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Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume 4, Issue 194, 8 June 1861, Page 1

The Wtste ITaevest. — The vignerons on the Barrabool Hills and the vicinity are busily engaged at the preseant time at the wine press. The yield of grapes daring the present vintage has been very large, and although the season was backward, it has proved no detriment to the fruit, its product being of a superior quality. It is anticipated that_ double the quantity of both red and white wine" will -be casked this- year that came, from the press lin 1860. -The screw press is being used this season by some of the vignerons for the first time, and its advantage over the more primitive method of extracting the juice of the grape is said to be very great. — Geelonj Advertiser,

Mes. Habeiet Beechee Stowe on the Peesident's Message.— The following article, by this lady, appears in the Neva York Independent : — " We think no state paper so remarkable has ever appeared from a Chief Executive in this country — perhaps in any other country. The cool, decisive manner • with which the President, all through a certain portion, identifies himself with the Southern States, and speaks with perfect naivete from their point of view, is the first striking feature. The coolness which with he turns round upon the Northern States, and charges upon them the whole guilt and responsibility of the extravaganzas now going on in the South, is another feature. The coolness with which, from first to last, he ignores the existence of any moral and religious sense as forming any competent element in regulating national movements, is another and very striking one. " The fool hath said in bis heart there is no God," said David, in- his time. It was left for the nineteenth century to show a specimen of state paper, proposing to a Christian nation to become more formally than ever they had been before, robbers, kidnappers, and pirates — without betraying through a fine that a God had ever been heard of in America — unless it be in certain rhetorical phrases at the close. The South is all in an uproar, he tells vs — they cannot sleep at night for fear of servile insurrection, and of course, somebody is to blame for this, and something must be done. Who is to blame ? There are four millions of men and women — some of them black, and some of them white — whom the Southerti law, systematically and with logical accuracy not to be misunderstood, has stripped even of the name of human beings, and declared not persons: but things. * * * What are these madmen now doing, that they sit on their powder magazines and fire hot shot to right and left ? In the theatres of South Carolina they are singing in the ears of an impreseibly nervous people, who 'are quick to catch both tune and words, that furious marseillaise, which seems to breathe the very roar of a wild and angry mob of barbarians. They forget who listens while they sing— " Oh liberty, can man resign thee. Once having felt thy generous flame ¥ Can dungeon bolts or oars confine thee, Or whips thy noble spirit tame?" Is it creditable that these words can be allowed to go ringing and echoing : in the ears of plantation slaves ? and then is the North coolly to be told instate papers that the South cannot sleep for fear of servile agitations, and that it is her aeration on liberty that is the reason J * * * Tne remedy he proposes is quite as remarkable. He says: "Alter the Constitution of the United States so as fuDy, freely, and clearly to admit and legalise slavery, and agitation will cease." Agitation cease ! It reminds us of an anecdote of an old black slave-woman calling herself " Sojourner Truth," who sat in the front ranks onca in the Abolition meeting, when Frederick Douglas, fired with the wrongs 'of his race, and the despairs of the white race, declared that ■ there was neither hope nor help for the slave but in their own right arms. In the pause that followed this appeal, Sojourner lifted her dark face, working with intense feeling, and said in a low, deep voice, which was heard in every corner of the room, — " Frederick, is God dead ?" Let that old black slave-woman's question ring through this nation as it rang through ITaneuil Hall. To all who hope or dream to put down agitation by a covenant with death and an agreement with hell, old Africa rises, and raising her poor, maimed, scarred hand to heaven, asks us,— { Is God dead V " An leish Discussion. — A contractor who was building a tunnel on a certain Ohio railroad one morning observed that the face of a member of his gang had its surface all spotted with bruises and plaisters. " Ah ! Jimmy," said he, " what have you been doin' ?" " Not very much, sur," answered Jimmy ; "I was just down at Billy Mulligan's last night, sur, an' him an' me had a bit of a discooshen aotd sMicJcs." A lanky li'ish peasant, on a little ragged pony, was floundering through, one of the bogs so ■ common in that country, when the animal, in its efforts to gush through, got one of his feet into the stin'up. " Ah, now," said the rider," if you are going to get tip it's time "for me to get down." "My dear," inquired a young wife of her husband, as she reached up her rosy little mouth to be kissed on his return from business, " have you seen the magnificent Bet of walnut furniture which the Jenkinses have just bought P" — " Hem, no my love, but I have seen the bill, which quite satisfies me." "It is not every day in the year," says the G-eelong Advertiser, "that one falls in. with a female watchmaker; such, a curiosity, for this colony, might, however, have been seen in the witness box in the. Circuit Court on Thursday, when Madame Kosine Juste, deposed that a certain watch then in question had been cleaned and regulated by her own fair hands." « What would our. wives say if they knew where we were ?" said the captain of a schooner, when they were beating about in a thick fog, fearful of going on shores "Humph! I shouldn't mind that," replied the mate, "if we only knew where we were ourselves." Every husband thinks that he can tame a shrew •except the poor fellow that owns her. The total known, criminal population of England and Wales numbers 135,766 persons, all at large and it is estimated that it costs the country £9,000,000 annually. :

Genebai. Cameron. — We (Wellington Independent) have been favoured wih the following extract of a letter from a military officer . lately resident in this settlement received by the last mail from England : — " Allow me to congratulate the New Zealand colonies in general, and you in particular, on the steps taken by the Home Government for the pacification of your chosen land. General Cameron is a master of the Art of War, and under his directions, you need not fear to hear of 300 men being engaged at a disadvantage and unsupported by a strong body in the immediate neighbourhood j or, in fact of any of those blunders which, when read in the narrative form of despatches and newspaper reports, seem to have arisen from a want of military capacity. The natural plan of a campaign against the maories will be (1) to establish a defensive cordon* round the settlement itself, within which non-combatants will be safe; but not to attempt the absurdity of defending scattered farms and holdings j (2) to harass the enemy by strong flying columns, unincumbered by baggage ; (3) to prevent the natives from cultivating any land in the disturbed districts, and to prevent their purchasing food at the ports or from tribes friendly to us (4) the latter should be used as auxiliaries. Some such mode of operations would be pursued by any commander of one tenth the ability of General Cameron. Sir James Alexander will ably second bis efforts. When the hostile tribes are brought to terms, (which will be very shortly,) they should be made to pay in land at upset price for the expenses of tJie war, or at least for the damage done to crops, houses, 'and stock. If this is not seen to, the cost will probably fall on the Colonial purse, as the English tax payers are looking closely into these matters. The kind of utu suggested would be very consonant with Maori ideas of punishment." Aipaca Sheep. — Mr. Elliot moved in the Council at their sitting on the 21st May, — " That" his Honor the Superintendent be requested to address the Governor of New South Wales to ascertain whether the Government of that colony will be willing to spare this province a male and two * females of the alpaca flock, lately introduced there from South America, for the purpose of propagating the breed of that valuable animal in this colony." He said he might prohably be asked why the Government should do this in preference to the adoption of private means to secure some of these valuable animals. He could only say that the animals were the property of the Government of New South- Wales, and that, having been brought at great trouble and -expense from Peru, and purchased by that Government, he did not think there was the smallest probability that a private application would be attended~to ; whereas, if the Provincial Government applied for them, he thought the Governor of New South Wales might comply with the request. They were animals so remarkably well adapted for certain portions of this province, where food was poor and scarce, that he thought they would prove a highly valuable importation. — Nelson Examiner. Bank as New Sooth Waijes. — The Inspector of the Bank of New South Wales, was a passenger hy the Lord Ashley to Nelson. He proceeded by the Airedale to Auckland, to make preliminary arrangements to open a Branch in that province, and will next visit Wellington, Canterbury, Otago, and Southland, to establish Branches in each of those provinces. The Manager of the Canterbury Branches, for there are to be two in. that province, one at Christchurch and another afe Lyttelton, is a passenger by the Lord .Ashley. The Bank of New South Wales is the oldest and one of the most influential in the Australian Colonies, having been established in 1817. It is a, Colonial Institution, and has a paid up capital of £750,000, with a reserve fund of £212,500. The last half-yearly balance sheet of the Bank of NewSouth Wales showed a total of nearly £6,000,000, thus testifying that this Bank possesses a very large share of public confidence in the neighbouring colonies. We understand that an arrangement has been made by which the Oriental Bank will retire in favour of the Bank of New South Wales. — Wellington Independent, May 28. Lieut. Nares, of H.M.S. Britannia,' has invented a kite for landing a line from stranded vessels. It has been tried with great success. To bring the kite to the ground when sufficiently advanced beyond the face of a cliff or high water mark, Lieut. Nares has a second line attached to the right' angle of the kite; holding on to this line and letting go the joying line of the kite, the latter instantly capsizes and descends to the earth. Lord Campbell said he himself heard a judge at Stafford thus sentence a prisoner to death for forgery: — "And I trust, through the merits and mediation of our blessed Redeemer, you may experience that mercy in another world which a due regard to the credit of the paper currency of the country forbids you to hope for here." "Just a light supper, my dear j a light supper,'* said a gentleman to his wife, when he brought company home. Said gentleman was astonished when he found the light supper, to be composed of half a dozen candles lighted, and casting 'their radiance over an otherwise supperless tabled "Rather too light, my-dear," quoth the husband.' The ladies of India, with Lady Canning at the head- of their committee, purpose to erect ; a ; monument over the too-famous well at Cawnpore. Mi*. Scott, R. A., has made designs for this' work. DrPTHEEiA.—The number ■of deatbstjfi^bm : diptheria in the United States, during the past jear, is Baid to be no less than 10,000.

