between government troops and rebels in Colombia. The battle lasted two days, and resulted in a victory for the government troops. It is reported that 600 were killed and many hundreds wounded. This rebellion in Colombia is being waged as a protest against the influence and interference of the Catholic Church in public matters. The church party now holds the reins of government, and the liberals are holding that party responsible for the greatly depreciated currency of the country.

AN agent of the British Government is now in Kansas City for the purpose of purchasing 50,000 horses and mules for the army in South Africa. As fast as inspected, they are sent to New Orleans, and shipped in British transports to South Africa. The waste of horses and mules in the South African campaign has been enormous, and the renewed activity of the Boers is making it necessary for England to increase her military strength in the field.

A NEW system of wireless telegraphy has been perfected by Professor Slaby, of Germany, which he calls spark telegraphy, because the electric spark has been indispensable in its use. It is claimed that many of the defects of the Marconi system are overcome in this new system. Demonstrations show that the new method is accurate, and much quicker than the ordinary telegraph.

THE Senate Committee on the Army Reorganization Bill has made its report, substituting a bill of its own for the House Bill. By the provisions of the Senate bill the standing army is raised to a total of 100,000 men, and the canteen provision is so amended as to permit the sale of beer in all the canteens, thus prohibiting all other liquors.

REPORTS from Turkey tell of terrible atrocities practised by a band of Mohammedan fanatics upon the Christians of the central provinces of Turkey. The report states that 1,100 persons have been killed in the most horrible manner, and hundreds of women mistreated and carried off to Turkish harems. The Turkish Government displays its usual indifference to the outrages.

ON December 18, President W. R. Harper, of the University of Chicago, announced that that institution had received from John D. Rockefeller a gift of $1,500,000. This brings the total amount of money given to that university by Mr. Rockefeller to $9,133,874, and the amount of money given the institution by large contributors to the sum of $13,005,874.

THE Santa Fe railway telegraphers’ strike ended December 21, the telegraphers admitting their defeat. No concessions were made by the railway, and many of the places of the strikers have been permanently filled. The strike, which threatened to tie up the whole system, caused much less disturbance to the traffic than was expected.

THE French Government has seized the church property of the Passionist Fathers in Paris for taxes, and the officials of that church are appealing to American and British Catholics to pay the taxes for them and enable them to retain possession. This church was built by American and British subscriptions.

THE Naval Board of Construction has apportioned among the various ship-building companies of the country the six new cruisers and five new battleships for which bids for construction were recently opened. Two of the cruisers will be built in San Francisco, the remainder being built by Eastern firms.

THE assistant surgeon of the United States Army has returned from Porto Rico, where he has been investigating the condition of the people. He found much sickness and an abnormal death rate in nearly all parts of the island, owing to lack of food. Chronic starvation is the diagnosis in most of the cases.

CHINESE papers assert that a serious rebellion has broken out in the province of Kansu, whither the imperial court had fled, and in consequence of which the emperor and empress dowager will be compelled to flee to some other province. Prince Ching reports that the emperor is on his way to Peking.

THE German Government has protested to Turkey against paying her deposit on an American-built war ship (which was to include missionary indemnity) before she has paid for naval guns built in Germany. This will doubtless delay again the payment of the long-delayed indemnity.

THE Board of Health of Hartford, Conn., recently ordered the extermination of all the cats in a certain district of that city, on account of the prevalence of diphtheria. Many of the cats were afflicted with the disease, and its prevalence was partially due to the agency of the cats in spreading it.

THE board of naval officers is now in session in Washington to examine a new torpedo-boat, said to possess the possibilities of the most powerful destruction. It is termed a one-man torpedo-boat, as only one man is required to operate it when in action it is wholly submerged.

AMERICANS holding valuable concessions in Venezuela are calling for a United States war ship to prevent the Venezuelans from dispossessing them. The report states that a general attack is being planned upon all American interests in that country.

A MEMBER of the hospital service in Cuba has volunteered to submit himself to the bites of mosquitoes that have bitten yellow-fever patients, for the purpose of demonstrating the theory that this disease is carried by the mosquitoes.

THE total popular vote for the last election was announced on December 20. Including 6,211 scattering, it amounted to 13,967,299, of which Mr. McKinley received 7,217,677, and Mr. Bryan, 6,357,853.

MOROCCO has paid $5,000 to the United States as indemnity for the killing of a naturalized American. An American war ship had been ordered to Morocco to enforce the claim.

WESTERN opposition to the Ship Subsidy Bill has increased to such an extent that it is believed there is little possibility of its passage in its present form at least.

THE British Museum has recently received a collection of 20,000 moths from Western China. This is said to be the finest collection of lepidoptera in the world.

ONE of the electric street-car lines of St. Louis has fitted one of its cars with a telephone, which can be used while the car is in motion.

RECENT criminal statistics published in Berlin, show an increase of fifteen per cent. in “immoral crimes against children.”

IT is reported that Mississippi River fishermen are canning catfish and placing them on the market as canned salmon.

THE street-car system of Scranton, Pa., is tied up by a strike of all its motormen and conductors.