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Flesherton Advance, 5 Mar 1896, p. 3

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wa^!^m V. - â€" - LIFE IN JOMMESBE&. MORE ABOUT THii METHOPOLIS OF THE TRANSVAAL. A (°axmi>pol)l«u Town oi'Strunjcr and Rtart- Ilnt ConlriMb) -lliab UvIdk BeuimllrM •I' fxpenxe â€" Meat l'h«up, Breiul Urar â€" rBH<-inalioaii Wkl<-b Obuia a Struag lUIfl. The Transvaal and it'? wonderful cos- mopolitan rantre, Johannesburg, are just, now of greater interest than ever. Emigration there from all enterprising civilized nations is still on the increase. Let ufl see wimt the country with its capital is like â€" ita people, life, commerce and adyantages tor settlers. First, to get there. The railway jour- ney from Cape Town *o Joha-nnesbiirg of about three days is through a seena- tngly endless, sandy country, with range succeeding rajigo of distant mountains, all alik\i, and strikes a greater .sense of -.stness and dc.'u>lation than an ex- par.se of naked ocean itself. First and *cond class have sleeping accommoda- tion, the third Iwing kept for blacks and the lowest class Dutch. Well, we reach Johannesburg, which has not even yet, with all its wealth, a covered-in rail- way station ; while, by way of contrast in the progress of the place, just aiToss the road is a huge club, with tennis, cricket, football, and cycling grounds, gyiunasium, military hand, hulls for damcing, operas, oratorios, Ac, which off home, -wagon and all, content with the lesser sum. No expense is spared in high living. A sjiecial fruit train is run daily from N.'ital, and fisb is brought enormous (ilgt.anc-e«. All South Africa fish, how- ever, are either taatelaas or of a niilk- and-wat«r of insipiil flavor. The vege- table market oyeiyi each morning at dawn ; at 8 the lota are sold by auction, and Malays pile up their carts and pan- nier baskeis to »»ell their stuff from house to house l)efore the midday heat. In England meat ia dear and bread and •vegeUbles cheap ; in the Transvaal bi-ead and vegetables are dear <a small roll, not laj-ge enough to lie dignified with the mune of loaX, costing sijciience) and uieatWs cheap. Now let us see what advantages the country has to offer to INTENDING EMIGRANTS. To young fellows goinu out with a few hundreds to try their luck, the old Aus- tralian's advice, 1 think, holds good for Africa, namely, to put your mouey into safety for a year, and not go into busi- ness or speculating until you know your country, .lohannesburg business moral- ity is certaiiily not lx>iidiin huaiuesa morality ; and leadiiig imsiiiess men at the former place will tell you them- selves that honesty is not expected Ihcre. For those who go to earn their livelihood, or to make money, I would say, do not go out without a fixed trade or handicraft, or money to start upon, or a good introduction to some friend already there. But remember that the Transvaal is a veritatjle paradise for the workiugiuan who knows his liusi- neas. All the heavy part of the labor is put out ; the Kaffirs do it, directed by hiui in a few Kaffir words and gener- ally many Knglish expletives. Wages are paid monthly. lUuens moke their twenty-five or thirty pounds a month, if first-rate, and tbe l)lacks drill their order them. Carpenters, blacksmitijs, masons eau get al)Out the .same ; and, whenever a billet iss lost or cannot be obtained, a short tramp along the mines generally brings 8uc<e«s. Vacancies are constantly occurring, for miners, es- . ».. ^. ,'., peciaily wheu full of money, are inelin- An mstitution like ^^ ^^ '.. ^^ ^ ^^ burst. '' and their will l)ear comparison with any you | holes for blasting where and as they please. Its members are millionairea and clerks, lodgers and their lodging house keepers, all equal there ; for we have left liehind