MISCELLANEOUS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume I, Issue 266, 19 September 1864, Page 3

MISCELLANEOUS.

TjObt Jewels. —Tho death of an obscure German aitist, and the recent revival before one of tho Paris courts of tho celebrated diamond necklace cause cclcbre, bring to mind a singular adventure which caused some years ago great scandal at the Court of Munich. Before Lola Sfontex went to tho capital of Bavaria, King Louis's attention was attracted by a German prima donna, Charlotte Kendrick. One morning King Louis discovered, as ho crossed the palace nursery, the floor of the room coveied with his children's toys ; among them were several doll babies. Ho was then on his way to Charlotte lvendrick's rooms. Ho thought that a single doll would scarcely bo missed from among the numerous toys that tilled tho floor. He put one of them, the first ho could lay bis hands upon, into his pocket. AVhen ho reached Charlotte lvendrick's lodgings ho gave the doll to her child and forgot everything about it. While the King was closeted with the prima donna, the palaco was in an independable state of contusion. A great robbery was discovered to have been committed in tho Queen's bed-chamber. A valuable turquoise, surrounded with enuimous diamonds, and worth about 20,000 dollars, had been purloined. Tho unfortunate occurrence was concealed as long as possible from the King, for he had given the jewel to his wife and prized it extremely. It could not he kept longer from him, and tho moment ho was informed of it ho sent for tho police, and ordered that no pains should be spared to discover tho culprit, whom he vowed should be severely punished. Several servants were arrested on suspicion. All the diplomatic corps and tho most distinguished company of court were present. Tho daring robbery committed in tho morning was the subject of general conversation. The torquoise was familiar to everybody in the court theatre. Charlotte Kendrick appeared in the third piecc; it was some favorite bravura from a grand opera. She was dressed in light blue silk, trimmed with white laco. She advanced to the front of the stage and bowed to tlie sovereigns, and then to the spectators. As she rose from the profound obeisance made, all eyes were riveted with astonishment upon her stomacher'; there glittered the royal gem lost that morning! A buzz of wonder Km round the room. The king blushed deeply. He saw at once how the alleged theft had oecuied. His children, finding the breastpin on tho table, thrust it into tho dress of their favorite doll. He had not observed it, and had given it to the prima donna's daughter. Charlotte Kendrick did not see the valuable breastpin until after the King's departure. She thought lie had, for delicacy, adopted this indirect way to make her a valuable present; and to thank him as delicately she wore it next to her heart at tho state concert. Tho King was obliged to confess what had taken place, and to explain tho mistake to the prima donna, who with a heavy heart surrendered tho valuable trinket. The palaco servants wore at once released with a valuable gratuity in money to ompensatc them for their imprisoncment.

