TOWN & COUNTRY.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XXXIX, Issue 3777, 28 February 1873, Page 2

TOWN & COUNTRY.

, The Museum.— This institution will be dosed during the whole of next week. On the following week it will,; together with the new statuary room, be again thrown open to the public. The Mator of Christchurch. Hia' Honor Judge Gresson administered this day the customary oath, as a justice of the Peace, to B. B. Bishop, Esq., Mayor of Christchurch. Eangiora. —Lieut.-Coloncl Facke held a special inspection of the Bangiora Company, C.8.V., on Wednesday evening last, but owing to most of the men being busily engaged in farming operations there was not a very largo muster. The ■ inspection, however, was of a Very satisfactory nature. : Fine Tur&ip.—A turnip 2 feet 5 inches in circumference and 71bs ISozs in weight was Kiterday left at our office by.the grower, Mr ylor, of Malvern, fflxe tamip was fieldfrown, without manure, in laid off which one drop had previously been taken; .Mr Taylor states that the turnip is only a fair specimen of the crop, and he has no doubt but that he could find many larger ones than the one here described. Departure op Old Friends.— The passengers by the ship Lady Jocelyn were escorted to the vessel, yesterday afternoon, by a large nnmber of colonists., Amongst the passengers by this vessel are the Hon. John Hall, fate Colonial Secretary, Mr Charles Seed, an old settler of Canterbury, like Mr Fall, and Mr J. G. Buddeqkfau, who has started on a voyage to Fatherland. The friends of the passengers proceeded to Lyttelton by the 3.16 p.m. train, and in about half An hour after its arrival they proceeded on hoard the s.s. Gazelle and wen to the Lady Jocelyn. Captain M'Lellan, with his accustomed courtesy, brought his passengers safely to the ship, and the return journey was accomplished ynXbovXenf contretemps. Unfortunately, Captain Jenkins was unavoidably prevented from receiving hi# visitors, but this duty was ably and courteously undertaken by the Chief Officer- ' The vessel is decidedly one of the be#t that has ever visited New Zealand port#, and those who took* passage by the tody Jocelyn, expressed themselves ip very unmj|jfak<wble terms of tjie exceptional acoomPMipiop provided. Ike friends of the passengers had little more than half-an-hour left them to remain on board, and on the departure of the Qa«Ue an time to catch the 6 pan. train, cheer# wen. lustily given, and responded to from tike #hip quite as heartily. Captain Jenkins takes home the. largest cargo of wool and flax that has ever left Lyttelton m one bottom- The Whole of the cargo was stowtoawtobetween the 6th of January and the 24th February, which speaks highly for all than toMMtoo with . th» command of the vestal. trust that and that bis ptotoHMlmf MVS a# much Season to $n the memhess of the flrm.iMsm Mn*W«Aywue| and T. M. Hassal, aocomptoiefl the passenS nad/fot fair .Wind. ' . _

' Aocx,niAt«UTK)ir.*>The bir* lent out fromSn|laad in the opnM|i wV|* Itone arrived yestesday te Dunedin, underthe flaw «m* were tub aooompahhid by Mr Deans, the tttSSWS&Gm birdi to the gardens, wfeiop wap awPiwWft, to a most |uccessful , Wjj^Mißg assistance so prpmpw liWfW ly Mr Packard, wy IjMi, The condition former shipments »l® The list comprises t somethroshes, 135 linnetoflii iWPOfafi Witih lings, afew lariu,Bfiioom*iW*B^^ 100 yellow hammers, ohdßm>bflt» goldfinobrti bramble finches (605.fipflbi|l:|n pji toflodaTO dusks, gold and silrw jNMIWH w.♦# Jr* of the beautiful W Bng* land at £SO, whkih wiU «wbtleW ptflfe » great attraction and ornament to tlje garflens, and ultimately a valuable bird for sport and food. Mr Bui* speaks to fefcb terms;.of: the assistance rendered him by the captain and' officers of the Charlotte Gladstone. The royage was, however, of an especially trying character, one great drawback being the Scarcity of water, owing to the breakage of the condenser, and the large number of emi-, grants, chiefly consisting of Mr Brogdepf navvies, a class found to be undesirable as fellow-passengers with birds ; in fact, some of the ornamental water-fowl are reported as having been stolen and eaten by some of the emigrants on board- Dp to the time of the vessel putting in at the Cape for water, very few losses had occurred. The Society is under great obligation to the Otago society for the assistance rendered in the transhipment, which has altogether been a great success. Thanks are ,olso due to Mr J. R. Hill, of Christchurch, who was at Dunedin at the time, and also, returned in the Phoebe. As in all previous shipments, a large proportion of the birds landed are cooks. The distribution of the birds has been left to a committee of three, which will meet in the gardens to-day to decide on the distribution end liberation of this large stock of feathered immigrants. The first butch will be liberated to-day.