Slb William Don. — It has, no doubt, says the JBnipire^ become a question in the nitnds of ■ many what brought Sir William Don to the stage, and it is. with«much satisfaction that we have learned from reliable authority that he acts to enable him to discharge liabilities and obligations created in former years. Sir William Don is the representative of one of the oldest baronetces in Scotland. His father and grandfather, Sir Alexander And Sir James Don, held the estates of Newton Ddn, and Agilchje, to which the present Baronet succeeded when quite a child. His great-grandfather was James, Earl of Glencairn, whose name is the more memorable from the record of his lordship in the life of Robert Burns, who, in acknowledgment of the many kindnesses received, wrote the famous poem the " Lament," on learning of the death of his -benefactor. Burns was, so to speak, one of the family, and was a frequent guest of the Earl, as also, Sir Alexander Don, at " Newton Don," and in fact so much so, that when Burns wrote the ballad, "Ye Banks and Braes," &c, Sir Alexander composed the air to it, which is a remarkable proof of the association. At an early period of Sir William's life his father died, and left him the possessor of a vast fortune ; himself and one sister (the wife of Mr. F. Milbank, who is heir direct to the dukedom of Cleveland) were the only children. At Eton he was the " top of each.form," and always looked upon as the champion. His great hobby was the " Turf," and from early youth he became a most conspicuous member thereof, has ridden and owned many of the best horses of the day — Pioneer, Jonathan Wild, &c, &c. His education, added to his natural gifts, made him a most accomplished courtier, and he was ever, as a youth, the centre of a large circle. At Court he ■was at home. He held the very distinguished and high post at the marriage of Queen Viotoria of Page of honour, with a youth of the same age, Sir Robert Jukes Clifton, Bart. He held a commission in the sth Dragoon Guards, then commanded by General Scarlett. He was aide-de-camp to Earl de Grey, when Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. He ran through his vast fortune' of over £ISO,OOO before he was twenty- three years of age, and beiag at all times a great mimic, and the "star" of private aristocratic theatricals, he determined to take to the stage to earn his own living rather than have it said he depended on his ' rich* relations. Finding himself considerably involved in debt to — -usurers,- over ready to feed the^passions of rich spendthrifts, his property was sold. The charm* ing estate of Newton Don passed irrecoverably from the family. This touched the Baronet, and in his calmer moments he vowed to redeem the Baronial Hall. He has done much towards it, and all the debts he owed have been satisfactorily adjusted. His talents as an actor have everywhere been successful. Sir William is very tall, and a most accomplished man as an actor, whether in English, French, and German plays, it is alike to him, and no matter what sphere or phase of life. We could elaborate in detailing a host of " hair-breadf h scapes " .and eccentricities of Sir William recorded in association with the Marquis of Waterford, and which will form the topic of converse of many a circle during his sojourn amongst us." Another journal thus notices the performances of Sir William and Lady Don : — " Sir William and Lady J)on are still playing at the Victoria Theatre to full and fashionable houses and enhanced prices. I went to see them with strong prejudice, because the system of puffery now in use seemed peculiarly to favour the notion that they were humbugs, presuming on a title. But, after witnessing several performances, I can truly say that they both possess merits that need no aid from title. He is a perfect " droll," with a command of feature the most imperturbable ; and his enormous height (6 feet 7 inches) throws an air of absurdity irresistible upon his comic impersonations. As to Lady Don, formerly Miss Sanders, I can only recommend those who have not yet had that pleasure to see and hear her. Her figure is graceful, demeanour ladylike, and voice clear and ringing as a glass bell. It must be something ont of the common way that could give renewed popularity to so old a ditty as " Charlie is my darling ; " but .every youngster about the city is singing it. Her song "My Johnny was a shoemaker " is a rare bit of drollery of the " Villikins and his Dinah" school, but made immensely popular by her archness of expression and the music of her voice. Sir Willam Don, in "Ravina," the neglected wife — a burlesque upon our ancient schoolboy acquaintance, The Miller and his Men — must be seen to be believed, and is a cure for the megrims. Fancy six feet and a half of womanhood, with bulky red petticoats to match, deploring the faithlessness of her lord, and accompanying her lamentations with a sort of Jim Crow dance to the music of the tambourine ! Steam Ship Victoria. — At last— shall we say, fortunately? — the New Zealand war broke out, and solved the puzzling problem for the Executive in a most satisfactory way. No longer was it necessary that the sloop should be every now and then sent in a hurry to the Heads to execute some mock commission. Here was real and highly important work cut out for her. To Taranaki harbour the Victoria went accordingly, and in due course of time returner), carrying back with her a few laurels and a very long bill of costs. It will take whole blue-books of official correspondence to get that unlucky bill paid and settled. Touching it, .there is a sort of triangular duel to come off between the Governments of New Zealand and Victoria, and Downing street. Before all is over, we shrewdly suspect that there will pass between the three Executives almost as many despatches as have been written about the everlasting Land Question. — Melbourne Herald. On Thursday, last, a splendid nugget, weighing 281 ounces, was found in an abandoned shaft at Mountain Creek. The lucky finders had only driven ten inches beyond the point at which it had been left by its original possessors, when they came upon the lump of gold. — Melbourne Herald, April V-221 / : ., .; Tikes Correspondent in Ameeioa. — A para- ' grjaph\m : the 'Times' announces the departure for ¥ America of their well-known " special correspondent,'! Dr. Wiyiam H o ward RusselL The purpose .of; his visit; is,, a tour of the Southern States, and y fa full report, of what he sees /there.' . , £ \f x; A, 'bachelor editor, who had a pretty sister, re- ; oentljiwrote to another bachelor equally fortunate : v^-r:". Please- exchange." , .

. :•*■'# ? , ,-,. •■ -- ~ — Wateeand Public Health. — Another communication on this important subject ' has been addressed to the Academy of Sciences by M. Griuiaud de Caux, a gentleman who some months ago gave a very interesting description of the" system employed at Venice in the construction' of cisterns. In his present papers M; Grimaud do Caux makes some, important remarks on the different effects produced by the emanations of saliae and those of fresh water. Venice, for instance, lies, as we know, in the midst of-. salt lagoons, while the surrounding terra jirma is marshy through the agency of fresh water, which the Venetian Republic bad, by vast and costly hydraulic contrivances, carefully excluded from the lagoons. Now although this marshy soil is soarcely three miles from the city, which is itself constantly immersed in the emanations from the lagoons, it is a fact that the ague is a very rare malady at Venice, while it is proverbially endemic in the adjoining marshes, and to such an extent, that the Custom-house officers stationed at Fusine some years ago were entitled to a daily ration of quinine, at the charge of Government. Hence it appears that while fresh water emanations relax the fibres of the human body without any other redeeming action, the emanations from salt water, although, they have the same tendency to produce relaxation, yet at the same time are pregnant with a corrective which neutralizes that effect. M. Grimaud de Caux now proceeds to examine the cause of noxious exhalations in the dwellings of the humbler classes of Paris. In such dwellings there is generally a paved court, and a pump yielding spring water, which is of inferior quality to that which would be supplied by the city. Tiie court, "which is generally of less than moderate dimensions, receives all the foul water from the sinks, which is carrried away by the gutters ; and while the water which occasionally runs waste from the pump washes both court and gutters, it also filters between the paving stones, carrying with it some of the putrid particles which it is supposed to wash away. The consequence ie that in the course of a very short time ali the ground becomes infected ; if a stone be removed its bed is found to be black and fetid ; so that it is not surprising if its effluvia produce the same effect as the marshes round Venice. To remedy this, M. Grimaud de Caux recommends, first, the removal of all these pumps, as one of the causes of noxious infiltration ; secondly, the suppression of the system of paving courts, which should be flagged with bitumen instead ; and thirdly, the distribution of go.oci water at a cneap rate to these houses by the city. English Divorce Court. — The. stream -of business running into the Divorce Court appears greatly to exceed Lhe outpouring. A correspondent of the 'Times' says: — "There have been 250 causes set down for hearing in this court, and up to the present time 70 have been disposed ol^ leaving a balance of 180 untried. Tke court has been sitting about three months, and, taking the average of cases to be adjudicated upou at 25 per month, deducting Easter and the long vacation, it would bring the last cause on probably about March, 1862. Then- Sir C. Ureas well will find another monster arrear of more than 200 new causes staring him in the face. One judge and one court can never get anything like through Liiis herculean task of never-ending accumulation." ExtkavagaHCE. — Since the rage for dres3 and finery act in — since extravagance beuame a wo' manly beauty, and to live beyond ono's means a social requirement— since the loom and Lhe workshop have taken the place of birth and refinement, and the moneyed vulgarian is counted higher than the penny less aristocrat — since women have been ranked by what they wear and not by what they are, and a becoming toilette is accounted equal to personal grace — since none but a chosen few dare to be simple, none but a remnant of the faithful dare to hold themselves aloof from luxury ana fashion — more families have been ruined than has ever been known before, and the boasted happiness of the English home is fast becoming a fable and a myth. — London Review. Kewstead. — The abbey and domain of Newstead, Notts, well known as the residence and property of the poet,. Lord Byron, have been purchased by Mr. William Frederick Webb, of the 17th Lancers, of Popper-Hall, Yorkshire,, for£lso,ooo. The abbey was founded by Henry 11., and subsequently became by royal grant the property of the Byrons. The late Colonel Wildnian, a friend and schoolfellow of the poet, purchased the property in 1818, and he is stated to have expended between £200,000 and £300,000 on the restoration and decoration of the abbey and grounds. The Great Eastern. — The directors of the Great Ship Company had determined upon despatching the Great .Eastern to New York on Ist May. She will be commanded on this occasion by Capt. the Hon. S. T. Carnegie, R.N., one of the directors. The engagement with Captain Hall terminated with the last voyage of the great ship, and has not been renewed. A Feeling Reply. — An apprentice who had been misbehaving, one day came in for chastisement, on which his master exclaimed — ' How long will you serve the devil ? ' The boy replied — ; ' You know best, sir ; I believe my indenture will be out in three months.' Church Pews and Crinoline. — At the letting of the sittings of Breehin Pariah Church, a new element in the qualifications of the sitting, namely, their capabilities to permit the ingress and egress of crinolined ladies, appeared to influence several in their choice on the occasion. — Arbroath Ghuide. Condolence. — A country editor, noticing the disease of v a wealthy gentleman, observes : — * He has died, regretted by a numerous circle of friends, and leaving a widow as disconsolate as 'any widow need" be who has obtained the uncontrolled possession of one thousand per annum. More than twenty young men have sent letters of condolence to her.' A Lttnae BEATT.—Says an astronomer to a bright eyed girl, when talking of rainbows,—" Did you ever see a lunar bow, miss ? "= — " I have seen a beau by moonlight, if that's what you mean," waa the sly rejoinder. When a man wants money or assistance, the world, as a rule, is very obliging and indulgent, and — lets him want it. A Likeness. — Why is a lover like a dog ? Because he bows and he wows.

