ALPHABETICAL ARTICLES.

[By a Child],

In those highly improbable times when the

Caliph Haroun Alraschid walked in queer disguises through the city, and poked his

own and his Vizier's nose into things which concerned him not; when every old lamp

and curiously wrought ring had attendant

slaveys, who required from time to time a little rubbing up to perform their duties, even as, they do now; when woridrblis palaces'. were erected in , a night by the wave of a wanr", and fishermen brought up in their nets mighty genii confined in tin cans, and people seated on carpets traris ported.theinselves from place to place by; a wish, and jewels of all kinds grew on trees ,in caverns underground, there chanced to. live in a city where these- marvels Ayere , of.'daily occurrence a merchant, whose busi ness was in a very small way. His name was Mirza Sheefti, and he experienced great difficulty, with all his adroitness, in making the two ends meet.

Mirza Sheefti had a young wife,-whom he adored. She had tho grace of a gazelle, "''and a face such as is dreamed of by all true believers as among the blessings promised r'-tOfth'o fai.biul by the prophet. Wrapped f.jin.the expensive, shawls of Cashmere, with . r.choicest hi ad-dresses and costly apparel ...from tin gwi)t. bazaars in the city, men • looked at the fair apparition as she glided by with the light of pleasure in their ■' eyes and a smile upon their ; lip3. She loved admiration and homage ; therefore she arrayed herself in the hard earnings of Mirza Sheefti, and at his expense delighted . ;the world, as she',well was entitled to do, ' for in that far city it was a law—or taken to be, such—that the happiness of the many '; was to be preferred to that of the few. But this amiable trait on the part of Mirza Sheefti's wife cost him many an hour of painful reflection wherewith to find the means to gratify her wishes, and he frequently shook his head, with an ominous sigh, over tho records of his business. One vvarm summer's afternoon, whilst so en gaged, his face lengthened consider ably as he pondered over a sheet of figures and' calculations. Arrange the figures as he: would, the result was the same—always against him. He had formed some desperate resolve of falling back, again upon his youthful practice, " which he "had; indulged in throughout his vllfe,_of "flying a kite," but he abandoned the idea, for though there was generally " a '■ regular.breeze-'abouthimself and hisaffairp, • he always found some difficulty in "raising the wind." "It is to be,'.'he murmured, ~n a s dismal [thoughtsn took possession of Ms ' , mind—"Kismet, it is fate I" "' .!' t p., .He sat eatiiig his grief "in.silence, when <n ,unthinkingly and'mechanically he took the ..■stopper out/: of his .. 'ink-bottle, and r , , marvellous .' ,',to,'., relate, , the ink rose.. ....slowly up into . the.,.air, throwing out ■from the , column a dark spray like 'a ~ fountain. This spray gradually took.shape, and to the wonder of Mirza, assumed the form of a hideous little black-a-moor, with "' a flat noi_e> a Wide red gash'for a mouth, freat flat ears/and legs remarkably bowed, his terrible' apparition rolled: ite eyes menacingly aat -the little merchant and screamed out the word "Dicbroi'c " several

times. "I am one of the African genii;" he said, " and have come direct from-the - banks of the Juger to befriend you.- ,lam ' , -known las -the Niger. Some ignorait .wretches, in;order to insult mo, spell m(y , • namo with double g, but whoever calls irie .. "Nigger;'' by the prophet he shall gee the way, of all flesh immediately, if not sooner." Tho genius said this in a fierce tone, arid . there wa3 v dark frown on his. face which made it look blacker than ever, whilst he rolled his eyes till the whites became terrible to look upon, '" i , ' " I'am your slave," replied the merchant, " and ready to obey your commands as soon as I have an inkling of them." . "You want money," said the genius, . coming suddenly to tho point, and ignoring Miriams little joke in toio ; " your very soul is embittered by not possessing it; it is 1 the very breath to your life, and I tell you, Mirza Sheefti," he continued solemnly, " you are a fool for so desiring it." ,-i "May Your Highness's condescension never be less," murmured the merchant. ~' I' Your.sla.yo waits your orders." >. ".I wilicausea vision to pass before you," Said the spirit, and you shall write down all ■ that you shall see, and all that you shall i hear, and a grateful people will,:—when thoy have learnt wisdom from your words, but not till then,—Enrich your stores exceed incly. I have said I " Bismallah ; it is good," replied Mirza, ' "but your slave does not possess tho pen of a ready writer, and his face darkens under the throes of composition, even to the colour of Y*our Highness's own."