cast, cliques, and cath- edral cities, and are cosmopolitan, or, in a word, colonial. this gives us the state of fwxiety there m a nut shell, for. as wages are very high, any one in anything like lucrative employment can belong to it ; and the grades in society are determined by money, and money only. JOHANNESBURG, the London of South Africa, wlCch was nine years ago barren veldt, eight years ago, a miner's camp, ia now the centre of some one hundreii thousand inhub- SOKE FAIOUS PEOPLE. LATEST ABOUT THE BEST KNOWN PEOPLE OF THE DAY. TUe La(« Bobcrt LomIh .StvreBMU and Hlo Purlmltit-t'iearliia and the Mtate J«wctk -The late Prince Henryâ€" »»«r«l»«'» He- tbad - 'fhc Bolie or I'vrk'* Danble, Ac, •ftc. The best paid official in the British service is the Lord-l.ieutcnanl of Ire- land, wtu> receives 91Uti,U0U a year. Once a year the Eniperor of China ploughs a furrow in order to di^iify agriculture in the eyes o£ hia people. The cereiuony is invested with great poxnp. The late Lord Leightou's magnificent! house in Luodon is now the pmperty of the Royal Academy of Artd. to be used us an official residence fur future presi- dents. During the recent war amcnitieB be- tween England and Gennauy the Lon- don Shipping Exchange sent the fol- hAving teWram. to the tjcrman Emper- or: "No n«ed to send 5,UUU Geruuuis from your courU.ry ; we can most ixjad- ily spare them from here." The Czarina is one of the few royal- ties who atill make a practice of wear- ing state jewels. At her ouronatiou in ; May she will wear a crowu worth 87.- | oOU.OOO, and the Cisax's crown is still i more valuable. It reads like a fairy '. story by Uaos Christiaji Anderson, but j it is stated on exoeileut authority that I theze is a vault in the Winter Palace at i St. I'etejtiUurg uuuuuiiing drawers full I ut diamonds, pearls and other precious i stones, trum which the Czarina may i borrow at pleaauie. { The late Robert Louis Steveni>on did i not like the portraits of himself that | were given tu the world. "The picturee they publiuh of uie," he complained, ' vary consideraijly. They represent sTArt^s^t^i^'jrt.na-'i mi DAEiGf MOiAirr "Thermidur." Ue even decides on ti\e colore oif the actresses' drosses. "If I ' ~~~ <ad not." he Bays, "they would all wear i MR. ANDREE TO CROSS THE NORTH red to attract attention to themselves, and this actually happened uuue at the Odeon." Since the death of Prince Henry of Batlenberg the idea prevails generally that he was surfeited with the life of luxurious ease secured to him by his marriage. He was exalted to the stand- POLE IN A BALLOON. Will Be Be Able lo gnccieedr D«4«ns of the Cir<-a( .llr liklp Thai !« Now Uelnc Mndi^ In Pari* for nini - ItiuUied by Bo.viil*T. 8. A. Andree, a Sweda, has resolved plaies are ruthlessly filled up (on Mon- every type, from the must God-like day mommgs is the best tune to ar>- ...i. ii.^.„.i ply) by newcomers, in order to keep t^ ' fJl^iTl.^.. .^1 "r't^^.f ^^l" ^""^ work going at fever heat and the out- put up to the mark. When in cash. these miners often .ii)»>nd six or eight pounds at a sitting, and twenty or thirty jKiunds in a day or two. A free- masonry exists among them, and when one gels iiit>> trouble with the author- ities half a dozen turn up to luiil hini out or to pay the ini(|uitously heavy fine imiKjsed by the cuiuuug Dutch officials, who know they will be paid, as the al- nxgjx. Itant-s, and increasing alxnit aa fait as i ternative tiiiie'is too valuable to the de- bricks and mortar can be obtaine<l. It is situated directly on top of the gold, and. on looking down from tbs high ground above, it looks tu an English eye like a huge, long-drawn-out mass of tin sheds, with its painted iron mine chimneys running in a straight line all along the quartz gold reef as far as you can see in either direction. The largest or main reef ruos for thirty liuquent TUE MlNEari. except wiien cliee to JohanneslMirg or a u>wn, live in white mcirs quarters, buiii of wood and corrugato<l iron. and their dBacrii)iii)n«i of lue vary in propor- tion â€" fnxui a uuui with a 'noble bearing' lo 'a bligUuxi boy.' I don't mind what they tuy. <u a general rule, but this description written by a uuui in Uhio wuj* tryiuK ; 'A tall, willowy coluiun supported his classic head, from which pruc<»ded a liai -iking uough.' 