. The Austbaman Tbappeb. — Many of our readers have been, no doubt, made familiar with the everyday adventufes of the American trapper, through the Ufe-like descriptions of Cooper, Washington Irving, and- other writers ; but we haJviei- never yet seen depicted by any writer the life, of his Australian prototype, and, perhaps, this may be the first time that such, a personage has ' been brought before the notice of the greater "portion, of our readers. Notwithstanding this, the Australian trapper carries on profitably ..in several parts of the country his lonely occupation j and many- will be surprised to learn that several hundreds of men pass six months of the winter season in capturing, for the sake of their furs, the opossum,- native cat, and flying squirrel, denizens of the colony. . The principal scene of the labours of these adventurers is the immense expanse of open woodland country that borders the arid plains of the Adelaide desert, and after passing Horsham, on the Wimtnera, the solitary tents of these wandering sons of Nirnrod may be seen at intervals of several miles. The method generally used to trap the unsuspecting varmint ib by the old figure of four trap, a heavy weight being attached to the upper covering, which, on losing the support of the treacherous piece of wood, previously baited, falls heavily on the unfortunate animal, killing it instantly,- the skins by this method are uninjured. The trapper has generally each day 40 or 50 traps to attend to, leaving them baited each evening, and going round the following morning to gather the tropbies of the chase 3 of course he is often compelled, to be satisfied it oniy "half of his traps have proved successful. The animals are then skinned, and the skins pegged out with the fur inside to the smooth bark o£ a gum tree, for the purpose of drying, and afterwards are packed away in bundles to be forwarded at the end of the season to Melbourne, where, vve understand, good skins will fetch from 3d. to 4d. each, a good trapper being oi'ten able, after paying all expenses, to clear £40 or £50 by his trip; Although lonely, and apparently uncomfortable, such a life appears, from the descriptions of the trappers themselves, to have its peculiar charms, and a great many look -forward to the winter season with pleasing satisfaction. — Mountain Creek Pioneer, sth April. Ijipbotements in Pabis. — The list of improvements to be made in Paris this year has been published, and makes Londoners sigh lor a Prefect of the Thames. We can mention only the more important. The Boulevard de Sebastopoi is to be completed, the Boulevard de St. Gewnain opened, and the Boulevards Malesherbes-Beaujon, de l'Alma, dv Roi de J&oine, and de l'Empereur to be finished. A new square is to be laid out opposite the church of tit. Nicolas- des-Chainp6, the Palais de Justice to be enlarged, the cathedral of Notre-Dame to be repaired, the palace of the Louvre redecorated, new tenmni, theatres, and chui'ches erected in different quarters of the city. In short, the process of beautilying Paris, w-lnch commenced with the emperor's accession, is to De steadily continued, and the city to be made architecturally as well as politically the capital of Western Europe. The Seeyices of the Dbed&e in bequisition. — On the 20chi (September lust, Superintendent Adams, of Marlborough thus wrote fcupermtendeuc FitzGeraid, of Hawke's Buy : — " Sir, — I have the honour, at the ri-quost of one of the members oi this Provincial Council, to ask you if you would be agreeable tohirethe dredging machine used by your Government for cleansing the harbour at Napier, and if so, at what cose." To whicu — as we find from the Marlborough Press — Air. FiizGerald thus replied uuder date the 30th October : — " Sir, — In reply to your letter of the 20th uio., I have the honour to inform you that as there wjJI probably be constant employment for many years for the steam dredge, now at work deepeuiug the harbour of Port INapier, the Provincial Governtnent of Hawke's Bay is not in a position to entei'= tain any proposition such as that suggested by you at the present time." How Tennyson looks. — Bayard Taylor, in an article in the New York Independent, thus described the personal appearance of the British poet laureate, and the greatest poet of the age : — " In form and voice Tennyson is a thorough .Englishman ; in features, complexion, and hair, a mechse- ; val Italian. His presence impresses you with a singular mixture of N ortbern and Southern fire. He is fully six. feet high, broad shouldered, and large limbed, yet with black hair and eyes, a pale olive complexion, full lips, and a black beard and moustache. Power is expressed in every feature. His voice is remarkably full and grand in tone, with a little of that monotony wnich betrays a mind. withdrawn and absorbed in its speculations. I should judge him to be one of the least demonstrative of men, yet you would pick him out of a crpwd of ten thousand as the wisest man among them before he opened his lips." To Distinguish Mubhboomb fbom Poisonous Fungi. — 1. Sprinkle a little salt on a spongy part, or gills, of the sample to be tried. If they turn yellow, they are poisonous; if black they are wholesome. Allow the salt to act before you decide. 2. False mushrooms have a warty cap, or else fragments of membrane adhering to tne upper surface, are heavy, and emerge from a valve, or bay ; they grow in tufts or dusters in wooda, on the stumps of trees, etc., whereas the true mushrooms grow in pastures. 3. False mushrooms have an astringent, styptic, and disagreeable taste. 4. When cut, they turn blue. 5. They are moist on the surface, and generally of a rose or orange colour. 6. The gills of the true mushrooms are of a pinky red, changing to a liver colour, 7. the flesh is white. 8. The stem is white, solid, and cylindrical. ■ l Bbibeby and Cokbttption. — At an election dinner, a voter said he had never received a bribe to the extent of a farthing. ' Oh, Mr. Smith, how can you say so,' observed another voter, ' when I know Mr. W. Bent you a hare ? ' ' Ay, that's true . enough j but it was full of maggots.' 'Well then,' was the rejoinder, ' if it were not bribery, it was corruption.' A Sm^bt Betobt. — A dootor went to bleed a dandy, who languidly exclaimed — 'Oh, doctor, you're a good butcher !" To which the doctor rejoined — 'Oh, yes, I am used to sticking calves.' A HopeIiESS Baoheiob.— -A sour fellow says that he always looks under the marriage head for the newa of. the ' weak.'