"Take this quill from tho wing of the sacred bird of Imperial Home," said the genius, "and when you are at a loss nibble the feathers at the end thereof, and cast your eyes up to the ceiling, and you will possess all the rare attributes of the bird to which it belongs, and all that you should understand will be made plain to you." ,;'And noW," said the genius, "I shall return to my bottle. It is not alone this I inky, suit good- " ''. Shakesi-eare !" shouted the merchant* . "Wretch !" he replied, " you havo spoilt 'my.most telling exit. But I spare you. Mashallah '.'' and he was gone <:", Allah be praised," said Mirza. There upon he took the pen in his hand, put tho tip of the feather into his mouth, and looking up with an inane expres sion, presently foil into a stupor, when, with the suddenness of a dissolving - view, he was in a strange country and among a strange people. He found himself in a city of many minarets, public buildings, parks and open i places, with much people constantly work ing and striving to make money out of the ■ earth, out of the air, out of the water, and out of themselves. The city stretched it . self out upon an isthmus, and seemed, to have great powers of expansion within itself. • The deep waters of tho harbours on either . side, the hills which stood around the city • like watchful sentinels, the green tints of the fields, the beautifully varied foliage of the trees, the mild equable climate, loft little to be desired by dwellers in that . highly-favoured land. After Mirza had looked about him for some time, and taken , .note of places, he wont direct to thebusi . ; .ness parts of the city, for his . heart ~ was there; and though well skilled to hold his own among the shrewdish mqr ,,'.; chants, of his pieoplo, ho looked with ad miring envy and surprise at the cunning devices habitually employed by tho citizens to enrich themselves at the expense 'of Mothers.' "In tho name of the Prophet," . .'exclaimed Mirza, "these men should be .wealthy, for their business capacity and slyness are astonishing. They have opened vf my eyes with wonder, and. I will never no-close then! agahrtill I have practised some f ... -of their arte. Possibly, with caution, my »f own people may be had by some of them," .' and Mirza laughed pleasantly to himself at ,'.: thethought!" He now became aware—but ;.. how ha know not—that he was in the midst :-,!of an immense crowd, who bawled out con-

* This clearly is no anachronism, as Shake* pearo wrote for all time. ..; . j,, _ .„_■

tinuously for water, and lashed themselves into a great fury, by their own shouting. He seemed to. feel all the brutality and violence of an excited mob, and strove

vigorously to extricate himself therefrom, which after some time he happily accom plished. He turned then with all speed to one of the hills behind the city, and hastened to ascend it. On reaching the top, he threw himself on the ground to recover his breath, and to enjoy the view. Thegrand panoramic picturewhieh stretched itself before him, marvellous in its extent of inland sea, picturesque islands, bold promontories, secure havens, cultivated lands, and crowded streets, kept him en tranced, and his eyes did not weary in con templating the magnificent scene before him. "Surely," said Mirza, with delight, " this is' a glimpse of Paradise, or, as the infidels call it; Eden.

" You are right," said a voice close beside him, "this is indeed Eden," and Mirza looked and beheld a man lying on the grass, calmly rolling, up some tobacco in a paper, which he afterwards lighted and smoked, with much contentment.

"For the love of your mother, said Mirza, '' inform me of a few things, for all this is new to me," whereupon they fell into much conversationabout the city and the dwellers therein ; when, after a pause, Mirza said, " Now tell mic what occasioned the gather ing of so large a crowd, and the tumult and shouting that arose therefrom. Are they all water-carriers out of employment, that they so cry out for water ?"