Aoxhow&wdombkt.— The Rev L. Moore begs to acknowledge tbjMpfeeipt of £l, from a lady for the tpfttbllimd Foreign *BibW: Society. J|: lit W' I andj|renftlß ves iueoMHully. *9he laptorioSchined nr adimwion lid the tpsot ol|qmwl', anaudisrioeequaLdn nmotar Ufj that and bne and allwtameal much pleased with the musical treat presented to them.

Pic-NiO.—On Wednesday last th o employes at Mr Wagstaff’* ooaoh factory, Whately Road, accompanied by their .friends, took part in a picmlcth? Stumor. Aboutforty Jspwf ftn d gentlemen assembled "at the works at half-past nine o'clock, and were conveyed to 'Simmer in four large traps. Dinner and tea were served alfresco , and the intervals were filled in with various : sports and dapping, which, were evidently muos ' THe party returned to town aboht' eight o’clock, knd spent the evening in dancing at Mr Wagstaff’* residence,thereby making a most enjoyable termination to a pleasant day.

A EBMABKABLE FpBMO EXMBtMENT.— In Paris recently, an inventor of boots with which to walk on the water, made a: public ex* periment, when (says the account), the boots indeed floated, but the inventor with hi* head under water, itemed toibebariying on a convenation with the flshes/which Would probably have ended with his suffocation if a boat had not picked him up. ~ ~ Bbpeigeeatob Cabs.— The perishable products of the westernpriuries of America are now conveyed to Eastern markets in “ refrigerator care,” a device whioh must have an effect on the value of western lands something akin to that of steam itself. The oars are owned by the various roods oyer which they run, and of course mtvo rapidly and make close connections, and their success is such that the companies gitariuntee the delivery ;of the articles in as good' condition ns when received. They are built double all round, with ihside double doors, filled in with charcoal, and having a capacity for holding two tons of ice. They are also arranged so as to be furnished constantly with a, current of cool dry air. At the principal stations, they are carefully examined, and ice added whenever it is deemed necessary. . A Hobbibee Stoby. —A correspondent of the Brisbane Courier write*: —“ By the last moil I received the following account from India of how a husband thought to cure his wife’s fear of snakes, and the horrible result. I sent it down, thinking perhaps you would like to publish it. The gentleman was very fond of snake hunting, his wife hod ah avernon to them that she could not bear even to look at a dead one. He thought this all nontense on his wife’s part,and determined to cure her of her fear. One day when he had killed large boa-constrictor, he brought it home S id mid it in the verandah, and went into nner (he was not aware that when a boa is killed its mate always follows wherever it is taken). After dinner, he told his wife he hod something to show her, and directly she went intp the verandah he' jumped book into the roam and looked the door. . She screamed dreadfully, but he thought she would soon, get over it, and be cured of her fear. In a few minutes’ time he opened the door, and what was his horror to find his wife quite dead, and crushed by the' boa ’ that had followed his mate without knowing it. It had such an effect on the gentleman that he went . mad, and is in an asylum at the present day.” Halby AGAIN. —The Otago Daily Times of Feb. 25 has the following:—We have received full particulars of the attempted escape from the gaol which we mentioned m bur issue of yesterday. The. prisoner who made the attempt was the notorious Cyrus Haley, whose tried tor arson and for attempting to shoot Mr Bussell, of Auckland, excited so mu*h attention. Owing to ill-health, Haley has been employed as clerk for some time past, and about half-post seven o'clock onflunday morning he went to the front door of the gaol for the purpose of shaking the office mats. Warder Hagan (who is one of the oldest and most efficient officers of the gaol) was in charge of the gate, and was standing on the door-step. Holey was saying something about the shaking of other mats, when he suddenly threw a handful of pepper into the warder’s eyes, and ran off across the road. Hagan closely pursued him, and succeeded in apprehending him at the junction of Oumbenand and Stuart streets. Mr Orbell, who happened to be in ComberlgQd street at the time, was called upon by the trader, and rendered every assistance. Haley, yfo doubt, calculated upon having a very gwd opportunity for escape on Sunday morning, when there are so few people about at so early an hour. Had Hagan not closed his eyes when he observed the movement of the prisoner’s hand, he Would certainly have keen blinded. Throwing pepper i* an old favourite guns among the lonjon swell mob, and cfaeqUers dHndustris in Grant Britain and theebJnriM' i 'lff* .IfAtyCT's NATIbNWTTV.—Mr StanDr WUgstya* w»* sent by the late James Gordon Bennett, and it was geoeraUy supposcd that ht wasanAroeriten by kirttt. It ha* been proved almps^tb-genfe* nl satufaotion that the intrepid and seeker after the renowned African explorer ynri bom at Denbigh. A Htaj^vammst,

