MISCELLANEOUS.

Otago Witness, Issue 657, 2 July 1864, Page 5

MISCELLANEOUS.

The holy week and the Easter holidays imParis have been characterised this year by the'^crciwds of ladjes who visit the churches, .and thaqustom of giving 3ugar- made .eggs, which, contain* small toys, bank-notes, lace, jewellery,;, in 'fact, the oauf dePaque is nbw used to convey Che most expensive assurance of love and esteem, gerierosifcy or osfcen tation. The . Easter- egp. has, in-. creased in volume, value, and pretensions, like everything else in Paris. People are, 'no longer contented with: presenting a ' toy gift, of the season, the egg of 1864>rau8t contain some valuable 1 article of jewellery," or some rich object of a.Jady'fr toilette which may 1 cost thousands of ; francs. -Ai satirical journal of Paris publishes- a sheet of engraving dedicated to les osufs de.lfaques. One of the drawings represents' 'a gentleman coining out of a giant egg,' the ovum of a bigminded bon-bon artist, which has been debosited in a lady's bed-room, to the surprise of the beauty to whom the gift is addressed.. Other .drawings are illustrative of other aspects of this new fash' ' . ■ i

From Palm Sunday to Good Friday,' tebtK in-~ eluded, , the fragments, of the true cross, the thorns, and one of the aails used at the crucifixion of Our Sj-mour were exposed to the veneration of the faithful at the entrance to the choir of JTotre Dara^. The relics wore shown in 'a new reliquary [of silver-gilt, i There were «lso figures in silver, dressed in> msdiseval costume' of St.. Ipis and St. Helena, and -Baldwin 11., m& statues of the I Twelve, Apostles, withi interrals between them, bo as to; leave, visible" th"^* drown, of \ thorag4naide, osrer which is'tti£ royircrofea of St.* tLoiUs 'fetiwith rubies,'.; emeralds/ -and^eWls" 5 ■Another reliquary, according to the authority from, which we extract these singular details,