" Net so," replied the other. " This city that you seebefore you is governed by a small body of men of great dignity, of much— overmuch—talk, and a curious propensity to pursue the wrong course when the right is clearly before them. They are known by citizens richly endowed with the same peculiarities as the Doers of Silly Things, and they have gained great renow-n by striving on every possible occasion to deserve the distinction bestowed upon them, and uphold their honoured nan.c. Seme time ago a question of greatmomentto the health of the city and the purity of its water supply came before this august body, when, true to its nature, it upheld its time honoured designation with great per sistency. The Springs from which the city derived an abundant supply of pure water,, and which had been taken by pipes into every house at great cost to the citizens, were divided by a few feet from land, through which the water ran to the Springs. This land was known as Edge come, because it came to the edge of the Springs. The owner oH'ered it to the Silly Things for the people,, "for," said he, "I have the welfare of the city at heart, and I wish them to possess it. If I sell to others, peradventure the water will be made im pure and injure the people's health, and that I desire, not.". And-so the question whether the land should be bought and the water - kept pure came before the Silly Things in solemn conclave assembled, and was debated at great length for several nights. : But some of them set up their backs very stiffly, even like unto a stone, wall, and determined to' have nothing to do with the land, for they argued—"What is the use of keeping im purities half-a-mile away from the water, or to allow it to percolate through a natural filter' of that length, when artificial filters could be erected at much less cost after the water had become filthy and impure ? , And if,"they continued, "the water does become impureand unfit foruse, we will then go to the far-away mountains and take the trickling streams arising there, and bring them into the city, and supply the needs of the people ; for the owner of the land, Edgecome, demands more than he gave for it, 'and therefore we will have none of his land."

But the citizens, possessing understand ing, replied—" Nay ! Half-a-mile of filter bed must keep the water pure, or at all events purer than if pollution was brought to the very mouth of the Springs. The present supply of the water is good and sufficient for a city twice its size, and has been placed into every man's house at great cost. The streams on the mountain tops are peddling streams —mere cloud-water preserved by forest shades — which frequently evapor ate during the summer heat. . But even should there be an abundant supply, the mountains would have to be purchased, the right to use all the land between them and the city for pipe-tracks, and miles upon miles of water-pipes would also have to be purchased, at an expense a hundredfold greater than the cost of Edgecome land. Should that land, on being purchased, prove of no benefit, little harm would arise, for it could be sold again at but small loss, if any. Therefe re, "they said, "buytheland, and avoid the great risk of ruining the pre sent water supply."

But many of the. Silly Things became ex ceeding wroth at this, and their understand ings became dense, even denser than usual, and thoy cried out at the meeting, "Divide, divide,'' and they did so, and the intelli gence of the community was beaten and set aside by one vote.

So it happened that Edgecome land, even the land which came down to the sprinirs of pure water, was not purchased by the Silly Things for the people, but was cut up and sold in lots to many purchasers. And be hold, all the evils foretold by the men of understanding came to pass. The water was polluted by all kinds of abominations. The artificial filters then erected had no effect?, for the filth sent into the Springs was varied and abundant. The mountain tops and the land intervening were purchased at a price so high that the owners became men of consequence imme diately thereafter. The pipes and pipe laying made the fortunes of many, and the citizens were soro distressed to find money for theso things, and had to borrow and tax themselves heavily to pay off the loan ; and after all this had been done, they found the water from mountain sources (as had been foretold) insufficient for the city's wants, and to be impure from%decayed vegetable and other matter. From the scarcity and impurity of the water the citizens sickened rapidly, and have died and are now dying from cholera and other bowel complaints at so great a rate as to fill the new cemetery with dead bodies. This is the reason of the great crowd you wit nessed. It is an indignation meeting against the Doers of Silly Things ; but the most specious of the number, who did most to bring about the calamity, is explaining to tho people that he always said it would | be so, and had fought hard against it. From-lapse of. time his words impose upon many; but those who I remember the names of the Silly Things who decided not- to purchase the land Edgecome cry shame, are indignant and angry, and are howling for pure water to bo brought from some great river which flows from the interior of the sea. But the city has no money for such an undertaking, has a large debfpressing heavily upon it, and I do not know what will be the end of it all. „ " "'".." -. ~ "By Allah," cried Mirza with much indig nation, " These Silly Tfcings were mocking ybUi werelaughing at'yourbeards. I would burn them, and all their ancestors,- in Jehanum.".-'- Then, remembering .the peculiar ('mercantile', usages in •, force m that city, he continued: ''.But ■ surely tha mini had some interest in the.mountainT§ps, or the land between, or in procuring* or laying down the pipes, or. ~som© pthes gain, to be, derived .from