The 70th Regiment.— -After twelve yeai^.of active service in India, the gallant,7Oth Regjgh^t of Foot were dispatched to New Zealand byThe Indian Government, when the necessity for strong reinforcements to put down the Maori rebels became pressing. They were embarked at Calcutta, in three ships. The first detachment, commanded by Capt. Oswald Pilling, 31 1 strong, were landed from the Daniel Rankin yesterday about ..noon. The men paraded in double column on the Queenstreet Pier, and marched oif to the Otahuhu Camp to the music of the band of the 65th Regt. They are a fine body of men, rather sallow from protracted exposure to an Indian sun, but have the look'of trained and resolute soldiers. _-A few weeks of the bracing air at Otahuhu will restore tone and vigour after the enervating effects of an unhealthy climate and a long sea voyage ; and, from the ternper and spirit of the men, we are assured that if ' led to attack the enemy in the field they will maintain the honour of their country untarnished, and add another laurel to that chaplet which they so recently won in India, when single-handed they disarmed and quelled the mutiny of 15,000 disciplined and disaffected Sepoys who held possession of the key of Northern India. The men were loudly cheered as they marched from the ship along the pier ; and one old soldier, from the Pensioner settlement of Howick, was almost in ecstacies welcoming many of his former companions in arms who still wear the dark facings of the 70th. — Southern Cross, May 14. Discoveey op a Fossil Tree at FootscbaY. — A. fossil tree has just been taken out of a quarry at Footseray, belonging to Mr. White, immediately adjoining the south side of the public gardens reserve, and the junction of the Saltwater river and the Yarra. It appears a perfectly formed tree, although it consist of a solid blue-stone, slightly honeycombed. It was found about 18 feet below the surface, embedded amongst large blocks of stone. From the position in which it was discovered there is every probability that at some period it has been subject to violent disruptions in nature, the root end being found uppermost. The rounded place caused by the shape of the trunk of the tree may be distinctly seen. Portions, we are told, had to be blasted out from the surrounding stone. The fossil is about eieyen feet in length, and about two foot diameter at the roots, one toot midway, and six inches at the top. It is undoubtedly a geological wonder, and to the curious in such matters will well repay a visit. We were informed by Mr. White, who very kindly gave us the above particulars, and conducted us over the grouud, that he is expecting Mr. Selwyn, the government geologist, to make a personal examination, with whose opinion no doubt the public will shortly be made acquainted. — Williamstown Chronicle. Lois'G-EViTY ox 1 Cabp. — The gardener of the Chateau de ia Beauvviere, near Calais, took from a pond in the garden of that old seat, a tew days ago, a fine carp, which, to his amazement, had a gold ring attached to each of tha orifices that serve it for ears. Not knowing wnat to make of the discovery, the gardener carried the fish to the chateau, where, the rings being detached from the head of the carp, there was found graven upoa one ol' them the inscription, " Isaure de Bleroiile, 1701." Evidently the unfortunate carp had been once before withdrawn from its watery abode, and had been saved from an uiitiinely iate by the pity of the lady Isaure, whoever she may have been j the charitable dame or damsel having bestowed these ornaments on her protege before restoring it to the enjoyment of its watery element. This species of fish is known to live to a great age ; witness the enormous historic carp in the great pond at Fontainebleau, round whose neck (if fish may be eaid to have necks) are the gold and silver rings placed there when the fish were smaller than they now are, by the monarchs, or their favourites, whose name they bear. The carp of Henry IV., for instance, is tolerably tame, and often allows himself to be caught sight of by visitors. These fish shew no signs of old age j and look as though they might easily attain to double their present age. "Old -Jorbocks." — We noticed some time since the death ot this celebrated racehorse (whose performances justly entitle him to be ranked as the Eclipse of Australia), intimating at the time that it was intended to have his fame perpetuated by mounting one of his hoof 3 in silver. This well-merited honour has recently been paid to the old favourite, a superbly mounted silver snuff-bos having been formed from one of the fore feet, to the order of Mr. J. O'Brien, of Tatteraall's hotel. The work has been performed with much care, and in a very creditable style, by Mr. Cooke, of Pitt street, and will form, no doubt, an object of great curiosity to those old colonists who were familiar with the extraordinary feats of Jorroeks while in the heyday of his fame- The hoof is beautifully poiished, shod with a silver plate of the usual weight and dimensions, and bears upon the lid an inscription as follows : — " Jorroeks, by Whisker out of Matilda j foaled October, 1833 ; died 3rd August, 1860. Winner of nearly 100 races." Footpbinxs as the Moa. — Mr. O. Maling, of the Survey Department, while engaged recently with Mr. Brunner, the Chief Surveyor of the Province, in surveying on the ranges between Riwaka and Takaka, states that on two successive mornings they discovered footprints on the soft mud of what appeared to" be those of a gigantic bird. The impression of the chaws was in places very perfect, measuring about ten inches in length, and looking as if it had been made quite recently. The ranges are full of limestone caves, similar to those in the Aorere, in which a short time ago moa bones were found in such large quantities. Mr. Brunner is expected in Nelson in a day op two, and on his arrival we shall get as full particulars as possible of the interesting incident mentioned by Mr. Mating.— -Nelson JUx'aminerMay 22. Ralph Farnum, the last survivor of the battle of Bunker's Hill, died on the 24th, in Acton Maine. His age was 104 years, 5 months, and 17 days. William Hillyer, the celebrated cricketer, died on the Bth instant., at Maidstone. He was in his forty-seventh year, and was one of the besj; bowlers that England ever produced. Philosophical Definition. — What is light? _ A sovereign not full weight.

■ Privateering; — Information received to-day 4Bfeai Montgomery indicates that the Congress mil regard any attempt on the part of the United States to maintain its authority in the Confederate States as an act of war, which will be followed by instantaneous reprisal. The collection of the revenue and the retention of the forts, it would take as an attempt to hold them in subjugation. The militia of the seas will be invoked at once in the event of blockade. Between 50 and 100 privateers are in readiness for the ocean, and will commence operations at a moment's warning. It is not improbable that the first victims of this retaliatory policy may be the California gold ships and the Atlantic steamers. There are over 300 ports between the Capes of Virginia and the .. & Brazso, into which they could be carried with 'safety. The New England shipping interest is understood to be clamorous against -coercion. Leading business men here declare that Boston alone could furnish privateers sufficient to ruin New England commerce. It will be remembered that, at the celebration of the Paris International Conference, when the leading European Powers did, a way with privateering, the United States protested warmly against it, and refused to surrender its right to call out the " militia of the seas." The revolted States now propose to U3e for self-defence what the Federal Government deemed essential to its own national safety and protection. Arrangements, it is said, have been made already in California, by which the Pacific Ocean can be taken care of by privateers at a few days' notice, should necessity call for it.— New York Herald, March 2. Southland.— The Southern News is greatly dissatisfied with the boundaries fixed for the new Province, as well as with the name conferred on it. On the latter subject our contemporary remarks: — "The name "Southland" is inaccurate as well as inexpressive, for Stewart's Island is the " Southland" of New Zealand. Were that island purchased from the natives and annexed to the new Province in compensation for lopping off the country to the east of the Mataura, then there would have been a show of reason for the enforcement of so indefinite a name upon us ; but as the case now stands, the name "Southland" is an utter absurdity — an unmeaning piece of nomenclature, ialmost sufficient to make one thankful "that the Ministry are not likely to have to stand sponsors to many more new provinces. We are aware that the Colonial Secretary has certain scruples against the retention of native names in consequence of some being far more descriptive than decent ; but we cannot learn that any objection of that kind applies to " Murihiku," which, we believe, signifies " the latter joint of the tail," or the lower portion of the mainland. The objection certainly would not apply to " Wallace," the designation of our Electoral District, and the name of a patriot and warrior venerated by every branch of the British nation. Or, if Ministers think the Colony is already sufficiently bespattered with the names of soldiers and sailors, what appellation would have been more euphonous and appropriate than " Zealandia ?" But "Southland" — the word is as ugly as it is un meaning. There is one consolation in the matter: we must go to the General Assembly for an Act to change the name, and at the same time to obtain a re-adjust-ment of the boundaries, which, as they now stand, are a violation of the geographical features and commercial requirements of the district." The Expenses op the War. — On Tuesday last, the l2th inst., in his place in the House of Commons, Mr. Adderley asked the Under- Secretary of State for the Colonies whether any arrangement had been proposed to the New Zealand Government as to the proportion of the expense of the present native war which was to be charged on the Colonial Treasury ; and whether there had been such an offer made as that the expenses of whatever local militia might be raised should become a charge on the Colonial Treasury j but that all expenses incurred by the employment of British troops should be borne by the Imperial Treasury ? In reply, Mr. C. Fortescue said no arrangement as to the distribution of the expense had been made. The dispatch of the necessary reinforcements had not been accompanied with any such arrangement. It would, he said, be impossible to. come. to such an arrangement in present circumstances ; but his noble friend (the Duke of Newcastle) had taken an opportunity of conveying to the Government of New Zealand his repudiation of the idea that the whole expenses of the war were to fall on the Imperial Government. He had also instructed the Governor to refuse to issue from the commissariat chest any contributions for the expenses of colonial forces, except on the condition of future repayment by the Colonial Government. — New Zealand Examiner, March 19. The Volunteer Movement. — Great Sham Fight. — The arrangements for a great sham fight of the volunteer .forces at Brighton on Easter Monday, are in active progress. The attendance of 15,000 men may be relied on, and .there is little doubt that the adhesions which are daily coming in will increase the effective material on the day of action. It has been determined that tbe entire force on arrival shall be echelloned fronting the sea, forming a line three miles in extent. After the parade the men will march to the ground which has been selected for the operations, extending to Rottingdean on the one side, and as far as Falmer, to the north-east of Brighton, on the other .„ A range of elevated downs at these points presents fine opportunities for taking up positions. — Home News. Marvels of the Microscope. — Leuwenhoeck tells us of animated insects seen with the microscope, of which twenty-seven millions would only be equal to a mite. Insects of various kinds are observable in the cavities of a common grain of sand. Mould is a forest of beautiful trees, with the branches, leaves, flowers, and fruit fully discernible. Butterflies are fully feathered. Hairs are hollow tubes. The Burface of our bodies is covered with scales like a. fish ; a single grain of sand would cover 150 of these scales ; and a single scale coverß 500 pores ; yet through these narrow openings the sweat exudes like water through a sieve ; how minute then must be its particles ! The mite makes five hundred steps in a second. Each drop of stagnant water contains a world of animated beings, swimming with as much liberty as whales in the sea. Each leaf is a colony of insects, grazing on it like oxen in a meadow.