Sir J. C. Hotten—whom Mar| Twain calls J. 0. ahnounoeda wbrk entitled “ ICr Staaky—the Story of his Early Life.” Mr Stanley take* exception to this pandering to --wmwiilaiw..-. Bublishen, wtuoh brought out Mr Hotten m w Timtt, whoMU*i*& Stanley fur* tber eemplautethat I hare announced the 'Story'ofnk HariyLife/ add that I taaf ihhf |K;ro|>ul(nUin lo doing. I replvthta writing M* man’s life isnot allowable. btthif done in \ »wri| el ta»MvwdJuetie#.,i* **• ' v etiorm * D i e l : { „ rho & who fhink hit ftWait i faUupon Elen«iui! l^hewodfd they aay, ‘We lueceae; hut don’t, don't Cgr!' that Mr Stanley , and te»lded in its neigh. \ flftoen Jeaet of hit 8?«. PMofin the world—that If the. statement which thueect forth, ,■ . > ■ <SB»-.'lCatti]r’a. Bat 1 Swimjwhi.—The * taewt demean r ~A» lm .htan :M*ftcke& (By.* very treat Wltaopho*. it tafeeeiall eortsi of people to &**; ** "nid hover imagine' rhr a number of men risked all aorta of erife end suffered budaUpa W|t 4»wy might be permitted to settle down flah and pSL i »U}f,vm |»mft’PiXwSta: them flour commence to starve. The, steamer oomea again 5 thia time w»th no flpur, with tea and tobacco. The setUew express no desire to leave the place, by ,tha ataamer, but prefer to dig jro and , submit upon the seed potatoes which they set in lh« ground for a crop. Tlwy atjf, . starving onoe more. ThereV a aailing oraft comea from Hokitika with provisions. Still the settlers express no desike'to leave. They have another starve. Then, after a time, sofas three or four walk up to the tot) bf the glacier, which is about a mile long, They go to Queen*town, travelling at the rate of six miles a day, ascending mountains, descending .ropnea, and risking weir necks every toot of rode ice and snow they step on or over. When they arrive they telegtaph to DunCdin. Bjr. and-by they got thesuppUesthey asked for end then have another starve. ®»n * good minister comes to Auckland and lectures and preaches on behalf of. tattlers In order to raise money forthdir relief. He has rinsed money, and ho will relieve them; but when the money is eaten up, there is just another starve to face. The question being asked now is “Is Martin’s Bay a settlement for lunatics?" and to this We are unable to return any reply.