their acting in that manner. I cannot believe otherwise, for these people are more awake than myself. In my country they would have been punished severely; the ferashes at least, with their sticks, would have been called in, and the offenders beaten on the soles of their feet till they were like jelly; or," added Mirza, with a smile, for he loved his joke, "tillthey were as soft as' their own brains." "Ferashes!" he called out aloud, when, as the word rang through the inner chamber o_ his consciousness, the scene rapidly changed again, and he seemed to be among the streets of his native town, and face to face with his largest creditor, Hassan Khondor, the great de stroyer of smallmenandtheirmeans; Loudly the word was repeated by Khondor— Ferashes ! and straightway several men ran towards Mirza, caught suddenly hold of him, threw him on his back, elevated his feet, and began to apply their bamboo vigorously to their soles. As the first blow descended he awoke with a great scream, and found his. wife had smitten him smartly with her white hand. She had looked into his otiice that afternoon to ask him for some money, and was thus at hand to arouse him from his painful dream. Whether she ob tained what she came for, or what endear ments took place between the little merchant and his wife, we leave unrecorded, for the secrets sacred to married life are not lightly tb be divulged, or the veil flung over, them removed. But to allay' the curiosity of the reader we add tho. concluding 'words, of the chronicle, which ran as follows': — "Though Mirza had thrown' aside the quill, and shaken off, as. he fondly hoped, the qualities of the bird from whose wing it was taken, his wife looked laughingly in his face, and still called him - ' "

" A Goose."

EXTRAORDINARY BREACH O F PROMISE CASE.

Heavy Damages.

