issue, the number of the note, the signature of the official using it, indications of its value in figures, in words and in the pictorial representation in coins or heaps of coins equal in amount to its face value, and a notice of the pains and penalties of counterfeit ing. Over and above all was a laconic exhortation of industry and thrift — "Produce all you can; spend with economy." These notes were printed in blue ink on paper made from the fibre of the mulberry tree. One issued in 1399 B.C. is still preserved at St. Petersburg. Lieutenant Sharpe, of the navy, was lately ap pointed to one of the vessels recently bought by the Government, and had an interview with the secretary of the navy. He observed that his new ship bore the same name as his wife, adding, with a smile, that she had hastened to remind him that it would be the first Josephine he had ever commanded. The secretary seemed amused. A few days later the name was changed to the Vixen, and now Mrs. Sharpe wants to know why.
The duration of sunshine in the various countries of Europe was recently discussed at a scientific meet ing. It was shown that Spain stands at the head of the list, having on the average 3000 hours of sun shine per year, while Italy has 2300 hours. Ger many comes next with 1700 and England, 1400.
One of the strangest streams is in East Africa. It flows in the direction of the sea, but never reaches it. Just north of the equator, and when only a few miles from the Indian Ocean, it flows into a desert, when it suddenly and completely disappears.
The oldest university in the world is El Ayhar, at Cairo. It is the greatest Mohammedan university, having clear records dating back nearly a thousand years. Paper made from seaweed is a growing industry in France. It is so transparent that it has been used in place of glass.
The longest canal in the world is in Russia. It extends from St. Petersburg to the frontier of China, and measures nearly 4500 miles.
An organist says that a cow moos in a perfect fifth octave, or tenth; a dog barks in a fifth or fourth; a donkey brays in a perfect octave, and a horse neighs in a descent on the chromatic scale.
Turkey and Greece are the only European coun tries into which the telephone has not yet been intro duced. Sweden has the largest number of telephones per capita of any country in the world, having one to every 115 persons, and Switzerland comes next with one to every 129. Gaust is the smallest republic in the world. It has an area of one mile and a population of cne hun dred and forty. It has existed since 1648, and is recognized by both Spain and France. It is situated on the flat top of a mountain in the Pyrenees, and has a president who is elected by the council of twelve. The French Journal Le Veto has counted 852 pieces in a bicycle, and adds that by closer search ing we might find more.
More men have died and are buried in the Isthmus of Panama, along the line of the proposed canal, than on any equal amount of territory in the world.
LITERARY NOTES. The American Monthly Review of Reviews for October gives special attention to the develop ments of the previous month in international politics and to the lessons of the Spanish-American War. The editor discusses the attitude of the Spanish people toward peace conditions, the new relations between Germany and England, the Czar's proposition for disarmament, the Dreyfus case in France, England's reopening of the Soudan, and other serious problems confronting the European powers.
The article in the October Scribner's on the "Battle of San Juan," by Richard Harding Davis, is a complete and careful analysis of the conduct of the whole Santiago campaign. Captain Arthur H. Lee, the British military attache, who accompanied our troops to Cuba, writes of " The Regulars at El Caney." In her paper on "American Popularity," Miss Aline Gorren accounts for the almost general European attitude of individual and social hostility to us. " A New York Day — Evening," by C. D. Gibson, in cludes drawings of typical city scenes, the Tenth Inning, the Cable-Car, Waiting for Tables at the Waldorf, In the Park. Among the short stories are "Drummed Out," by Harrison Robertson, and "Johnny's Job," by Octave Thanet. The complete novel in the October issue of Lippincott's is " Confessions of an Aide-de-Camp," by Captain F. A. Mitchel. It is a tale of the Civil War, and the heroine and hero pass through some surpris