1 could not forgive that." Barney Barnato endures unmoved the ne\v.s|iaper attacks on himmvlf and his scheuaaa. Ue says that on only one ucuudi^ai have the newspapers suo- ceeded in t-ji^iiHiTig him real pain. He was playiug in private theatricals at a big country house. Ue pU^yed. as he ing of lloyid Highneaj, and the Queen!'" "'"^ **>» North Pole in a balloon, lavished attentions on him to such an i The; e\pK<li(ion is an audacious one, and extent as to arouse the jealousy of her in the opinion of cerUin savants some sons. Yet his position was mexprcs- _.,„„;,; . , , . . sibly bitter to himself. The prolific I °i''8°"'<»i" results may be expected penny-a-liner never ceased to call atten- i 'rom it. Great interest is manifested tion to the fact that he was "foimd" ; in thn proposed journey and as the handsomely in everything by the Eug- ; ballo,,n in which M. Andree is to travel lish people, and that he led the life of • , . "'"â- '>•">" °" u> >-" v«»r=» a laivdog in consequence of their gener- , °"'^ "«'°8 constructed in Paris, osity. The .lishantee expedition pre- | ^'"^nchmen are especially anxioua about aented possibilities of proving that he the result. wa« not the carpet knight of popular \r An,i^„. ;. â-  ^,„ , „ ... humor. It %va» poor fleinrich's first ^- An-^ee is m .>,wedon at the pre* chance since his marriage to re<leem his ^'*'- ^'â„¢''' ''°d declines to be interviewed, equivocal pusition and he did not let | In Paris his representatives are the it pass. A few days before leaving Societo Nordcnfdd. in the Rue Auber. London for the African coast he jest- tu.,^.,^.,,, „ „/ .w â- - in^ilv said to a friend: "If I die^t : ^^« "''°'^8«" "^ this company have re- there, what will Grub street do for a , oeive<l strict orders from M. Andree not target f" i to allow members of the press to get Sir Henry Irving, when studying his possession of any details concerning role of Corporal Brewster, in the "Story either his project or the construction of AVatarhm," visited Thanet work- of hia balloon. house to get hie realistic touches from > The writer hcis nevertheless aeen the the study of an old soldier, WUliam Sut- , balloon, or rather those portions of it ton. who was an inmate of that insti- that are nlready constructed. The tution. In a aimil«.r way he prepared builder is M. Lachamiire. who resides for the part of King Lear by visits to in the Passage des Eavorites. at Vau- the BnKidmoor Asylum. Eleonora Duse girard. Although there is a strict is said to have made extensive standing order to admit no one into the study of the unfortunate girls in a con- : aero-nautical ateliers, nor allow any vent kept t)v the Sisters of Mercy be- : 1.1, • ^u •. fore un'krtiking the part of Sautuzza. : "n" *" *»*^« » P*«P ">• tbe writer wa. Mary Auder.sou. before her retirement fortunate enough to get a good view of fronj the stage, frequented Padding- all M. Lachambre's plans, to view the {^!iu5''f"!L?'' ^J^^- '^'\:,^^ "°. ,^J^ silk as the women were fastening it to- torn l> of Mn*. Siddons, dilwently studied . â-  , ^ , ,. . her part. Mrs. Keeley. the celebrato<l 8«ther. and also to hava a glimpse of English actreas o( half a oentury ago. all that was uiking place in the con- was equally cai^ful about the details gtxuctor's workshops. of her characters. She continually â„¢-rr i,- „ \jn, J vno n •• vUited New-gate to watch the ways of ^ "*• t^'->A-K NUUU. ci-iniinaLs when studying for ''Jack M. Surcouf. who is a member of one Sliei>pard." Anil when preparing for of the largest firms of balloon-makers the part ot Nydia in "The Last Days of Pompeii." she made frequent visits to an asylum for the blind. Emperor Franz Josef of Austria is much attached to his Premier. Caasi- mer Eelix Badeni. who liegan life as in France, said in a reount interview on the subject that when M. Andree came to Paris about a year ago "he tried to place his order for the 'Pole Nord' with the firm of .Suri-ouf. (iodard & Co.. who ran the captive balloon daring the 18H9 Exposition in Paris and also during the tto iurnessucc«2l"on« another sonie' few believed extremely well, and was im- miles apart along the open veldt or moiisely pruud of himself m couse- plain, without a tree to t>reak its bar- queuce. lo his chagrin l-bo local papers i-eouoH ; so the suxrouiidiugt axe grim did not even meuUon his name, ^♦•xt and uninviti^ig enough. Many miners day Uaniey went to the uearuot town, have horses, many bu-ycles, the latter bought aouio orajiges, and i>r(jc«*:dBd to the aun of a cook. ULs extraordinary 1878 Exposition, and who are well known luck l)Bgan tw») yeam before he was all over the world as the beat construcU torn, whan his father, who was a chef °" wj^ Ml^Andree,' continued M.Sur- to one of the last Kings of Poland, was ..^uf, "laid bis plans and projects before cieated a Count, more in jest than in nie. I immediately told him that to earntut. us he had not the money to attempt to cross the .Vorlh Polo in a sui>port the dignity. For a time it biilloon with thu capacity of i.MO culiio l(H>ked as if the Count's suns would have to return to the puts and skillets. But a relative of their mother. Aima Wier- en. °i.h» celebrated German actress, be- came so attaclied tu the two Badeni boys that when death rang the cuitain down metres, was. in my opinion, pure folly. I am afraid that he will not succceil. Ue has only made a U-m unimportant ascents, and is really not an aeronaut of any mark. I would willingly have built him an airship with a capacity ol a small r(x>iii. No class ever >'are<l less The Uuke of York has a double, Wil- fo.- peisimal comforts. They pay high- y^^ Reginald lloberts by name. At !fuh':fLt7-f.bfi;rTtirXx^i"tio,t^ ^-^ ^"^- -- -iiâ€"^ted by the is natural in places so luonotonous and continual hat-doffing that mai'ked lus jusl'uhe'thinjj for the 'long.' dry, sandy juggle them in the market plate. But .,.,,. , road Thcv feed at a ii>iuuion iMiard- Uio local puuent remained silent, and m m.le8unmler.uptcdly,«,dd-l*armgand||-;^*'ji,^,^^/^/«^^f^^^3;;^^ j^u^ STBaxnoto went back to honeycomlwd with mines throughout. I a„j ^^^^, m.„_ often four or more, in Loudwu This, even were it a'one. could speak for tlie stability and continued pros- perity of the Truiisvaui gold trade. On a mail steamer arriving only a . few days ago from the Cxpc was said to be bet-.voen £31^1.(100 and i.',OU.OtX) worth of gold, aail the nevvs[>ai)crs show that usually al)out £1I)0,().JO worth ia coasign- ed l>y each mail boat. Afi we enter the town we find fine and \vell-planued streets, cros.'ied at plai'es with deep guttersâ€" gullio.s inlhcr â€"to carry off the water, which is often. In the heavy suuimer ruins, deeper than ?our kufcs. Crosising thcMC at a fast rot. the driver never drawing rein, the novice is shot alx>ut in his white^over- ed two-wheeled cab, with it.s large sfirings, like a pea in a bladder. In- dii'0<l, one marvels at' the daintily-dres.s- to uiH.n ino Last act of her life's <lranitt she gj, thousanil metres, but 1 am of opin- unlovely. is iU.ssi(iatiou, and so a .