Breach of promise cases, like the poor, we English folk have "always with us," and ninety-nine out of every hundred excite no attention whatever. Now and then, how ever, there comes a "special and particu lar " action, which at once rivets the public interest, is reported at prodigious length in the newspapers, and forms for the time being a leading topic of conversation in all well-conducted family circles. Such a case asthis was Miller v. Joy, which has, for the past week, beengossipedabout.everywhere, It came to an.end lpst night after a pro tracted trial, so that I am able to forward you uninteresting resume compiledfrom the summaries in this morning's .papers. "Damages," remarks one writer, " can never, be supposed to compensate; for the misery of a broken heart, -but, if any pecuniary solatium could be expected to give a general sense of comfort to a'-cop-' tiding and deluded female, such a magnifi cent sum as two thousand three hundred odd pounds ought to have that effect". iA jury which assesses a violated marriage' vow at the commanding figure' just mentioned must be composed of gentlemen who do not desire the action for breach of promise io be abolished. Certainly the plaintiff in tiie remarkable trial of " Miller against JoyJ" just concluded, has much to be thankful for. She ought to be grateful to the juryAvho believed her, and to the law which allows, her to revenge herself on her faithless swain by a little litigation. Mrs Miller, the plaintiff in the case; appears to have reached the meridian of life, for she gave birth when twenty-three or twenty-four to a daughter, who is now sixteen years of age. Her past history was described as being " sad," and inasmuch as she had suffered through the conduct of " a man of the world," and had never been married, she perhaps had some reason to desire to find a husband who was a " good Christian man." The defendant, whatever his character may have been, was of an age when he mightat least be supposed to know his own mind. He was sixty-three, and a builder and owner of extensive house property at Bournemouth ; moreover, be was a widower, with a family of ten children. Early in last year, however, Mr Joy — such was his name — seems to have met and to have been conquered by the charms of the plaintiff, Mrs Miller—"thefinest woman inßournemouth," as one of the witnesses swore that Mr Joy described her. According to the lady's account, she went to Bournemouth;a year or two ago, and, after having, been manageress of an hotel .there, opened ari establishment in the millinery and per fumery business. She started a toilet club, but seems to have displayed a greater talent for matrimonial adventure than for the arrangement of her scents arid hair-dyes, and the acquisition of customers. Mr Joy stated that the first coy beginnings of court ship were due to the initiative of the fair one ; but her version of the story was to the effect that. Mr Joy wa's smitten with her charms and proposed to her, whereupon she caused him to be made aware of the fead circumstances of her former life. She'took him up to AVimbledon to visit an old friend of hers, a gentleman with a wife and family. There is no doubt, as the defendant him self confesses it, that during ' this Wimble don visit Mr Joy Was introduced by Mrs Miller as her future husband ; but then the defendant's account is that he had.'hever promised unconditionally to wed the plaintiff, but only "in case things turned out well." In fact, he took her upon trial; and " kept company " with her long enough to discover that she would not suit ;hlm. Thereupon she brought that action which is the traditional salve for the pain of blighted affections. During the trip to Wimbledon, all, accord ing to her testimony, went merry as the marriage bell which she believed would soon tinkle upon her bridal morn. The friend at Wimbledon was a valu able ally of Mrs Miller in the witness, box. He stated that he had been asked to explain Mrs Miller's past unhappy history, to Mr Joy ; and he did so in the course of a, stroll which he took with that gentleman. It is not every man who, when he. hears that the widow he is thinking of wedding has never been married at all, would take, the matter in the cool and tranquil way in which, according to the gentleman from Wimbledon, was adopted by Mr Joy On that i occasion. He said he.rather preferred -the case as it was, as "managing widows" were apt to " beget jarring notes." Then the friend further explained, to Mr Joy. tbat the lady was " of a religious, turn of mind,' but rather liberal with her money.", When the two returned from their walk, after.the above revelations had been made to Mr J*oy; there were some " tender scenes :'" but they did not apparently prevent.a good deal of champagne from being, consumed on' the premises, and "the evening was. spent happily till.eleven o'clock." In fact.Athe plaintiff and the defendant went on like lovers of a mature age; he " watched her about,' and she,, on her port, "had a high bearing with him," which, considering her antecedents was somewhat peculiar conduct. ',' ' At' all events, the couple."continued in happi ness and love until '*—a prosiac detail which will occur in courtships—" until they left by train." , When the Wimbledon friend sub sequently heard that the marriage was broken off, he was only not surprised,

because '' he was never astonished at any thing"^ an attitude of mind which even the result of the trial may not be sufficient to disturb. The verdict which the jury has found for the plaintiff, Mrs Miller, is probably due a good, deal to the lover-like way in which the affianced pair conducted themselves at Wimbledon. Of this fact the testimony of the gentleman whom they, visited, as well as of .his daughter and servant, seemed to leave no doubt. If, therefore, Mr Joy had deter mined after hearing the revelation as to Mrs Miller's past life to have no more to do with her, why did he continue to treat her in a pre-matrimonial manner? ' He himself swore that he said when he got back from his walk that he could not think of marriage until "everything had been properly cleared up," On the other hand, neither his host nor anybody else, seems to have overheard this very proper sentiment j and there is no , doubt that, even after the incident ;in ' question,. Mr Joy did Continue on terms of friendship with the lady whose equivocal history he now swears affected him with a desire to be "off" Ms engagement. Even according to his own evidence, he admits having, after the Wimbledon gentleman had explained Mrs Miller's career, asked him whether "she was. the soi't c.f . .woman whom he would advise a'.rnan to marry." There was, as is. usually thp, r>n««. a good deal of conflicting ev-u_cn- .. i- tho course of the trial. Mis I Miliar boA testimony that Mr Joy bought her dr,:■■■■■. -, and that she was busy in pre-

