bridge, he heard a train thundering
along in the distance, approaching every moment nearer and nearer. No
one will ever know the struggles for life which the poor fellow made, but
they were futile; with arms pinioned to his sides he was unable to signal
the engineer. The train came sweeping on upon its helpless victim until
within a few feet of the spot, when the engineer saw the man's head and
endeavoured to stop his heavy train. But too late; the moving mass
passed over, cutting his head from the shoulders as clean as it could
have been done by the guillotine itself. Cooper was 60 years of age.

--_Ithaca_ (N.Y.) _Journal_.

THAT ACCURSED DRINK.

An English traveller in Ireland, greedy for information and always
fingering the note-book in his breast pocket, got into the same railway
carriage with a certain Roman Catholic archbishop. Ignorant of his rank,
and only perceiving that he was a divine, he questioned him pretty
closely about the state of the country, whisky drinking, etc. At last he
said, "You are a parish priest, yourself, of course." His grace drew
himself up. "I _was_ one, sir," he answered, with icy gravity. "Dear,
dear," was the sympathizing rejoinder. "That accursed drink, I suppose."

RAILWAY UP VESUVIUS.

This railway, the last new project in mountain-climbing, is now finished.
It is 900 metres in length, and will enable tourists to ascend by it to
the very edge of the crater. The line has been constructed with great
care upon a solid pavement, and it is believed to be perfectly secure
from all incursions of lava. The mode of traction is by two steel ropes
put in motion by a steam engine at the foot of the cone. The wheels of
the carriages are so made as to be free from any danger of leaving the
rails, besides which each carriage is furnished with an exceedingly
powerful automatic brake, which, should the rope by any chance break,
will stop the train almost instantaneously. One of the chief
difficulties of the undertaking was the water supply; but that has been
obviated by the formation of two very large reservoirs, one at the
station, the other near the observatory.

--_Railway Times_, 1879.

EXTRAORDINARY ESCAPE OF BALLOONISTS.

Yesterday evening, Aug. 6th, 1883, a special train of "empties," which
left Charing-cross at 5.55 to pick up returning excursionists