W»r> DovkMloki indicate an aomiice m Mnwwvili ration or a inovement tending tfs;i||am to bpvbarism P A Hawke’* Bay seen a advising thp;W(j|Bpfti of To Hapuku -that wb aptr. able piwall' claim* againtt ihim W: fuui to date, ■ffhejpjdkpij insolvriiitowllr think that Xe ,Hap|kn oubtlo after, >. —A» intetostinjj OniaenmM* reportodby the Napier Telegraph —ifr J. D. Canning, of Oakburne, ha* ohallengPd Mr.J. Ehode*, of Olive, to ■how hi* two ram*, the fleece* of which were exhibited this year at Canterbury, ogainitlni (Mr Canning I *} champion nun ana another, at the nestjHawke** Bay Agrienltural and Pastoral Show, for Blooa side. Thefudges to toselected from out of other province*, and ihewool merits of the *heep to be teited according to the rule* laid down at the Sydney Shibition last year, • The pbtecfeof the ohal* ge is ityat e&eejp brobflersmiiy, from the Judgment, decide a* to the most profitable cross of long*woolled sheep for general purposes. Mr Canning favours the Cotswold cross, while Mir Rhodes strongly believes in the pdvantoges of crossing with the I*ioester i breed* ' Sensational Headings.— The following u the heajding to ah article in the JT*w York Eerald on the thanksgiving day held in the United State* on November 29 Giving Howithe : 6dsat Day fori Glorifying God and His Good Gifts was Celebrated in the City and Vicinity.—Ceremonies in ‘the Churches : The Sacred Bites of Thanksgiving in the Cathedral of St. Patrick, the Counsels deuveredfrom the Pulpits.—The Feast of the Famished : The Lame, the Blind, the Poor, the Outcast, the Sinful, the Imprisoned, the Unfortunate, the Homeless, the Friendless, the Orphaned Cheered and Comforted by Good Samaritans.—The Good Deeds of a Day : Boast Turkey being Gobbled Up by Twenty Thousand Destitute Children iu New York.—Scenes in the Streets.” An Enemy to Cbocodxles.—Mr C. E. Bomilly, a settler on the Pioneer Biver, North Queensland, has killed 14 large crocodiles within the lost 18 months, varying in size from 16ft long down to a baby of some 20in. This latter after being wounded was saved olive, kept in a footpan, and recovered from his wound. He became almost tame, but refused to eat, and had to be fed by force. He lived for about six weeks. Other settlers in the same locality are very active in destroying crocodiles, which infest the rivers in this Sort of the country, prevent bathing, and estroy sheep and young cattle as they cross the streams. It is said that from the vigorous raid being made against them in Queensland the race of crocodiles is by degrees becoming “ beautifully less.” . Boue ijndee Gbound.—Borne, like Berlin, has greatly increased in population since it became the new seat of Government, and the demand for house accommodation necessitates the creation of numerous blocks of houses, and entire new streets. Comparatively little has indeed been yet accomplished, though very much has been planned ; and every day for some months past the newspapers of the Italian capital announce that the obstacles in the way of such and such buildings, or such and such street, have been overcome, and the works will be proceeded with at once. . Such statement* are made with a view to satisfy the impatience of the public; but large tracts of ground have been broken up, levellings mode, and new streets traced out. This great disturbance of the soil has brought unexpected results. ' Under the upper-crust, which is often pierced to a great depth to lay the foundation of solid erections, interesting discoveries are made daily. The inspectors of excavations are at their wit’s ends to respond to the demands made upon them to view the new treasure trove. Not a sewer is dug, nor a foundation laid without the workman’s pick coming upon objects of art or the debris of monuments.