•}-_; 6p.u'uA-r;!.''oi-.-ej int.mM nuptials ; also that he took' a ring from her "finger in order to obtain a suitablo wedding-ring. This was denied point-blank, and the legal reformers tyho wish to see the action for breach done away with have an argument in the hard swearing which always goes on upon such occasions. One point which led to" the most contradictory evidence re lated to an incident which, if Mrs Miller's version were the correct one, certainly reflects little credit on the enterprising builder and owner of house property at the delightful seaside resort on the southern coast. But that Mrs Miller's opinion of Mr Joy rapidly changed for the worse is evident from the terms in which she ad dressed him,'in a letter of affectionate re monstrance. "You had better get a nurse," wrote the ill-used lady, probably in reference to Mr Joy's supposed inability to take care of himself, and to regu late his own conduct in the way he should go; adding, with impassioned pen, "Oh, Henry, I am ashamed of you !" Mr Joy may. possibly have been ashamed of himself when he saw what unpleasant con sequences his shilly-shallying in the matri monial market had led him to; but he finally determined to have no more to do with . tho female whom he had taken to Wimbledon' as his future wife, and—we regret to add"-rlie appears to have gone and " married another."

A FEMALE POISONER.

Ghastly Revelations in Liverpool.

The "murder market" is. rather flat at present; infact.l seemtohavenethingbetter ■ to. serve up for the delectation of those of your readers' who gloat upon " horrors" than a somewhat commonplace poisoning . case. This little affair took place in Liver pool, and what makes it interesting is the i suppositioivthat poor folks are beginning ' to comprehend some of the abuses to which life insurance and provident societies may be ■ put. The heroine of the' drataaa bears the heroic name of Catherine Flahnigan.and she is accused of making away With her brother in-law, a certain Thomas Higgins, who died very suddenly one Saturday morning under extremely Suspicious circumstances. It is . stated that Flannigan, who was sister to Mrs Higgins, had insured the deceased in several friendly societies _;.and the allegation is that she brought about his death in order to secure the amount for which she had . insured him. A brother of the deceased, having his suspicions aroused, took steps to ' prevent the funeral taking place, and com- . municated with the police and ADrs. Ptimrick and Whitford. Whert the police interfered there was a hearse at the door of the deceased's residence to take away the remains to the cemetery; but the hearse was sent away and a post mortem examina tion made on the body, when it is stated traces of poison were found. The woman Flannigan, on seeing the police enter the house, hurriedly left, and her whereabouts has not yet been discovered. Mrs Higgins, the wife of the deceased and sister to Flan nigan, was taken into custody on suspicion of being concerned in Higgins's death. An inquest was opened on Friday last by the city coronerintothecircumstanees attending' Higgins's death, and adjourned for a week, pending inquiries being made by the police. It is alleged that Flannigan has been in the habit of insuring the lives of the people in the neighbourhood, and drawing.the amount for which she has insured them on their death. The police,, it is stated, have'seized a large number of receipts for money thus received by, Flannigan, and are 'said'to be • in possession of information which will lead to revelations of a very extraordinary character. The Hothe'Secretary has ordered the exhumation,of several bodies of persons supposed to have been poisoned by Flanni- i ! gan. Insurances amounting to upwards of £150 had been effected on Higgins's life. START__I}.<.l STATEMENT BY A, FORMER, ;' - LODGER. ;. , r., The man Jennings has made the follow ing startling statement : "lam a labourer, and have, with the exception of three or four months, lived.with Mrs Flannigan .for about twelve years. My daughter and my wife also resided in the same • house; My wife died soon after I went to live with Mrs Flannigan.r and ihy daughter, after abeut three days' illness in January last. . Shortly after dinner on a Sunday, Margaret,- my daughter became very ill with violent - vomiting and purging, and died three on fout-days after in great agony*' Mrs Flan nigan had insured her for £50 in the Liver Office, and . for various , sums in other societies unknown tome.. I thought it and, asked Mr Higgins what I should.do. He advised me to take out let ters ,of administration, an<l apply at the offices of the: Liver, but .when J went to draw the jnoriey Mrs, Flannigan and her daughter followed'me "like detectives." O.utef the £50,1,ga.ve, Ma-s;Flannigan £30 and her. daughter £3, keeping £17 for myself.'. . Mrs •Flannigan.,-also 'received.. £9, .from.1 the Scottish Friendly Society, out pi. which she gave me half-a-s'over'eign.; I also heard that sho insured my wife for £16. She denied itj but I afterwards ascertained she had- don? so. During my daughter"^ , illness; Sirs Flannigan frequently .adminis tered medicine to her, which,she said she obtained from the "sixpenny doctor's" in .Walton Road.. When she was absent, .her daughter (tba..wife of the. deceased man, Thomas Higgins) gave the medicine. />Aftter ■.that -1. was. airafcEp to live. in- ,Mrs .■ Flan-,, -nigaa'err heiisa any." longer, and .took , fresh lodgings. Hutronte night, some time afterwarasj' whenT was .'"onthe beer,'' she persuaded tne to go and live with her..- - The. | rneighhours. often remarked about -tbetsujT deniiess of my -daughter's death, and one l said,, lsGf«l, help, yonj poor _, man. A r sfind. j yourself" while you are there.",- 1 sa^r/the'

