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International Tract and Missionary Society · Oakland, California · May 13, 1889

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 15, No. 18.

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SECULAR.

—The decrease of the public debt for April was $13,078,265.

—There are at present 3,064 languages spoken by the inhabitants of the globe.

—Secretary Blaine has been suffering very severely from rheumatism and lumbago.

—Henry George is proclaiming his land tax theology to large audiences in the British Isles.

—Malietoa, the deposed king of Samoa, has been released from exile by the German Government.

—Over 400,000 orange trees have already been planted this year in two counties of California alone.

—William H. Barnum, chairman of the National Democratic Committee, died at Lime Rock, Conn., April 30.

—Four men were drowned in the Cascades of the Columbia River while attempting to cross in a row-boat recently.

—There has been an increase of $768,683 in the amount of money in circulation in the United States since April 1st.

—It is currently reported that the President has tendered the position of Public Printer to Frank Palmer, of Chicago.

—The Samoan Conference being held in Berlin seems to be progressing satisfactorily for the principal parties concerned.

—Details from the Orient confirm the burning of Ichang in North China. About seven hundred houses were destroyed.

—Four hundred men were thrown out of employment by the burning of the Aurora Mine, at Ashland, Wis., the 29th ult.

—The exports of gold from New York during the week ending May 4 were $3,186,000, the principal part of which went to Europe.

—A gigantic iron and steel manufacturing corporation is being formed in Chicago, to be known as the Illinois Steel Company. The capital stock is $25,000,000, and the concern will be the largest of its kind in the world.

—Railroad net earnings in January, for about one-half the railroads in the country, show an increase of one-third over the same month in 1888.

—The new mayor of Chicago intimates that the gambling dens in that city must close up. The existing laws on the subject will be rigidly enforced.

—Dispatches from New Mexico and Arizona under date of April 30 stated that the Apaches were again committing atrocities, and a general uprising was feared.

—The Australian election law, with modifications to suit the locality, has been adopted by both Houses of the Missouri Legislature, and awaits the Governor's signature.

—The $1,500,000 of indemnity returned to Japan by the United States Government on account of the Shimonoseki affair, will be used to construct a harbor at Yokohama.

—After figuring up the entire expenses connected with the centennial celebration at New York, the committee find that they have a balance of nearly $300,000 in the treasury.

—The total appropriations made by the last Congress aggregate the modest little sum of $817,878,075. This is an excess of $71,654,561 over the appropriations for the preceding year.

—The British steamer Cotopaxi from Liverpool via Rio Janeiro for Valparaiso, struck a rock near the Straits of Magellan on the 15th inst. and foundered. There was no loss of life.

—The health of the King of Holland has improved to such an extent that the Dutch Parliament has passed a resolution restoring his power. The Duke of Nassau will retire to Taurus.

—Furious fires are reported as raging in the Northern Wisconsin timber districts. The entire forest from Ashland to Clear Lake, a distance of 150 miles, was reported to have on the 4th inst.

—The new torpedo boat being built for the Navy Department at Bristol, R. I., is expected to be ready for trial in another month. The contract calls for a speed of not less than twenty knots per hour.

—Senator John Sherman, John C. New, Consul General to London, W. W. Thomas, Minister to Sweden and Norway, and Lincoln Valentine, Consul from Honduras, sailed for Europe the 1st inst.

—During the display of fireworks connected with the centennial celebration at Chicago the 30th ult., a panic was created and more than fifty people were crushed in the crowd. Several were fatally injured.

—Recent dispatches from Naples, Italy, report the volcano Vesuvius in an alarming state of eruption. Streams of lava are pouring down its sides in the direction of Pompeii, which is again threatened.

—Difficulty is feared in the Argentine Republic on account of the large influx of Italian immigration. Orders have been issued to British shipping agents to restrict the number of immigrants to 200 per month.

—A general strike of the building trades for an average advance of 25 cents per day was inaugurated at Pittsburg the 1st inst., and union workmen have been suspended on most new buildings. The strike involves about 5,000 men.

—The Board of Naval Officers have agreed upon plans for the eight new war ships authorized by the last Congress. The vessels will all be built with steel frames, and several will be constructed wholly of steel. The entire cost will be $5,000,000.

—The Copper Conference recently held in Paris for the purpose of establishing a uniform rate for this article failed to agree, and has broken up without accomplishing anything. Copper will hereafter be placed on the open market and sold for what it will bring.

—Six leading British syndicates, representing a vast amount of money, are buying up the leading American breweries, with a view to establishing a corner in beer. It is to be hoped they will get it cornered up so close that none can escape, and then just keep it there.

—The 4th inst. witnessed the passing of the fifteenth day of the fast of the eccentric George Francis Train, at New York. He says he is not trying to commit suicide, but is simply ridding himself of superfluous tissue in order to get ready for a great pestilence which he declares is imminent. He says he possibly may continue his fast for 100 days.

—A horrible accident occurred on the Grand Trunk Railroad near Hamilton, Ont., the 28th ult. The St. Louis express jumped the track, and two cars telescoped and immediately took fire. Several persons were instantly killed, while others were imprisoned between the timbers and slowly burned to death. The total number of deaths is twenty at last accounts, and twenty others are injured, some very seriously.

—The Paris Exhibition opened with official ceremony the 6th inst. Everything was behindhand, and the exhibition hall presented a very incomplete appearance. An immense throng of visitors crowded the hotels of the city to their utmost capacity. A terrific thunder-storm passed over the great Eiffel tower a few days previous to the opening, but although the lightning flashed all around the tremendous structure, it only demonstrated very successfully the properties of the tower as an electrical conductor.

—April 30th was the centennial anniversary of the inauguration of Washington as the first President of the United States. The day was generally observed with appropriate ceremonies all over the country. The most notable feature was the reception of President Harrison at New York. The naval display and the grand triumphal procession which followed were the finest ever witnessed in the United States. Over 100,000 people took part in the parade, and it is estimated that the crowd of spectators who gathered to witness the ceremonies numbered at least three millions. A free banquet for 6,000 people was given on the night following the festivities.