SECULAR | AdventAI

International Tract and Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Jul 31, 1884

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 10, No. 29.

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SECULAR.

—The cholera epidemic has spread from France to Italy.

—There is to be a convention of trades unions at Chicago, Oct. 1.

—A heavy thunder-storm occurred at Yreka, Cal., on the 25th inst.

—Yellow fever and dysentery are reported as epidemic at Panama.

—The German African Society will send a new expedition to the Congo country.

—Cholera is abating at Toulon and Marseilles, but increasing in the surrounding villages.

—A great fire occurred on the wharf at Wapping, England, last week. Loss, $2,500,000.

—Rear-admiral George F. Emmons, of the U. S. Navy, died on the 23d inst., aged seventy two years.

—A trades unions' demonstration in London, on the 21st inst., numbered over 100,000 men in procession.

—Mrs. Jane Grey Swisshelm, long known in this country as an able writer and lecturer, died on the 22d inst., aged 68 years.

—The Prohibitionists have nominated ex-Governor St. John, of Kansas, for president, and Wm. Daniel, of Maryland, for vice-president.

—Cleveland, Ohio, police courts are forbidden to screen prominent men who commit misdemeanors and attempt to pay fines under assumed names.

—The retail druggists of San Francisco have combined to raise the prices of medicines, but it is thought by some dealers that the effort will be a failure.

—The City Works Department of Brooklyn reported that at the close of the year there were 37,572 brick and stone, and 45,914 frame buildings in the city, with an average of seven inmates to each.

—The railroad lines between Chicago and Omaha are discussing the advisability of closing their individual offices in San Francisco, and establishing a joint office. Only the Rock Island road objects.

—The secret of a proposed Cuban insurrection has been discovered in New York, where the leaders have been buying large quantities of dynamite and other war materials. A depot is to be established at Nassau.

—Upwards of 4,000 acres of grain in Stanislaus County, Cal., were destroyed by fire, on Sunday, July 20. The total loss was about $90,000. The fire was caused by sparks from the pipes of two men who were smoking.

—In an ocean steamship collision off Corunna, Spain, on the 22d inst., about 100 lives were lost. Both vessels went down almost immediately. The accident is said to have been caused by a mutual misunderstanding of signals.

—A New York lady recently left three children, aged 2, 4, and 6 years, at home by themselves. During her absence they went into the barn and commenced playing with matches. The straw was lighted, and all the children were burned to death.

—A distillery and bonded warehouse at Connelsville, Pa., were burned on the 23d inst. The loss in whisky was $50,000 and in buildings $115,000. Much of the liquor was rolled away and consumed by the crowd, and hundreds of drunken men added excitement to the dramatic scene.

—The P. O. Departments of the United States and Canada have agreed that printed matter, lithographs, and chromos, sent by U. S. publishers as premiums to subscribers in Canada may hereafter be admitted to the mails, subject to such regulations and liabilities to customs as the laws of Canada may impose.

—The first successful electric railway in America was started in operation in Cleveland, O., last week, by a street railroad company of that city, which has just completed a mile of road. The experiment was so successful that the company expect to change their entire system, comprising over twenty miles, into the electric railroad. The economy in running is claimed to be greater than that of the cable roads, and the cost of construction less than one-third as great.

—The amended Chinese Restriction Act has been promulgated by the Secretary of the Treasury. The intent of the law is that no Chinaman can enter this country except, (1) On a certificate issued by the Custom House, certifying that he was a resident at the date of the signing of the treaty of Tien-tsin, on the 17th of November, 1880; or, (2) On a certificate from the Government from whose territory the applicant had departed, certifying that he belongs to either one of the four privileged classes—teachers, merchants, students, or travelers—and such certificates vised by our minister or consul at that place.

—At the general election to be held Nov. 4, there will be submitted to the people of California a proposed amendment to the State Constitution, providing that the State Board of Education shall compile, or cause to be compiled, and adopt, a uniform series of text-books for use in the common schools, which shall continue in use not less than four years. These books are to be printed by the State, and issued at cost of publishing and distribution. It is also provided that the governor, superintendent of public instruction, and the principals of the State Normal Schools shall constitute the State Board of Education.