Last Volume op Macaulay's Histoby. — The fifth and, we lament to add, last volume of Lord Macaulay's "History of England" has just appeared under the judiciouß editorship of his sister, Lady Trevelyan, Happily, with a brief unfilled interval, barely sketched in, the volume completes a period, bringing us down from the close of the fourth volume to the death of William 111. The whole terra included is that of the last four years of William's life, a period full of interest and variety. In no former part of his work has Lord Macaulay displayed more brilliant eloquence or a more comprehensive grasp of characters and events than in this volume. It abounds in passages of remarkable force and beauty, and tbe portraiture of individuals is distinguished in a high degree by | that happy dramatic skill which the readers of this history have elsewhere had so much occasion to admire. As this final volume is marked by the characteristic excellences of the historian, so, too, it is marked by his special faults. He, probably, never produced nobler writing, nor gave freer way to confirmed prejudices. There is no doubt that he was as lenient to hie heroes, as he was unjust to what, for distinction, we may call his "villains." In all his historical epochs he had a favorite who was set off by a foil, and the one was painted as white as the other was black. In this concluding book we have, as in the former book, the favorite William and tbe foil Marlborough, and both are obviously out of drawing, and painted in extravagant colours. This is glaringly shown in the tenderness extended to William's mistresses, who were not a whit better than the Clevelands and Port»mouths, upon whom Lord Maeaulay had previously poured out the full vials of his virtuous indignation. Notwithstanding these blurs, the work is as fascinating as a romance, and will be read with deep interest to the last syllable. — Home News. A Temperance Family. — Joe Harris was a whole-souled merry fellow, and very fond of his glass. After living in New Orleans for many years, he came to the conclusion of visiting an old uncle away up in Massachusets, whom he had not seen for a long time. Now there is a difference between New Orleans and Massaehusets, in regard to the use of ardent Bpirits, and wiien Joe arrived there and found all the people run mad about temperance, he felc bad, thinking with the old song, that " keeping the spirits up by pouring the spint9 down" was one of the best ways to make the time pass, and began to fear, indeed, that he was in a pickle. But on the morning after his arrival, the old man and his sons being out at work, his aunt came to him and said, "Joe, you -have been living in the south, and no doubt you are in the habit of taking a little to drink about eleven o'clock. Now I keep some here for medicinal purposes ; but let no one know it, as my husband want 3to set the hoys a good example." Joe promised, and thinking he would get no more that day, took, as he expressed it " a buster." After a while he walked out to the stable, and who should he meet but his uncle. " Well Joe," says he, " I expect you are accustomed to drink something in New Orleans, but you will find us all temperate here, and for the sake of my sons, I don't let them know that I have any brandy about, but I keep just a little out here for my rheumatism. Will you accept a little ? " Joe signified his readiness, ami took another big horn. Then, continuing his walk, he came to where the boys were hauling the rails. After conversing awhile, one of his cousins said, " Joe, I expect you would like to have a drink, and as the old folks are down on liquor, we keep some out here to help us on with our work." Out came the bottle, and down they eat, and he says, that, by the time be went home to dinner, he was as tight as he could well be, and all from visiting a temperance family^ — Salmon Fishing in Canada. Matrimony. — A clergyman, who had in the lottery of matrimony drawn a share that proved to him worse than a blank, was just experiencing a severe scolding from his Xantippe, when he was called to unite a pair in the blessed state of wedlock. The poor priest, actuated by his own feelings and experience, rather than by a sense of his canonical duty, opened the book and began — ".Man that is born of a woman hath but a short time to live, and is full of trouble," &c, repeating a part of the burial service. The astonished bridegroom exclaimed, " Sir, sir, you mistake — I came here to be married, not buried." — "Well!" replied theclergyman, "if you insist on it, I am obliged to marry you, but believe me, my friend, you had better be "buried." The Foot and its Covering. — Mr. Dowie, a practical shoemaker, has written a very sensible book on the art of making shoes and boots. His little volume is called " The Foot and its Covering," and it enters fully into the anatomy of the foot, the health of the foot, the necessity of adapting the covering to the form, the art of constructing boots and shoes with that end in view, the materials of which they ought to be composed, and the various kinda of boots and shoes that are, or may be, worn. The treatise is drawn direct from experience. It is the result of much observation and experiment, and it is drawn up bo clearly and rationally that it is fairly entitled to rank with the best manuals that have appeared on other branches of skill and industry. — Home News. | Lady Young. — According to the Sydney Empire Lady Young is a grand daughter of Sir John Stephenson, 'who composed the symphonies and accompaniments to the Irish melodies which Moore wedded to his immortal verse. The late beautiful and accomplished Marchioness of Headfort, the daughter of Sir John Stephenson, was first married to Edward Taite Dalton, Esq., a gentleman of large landed property in the county of Meath, and by him became the mother of the lady who has been elected to preside over our vice-regal court. i The Southern Confederacy. — Mr. Jefferson Davis, President of the Southern Confederacy, was inaugurated at Alabama on the 18th of February. The spectacle is described as the grandest ever witnessed in the south. The inaugural address of President Davis says : — "The judgment and the will of the people are, that union with the Northern States is neither practicable nor desirable. If necessary, we must maintain by final arbitrament of the sword the position we [ have assumed." i

Mimtabt Defence op - the Colonies. — The war in New Zealand has brought into prominence the question of the military defence of the colonies. They are to be defended not only from external attacks, but from internal dangers ; and the.main points to be determined are obviously, as laid down by Lord Palmemton, the number of troops to be maintained, and who is to pay them. It will be seen by our Parliamentary report that Mr. A. Mills (who made some mistakes in his statement) moved for the appointment of a select committee, and obtained it, for the purpose of inquiring into our colonial military expenditure, and reporting whether any alterations ought to be made in the system of defence, or in the distribution of the cost. Mr. Maesh, a colonist, who seconded the motion, said, oddly enough, that he thought the colonies ought not to have - any military defence, but that they should be protected by a fleet, which -could be easily moved to any part of the coast where its services might be required. That the -military system of the colonies- demands revision, that it "is at present governed by a chapter of accidents, and that it presses unequally in different directions, are fects patent to everybody who has taken any interest in the matter. But we much, doubt whether a committee of the House of Commons can effectually remedy the evils into which it will be their business to inquire. All they can do will be to report upon things as they find them, with a recommendation as to what they think ought to be done. It will still remain, as before, in the hands of the Executive to act upon their own discretion. But the occasion should not be suffered to pass without profit. It will be for the colonies to furnish voluntarily such information, while the Committee is sitting, as may put the home Government in full possession of their situation and their views. The colonies should understand that their interests are deeply involved in the issue, and that their public opinion should be effectively brought to bear upon the action of Parliament and the Executive. — Home News. The Pbize , Shooting. — Monday last, being the day fixed for the competition for the prizes offered by the General Government for the best rifle shot, thefiring took place on the sand between Evans' and Lyall's Bay. The early morning was very wet, but about 10 o'clock the rain and mist cleared off, find the day was all that could be desired for shooting, being calm and clear. At 9 o'clock the js.s. Storm Bird left the wharf with a considerably number of competitors and their friends, the VUunteer band enlivening the trip by playing several military airs. The firing commenced about 11 o'clock, the Militia at one target and the Volunteers at another, and continued, with only a short interval for refreshment, until dusk, when the 1 greater part of the persons present returned by thi* Storm Bird. Tnere were more Volunteers than Militiamen who competed, and the advantage, 1 in points was in favour of the Volunteers, the Militia being very deficient in the long ranges, which is in a great measure to be accounted for by the short time they have had the rifles in their possession, and the inconvenience of having only one gun between two men. The firing generally must be regarded as very bad, and as not likely to gain any of the prizes. The highestnumber of points scored by the Volunteers was 14, ties by Messrs. Brandon and Rowley, and the Militia 12, Mr. Mitchell. — New Zealand fyectator, May 29. Hoeeibxe Famine in the Noeth-west Pbovinces OP India. — The Bombay Gazette of 12th February, says : — " The famine is great in the land. Horrible accounts reach us from the North- West Provinces of human beings dying at the rate of 400 to 500 a-day ; while the desolation is not even limited to the vast expanse of country from Lucknow to Lahore ; for tales are now told equally appalling of the extremities to which the population of the native State of Travancore, in the south of India, are reduced by the drought, which has caused to wither all the fruits of the earth. According to a Cochin newspaper, mothers in Travancore are selling their children as slaves for sixpence each, that they may have wherewith to purchase bread, if only for a single day. While so many millions of the people of India are thus afflicted, it is at least a consolation to know that both the Government and the public have exerted themselves with liberality and promptness to lessen the weight of this terrible calamity. In Bombay alone, fron 70,000 to 80,000 rupees have already been collected ; and Calcutta and other great cities have also responded nobly to the appeal of the Famine Relief Committee. In the north-west, the showers of rain that have lately refreshed the earth have, it is hoped, saved the spring crop ; and, bad as our situation is, the worst, we believe, is already known." OXFOED AND CAMBRIDGE BOAT RACE. — This race came off on March 23. Oxford won. The men got into their boats at 11 o'clock ; the Cambridge men having won the toss, and having consequently taken the Middlesex side of the river, it was evident from the first that the Oxford crew was the best. At the start a mishap occurred, which threatened a loss to them, and at 50 yards from Putney bridge, the Cambridge men were two lengths a-head j'the Oxford men, however, pulled up very chivalrously, and in another minute were so far a-head that it was clear they must be the victors. They kept the lead steadily and came in at Mortlake about 20 lengths in advance of their opponents. Cueing- Hams. — At length the famous " Hewbold receipt " for curing hams has been discovered. The old gentleman was very particular about his secret, and preserved it until the day of his death. After that event the receipt was found hid away in a hole in the wall. Here it is : — *' Seven pounds coarse salt, five lbs. brown sugar, two ounces of pearlasn, and four gallons of water. Boil all together, and. skim when cold. Put it on the meat. Hams remain in eight weeks, beef three - weeks. The above is for 100 lbs. weight. The receipt is at least worth trying, and we hope some of our readers will test it." — Oregon Farmer. Geneeax Sib W. Napieb. — Mr. George E. Adams, sculptor, has been commissioned to execute a colossal marble statue of the late General Sir W. Napier, E.C.8., to ba placed in St. Paul's .Cathedral, as a pendant to the one he ereoted in that place to his brother, the late General Sir O. J, Uapieri