-steady man can save a small fortune Ln on incrcdil)ly short space of time. Most of t h(Ne inclined to .save have their link- ing accounts, and very large sums of money -ire scjit. uiouthl> to wives and faniilics at hoiuo. Ten shillings for shoeing a horse should tempt a block-smith. Ho out by all means, any one who has a wade and good heall h, ami you have what is, in ajipuarauue evory^vhere. Then he began to fancy it. and live up to the situation, as it were, lie truvoUed all over Eng- land in firstclass carriugos. and the giuu-<ls novel' thought ut asking him lor a ticket. One day WLUiom was ira- velling down to \ViudM>r in his custom- ai°y i>rittcely stylo. Mr. Jcseph Cham- berlain liappenca to be alM>ai'd the same tniiu, and hcoriu^ froui one of l)e(iueathe<l them her entire fortune, amounting *j over a miUiun of dollars. Young Bbdeni pnK;ured an exoeUent e<lucation, was graduateil as a doctor of philosophy, and entered the .Aus- trian Civil .Servivx'. Ho was exix'o<lingly hanilsume. bad delightful manners and s|ient money liljerally. It was not long liefum he ijwame the luust popular Pole at the Court of Viemia. He i» one of the Kmiieror's m<»t intimate friends. ed habitue of the place being swung through siinilarl.v. quite uncoiii-erneii. and without ruiiipling a frill. We pass fine piil)lic buildings, very high homw's and shoiw â€" .sumewhiit jorry-built. it is true, and goodinsew help them in the •vent of a large street fireâ€" but now being added to or replaced by larger and more solid buililitur^- Indeed, bricks couiiot be made fast enough for the demand, l>oth there and in some of the outlying Transvaal tov/ns, where the " goid boom " is on. There are lofty and handsome shops, with most costly con- tents, which can vie with London or Paris. I<>t us watch from the high raised »t(x>p outside the Post Offiic. looking down over the huge MARKET SQUARE. What strikes u.s first are the two- wheeled two-horse caiis, with white hoods. ret'kleHsly driven by Malays in â- the iiLscparablo red fez ; those, with Ihe last-trotting mule or horse wugoDS, show the pace at which husi.'.-'.ss or pleasure is followed. Aa a controd, jomcs the Iuml«ring ox wagon, with ten or twelve span of o.\en. a little Kaffir Iwy dragging and directing the leading couple l^y a thong round the horns, and the unamialde Dutch far- mer revolving around, swaring and us- ing his fiftocn-fout whip to Keep the concern in motion. The.i |>.'i«i'<es a body of some 200 prisoners. Kaffirs and a few whiles leading, nimvhed in fours by some dozen wliile-helmetcd police and four of five. mouut'Cd men, all jsi- ludetl through the main streets, inno- cent and guilty alike, to the Coai't House, and many escaping en route a.s oi'<^u.sion offers. Long before daylight the square is full of ox wagons, some from uistjincc.s occupying days to traverse ; and the buyers oF fonigo. Ottt.s, corn, uialie-menl, fir'ewooil, poultry, eggs. Ac, aie busy as soon na they can see. Here the miild Ionian makes a goo<l profit, often riding for out on the roads to get at the 'Jlitorate Dutch farmer lieforo the latter reaches the nuirkct. Here is an ainu.siug instance of a bargain re<ent- ly overheard on the square. An I'^iig- lish trader purchases a wagon load of stuff from I Boer. and. by mean.s of a few figures and calculations easily tos.sed oft, and with many flourishes, makws out that the amount he h.as to jay the Dutchman is alioiit half of -what jt ought to 1)6, if corre<!tly reckoned up at the price agreed. " Oom Paul" ciiii- nol reckon much, but has a ready reck- oner, and poinl..s to ajid want.s tho larg- er amount. "What's that?" says the other. "Let's look at it." Then "Why. that's lost year's ready reckoner I Look here. man. it's marked 1894. It's no serious lungii.ige, tho best clumce in the ; tho gun: w that tiio Duke of York was world of making money there. The ut- ; in the u>.xt