contained the largest knowrr fragment of- tbe'i true cross, enclosed in a rock crystal crucifix, supported by two anpels. Bslow, the cros* was the holy nail in a crystal case. .' ■ / •!,' The " Nurembrnv Count v" has rhe.foHowxnu 1 : — *' A melancholy, event ha* jti ■it pccurrert "which, has created an immense sensation, particularly' among the hiehir classes of society in this cltW' The Countess F., only 17 years of age. and cousino tooneofthe state functionaries, .a' tmpte^ jo; cpmmit suicide lately, at Ba'eu, by discharging, a pistol at her breast. In her pocket-was" found ! * letter from a g'eutleman' to whom she was en- c ' gaged, in which he announced that'cireumstanrfes would not allow him to marry Jier for the mo-i ment, and released her from the consent she had; given to tb.° union projected between th^m.,, It appears that the' young countess still lives' but , that no hopes are entertained of her recovery."' ;J> About two acres' of the forest of Ohantilly have ] just been destroyed by a fife, 'caused, it is Bup-d posed, by a lighted match or cigar being thrown,' into the grass. The flames, were, fortunately .got under in a short time. " " ' 1 i>ew kindof blight has just made its appearance in i taty. • It attacks orange and- lemon treesy young ones especially. It manifests' itsW under f the form of a kind of sore, if we may use ttjat expression; a pungent ''chor oozes, out of it,- and ,in course of time the plant withers ana\dies.' No remedy has as yet beeu found for thfe disease.. , • Two new clubs are about to be, established la Paris: the '''Army' and Navy," tinder the patronage of the emperor, and the " International Club"- ,to which ladies are to be admitted, ; t , Panama was at. one time considered "oner of the richest and most important ' towns of commerce ,in the whole world." t was called by the Spaniards 1 " the noble and very loyal city of Panama," It wa9 made the head of a bishopric in 1521. It had convents for the orders of San Francisco, San Domingo, La Merced,. Bnd, the barefooted Augustins, and a Jesnjt "college and seminary; also' ,a University, founded by ;"the Bishop Don Francisco Xavier de Lusa'in '1751 ; an hospital of San Juan de Dios; and a'nunnery of 'Nuestra Senora de la Conception,. \ All these institutions and estafolishmen s ha,ve b^en closed or destroyed for many years. There U some prospect of the ancient splendour of fapama reviving. It is in contemplation to "mike it the capital of New Granada. There .""are!! now .21 steam-packets a month which arrive at- or depart from the port of Panama. 1 ' . ■ A letter from Hayti- gives an account of the trial and execution of several sectaries of the religion of Vaudoux, or the Serpent, >'a horrible ' African superstition, which includes human sacrifices and' cannibalism among its rites It wa3 A supposed that the efforts of the Catholic clergy * and of the . Government had totally eradicated this detestable creed, but a recent eve St' ! h'ag shown that it still has a few adherents, all of, whom are ostensibly devout Catholics. ' loathe, mjddle of Meceraber .last,at Bizotin, 'inimmediate vicinity of the capital of fhe. Republic, a man named Congo Pelle was ordered by the Papa-Loi, the high priest' of Vaudoux, to offer up aihuman a^cridce, with 'a promise! that obedience would make him a rich man. ' Pelle communicated the, order to his sister, and they together determine;! to sacrifice, their niece, named*' ClaircineJ 1 seven' 'years of age. Bight other persons i joined them. 1 in 'the performance of- the horriStite,. and in the night ofDecember 80 last they cnjfc> the girl's .throat, drank her blood, and devoured her .flesh « while still warm. They then .placed' tha- skull 'on a kind of altur and danced round it, sin'ginir a song to their deity. The bones- were nextxharred and reduced to powder, to.be religiously' pre&rved. ■ On the 6fch of January th"ejj we're abqut'to»,-eacri-' flee another little girl, whom4hey.badkidnanpad from a neighbouring" village, -but ."fortunately" the authorities had been warned ;'6f ..their iriten-' tions, and'they were- albarrestedj 'tried, and oonJ tfenmed to deatb. Their executipmtooK place r onl the 6th of February, in the presence. .pis aa jm-s mense crowd of people, who were onl v restrained, by the military from tearing the wretchejj io' pieces. The sect of Vaudoux was condemned ana proscribed by Touss'aint-Li.verture,' and vigor-* • ously repressed by all his successors.' It had well ' nigh disappeared when the Bmperot Bp#lotiqufc» who became one' of its adepts, sepjetly^en--couraged' it, made its priests his councillors, arid took part in the celebration of, tb'ir. rites; 1 -The sectaries were again becoming numerßuß' l wbeh' Boulouque.^as- expelled. There is inowr? gdodj. reason to 'believe that the actual president will ■ succeed in finally eradicating this abominable, aupersition. ' The Federal Government at tferne lias' lately devoted several sittings to the discussion'of various projects for a railway acrp?s the Alps. rThe three Jiines which have as yet be,en broughtjbefbre the notice ofjthe public are: -The Lukmanier to the East, the St. Qothsrd in the centre, ' and the Simplon to the West. The two-Former haVe tne advantage of Uniting the Canton of Tieino to the remainder of Switzerland, and of •/,being< easier to defend in ajmilitary, point of view. The Simplon, though supported by 'many interests, is open to various objections. Generally sp'eakfng, 'the majority are for the St.Gothardline; and to counterbalance; i this' the 1 partisans ofr the' Lukmanier < and Siraplqn, whose interests are not, in .opposition^ each other, have effected' anf omafearaa.Uon. M: Scheqk; the chief 'of, the home depart-ment,-has in hid report declared himself in favor ottheSt Gothara line,> and of -a considexabld Federal subvention for its execution, proposing, at.thesame time, that, negotiations Jje ojiejiedJor theipiirpose, l»ta with tfce; Kingdom of Italy, and with .the Southern States' of Germany/ 'This proposal has not met with the approval of tne\Federal Executive,; which has decided' that,- for the present at least, sue'i /negotiations' would bai premature. , ' t - -, , ' , . *.\u.* The State of California has an area of ieoioOO, square miles ; of Kansas, 83,000 squanT miles : of Minnesota, 88,500 j New Mexico, 124.000; Oregon; 100.000 -y and Texas, 28.0U0: .The territory of Arizona has- an area of 180,800 square miles ; of C010rad0 r 106,475 : of Dacota, 152,600 • of Idaho, 833,000; of Indian. 71 000:. of .Nebraska, 63,300,; of Naveda; 83.600; of, Utah, 109,600} and of Washiri&W, fa,'3oo. Total area of new States and' territories, 1,96r,425 square miles. Total area <of they whole of the ' United States, 3,250,080 square miles. , -<- The following is aa extract from a Jetter dated Quebec, March 24-^-" A friend of -mine, has just returned 'from .Washington, where he called ' U White House with A' note from' Lord Lyons. He was introducedwhilethe President was BeibW shaved, ; Abrab:am,fhart;Va white clritiiimider&isj ; chip, an^ se^ed. to -enjoy jconversa^op. la, tljjjty, idth'er^Sntletnk came "in M ' m,\\\^ag^ : troduced, and favored with a little chat, seasoned every now and then with a joke."