Divobce Acr oe Victoria.— lts Disaxiowanoh by the Queen.— The Duke of Newcastle, in writing Sir Henry Barkly that Her Majesty had not been advised to assent to the Act to amend the law relating to Divorce and Matrimonial Causes in Victoria, thus gives, his reasons : — -".I am of opinion thai thi3 act is unobjectionable, except in regard to the provision in section 13, which enables a husband or wife to procure a dissolution of a marriage after having been deserted for four years without reasonable cause. It appears that many persons in the colony, whose I opinions are entitled to respect, anticipate from this enactment consequences very injurious to public morals. I participate in these apprehensions ; but I should not, perhaps, on that account have felt justified in advising Her Majesty to withhold her assent from a law which had received the sanction of the colonial Legislature, if the matter had been one of purely local interest. The question, however, appears to me to have, a more extended bearing. • The formal mode of contracting marriages is no doubt a fit subject for the discretion of colonial legislatures, because as a general rale no difference of mere form can render a marriage bad in any part of Her Majesty's dominions which is valid in that part where it was contracted. The case, however, is very different in respect to the essential conditions of marriage. Whatever the effect of a colonial law may be within a colonial jurisdiction, I believe it to be at least most doubtful whether a marriage or divorce wanting in these conditions can be made valid in England by any colonial law ; and if this be not the case, if the validity of such marriages and divorces is confined at most to the colony in which they take place, the greatest embarrassments might result from the prevalence of different laws in different parts of the empire. Marriages legally contracted in one colony, would be inoperative for all legal purposes in another. Marriages legallydissolved in one colony, would be held still to exist ~ in another. One nan would find himself subject to an unexpected prosecution for bigamy ; another, who had married a wife in conformity with Australian law, might, on passing to England, find himself at liberty during her lifetime to marry another with impunity. Children, legitimate in one part of the empire, might in another find thomsolvcs inuapaoie or miK;rii,iug tiiuir parents' property anywhere else. In fact, it is impossible to foretell the distress, insecurity, and litigation which might arise from such a state of things. These evils would not be confined to the colony whose legislation had given birth to them — they are essentially imperial. The probability of such evils renders it the duty of the Home Government, as far as its power extends, to maintain throughout ' the empire that essential uniformity in the law of marriage which alone can effectually prevent them. On this principle I am precluded from advising Her Majesty to assent to an act which effects such important innovations in the essential conditions of dissolving one marriage, and thus renders it practicable to contract a fresh marriage in Victoria under circumstances which would render that marriageof at least questionable validity in other parts of the empire. EXTBAORDIITAUY APPHOATION OE PhOTOGBAPHT* — An application of the art of photography to purposes which promise to be of great utility in many branches of science has recently been successfully carried out, under the direction of Sir i Henry James, at the offices of the Ordnance Survey, at Southampton. By aid of the remarkable process of photozincography, not only fac similes of maps, plans, &c, have been perfectly produced, but during the last few weeks this means of reproduction has been brought advantageously to bear upon the most, remarkable historical document in the kingdom — namely, the Domesday Book. Permission having been obtained for its temporary removal, under proper custody, to the ateliers at Southampton, the entire record, so far as it relates to Cornwall, has been successfully reproduced under Sir Henry's skilful direction ; and the fac simile, transferred to a plate of zinc, may now be printed in ink like an engraving. — English Paper. The Steam Caebia&e.—^Amongst the curiosities of London life may be mentioned the appearance of Lord Caithness, in the metropolis, guiding his steam carriage. We were told it makes too much noise to be used in cities. This is not the case, as he drove through the most crowded parts without frightening the horses, and threaded the vehicles, thickly strewn as they are in the city, with the ease and elegance of a master of dance in the chaine des dames. There does seem a chance of the vehicle being adopted, and turning out a rival to Mr. Train. — Court Journal. A.n officer in our army took to the Cape of Good Hope a gentle, beautiful, thoroughbred mare, which, to his astonishment, . the natives - appeared exceedingly unwilling to approach. The reason was that her ears had been cropped ; and, as amongst themselves, that punishment was inflicted for crimes, they were induced to infer that the handsome mutilated animal had suffered from a similar cause — in faot, that she was vicious. — The Horse and his Rider. Gas fkom Molasses.— rJL ourious novelty is said . to have been introduced at St. Denis, a town in the Isle of Bourbon, a chemist having proposed to undertake the lighting of the town by means of. gas extracted from molasses. A correspondent, who witnessed the experiment made upon the invention, says that the result seems satisfactory— the gas produced from about a pint of the material in question having supplied five brilliant jets . for nearly half an hoar, being perfectly without smell. As regards economy, it is stated there cannot be a question. Jones was riding through Sydenham and saw a board with "This Cottage for Sail,-" painted on it. Always ready for a pleasant joke, and seeing a - woman in front of the house, he stopped and asked her, very politely, when tbe cottage was to sail t "Just as soon as the man comes who can. raita the wind," was her quick reply. ! Fun is the most conservative element of aooietj, and ought to be cherished and encouraged by-all ' lawful means. People never plot mischief .when : they are merry. Laughter is an enemy to malice, a fool to scandal, and a friend to every 'virtue.-. If •' promotes good temper, enlivens the lieart, and brightens the intellect?. Let urn laugh when w« -

='.- 'International Exhibition of 1862. — We have • ! great pleasure in hearing that Her Majesty's Com-. O ■ missioriers for the Exhibition of 1862 came on to Saturday to a resolution .as- to the precise character w of the building required for the great industrial q\ and fine arts display of next year; and that" as B soon as the guarantee has been signed to the di required amount, so that the • Bank of lc ■ 3 Ehgland (who, it is understood, have offered very fe -liberal terms) can advance the money, the' Co- al missiohers.will.be prepared to enter into contract e^ • "with Messrs. Helk and Lucas Brothers, the two p .■- eminent firms who^sent m the lowest tender, and Is who Have jointly agreed to execute the works. It ft will be satisfactory to the guarantors to be in- n formed that in the only event in which there can v* be a call on them — namely, a loss by the Exhibi- A tion — the liability by the Commissioners in respect a of the building is limited to the sum of £200,000. t It is also stated that the picture galleries, to be c built of brick, are to be 2300 feet in length, 60 to v 70 feet high, and from 35 to 155 feet wide. But r : the great feature of the new edifice will be a stu- v pendous and magnificent hall, 550 feet long, 250 t feet. wide, and 220 feet high ! The nave and tran- i septs are to, be 2200 feet long, 80 feet wide, and 1 .100 feet high. The building, sheds, &c, are to be t on a similar scale of vastness. The whole of the c ■ buildings must be completed before the 12th of > February 1862. The Exhibition is to be held at s . South Kensington, on the site granted by the 1 ■Commissioners for the Exhibition of 1851. — Lon- I don Observer. i Men we xike to Read of in the Last Age. — ! The working educated men, away from Lord ' .Worth's bribery in the senate ; the good clergy not ' corrupted into parasites by hopes of preferment ; * the tradesman rising into manly opulence ; the ] painters pursuing their gentle calling; the men of letters in their quiet studies ; — these are the men ' ■whom v?e love and like to read of in the last age. : How small' the grandees and the men of pleasure look beside them ! bow contemptible the story of the George 111. court squabbles are beside the 'recorded talk of dear old Johnson ! What is the 'grandest entertainment at Windsor, compared to a night at the club over its modest cups, with . "Percy, and Langton, and Goldsmith, and poor Bo.zzy at the table.?_...l.dp/»W\, T think, of all tße polite men of that age, Joshua Reynolds was the finest gentleman. And they were good, as well as witty and wise, these dear old friends of the past. Their minds were not debauched by excess, or effeminate with luxury. They toiled their noble day's labour ; they tested, and took tbeir kindly pleasure ; they cheered their holiday meetings with generous wit and hearty interchange , of thought j they were no prudes, but no blush need follow their conversation ; they were merry, but no riot came out of their cups. Ah ! I would have liked a night at the Turk's Head, even though tmd news had arrived from-the colonies, and Dr. Johnson was growling against the rebels 3 to have . sat with him and Goldy ; and to have heard , Burke, the finest talker in the world j and to have had Garrick flashing in with a story from his theatre.!— -Thackeray,, in Cornhill Magazine.^ , Ingenious Tobture.— lt is related of the Marquis de la Fayette that, when undergoing a rigorbus imprisonment, he was subjected to the constant supervision of a sentinel. A hole was cut in the door of the small cell, and by night and day a human eye looked through that loophole ' npon the prisoner within. He afterwards related the awful sensation produced by the consciousness of that eye's clear, ceaseless gaze. "Being observed When observation is not sympathy, Is just being tdrtured." When the poor prisoner sank to a troubled slumber—when he started from his hard couch — when . he partook of his prison fare — when lie raised his eyes to Heaven in supplication, still it was there —the eye of a fellow- mortal. And so severe was the nervous suffering arising from the sense of perpetual observation, that the man,though brave and much enduring, confessed that all other troubles and persecutions seemed light in comparison. — Good Words. '' SaliAby of De. Featheeston. — The Provincial Council has voted the Superintendent an advance of £200 per annum on his salary, making the total amount £ 800. His .Honor, in a message to the Council the next evening, thus declines the proposed increase :—-" The Superintendent- hopes the Provincial Council will pardon him for referring to a recant vote, before it has been officially brought under his notice. While fully appreciating the considerations which induced the \ Council to increase, the salary attached to the office he holds, the ' Superintendent feels himself compelled for reasons which will readily present themselves to the Council, to decline assenting to .the proposal. He therefore trusts that before passing the Appropriation Bill the Council will # consent to the salary of the Superintendent being reduced to the amount originally placed on the Estimates." r • - - J Peojeoteb Visit by the Empbess of the Fbenoh to' Jeetsaiem. — We have good reason to believe that a part, at least, of the object of Admiral, La Ronciere le Noury's late, visit to Constantinople had reference to the for some time intended pilgrimage of the Empress of the French to Jerusalem. Her Majesty is said to have had ' such a journey in view ever since the death of her pist'er the late Duchess d'Alba, and the official rumour v now is that her intention ie to be : carried, into effect) before the French troops leave Syria.. It is ..said that the Empress intends to commemorate lier visit to the Holy Plaoes by the foundar .tion.- either of -an hospital or a church worthy of Imperial France. She will, it is said, replaoe the ~ '- diamond star* < stolen — according to Consul Botta . ~by, r thie orthodox Greeks from the Cave of the /Nativity at ; Beihlehem s by another of greatly au-'-'p^ipirTaliietvsnd'.ateo make most costly additions ;' ; , : tof^Hofylepiiiito itsdf.-ijoaii* Serald.' s ~ : :-\", Biahop Blomfield's best lon ww>£ was uttered ;_ during Ms last illness. He inquired what had ' „ ,., <feg3jti }■ th* ;subjecif of ', his Arohdeaeon's two last I ;V/. «&krgea, and wa« told that, one was on the art of ",£:i.---»iiuig ■■:>ermons, .■,and the other on churchyards. : (^" jsjaid tlwK ßishop, "composition and. , '. „.,:.,_■; /,:. ;-.:!--;-- --!^!^^j^^s:^r«^-«i^ .a :