Canon Kingsley on the Laws of Health. —The Telegraph holds that Canon Kingsley, in his theory that the English race is degenerating in consequence of the destruction of the strongest part of the manhood of our country in the Peninsular war, vigorously states a half-truth, but leaves out of sight a crowd of important facts. When he says that the commons of England were strong down to the time of the war, he forgets that the French war was only the last of a long series of contests which had weeded out much of what was choicest in the manhood of thia country. Nor have battles been so destructive as he fancies. The loss of British life, from first to last would now seem trivial, we fear, to General Grant or Count Moltke. Nor is Canon Kingsley altogether fortunate when he unfavourably compares the manhood of England with that of Greece. The Greeks had no such ideas a* we have of the sacredness which lies ip' etery individual life. Their aim was 'to manhood and WomanhW,' Q*lued ? l Newton, Pope, Voltaire, apt} many, othera of_ pea who have left the 'deepest mark ph the modero wpddi -could not have existed in Greece, fcf’thev were feeble in childhood, and would ha|p p®en allowed to die. But Mr to an important truth when be pm luit the care with which we keep alive Wp'lheble tends to perpetuate a diseased or Ihfirip race of beings. He forgets, however, thateompetitien is now doing sope mob work as opto 9*l done by postilenee, fapdne.and wm disregard for the laws of he»)th< TN W* is how to the swift, and rtrppg’ flttoh is the harry . poKerfuh «» fan»o»s,aud such, m fact, |sthe difficulty of gaining a livelihood at ItL that the weak go down: in the crush, killed by the possessors of strength. Mr hlngfley may then take comfort 1 and when (bp jpoor people shall be better housed and bett«|fd,when something more shill tie dppe tp iaake their lives cheerful, and when thf/ : themsdve* shall learn to be more temperate, thf«fa|Uoi» of England will have no lispeon to fear a comparison with the lustier generation of their forefathers. Bishop Sets* and the Victokian Editcation Act.— The Melbourne correspondent of the Otago DaUff Time* writes to that journal, as follows 1— " A good deal of amusement his ; been afforded us the last Week by a ridiculous' speech delivered the Other eveping st a Bible Society meeting, by the Bev Dp Suter, Bishop of Nelson, who is yiilting hwe dn ms way to England. The tigh| mv «nUfm*n, in toe course of his w* a tone rather of sorrow than of, anger! teldhii hearers that * he did hot come to Melbourhe in the best of tempers.’ Havlug roused attention and curiosity as to tbo cause Which had disturbed the episcopal bile, he proceeded to state that it was owing to our nivink pateed the Education Act that mi piind was flUedWith Wrath agaiast us. He went on to say tbit he had expected to S6S his audience all Weanhg black, as in mourning for the passing of this godless measure. The Bishop evidently expected to meet with Sfroutbnrst of sympathy, and was shocked to nd that People were divided between a tendency to laugh apd a disposition to feel annoyed, at thO grossly impertinent manner la which the Bishop alleged, the disturbance of his temper as one of the portentous effects of the Act. To us this phenomenon, hod not the fearful character the Bishop supposed. We are all pretty well aware tM our. Education Act has flattered' a good many dermal tempers, and; stirred up a good deal of clerical wrath, and therefore Were, enabled to outline the bad; temper of the Bishop of Nelson., DrSuter, in the course of: his speech, talked over again, as discoveries, of his own, the. old platitudes .which our clergy have , been talking all through the discussion, fuid at length ended, to the satisfaction of. his iudlenae and to the great relief of bis brother clergymen wh& were with him on the platform. His speech was received by the Preps With a chorus of derision. A day or two after b<> sent a letter to the newspapers to the effect theft although he could not retract what he had said about education —which no one Wanted nim to do—certainly not the friends Of the measure he so foolishly denounced—ho Very much admired Melbourne, and should noommend his Now Zealand friends to come and visit us. Dr Suter is going to Europe. Travel may open his mind, remove some narrow prejudices, show him that the world it not oast in the Suterian mould and still moves. He may come back with more liberal views and less presumption, a wiser and bettor tempered man than he goes homo. Let us hope that this may be the case.”

American Eailwatb. —The San Francisco , Newt JUtter says :—Nearly er«7 ph*ite«a.. nected with a railway differs in Awfrioa (ram those in England. The " guard" -m colled % ; America " ceaductorj” " ie styled) >'■ « baggage,” " canSrf’beco^“iar“take> your seats” is transfonted t®'“attr; aboard: the "rails” are caUfsll"teapfcsV’fthe "station” is termed the;" depft pronounced depot | and so on, ad If you ywnt. moreover, to be understood fa, travelling &). America, you must always pronounce " route” as though it was spelt" rotft.” ; Energetic Manner of Pushing on a Railway.— The new Baltimore and Potomac Hallway was completed through to Baltimore lately in a novel and characteristic manner. The opponents of the road, having failed in all otner expedients, hod determined to get out an injunction to prevent its passage through Baltimore. Their project becoming known to the officers of the company, nil the line, and; os soon as the Court bad ad-' journed on Monday, work was begun in earnest in constructing the rood and laying the track tibrongh the city. Night setting in, they wore retarded a little; but the moon soon came out, and they went on the same as ever. At 12 o’clock nearly half the track was completed, and the men, tired and hungrv from their excessive labour, pitched into four waggon loads of provisions, that had been brought along, with a fine relish. Work was renewed with vigour, and before nine in the morning—the time when it was supposed the injunction was to have been made—the last ■pike had been driven. The distance of the (rack laid was about two miles, and crossed three streets—Calverton Eoad, Franklin, and Townsend. At the two latter, double tracks were laid.

