Items of General Interest

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Apr 23, 1914

Items of General Interest

— Historic St. Augustine, the oldest city in the United States, on April 2 was swept by a $500,000 fire that destroyed five tourists' hotels and burned records and curios dating back to the days of Spanish rule in the sixteenth century.

— The liquor bill passed recently by the Mississippi Legislature was signed by Governor Brewer on March 6. The bill, which goes into effect on May 6, provides that consumers of alcoholic liquors in the State shall be limited to one gallon of whisky and one case of beer, or other similar beverages, a month. It also provides that the consignee shall certify that the shipment is for personal use.

— According to a dispatch published in London, April 2, the skeleton of a person who had been apparently ten feet in height, has been found at Dysart, Louth County, Ireland. The skeleton was unearthed, together with that of two others supposed to have been buried in prehistoric times. Three persons had been interred in separate graves, all incased with stones. The skull of the giant measured eighteen inches from the crown of the head to the chin.

— Espionage is rampant in all parts of Europe, and nowhere more than in England at the present moment. The police have definite information that great naval ports, such as Portsmouth, Devonport, Chatham, Sheerness, and Rosyth, are infested with the agents of European powers. The closest watch is being made upon suspected persons, and a man and a woman have just been sentenced to five years' penal servitude each for being in possession of secret government documents. Simultaneously an official order has been issued to the effect that new code books are being served to the navy at a cost of several thousand dollars. This significant announcement is the direct outcome of the theft of a secret code signal book from the battleship "Queen."

— John Lind, former governor of Minnesota and for the past eight months the personal representative in Mexico of President Wilson, sailed from Vera Cruz on April 1, for Washington, aboard the presidential yacht "Mayflower." The announcement of Mr. Lind's prospective visit was made by President Wilson with the explanation that his envoy had requested a vacation and rest from his labors in a tropical climate, and that as soon as that had been obtained he would return to Mexico. The President said that Mr. Lind's departure for the United States should not be construed as a recall or forecasting any change of policy by the Washington government toward either faction in Mexico. No negotiations of any character were pending, the President added, between the Huerta government and the United States, and the recent conference between Senor Portillo y Rojas, Huerta's minister of foreign relations, and Mr. Lind had developed nothing tangible.

— A serious revolution has broken out on the Venezuelan frontier, near Morawhanna, capital of the northwest district of British Guiana. Four hundred and fifty rebels, according to the reports, have raided El Terror camp and are preparing to attack the village of San Jose.

— William Marconi, inventor of the wireless telegraph, announced in Rome, Italy, that he had decided to participate in the Italian section of the Panama-Pacific Exposition at San Francisco. He hopes to be able to communicate from the exposition by radiotelephony with all the States of the Union and Canada.

— Dr. Edward S. Holden, famous as an astronomer, scientist, and educator, and librarian of the United States Military Academy since 1902, died March 16, at the age of 68. He was graduated from West Point in 1870 as a lieutenant of engineers. From 1885 to 1888 he was president of the University of California, and for ten years after that director of the Lick Observatory. Dr. Holden was author of a score of books, most of them on astronomical subjects. His discoveries brought him recognition from many European scientific bodies.

— A document bearing the name of Woodrow Wilson arrived in Detroit March 18, which ought to have been signed by James Madison, President of the United States, 106 years ago. In 1808, George Hoffman cleared a claim of 287 acres of land and sent the patent to Washington to be signed by the President. For 106 years it lay in the government land office, while 26 administrations came and went, until it was dug up by some house-cleaning agent of President Wilson. It was signed at once and mailed to the office of the Detroit register of deeds.

— William of Wied, the German prince chosen by the European powers to be the first ruler of the new state of Albania, recently arrived at Durazo, the Adriatic city selected for his capital, and was cordially welcomed by the local authorities. He had devoted the weeks just preceding to official visits to Berlin, Vienna, Rome, London, Paris, and St. Petersburg, and is reported to have created a favorable impression as to his courage and ability—both are admittedly necessary. It is generally believed that he has undertaken a monumental task, for his new subjects are not used to a reign of law and order; there are diversities of religion and race, and local and tribal jealousies. Greece has agreed to the cession of Epirus, and the Greek premier, Venecelos, told the chamber of deputies at Athens that an Albanian state was necessary to preserve the balance of power in the Balkan Peninsula, thus removing what appeared to be the last international obstacle; but there still remains a domestic handicap in the way of Albanian harmony and progress. That handicap is the blood feud, which throttles the land to such an extent that ordinary human intercourse is difficult or impossible. The houses are virtually fortresses, and many men have not dared to leave them for years, food being brought to them by friends. Men cannot work safely in the fields, and tillage is left largely to the women, who are not included in the feuds. Brigandage is a profession to which no disgrace attaches.

— A church organ has recently been made in Belgium which is composed entirely of paper, the pipes being rolls of cardboard. The sound is sweet and powerful.

— A severe eruption of the volcano on Suwanose Island, south of Kyushu, Japan, began March 22. The flames rose 500 feet above the mouth of the crater. An expedition was sent to give relief to the 280 inhabitants of the island.

— Herman Bernstein, of the American Jewish Committee, says that since the public sentiment of the world has forced Russia to stop the work of massacre, another policy has been adopted by which illiteracy is to be enforced upon Jewish subjects. The doors of the public schools have been closed to them. Mr. Bernstein says that this is a blow at the root of the Jewish nation in order to disarm the future generation and crush the Jew by keeping him ignorant.

— After sixty years of continuous operation, the United States Express Company has decided to liquidate its business. The profits of the company have been declining rapidly since the establishment of the parcel post, and it has been thought best by prominent stockholders to dissolve the company. The first five months of the current fiscal year, the revenue of the company fell behind the preceding year to the extent of $567,000, while its net income declined $185,000.

— Tests made with food pills for the German army have resulted so satisfactorily that there is a strong possibility of their being adopted permanently. The pills cost but a third of a cent each, and for a twelve hours' march six pills were found to contain sufficient nourishment for one man. Army officials predict a great future for this form of concentrated food. Not only can the men be supplied with the chemical substances necessary to keep them in good condition, but valuable time is gained by the elimination of the cooking of food and the time consumed in eating it. Needless to say, the soldiers themselves are not in favor of the change.