deceased man Thomas Higgins on the day before he was taken ill. In fact, he was in a public-house in the neighbourhood of Athol-street on the Sunday ; he was taken ill on the Monday, and died on tho Tues day. Mrs Flannigan went to the house just before" the funeral was to take place, but when Mr Patrick Higgins and the doctors came she disappeared. I saw her an hour afterwards going in the direction of her house in Latimer-street, but shortly afterwards she was not there, and I havo not seen her since. SEARCH FOR THE WOMAN Fl_A_._._<_AX Two members of the Liverpool detective force on Thursday visited a house in Bootle, where it was suspected Mrs Flannigan, who is wanted on a charge of poisoning, was concealed. It was found, , however, that she had left to go to some friends in Linaore, but the police visited thedatter place also without success. There being go d grounds fcr supposing that the woman would endeavour to cross over to Ireland, and thence to get to America, the steamers sailing from Liverpool for Dublin, Drogheda, and other Irish ports were narrowly watched by the police, and hand bills were issued for despatch to Ireland with a complete description of the person wanted. The Liverpool chief constable has offered a reward of £5 'to . the ■ officer apprehending Mrs Flannigan. All the books, documents, and insurance policies belonging to the absconding woman were removed from her house soon after her flight by a 'Mrs Stanton, whose whereabouts has not been discovered. At a meeting of the Board of Management of the Royal Liver Friendly Society, all the collectors wore requested to go through their hooks and hand in the names of any persons who might have been insured in the Society by either Mrs Flannigan or her friends, as the Society would decline to have anything more to do with them. Ono woman, named Catherine Walsh, is still on the books of the Society as having been insured for £50 by Mrs Flannigan, who stated that she was her sister. frior to taking up her abode in Ascot-street, Mrs Flannigan resided in Limekiln Lane, and St. Martin, Skirving, and Latimer-streets, and rumours are rife that while she lived in each of these thoroughfares deaths occurred under cir cumstances equally as suspicious as those attending the decease of Thomas Higgins.