Dbamatio Authors.— The Orchestra has the following on the prospects of dramatic authors : —" Whether or not a first-class play (says ‘Babiland Bijou) is worth £40,000 in the pockets of Mr Boucicault, there is no doubt of the enormous value to the author of a successful play in France. A French paper tots up the .amounts which ‘ Babagas ’ must have produced M. Sardou. The piece was performed 238 times, and the receipts amounted in all to 596,574 f, or an average of 2506 f file each. The writer received 12 per cent, or 71,585f} the ‘ author’s tickets ’at the Vaudeville represent a sum of IOSf daily, of which one half are taken by a contractor, who sells them to the public, and the price paid for them amounts to a farther sum of 12,852 f; M. Sardou also received various premiums, for example, on the presentation of his play, for the hundredth performance, &c., which may he set down at a further earn of 20,000 f, making a total of 104,440 f, besides which there is the amount for which the right of publishing the work was sold to the theatrical bookseller. As it has already gone through more than a dozen editions, and the terms usually obtained by M- Sardou are oiie-holf the profits, this must also represent a considerable amount. The conclusion at which one may arrive is, that the play has produced to its author a capital sufficient to return an income of 6000 f (£240) a year.”

Walter Montgomery's Will.—The will of the late Walter Montgomery (says the Argus) was proved in the Supreme Court, by Mr Thomas Pavey, the Australian executor. The will was made in 1868 in Melbourne, and yras executed in duplicate, one copy being left with Mr Pavey, and the other sent to the English executors, Mr Forsyth, ef Islington, and the Her. W. Drake; of Grantham. Mr Montgomery died in September, 1871, a few days after his marriage. This marriage, if a legal one, would of course revoke the will, bat it appeared that the ceremony amounted to a nullity, as the bride had another husband then living. The marriage being null, the will was valid. There were a few curious paragraphs in the will. One was “ I give and bequeath to the said John Forsyth the sapphire ring, and one ruby and one diamond ring, given to me on board the Galatea,” by his Boyal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh. “I give and bequeath to his Boyal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh the watch-chain manufactured for me by Mr Crisp, jeweller in Melbourne, the same which I have already offered to his Boyal Highness at Sydney, in the colony of New South Wales, but which he declared he would not deprive me of.” “ With respect to certain sums of money owing me by some of my friends whom I have at times obliged, 1 wish the said John Forsyth and William Drake to insert advertisements in The Times newspaper for about a week reminding them politely of my desire and request for (if convenient) payment of the same. It may be that some few friends of mine may desire some little memorial of me. If so, let them give the market price of the valuables, and the proceeds may be added to and form part of my personal estate.”

Ultra Centenabism. — Under the title “ Authenticated Longevity,” the Toronto Globe has the following statementA most remarkable cow of longevity is furnished by a correspondent in Glengarry. A woman named Ann Campbell died m Kenyon, county of Glengarry, on the 18th of September, at the age of. 130 years. She was bom in Scot? land, in the parish of Bracadale, in the Skye, in the year 1742. When 30 years of ago she engaged, as chief dairymaid with Mr John Murray, Grishomish, and remained in that family for a period of 50 yean. When her services were no longer required by Captain f).. Murray, who succeeded his father in the estate of Griahornish, she left the Murray family aad engaged with Mr Nicholson, Ardmore, in the same employment, and continued in his temUy for, the following seven yean. She was then in her 87th year, and at the advanced age she emigratedto Canada, whew (he passed the .remaining 43 yean of her life. Our correspondent relates that of late years try in which she lived, and was constantly Visited by the curiously disposed of her adopted country, a# will M from the neighbouring Republic. , He also asserts that »ne Iras never sick until her never tested medicine of any kirid, tew quite active and lively until Within two days of her decease., She was in the full possession of her fMulties 1 to the very last. In proof of her activity, she states that she milked 12 cows every day list, summer. Her illness at the time of her death was short, and seemingly without pate. Her speech left her only 24 hours before her death. She died without a Struggle.’’