Ladies SpißmjAi. and Tekpobaij at" the . OPENraa OF f armament. — It was. all' very yell \j\ to gay that that was the House of Lords ; but it Ib< was only by a very minute. search with a .good' m 9pera glass that any Lords were to be discovered. , ffp'i Haifa-dozen old men' in red mantles- might be- JB discerned lolling 'on the lowest bench ;. but they,; .a looked as if they had got there by accident, and" ]& felt that they were in the way. Behind tliSjn,' and p above them, and all around thein^ .swarmiig ia \\ every corner, cramming every gallery, densely n packed on the benches where the hereditary legis- " lators ordinarily sit, were throngs of ladies who p formed, and evidently felt that they formed, the k main features of the assemblage. The eye was n wearied resting on nothing but tarlatans and silks, h An enlightened and travelled Turk, who should be fci anxious to see the Great Council, of the nation on g the occasion of its most solemn meeting, would n certainly report to his friends that the rights of d women of which he had heard in America had c received their full development in England. He c would at least conclude that they had obtained t the privilege of -holding a rival Parliament in the c neighbourhood of Westminster Hall, and that he d had stumbJed into the seraglio of the Constitution J by mistake, and was listening to the deliberations r of the House of Ladies. The Bench of Bishops, b with their feminine apparel and not unf'eminine i aspect, would be far from destroying the illusion, t He would only conclude that they were eminent i females, to whom, by reason of their age and infirmities, a warm corner had been assigned. The absence of fashionable inflalation in their attire, together with its sadder colouring, would probably suggest to him that they were elderly widows. Asj for the four old men in red mautles, if he noticed them at all, their deplorable aspect, and the obvious 6hyness and embarrassment of their demeanour, would lead him to set them down as the principal slaves or mutes of the imperious sultanas who were flaunting in every colour of the rainbow behind them. Gradually the fair throng becomes more and more agitated and animated as the signs of approaching Royalty, increase. The place sear the throne Jills with the, privileged, dignitaries, who, except the reporteis, ax*e the only male spectators suffered at these mjstic rites. If a man who is neither member of Parliament, Peer's son, official, or connected with the press, wishes to hear the Queen's speech from her; own lips, he • must submit to a Colodian disguise! and eali himself a Peeress. At last the silver trumpets announce that the moment of fru&ion is at hand for which so many fair lionizers .have struggled and squeezed. But they are not jet in a fit state t to receive their Sovereign. Spite If Lord Haddo, Court ceremonial still exacts a definite amount of nudity from a respectful subject. Various nations have adopted various modes of expressing deference. The Eastern uncovers his fek — the Western his head ; the Englishwoman is j>iobably unique , in expressing her awe- stricken feelings by exhibiting her shoulders. But the rule is.^uite rigorous. It includes alike old and young,; smootii arid . wrinkled, plump and shrivelled. A soft-footed official glides along the Ministerial benches tp frown away any remnant of cloak or shawl to which chilliness or shyness may cling ; and at his appearance, as he goea along whispering " Please, ladies, to uncover," a perfect glacier of bare shoulder is simultaneously exposed to the light of day. — Saturday Review. Papeb Pboof against Forg-ebs. — A German i chemist, Herr Kneeht-Senuef'elder, announces a new mode of preparing paper proof against forgers and tamperers. He observes that in colleges and boarding schools two agents are made use oi:' to discharge ink-marks from linen, and which are ordinarily used for the falsification of documents — the chlorure of potassium and the oxalate of potassium. When chemists desit*e to cause to ! reappear words effaced from written documents, ' but rarely destroyed, they make use of gallic acid. Herr Knecht-Sennefelder proposes a paper which | shall defy being tampered with byacida or alkalis. He advises for cheques, bills of exchange, and-the. like, that the usual paper of commerce should be soaked in gallic acid, in the proportion of a few L grains in a pint of water— enough to-saturate fivef 'and-twenty sheets. The paper is dried, and may I- be written upon with common ink, which soaks > so into the substance of the paper that it cannot ' be erased, and the attempt to destroy the writing 1 by any chemical agent has only the effect of ■ leaving the efforts of the fraudulent person visible ' in black blotches around . the genuine writing. • The experiment ia a cheap one. 3 WANT OF PeOTECTION IN WEIiHNGTON. — f We avail ourselves of the mail for Auckland tob morrow, once more to call the attention of his j Excellency's Government to the unprotected state a of this Province. The massing of the troops at 1 Auckland is understood to portend an attack on y Waikato — with the suppression of the King 3 movement for its object. The effects of euch an attack, may possibly — if not probably — induce 3 the natives throughout the island to make comj mon cause with their Waikato brethren. The f Sling movement as a cause of quarrel, will induce '. a wide spread sympathy among tribes who were c comparatively indifferent to the Waitars question, k and it becomes the manifest duty to protect Welj lington equally with Auckland, -The Auckland r : Province may be, and we believe is the most vul[m nerable point, needing a thioker defence, but the jj other Provinces are all more or less vulnerable, t> and* need defence likewise. With our frontier „' exposed to the depredations of the elated and _ defiant Ngatiruanuis, his Excellency cannot surely ,f intend to expose Wanganui to a fate such as that c which its unfortunate neighbour, TaranakiJ 1 has a been. subject to. — Independent, May 28. c A Teetotal Babnttjctsh. — A few days ago' the.. ; « ; * great unwashed" of Newport, Monmouthshire^' 1 were delighted by the appearance of large placards, n announcing thafcj oa a; certain evening, the circaa' •*. would be open to them free of iali charge. As might* <*. be expected, the appointed. hour for opening the >t doors witnessed a motley assemblage, who for onoa >f had made up their minds to enjoy themselves free s * cost. The building was quickly crowded to the 1. roof, and as many more , were outside unable to obtain, admittance. Judge of the chagrin of the a audience when, instead of a grand entertainment, 1, they were treated (?) to several disquisltiqnß, by ! cwbftin tempwramee advooatw,-— Cbwi Journal,

