Rensselaer Republican, Volume 14, Number 36, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 25 May 1882 — Curious Facts. [ARTICLE]

Curious Facts.

An ostrich egg is considered equivalent to twenty-four eggs of the domestic hen. Chapman says that the Bushmen of Bouth Africa thought his big wagon was the mother of his small one. Mounds have been found in the Pyrenees as’distinctin tieir resemblance to animal forms as any American mounds. A complete set of papier-mache furniture inlaid with mother-ot-pearl, was made a few years ago for the queen of Spain. Whales have been recently seen on the Georgia coast, and have become so bold that they even enter inland streams. The caterpillar of the silk-worm, when fully developed, is 70,000 times heavier than when it came from the eggA French insane woman had a deep affection for pins, and made them a part of her daily diet. After her death 1,400 or 1,600 pins were removed from different parts of her body. The pine-needles of the Silesian forests have been converted into forest wool, which besides being efficacious ip cases of rheumatism, can be curled, felted and woven. Western men frequently die with their boots on, and Eastern men frequently feel like dying under similar circumstances. We believe that the execution of a few shoemakers would go far toward helping this matter. Two tugboats are about to start from Craney Island, Va., with a raft of lumber 275 feet long, which is to be towed to New York. This is the firs' attempt at such an undertaking, and the raft has been solidly constructed to withstand the action of the sea. Queen Victoria recently cenferred the decoration of the Victoria Crosupon Lieut. Henry Lysons and Private Edmond Fowler, both of the Secs ond battalion of the Cameronians, for conspicuous bravery in Zululand. On the 28th of March, 1879, during the assault of the Inhlobane mountains, Sir Evelyn Wood ordered thedislodgmentof certain Zulus from strong natural oaves commanding the position in which seme of the wounded were lying. Some delay occurring in the execution of the orders issued, Capt. Ronald Campbell, Coldstream guards, followed by Lieut. Lysons, aid-dj-carap, and Private Fowler

rim forward in the most determined manner, and advanced over a mass of fallen boulders and between walls of rock which led to a cave in which the enemy lay hidden. It being impossible for two men to walk abreast, the assailants were consequently obliged to keep in single file, and, as Capt. Campbell was leading, he arrived first at the mouth of the cave, from which the Zulus were firing, and there met his death. Lieut. Lysous and Private Fowler,who were following close behind him, immediate dashed at the cave, from which led several subterranean passages,and firing into the chasm below, succeeded in forcing the occupants to forsake their stronghold. Lieut. Lysons remained at the cave’s mouth for some minutes after the attack, during which time Capt. Campbell’s body was carried down the slope.