Diseased J'ork.—Did Moses know more abou pigs than ire do ? Was it a knowledge of tho parasitic diseases common to man and swine which led the father of the Jews to condemn pork as human food ? Both questions can be answered in the negative ; and the apparently slender grounds on which pigs were first regarded as unclean aro stated in tlio following verse: " And the swine, because it divide! h the lioof, j-et chewetli not the cud, it is unclean unto you : ye sliall not eat of their flesh, nor touch their dead carcase." The wisdom of the Mosaic law can only be justly estimated with a knowledge of the accidents arising in warm countries from eating pork throughout long and hot periods of the year; and there is no doubt that the direct evil results as manifested by human sickness led to the exclusion of pork from the Israelitish viands. The masses of measly pork which may be seen hanging from tlio butchers' stall? ill Southern Europe, prove lliat the long-legged swine which liuut the forests for acorns, and rove about to pick up all kinds of otlal, aro often unlit for human food ; and that they were so to no less extent in the land of Israel is probable * * * It- is interesting to observe that paiasitie maladies in the pig especially abound in that section of the United Kingdom where swine live most among human beings. The Yorkshire and Berkshire, pigs in their native counties, inclosed in the farmyards of their breeders, are free from worms which aro likely to live in the body of man. The Irish pig is tlio one most commonly injured by entozoa, and the reason for this is evident when we know how much the cottager relies on rearing a porker which is permitted the free range of house and road, where every description of fdth is devoured, charged with the ova of parasites expelled by man, or some of the lower animals. The observations of holmintliologists prove that is not unattended with danger for human beings to sleep together when ono is affected with tapeworm or trichina. How much more dangerous, then, for animals to live with people who disregard all habits of cleanliness! Though we may ridicule the notion, that filth breeds parasites, ive must not forget that dirt protects the ova and secures their transmission from one nest to another * * * The conditions under which we live in the British Isles arc certainlymuch less favourable to the propagation of worms ; but we disregard, in our ignorance, the most common precautions to protect ourselves from loathsome diseases, aud not only permit dogs to eat any kind of olliil in and around slaughter-houses, but sanction the existence of piggeries where all kinds of garbage, charged with worms or then- eggs, are daily devoured by swine. The majority of germs calculated to engender parsities are to be found in abundance in the contents of the alimentary canal of human beings and domestic quadrupeds. If pigs arc petmitted to eat these, as in Ireland or in many British piggeries, wo must expect hams, bacon, and pork sausages, to be charged with the embryonic forms of human entozoa. Whereas, in Iceland, then, the dog is the victim of human negligence, and en revanche the cause of human disease, in the British Isles the pig holds this unenviable position; themorelioweverofparasiticdiseasein man, the better we can understand how even the underdone roast beef of old England may prove to us poison as well as food, and how the dog or cat we pet may indirectly shorten our days. We have good reason to believe with Moses that the pig is an unclean beast; but without discarding him from the scanty list of animals to be eaten, it is evident that we can purify the race of swine, and thus prevent human as well as porcine maladies * * * In 1.552 Herbert fed three dogs with the tricliinous flesh, of a badger, and found the parasites in the muscles of these dogs. Some of the lirst feeding experiments to trace the origin of trcclmia in man were performed in Edinburgh by tlie members of the i. livsological Society, whose labours were of too short a duration. .Specimens of the parasite wero shown to the Society on the lilth March, 1863, by .Dr. W. T. Gairdner, who, with his usual acutencss, declared that the whole appearance of the parasito was such as seemed strongly to bear out Owen's view, that the trichina was merely the first stage of an animal destined for further development.— jPopular Science Review. Tiik Auftntlidti Family Journal, is a new magazine published in Melbourne. It is well got up, and the contents are varied, l-'rom an article entitled "Signs of Australian Nationality," we take the following paragraph with reference to the proposal to send, back "expirees" to the old country:—"The sly admirers of' old liandism' and their slimy tail of free adventurers, may sneer at the proposition of clearing those noxious and foul polluting weeds out of our Austral home, but as the only moral weapon left we arc bound to try it. All honor, therefore, to Mr. Edward "Wilson for tlio bold, manly and, patriotic stand he has taken upon this vital question, affectingthe very lieart's-blood of this young and rising nation. Some of our temporary money-grubbing adventurers of course affect great horror at this energetic and decisivo move on the part of the champion of the adopted citizens of Australia Felix, while other gc-ntlomen of the same transitory stamp are daily sighing to retire to the perfumed boudoirs and saloons of the old world, to mingle with the greatness of great cities, spending tho pile or pension they have made amongst us. This genus, no doubt, will sneer and scolf at any effort we may mako to free ourselves and our adopted country from tho foul and pestilential filth of England's immoral sewage. But thank God there are men rising up amongst us imbued with a settled and permanent feeling of adoption and allegiance to our bright and sunny land, and their is no doubt but vigorous action will arouse among our people a sense of national pride, and a manly feeling of self-reliance."

A STOItY TIIOM SUFFOLK. Hodgo to the Squire's once went to dine, And drank his fill of beer and wine. Next day, being asked liow he fared, •Says lie, " D'ye" know I summut stared That artcr gnttlin' soup an' lisli An' wenson in a silver dish, Plumpoofien, an" such things ns thesf, They liiowt me in plain bread and cheese !"