French army, peace footing. 523,283 German army, peace footing. 445,417 United States army of pensioners, peace footing. 400,000 One of the great evils of a huge standing army is the cost of its support--a constant drain upon the national resources. It does not seem that in this respect we have so very much the advantage of France or Germany, loaded down as those nations are with military burdens. The great difference is that, while all or nearly all of the French and German soldiers, supported at the national expense, are available in case of a national emergency, few or none of ours are. Is this enormous burden a just debt? The question is best answered by another question. Is it not fair to assume that in 1877, twelve years after the end of the civil war, about all the equitable claims for pensions on account of that war had been put in and allowed? Yet since 1877, the number of pensioners on our rolls has almost doubled; and the annual cost of maintaining them has nearly trebled.--_N. Y. Sun._ A Solid Life Insurance Company. The figures of the last annual report of the New York Life Insurance Company, just issued, present a record of almost unexampled success in the conduct of the business of that old and strong company for the past year. Its income for the year was $19,230,408, it paid policy holders $7,627,230, and it has cash assets amounting to $75,421,453. It goes without the saying that this great company does its insurance business on strictly business principles. It recognizes the policy holder's right to paid-up insurance in case of a discontinuance of payment of premiums, and its policies are notably free from restrictions as to occupation, residence, and travel. The company issues a great variety of policies, thus adapting its contracts to the wants of almost every one having present means from which a small percentage can be spared for the benefit of themselves or those dependent upon them at a future date. DR. GILES DE LA TOURETTE has recently published a monograph upon normal locomotion and the variations in the gait caused by diseases of the nervous system. He found, from a comparison of a large number of cases, that the average length of pace is, for men, 25 inches; for women, 20 inches. The step with the right foot is somewhat longer than that with the left. The feet are separated laterally in walking about 4½ inches in men and about 5 inches in women. EMERY WHEELS FOR GUMMING SAWS.