IXQUEST ON THE BODY OF HIGGINS,

On Friday morning Mr Clarke Aspinail, the city coroner, resumed the inquest on the body of Thomas Higgins.—Mi- Marks, prosecuting solicitor, watched the inquiry on behalf of the police; MrQuelch, solicitor, on behalf of friends of the deceased ; and Mr S. Hannan, solicitor, on behalf of the Royal Liver Friendly Society, in which Catherine Flannigan had insured her own son and daughter. The coroner said that since the jury last met the case had been assuming daily more extended proportions. He had been in communication with Mr Davies, the analytical chemist, and he had had several conferences with the prosecuting solicitor, and in consequence of what had taken place an adjournment was inevitable. —Dr. Whitford was called, anil said he attended the deceased, Thomas Higgins. He died on the 2nd of October; and. he . made a post mortem .examination on 'the 4th. Apart from the Subsequent analysis, the post mortem led him to be strongly of opinion that death was due to arsenical poison.—Dr. Davies, who analysed the contents of the deceased's stomach and bowels, said he found they contained a fluid gram of white arsenic, which, a'lowing of absorption of the body, would be sufficient to cause death.—The inquiry was then adjourned for three weeks.

A Professional Story-teller.

At one end of the market (of Hong Kong) was a crowd gathered round a man who, seated on a stool, was evidently recitinc or reading something. I found he was a pro fessional story-teller, and that he was engaged just then in the narration of the troubles of a mandarin's daughter, who, captured with her father by " some rebels, went through a series of terrible ad ventures, but who finally, by her singular courage, released herself and her • father, and brought the' head of the arch rebel to the Emperor. The reader or rather reciter was a man of middle.age, and of very respectable appearance. He held a fan in his hand, and his nails wero very loner, to indicate his gentility. I was told lie was a very clever mah,.who could, if he liked, talk in a dialect that the common people could not under stand, but that he was now speaking in Cantonese, and with great skill. It was evident that,* as tho story progressed, ho laid hold upon the feelings of his audience, for as he dwelt on the sufferings of the damsel, and wept copiously himself at the offspring of his own imagination, the -people all round mingled their tears with his and showed signs of the deepest emotion. These people would probably have looked callously, on had they seen a eirl in the position he.described, but. so fervent was his eloquence and so great his skill that they could not help weeping at the pictured tragedy. As for the orator him self, he would lower hi. 'voice and whisper, then, springing up, would shout but an im passioned sentence, relapsing once more into quietude as the tale went on, A magnifi cent actor, forgetting himself wholly in the interest of his tale, he he'd his hearers en thralled for more than two hours, for I now and again returned, only to find him unex hausted, and his audience unsatiated. While he spoke itinerant vendors of tea, peanuts, and sweetmeats permeated the crowd, doing a comfortable trade, and now and then one or other of the listeners would put down a few cash at the feet of the orator. On the whole, he appeared to be pretty well remunerated for his trouble, the people being only too glad to have such a -treat as his imagination afforded them. - .".',,'

An Expensive Wife.

Old gentleman in a beer garden near the railroad depot, waiting for his wife to arrive on. the next train, complaining to himself A Here Ihaye, already drank six glasses of Pilsener", autftlooking at his watch) the train wiU,not,beherefor anhouftocome. Thiswill compel me to; drink, six more glasses. Its terrible. 'What an expensive wife I have got!'' ~-.: r Mr and Mrs Jones were starting for ohurchv-" Wait, dear," said the lady, " I've forgotten; something; won't you fo t up.. and get. my \ goats off the ureaul?" " Your,goats, replied Jones; ••'•whatnew-fangled thing's 'that.2" . "I'll show you,""r^marked.,the, wife, and she sailed upstairs and.down .again . with a pair of kids on her I hands. J '[There; they are," said she. : • "Why, I call these things kids," said the surprised husband, "Oh, do § ypu_ " snapped the wife. " Well, so didfit * once, but they are so old now, I'm ashamed |toJsgll them anything hut goats." Then thssj^-went on to church. The next day JoneS's'wife had; a half-dozen pairs of new gloye3 in a handsome lacquered box of'the . latestdesign. __\ o ,__ , •,,. -~,.,;!,./

STAR SATURDAY SUPPLEMENT, JANUARY 12; 1884

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