The Eastern Question the Will of Petek the Gbbat.—A copy of the will of Peter the Great (Says the Bristol JieroHry) has lately been printed by one of our weekly contemporaries. In it the Russian monarch otit the course to be pursued by his {lessors for the extension of the Russian Empire and the subjugation of Europe. Nothin j{ could have been more fortunate tor a clear understanding of the present crisis in the Eastern question. That , will throw a broad glare of light on the audacious conduct pf the present Emperor of Russia. It plucks aside the flimsy veil with which 'his pretensions are covered, and sets before us in their true colours the real grounds on which hie has keted. Alter a careful perusal of it, it appears very eyidebt that he is endeavouring to cony but the designs of his great predecessor. A f4w of the paragraphs are worth reprinting at this juncture. In clause nine he says: “Do all in your power to approach closely Constantinople aiid India. Remember that he who rules over these countries is the real sovereign of the world. Keep up continued wars with Turkey ana Persia. Establish dockyards in the Red Sea. Gradually obtain the command of this sea as well as of the Baltic.” In clause ten he says; “ Carefully seek the alliance o Austria, Make her believe that you wilt second heor in her projects for doimmoa over Germany, and secondly stir up the je y of other princes against her, and manage so that each disposed to claim fche . of Russia, and exercise over each a sort of protection, which will lead the way to future domination over thorn.” These two clauses need no comment. In clause twelve he says: “ Above all, recall around you the schismatic Greeks'who arc spread over Hungary and Poland; become their centres and support; hold universal dominion over them by a kind of sacerdotal rule ; by this you will have many friends among your enemies.”: With such instructions to posterity, it is useless to affect ignorance as to the fixed present ans, ulterior designs of Russia upon Turkey. They point unquestionably to dismemberment and appropriation.

■ -.•.•pumno Schools.—Says Beecher, " Xh* ~ P®“ie'Sch(jfli ought to be mode so good that no private school can exist by the side of it.” i? 1 * %n Francisco this dictum of the great dgwower might almost be said to be realised. (For poetical usefulness, the education given W OUWtbools ; g not surpassed by that of an» Mam “ eßt destiny is pointing "J®* /time when our State will be the one W ”“ " *

Properties of Sea Water— lt is cited a« an instance of showing the solvent power of sea water, and the readiness with which human bonra disappear, teat the Dutch Government m 1853 drained off the Harlem Lake, on which, there had been many Shipwrecks and naval Cattles, and where thousands had found, watery graves. The canals ahd trenches due to a considerable depth through the rescued land must have had an aggregate of thousand* of miles, and yet not a single human bone was exhumed from first to lost. Some weapon, and a few coins, and one or two wrecked vessols, alono rewarded the antiquaries who watched the operations with the hope ei a rich, harvest.

Shakspere in Germane. —A correspondent of the London Spectator extols the German representations of the drama, and particularly those of Shakspere and Moliere. In a small but pretty township called Libenstein, surrounded by villas, there is a theatre where three evenings a week plays by the best authors are performed. In seven evenings, he witnessed seven different plays by Lessing, Schuler, and the two dramatists above named. 1 1 ,k. performance,” he observes, was "Much Ado about Nothing,” and I am convinced that if Shakspere could be played like that in London, our managers would have no cause to make their usual complaint that the good things do not draw full houses, or to appeal to the lower side of human nature by producing the wretched plays that run after night through a whole season at many of our best theatres.

Lost Educational Opportunities.— The Attorney-General, in addressing recently a meeting at Liverpool, made a few remark* which are worth treasuring by young me* : “ One word to those of the audience who were still young, and who had still their life before them. Though he had not lived to consider himself quite an old man, he had lived long enough to know the immeasurable value of those years of youth which so many wasted. They brought with them, no doubt, often delightful memories. Defeats had then no bitterness, and there was no sadness in success, but they brought with them too often, and to too many of us, the saddest of all memories—the memory of opportunities neg--lected and of wasted time. He knew well that very few men were ever made wise by the experience of others, but if he could impress upon one single young man how bitterly, how very bitterly ne would regret, when he came to be fifty years of age, ike hours he had wasted at school, and if, making him feel that, he (the Attorney-General) could lead him practically to act upon the feeling, he should not have come to Liverpool in vain.”