. A Discovery that wili< Put an" End to all \\Tae. — Chloride. of nitrogen will, it is Baid, soon C be utilised as an implement of war. Its employ- J ment would be likely, we should conjecture, to d ■jbuti an end to all war. Mr. Isham B&ggs, of S .England, in,, announcing his discovery, makes T . mention of a system of ballooning advocated by t Mr. James. Mr. Baggs proposes to carry his codt= a position in balloons, and drop it from the air in t the midst of armies and fortresses. " The very f mention of his compound," he goes on to say, t "as a proposed element in modern warfare, may c possibly provoke a smile among chemists, who i know that the most accomplished among their t number would scarcely dare to experiment with it t larger tban a grain of mustard seed, and, even < then, only at a respectful distance, and under c guard at the moment of detonation. And yet I not one of these chemists will be bold enough to j deny that, with two or three chemically clean t carboys of this terrible compound present in a 1 city or fortress, however strong, the slightest cut- '< tings of phosphorus, or a single drop of olive oil, 1 coming in contact with it, would in one instant ; decide the fate of the place and its inhabitants." i Mi*. Baggs then proceeds to affirm that he " can ] manufacture this deadly material with perfect i Bafety, and in any required quantity, and that it '. may be safely conveyed to its destination by i James' system of balloons." i Cbinoiine in Pekil. — Crinoline has, at last, met with an enemy that threatens its overthrow. A new skirt has been invented which sustains the dress without any asaistanee of whalebone, simply by a harmonious and skilful disposition of the muslin fold of which it is composed. The " Multiple Skirt " is formed of a series of over-lapping flounces, arrayed in a fan shape, readily expanded by means of metallic eyelets. One or two flounces are at most required for a morning dress, and nothing can be more simple. The skirt is put on or off m a minute, and when on a journey divided in pieces. It may be smoothly folded, and scarcely occupies any space whatever. — N. Y. Home Jour* nal. A Strange Valentine. — During the valentine mania of this season a young gentleman in, the neighbourhood of Dunfermline received a valentine from Glasgow in the shape of a donkey — not a mere picture inclosed in envelope, and cornered with a Queen's- head, but a real doukey, as large as life, and all alive and kicking. It came by rail and cost him L6s. for carriage— double the worth of his valentine. The point of the joke is that the fortunate receiver is one of the Mounted Volunteers. — Fife Herald. Button hole Sbwiitg Machine. — At a meeting of the Polytechnic Association of the American Institute, December 27; 1860, Mr. Roweli exhibited a specimen of work executed with Vogel's button hole sewing machine. The stitch is formed with three threads, -and cannot be unravelled. There are two upright needles, one working over the edge of the cloth and the other through it, and an under thread. A lair operator can make 100 button holes an hour with it. By removing one of the upright needles it is transformed into an : ordinary sewing machine, forming the Grrover and Baker stitch. i At Newport, a Mr. Pepper advertised that he ■ would present a epleadid portrait to any person who would transpose the greatest number of words from any word of two syllables, the competitors 1 to choose their own words ; and the result was to 1 appear in the next impression of the Newport * paper. The result showed thirty competitors, and the number of words made vafied from 30 to * 707. The highest number of words (707) was from * " transpierce," by John iNorris. ■ \ A Q.tjiet Printing- Office. — A printing office , employing only deaf and dumb compositors has been opened in the town of Zablagen, in Wurtem--5 burg. Pressmen . and compositors number [altogether 160, all of whom are deaf mutes. Eleven of the typesetters are women. There is at j least one quiet printing office now, where there ,' are no sSouts for " copy," and no clamouring for J T "fat takes." Me. Sptxrgeon's Tabeenacls.— lt appears there 7 are 4500 sittings in the new Tabernacle ; of which j 1000 are free, more than 3000 are let at £1 per t annum each, and the whole are expected to be let r before the end of March. There is still £3000 f wanting, which is calculated upon being received 2 within the next month. At the latest period of the coaching time, one man, who is still in Messrs. Smiths' establishment, was able to carry all the papers to the eoaubes under his arm, and now six tons of the * Times' newspaper alone are despatched every day by the 3 early trains. — Once-a-week. t , A patent has just been taken out by J. K. j Smythes for a flying machine, consisting of a very : y light steam-engine and boiler, which are to operate \ as a huge pair of wings. Instead of 'using coal g for fuel he proposes to employ a liquid hydro- . carbon, such as oil, in order to obtain great heat q with a very limited weight. c The following is at present the population of c the Kingdom of Italy: — Piedmont, 3,813,637 i inhabitants ; Sardinia (the Island), 573,115 j > Lombardy, 2,771,647 ; Modena, 609,139; Parma, i 508,784; Tuscany, 1.7.79,338 ; The Legations, the - Marches, and TJmbria, 1,960,360 ; Naples, 6,843, c 355 ; Sicily, 2,231,020; total 21,092;395; inhabi5, tantß. '* He who is passionate and haßfcy is generally 4 honest. It is your old dissembling hypocrite of f whom you. should beware. There's no deception *■' in a bull dog. It is oaly the cur that sneaks up •? and bites you when your back is turned. ". ' An old Acquaintance. — The proprietor of this ■ft, ,'journal respectfully requests that all parties who d ' have paid moneys to his late collector, Mr. B. * Hayden,-' -within the last three months, willcomg. inunicate the same to him 'immediately. — CanterL £>. bury Standard^ May 16. le A. man who commits suicide does a rash act, but ia he who eats bacon for breakfast does a rasher. !e Who was the first whistler? The winds. What le tune did they whistle?-, " Over the hills and o far away." % .■ .= ■ ..- ' ._■'■ le A Welsh paper remark* that it is cruelly cold up fc, the mountains— and- no wonder, for they have no y thermometer up there, go it gets a* cold as it pfeases.

Domestic Life ov the RotalFamii/^it Osboenk.— The New York Tribune, of the 19th January, is responsible for the following sketch of domestic life at the ialarid retreat of our beloved Sovereign: — "At the seaside residence of Queen Victoria, in the Isle of Wight, a large portion of the pleasure grounds is appropriated to the Princes and Princesses, who have each a ftower and vegetable garden, greenhouses, hothouses, and forcing frames, nurseries, tool houses, and even * carpenter's shop. Here the Royal children pass hours of their time. Each is supplied with a set of toote, marked with the name of the owner ; and here they work with the enthusiasm of an amateur, and the zeal of an Anglo-Saxon. There is no branch of gardening in which the Royal Eamily are not aufait. Moreover, on this juvenile property is a building, the ground floor of which is fitted up as a kitchen, with pantries, closets, dairy, larders — all complete in their arrangements ; and here may be seen the young Princesses, arrayed a la cuisiniere, floured to the elbows, deep in the mysteries of pastry-making like a rosy New England girl ; cooking the vegetables from their own gardens, preserving, pickling, baking — sometimes to partake among themselves, or to distribute to the poor of the neighbourhood the results of their handiwork. The Queen is determined tha£ nothing shall remain uulearned by her children 5 nor are the young people ever happier than during their sojourn at Osborne. Over the domestic establishment i 3 a museum "of natural history, furnished with curiosities collected by the young parties in their rambles and researches— geological and botanical specimens, stuffed birds and animals, articles of their own construction, and whatever is curious and interesting, classified and arranged by themselves." " Tossing the Pancake" at "Westminster School. — On Shrove Tuesday, one of the few relics of our forefathers'/ Shrovetide pastimes might have been witnessed in the ancient- school-room of Westminster, About eleven o'clock the college cook appeared in the school-room in his " official costume," white cap, jacket, &c, bearing in his hand a mysterious-looking compound, whicb tradition supposes to be a pancake. After poising it deftly on a wooden fork, he tossed it over v bar which separates the upper from the lower school, and went his way. " The pancake" fell among the boys, who thereupon, as usual, scrambled for it in the accustomed manner. This curious ceremony is coeval with the foundation of the school, and is expressly ordered by the statutes, the cook receiving an annual fee (two guineas) conditionally on his satisfactory performance of the duty. If any one of the boys can catch the pancake as it falls, and preserve it whole in spite of all the efforts of tie others to get it from his grasp, he takes it to the Dean and claims a guinea which is also provided for by statute. — English paper. The King and the Seidlitz Powders. — On the first consignment, of Seidiitz powdurs, in the capital of Delhi, the monarch became deeply interested in the accounts of the refreshing box. A box was brought to the King in full court, and the interpreter explained to his Majesty how it should be used. Into a goblet he put the twelve blue papers, and, having added water, the King drank it off. This was the alkali, and the royal countenance expressed no signs of satisfaction. It was then explained that in the combination of the two powders lay the luxury ; and the twelve powders were quickly dissolved, and aa eagerly swallowed by his Majesty with a shriek that will be remembered while Delhi is numbered among the kingdoms. The monarch rose, staggered, exploded, .and, in his full agonies, screamed — " Hold me down !" then, rushing from the throne, fell prostrate on the floor. There he lay during • the long- continued effervescence of the compound, spirting like ten thousand pennyworths of imperial pop, and believing himself in the agonies of death, — a melancholy and humiliating proof that kings are mortal. Changing the Mind. — The late Professor D , prior to his appointment to his chair, was rector of an academy in JForfarshire. He was . particularly reserved in his intercourse with the fair sex ; but, in prospect of obtaining a professorship, he ventured to make proposals to a lady. They were walking together, and the important question was put without preliminary sentiment or note of warning. Of course the lady replied by a gentle "No I" The subject was immediately dropped ; but the parties soon met again. "Do you remember," at length said the lady, "a question which you put to me when we last met ?" The Professor said that he remembered. " And do you remember my answer, Mr. D ?" — "Oh, yes," said the Professor. "Well, Mr. D ," proceeded the lady, " I have been led, on consideration, to change my mind." — "And so have I," dryly responded the Professor. He maintained his bachelorhood to the close. — Hogers's Illus* trations of Scottish Character. Platin& at Soldiers. — The little Prince Imperial lately reviewed all the enfans de troupe of the several regiments in Parie, in the garden in front of the Tuileries. The little fellows went through the various manoeuvres and exercises, Napoleon, jun., shouldering jhis m,usket and accompanying them 3 after which, taking a couple of bis confreres by the hand, he led the lot of- juvenile - Boldiers into the Palace, where they -were treated to a splendid collation, one of them proposing a toast to the Emperor (who was present), which was received with " tremendous cheers " by the young convives. — Correspondent of Glasgow Herald. Hem Folder. — An ingenious invention for '* turning the hem down" has recently been introduced by Mr. Joseph Gillott, the celebrated steel pen maker, of Birmingham. This invention can be applied to all kinds of sewing- machines, and can be worn on tbe.nnger- of. the . semptress j in. either case it effects its object by the simple passage of the edge to be sewn through the folder. "Mary, my love, do you remember the text this morning ?" — " No, papa, I never can remember the text, I've such a bad memory." — "Mary," said her mother, "did you notice Susan Brown ?" — "Oh, yes. What; a fright! She, had on her last year's bonnet done' up, a pea green silk, a ; black lace mantilla, brown. gaiters, an imitation^ Honiton collar, a lara bracelet, - her old ear-drops, ; jwad Bush a fanl"