cumpartmeiit he decided to terly free life ol t^outh Africa has such 1 go in at the next station and pay his a cliariii also that, as all the cx>loni.sla ; rcspi-cl to the Duke. Tableau I "His tell you, if once you put on the veldt : Grace ' is now doing a term in Bow schooiuH (untanneu leather shoes), and | sti^et. druik "Cape Siiioke " (Iwal attempt at j xij^ Prince of Walos has a ?r>09t ac- lulurs merit. uruiK i-ape omuKe ^loiai aiMjiupiai. : xhe Prince of Walos has a !ve brandy), you will never leave the coun- „„^,^ i,..,.,„i,wi ~. «f ti.,. uiir..M try; and it has a fascination whi.h is 1 •"^'•* kuowhvigeot the signs lielievcd inva.-iably to attract b%ck to and memliership of all orders of it aU who have been there. PETS OF HONDURAS. That Country Is a Veritable I'urudise For Tbriu. Uondurus seems a paradise for pets. Parrots of every size, from that of a Hponow to the great green macaw, three feet long or more, can clamber all over and about the house and never know a cage. Chochalai-as trot through tho patios or courts of the houses in the tx>wns, and bitterns stalk disconsolate about. Fawns and children play to- gether Ln uumy a yard, and coons and nometimes an armadillo are playmates t-jr the lit! Ic ones, who have few dolls. Li the ^^uiibo hamlet of Ulun, a tame ant-"ai»>i- wiu-; -.'fferod to me, and while we t.ilr.< <l of IL a wcniuui came in lead- ing a giiieonite, wbicii tcjok i>ccaai«ii to uibbht at its Ot'/uer's baie heels whils she bargaiiKsl. A^ 1 Lay tu a hiunmock ia a Waikns hut oui> divy a i>-coary came v.ithin my roach. With a ..^iiveuieuL Mtick I ven- tured to ecratci'. nis bra>vii and bristly biick. Down h-' itoinied on his side and griuited as long as the tickling went on. From that moUiciit hn was my ardent, friend and faithful tcdlower. I could not go t4.'n steps without finding him at my heels, aikd his jeahmsy was as instant as it was fierce. Woe to the dog that dared come neiir me. A sud- den rush, a quick upward thrust of those gle«km.'uig tuskn aiid there was a bluetling gosh in that dog's quarters, if bo was not agile beyond the average of dogs. And the snapping of those i.u.sks wais a sound that was meet suggestive, particularly to a white man grcpin^ in tho dark for the oUa that nolds tho drink. Peccorio are not really the nicest of pets for people whose visitols are nervous. \i good now." ' Allamachia'" suvs The Lprgrest Gold Nug'gret, The largest piece of gold ever mined wim taken from Byer and Haltmou's gold mining claim. Uill End. New South Wales, May 10, 187'2. Its weight was WO pounds, height 4ft. 9in. ; value nearly Jl.'JO.OOU. It wim found imbedded in a thick wall of blue slate, at ii depth of i.A) fuet iroin tho surface. The owners the I of the mine were living on charity when tXtov found this iiumuu.se nua-»r«t. And it ia a mutter in which he per- mits no trifling. At a state function which occurred lo^t season a beautiful English girl wore a. glittering jewel- leil dw'oration on nor breaet. The Prinoe took the first ojjportunity when the yumig lady was alone of saying : "Ihat is a pretty ornament. May I ask to whom it Lelougs 1" "To Lord ," said tiie D-ighte,ued girl ; "he is my fiance; ho uil>/sv» uie to wear it." "Can you unfasten it easily f" "Yes, sir. i'lieu, may 1 ask you to take it off and to tell Lord that it meaais sumethiQg more than a bit of gidd and a few diauiuuds lo be worn merely as an ornament, even by a ohoimiug wo- man t" I'riuceee Beatrice wLU continue to draw her income of 930,UUO a year, as it was made a life grant at the time of hoi" marriage. By the death of tho Duke of ChLTauce bis buotliur an<l sis- ters gained in iiioome, as the $1HU,0U0 a yeai- voted f<a: the Prui<M of Wales's children coutuiued all 'no same. This proviKiou must serve them during the present reign, whether their state