A Strange Ceremony.—The other day ah St. George’s, Bloomsbury, London, therewer® joined together in holy matrimony a perfectly deaf and dumb bridegroom and a deaf ana dumb bride. Neither, however, was born deaf and dumb. The clergyman read the service very slowly aloud, for the benefit of the congregation, and, at the same time, with a considerable amount of gesticulation, by meana of the deaf and dumb alphabet upon hia fingers, for the enlightenment of the happy couple. The bride and bridegroom took their allotted parts in the service by means of their fingers, and no real difficulty occurred except in those parts where, under ordinary circumstances, the hands of the two persons would have been joined. A little amusement waa caused by the inability of the bride to explain that a certain gentleman who had been put forward by those officiating was not the on® she had herself chosen for her partnerbob the clergyman soon came to the relief of the distressed bride. In the more interesting parts especially concerning the bride and bridegroom, the gestures were of that loving description that no knowledge of the dumb alphabet was required by the congregation in. order to interpret them aright.

Mathematics of Marriage.—To people of a statistical rather than a sentimental torn, the mathematics of marriage in different conn* tries may prove an attractive theme of meditation. It is found that young men from fifteen to twenty years of age many young women averaging two or three years older than themselves, but if they delay marriage until they are twenty to twenty-five years old, their spouses average a year younger than themselves; and thenceforward this difference steadily increases, till in extreme old age on the bridegroom’s part it is apt to be enormous. The inclination of octogenarians to wed misses in their teens is an every day occurrence ; but it is amusing to find in the' love-matches of boys that the statistics bear out the satires of Thackeray and Balzac. Again, the husbands of young women aged twenty and under average a little above twenty five years, and the inequality of age diminishea thenceforward, till for women who have reached thirty the respective ages are equal % titer thirty-five years, women, like men, marry those younger than themselves, the disproportion increasing with the age, till at fifty-five it averages nine years. The greatest number of marriages for men take place between the ages of twenty mid twenty-five in England, between twenty-five and thirty in France, and between thirty and thirty-five in Italy and Belgium. Finally, in Hungary, the nqmhto ei individuals who many is 78 in a IOOOin Melt year; in England it is 64; in fidt in France, 67; the city of Paris »howiagfi3| In the Netherlands, 53 ; in Belgium, 43; in Norway, 38. Widowers indulge in second marriage three or four times as often. a*, widows. For example, in England (land et Mrs fiordell) there are 60 marnuei of widowers against 81 of widows; in Belgium there are. 48 to 16; in France, 40 to 12. Obi M*WoUerVpaternal advice, to “beware.of the wido w*/’ ought surely to be supplemented by petaxlm to beware of widowers.' ’ 1 New Tons Ladies.—A New York letter to the St Louis Globe says :—" The number of ladies driving their own turn-outs through the nark is constantly increasing. At one timeladies driving without gentlemen made thenvlelves the subject of remark, but how it is thw , hobby thing to do. They drive sites* to phaetons or buggies, and sometimes in hga& English waggons, with a liveried JohnThomah perched plaouUy on the back seat. Some ofi the ladies handle the reins with great *kuT>while others, again, pull and saw ah their horse’s mouth until the poor beast » nearly distracted. This class, I am happy to form a small minority. New * general thing, are used piaiiaging a horse w nothing roc tnenrd&shing ideas of things. Many of them could guide a locomotive whiouta. thought of fear as concerning «ie smoA. I must confess to a weakness for New Yolk > sirls They can paddle their own eanoea if there is any necessity for it, or b» io* a» dainty and frightened at anpple on, the walmr as though they did nob know a boat-book from a jews-harp. They suit ,themselves to circumstances. You meet them on Broadway in the morning, or in the avenue in the afternoon, and view their elegant clothe® and stylish ways with envy, wishing you had been bom rich rather than handsome. But, blew your simplicity, many of them would be proud of your wealth. The only difference is they know howto make the most of the least. They turn and return their old silks, strap JORussian leather belt around their waist, dangle a portemonnaie on one side of it and a euk. umbrella on the other, put on a hat made of two feathers and a bit of lace, which in their experienced fingers get just the desired (expression, draw on their three-buttoned dollar gloves, hold their heads up, twee long steps, and walk up town, looking a» though they only wanted a chance to turn over a million or so to some less _ fortunate person. These arc the majority. The wealthy minority have not a bit more style, or could not order a lunch at Delmomcoa with a more blase' air. They have not time to read much; what with making their clothing and promenading and going to the theatre, their time is pretty well occupied. However, they manage to know a little of most everything ; they observe a great deal, thin* quickly, and have a very knowing way talking."

d _p r Laiikester, * London coroner, Sasasr^*?^