be married or single, with children or without. The Duke of York had no ex- tra alJpwoiKie on Ills marriage, in sjiite of his important pcsiiion ui the direct line. I'he deaths which host mouey to the royal family were that of the late Prince Consort, whose yearly 81'>''.0U0 ceased ; that of the Princess Alice, whose ^3l),U0O a yeaj-, as Quocn's daught<>r, was iK^t continued to her Gorman chil- dren, and that of the Duke of Albany, whubie 91^>')^ B, year, as Queen's son, dropped immediately, and was but paJtly replaced by a J.'iO.UOO a year from the nation to his widow. Sordou has a method. Ue rises at 6 and writes till noon. As soon aa^ho en- tjers his study he locks the duor and is disturbed by nobody except the barber, wrho comes every day to ahave him. He breakfasts at 12 with his wife and chil- dren. JUid eats like a cormorant. After hreakf^a.it a titioU, a cigar and tho daily papuit*. At 3 a Ireoeption â€" acton*, aot- reases. managers, directors â€" everjix^ly "oy turu.s ami no 0110 loug. Thoy com© Croni aJ.1 poiuts of the compass, chiefly Loudon and New York. Then ho writes his letters, dines at 8.3t). smokes an- other cigar, and goes to bed at 10. Sar- dou in kuig in' his own world. IIo "pro- flucos" his ow 11 pieces and wont alter aiivthlna he has written. "Not a line THE LOADED CIGAR. A Uangeroua \»vell.> Which Ithonld Be Snp|ir4*i»«(Ml. This is an ago of novelties, but it would appear that one novelty at least is not appreciated in every qiuirter. The loaded cigar may he classed as a novelty although it has not the merit of being new another demerit is that it is a nuisance and decidedly danger- ous. Mr. V. H. Widmore. of Montreal, evi- dently ieg.irlB it with the utmost dis- favor as he was re^-ently made a victim of ita pnioticul po|>ularity in an ex- tremely unpleasant manner. ion that he will discover nothing and ' will fail in his dtteinpl with a balloon , of 4,J0U metres capacity." I M. .Surcouf bus made probably more ; journiys through Ihf air thsn any other Frenchman, and tjilks knowingly on aeronautic subjects. I'he "Polo Nord." as it has already been baptized, will have a toLil capacity , of 4,."jOU metres. It will carry three I persons. Messrs. Andree, PJkholtn and Strindberg. M. Andree will uiaiiaK«ibe bnlloun. lie is a savant of undoubted I repute and. in some quarters, has even the repuiatiim of an experienced aero- niiiit. His greatest feat is the aerial journey from Golt«nl)Ourg tj> tho island of Gotbar<l. a distin e of 300 kilometres. H« performed it in five hours, an aver- age of about forty miles .in hour. M. .'"'trindberg is a pby^iiian. He will be in cbargu of the plioiographio licpart- ment. .M. Nils Ekhulm ma well-known doctor. These three gentlemen, with their scientific apparatus and their plioio- ?:ruphic ap{)liances, erpej;t to snatch rom thn North Pole the si'crots that it seems del lU'ned to retain. The starling point has lioen fixed in the Norskoearna Islands, but the p:"rti- cular spot has not yet been settled. The explorers expei-t after a few hours' i ride to reach northerly latitudes, into went into a clear ' which human beings have not yet nen- went into a cigar ^1^^^^^ ^^ i,^^ during the past three nan on tst. La^ centuries. Of course, they do not know On Tuesday last he ^,j.^^^^ ^^ ^^^ ^^ ^j,,, p^,, ^^^ stoi-e kept by a woman on tst. La^ g,.mm.ipg Of course, t hey do not know tlierine street and purchased what he where they will descend, but ihey hojie thought was an ordiuiuy cigar of com- *o remain a couple of weeks in th« niT, ^ ,. . ,., .. ..,„„ tu cover a distance of over Ihrco thous- merte. boiue time suijsequontly, it was „j„, „^j,^ ^„j ^, ^^^^ ..qouO photo- after dinner on the same day, he was graphic views, in the coni[>any of a lady acquaintance, and, it is pi-esumed the lady did not { THE CONSTRUCTION. object, proceeded to enjoy what was evidently a choice Havana. He did not consume much of tho weed, however, when he wus startled by a loud explo- sion and a miniature pyrotechnical dis- play w ith a flame about two feet long, at tlie llghied end of his cigar. Some of the sparks found their way to his "The "Pole Nord" balloon is l>eing made of silk, and large pieces of this material are stretched <m plain wooilon tables in M. Lachaml)re's ateliers. Halt a dozen women are ongige.d in sewing ~ '"k and sticking the silk oogeiher. The sil is from Lyons, and has iHten specially manufactured for tho construction of the balloon. It has lieen varnished very carefully so that it will be inipossilde . , , , ,. K.i I for any gas to escape It is exnocted fair compamons face, who was slightly , ^^^^^^ ^„ ,Jm y^ ;„ readiness on May 11. bunit and who was at tho same tune ^^^ y,,^j. _,^„,, f^^ ea.'h day's delay the considerably frightened. ; constTUClor is liable to a big fine. Mr. \yidmoro laid a complaint at the, .^jj^, diameter of tho "Pole Nord" will Police Court agauist tho shopkpeixsr. In , n,p,|j,ure ,,,;^^t,y twenty and a half reply t« ,J udgo Dugas .she explauicd that metres, .and the'capacitv will be exactly the cigar was given t^ the young nuui 4 -,uo nietres. rhe envelope will be form- merely !i8 a joke_and that they were ^,^ ^j ^^^ee silk coats, stuck firmly to- not dangerous. Moieover. they were loiided and she knew it. 'I'lie cigais ' were purcluu»d at a plai« on St. Cath- | erine strtMit. Mr. Widmore was told ' that there was no law to reach these vendors of txtrpedo cigars, but Judge { ^ ugaa assured him that be would en- j -e into tho matter further. I Thursday Mr. Widmore purchas- five more of those ooceiitrio weciis, and submitting them to expert exam- ination at the U;uiiilton Powder Com- | panv was iinorfued that they wore un- doubtedly diuigerous articles. The probleui with which Mr. Widmore iS now wrestling is what legal satisfac- tion could one get if one lost one's eye- sight thixnigb this peraieious, explosive cigar f Mr. Widjnore will not let tho mat/- ter drop us it is, but is steadfast in gether and rendered airtight by a spe- cial kind uf varnish. There will be throe guide-ropes of coroanut fibre, weigliing 11(0 kilogram- mes. These ropes will ^jnxe thn earth or the sea and maintain the balloon at a height not to exceed ."igO feel . At 1 his elevation the «.xulorers -say that they will be able to distinguish all the de- tjiils of tho region over which thoy are travelling. The roof of tho oar will be arranged aa a platform for the pho- tographic appafntus. One picture will be t.aken every fninute during tho two weeks they expect to remain on their journey across the polo. One of tho two views thus taken will be, developed immediately. The other will bo de- veloped after tho expedition is over. 'The contributors towards the oxpens* es of the expedition are as follows: Th« his dct^ermhiatlun to prosecute both the Kjnjj „f .^wedon, 8^,000; Mr. .Vlfr'ed No- maiiufact.uroxs and sellers of this nius- he,l. 818,01)0. .ind Baron Alfred Dick.'wm, anoe. St^.lWO. 'l'b« romaindor has been given by â€" I acontribulor whoso uame is known only to M. Andree. M. Andree is a tall and rubu.st man, mcnsuringa little over six feet in height and weighing 185 pounds. He was born at Gi-enna on Oct. 18, 1854. His father was a druggist, at Gronu.i, on tho bor- ders of Lake Wetlflrn. .Sweden. HiB mother is still livins' md i.i sovciiiy-two vaora of AiNt. M. An<lrnA in a biuihniar. Nice Man. Wigglesâ€" Do you know old 'Walker ? Wagglesâ€" Yes. Wiggles- What sort at. a man ia be, anyway ? Wagglesâ€" WeU, it he wanted to marry my uioi lier-in-law I shouldn't have the Ifuutt nhiactioiw ^^Hae*8ȣio%-!

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