promised to let him know, by telegraph, the patient's state in the morning-if he lasted till then; but unless some unlooked-for change took place, he probably would not hold out. Catching an early train, the three reached Fieldenham by midnight, where, under pretence of not disturbing their landlady, and after repeated promises from Styles to call for her the next day, the girl consented to go to Myrtle Villa to sleep, and there met with a warm reception, Mrs Hythe being quite as much alive to the importance of her restoration as was her husband. In the morning, Styles came round punctually; and as he came to the gate, there arrived also a telegraph messenger, whose tidings were brief, but final-Villada was dead. There was an unavoidable shock in hearing this; but both Hythe and Styles were secretly conscious of a feeling of relief. Lucile-we shall for the brief remainder of our story preserve her old name— who had had no idea of his danger, was not told of his death for some days. Early in the forenoon, as may be supposed, Mr Hythe took the girl round to his brother, who was now so weak that he could not stand, and was lying on a couch which faced the window; but the interview which followed shall be outlined in the description given of it by Mr Ignatius to his wife. It was like a resurrection, Maria! If you had seen a ghost, you would not have been more frightened than at seeing that panting, holloweyed fellow rise up with a sort of scream.-But she wasn't frightened; not a bit. How she knew he did not mean her any harm, I can't say, but she took to him directly. He says he shall get well now; and I believe he will.-I had a long talk with him, and it will be all right, Maria.' It was all right, from the Myrtle Villa point of view. Delighted at the restoration of his daughter; thankful for the opportunity of undoing his wrong in part, at least, Maurice Hythe became a new man; and never forgetful that it was to his brother's energy and wonderful sagacity he owed these boons, his lawyer was again summoned, and the will was this time altered in a manner which gave general satisfaction. A very handsome present to the poor woman at Bushfield Common raised her to the seventh heaven of delight, as it did also her husband who had the bad hand, and 'Davy' the messenger; while Mr Styles- But he also shall speak for himself. He often did speak of himself as he sat over his glass of grog in the select parlour of the Three Blind Mice at Kentish Town, N.W., which hostel stands at the corner of the street in which were situated Mr Styles's apartments. And that's how it was, sir,' he would say, when finishing his oft-repeated narrative. "The tour which I thought was going to be a complete bust-up for me, was the making of me. The loss of my dancer and my pianist, which made me think of the workhouse, was the only thing, as it turned out, which could have kept me from it. I never went a tour again, and never shall now, and I don't want to. She don't forget the old man, sir; and if I ain't rich, I ain't poor, and I can jog on quiet and comfortable, as long as I've got the breath to do it. This is the only time, sir, I ever knew a game won by playing the wrong card, which was what we certainly did when we put Charley on the business.' BOOK GOSSIP. THE study of history seems to be increasing both in attractiveness and popularity. This may be due as much to the brilliant literary talent which has been brought to its service, as to its own inherent interest and value as a subject of study and means of culture. There were great names associated with the literature of history in the last century-Gibbon and Lord Hailes, Hume and Robertson; but of these, the first two have alone maintained their places as historical authorities; Hume and Robertson being now read more perhaps for their manner than their matter-for their lucid and original style, rather than for the accuracy of their historical presentations. If we have not many greater writers in the present century, we have at least better historians. Moreover, the methods of historical investigation have improved so much within the last fifty years, that history may almost be said to be an invention of the nineteenth century. To more accurate and scientific methods, also, have been added many attractions in regard to the style and treatment of historical narrative. It is not now confined simply to the relation of state intrigues and great military conflicts; it is recognised more and more as a means by which the life of a people, rather than the history of a kingdom, is to be traced to its sources. The story of the political struggles and social throes which gave birth to the most precious of our constitutional and civil rights, is of more interest, because fraught with more instruction, than the record of armed conquest and battles and bloodshed. The simple narrative of the Shipmoney episode in the reign of Charles the First, is more illustrative of a people's progress, and hence of greater value to the historical student, than the history of all the battles that were fought and won in the campaigns of Marlborough. Nor is it alone to the more mature minds and the more advanced readers that modern historians appeal. We have short histories by men like Green and Freeman, in which all that is essential to an intelligent appreciation of the historical problems presented, is laid before readers in fanguage which the youngest need not fail to understand. Other writers have followed the example of these greater names; and among works of this kind we have pleasure in noticing the volume entitled Charlemagne, by the Rev. Edward L. Cutts, B.A. (London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge). This is really a history of the Franks from their first inroad into the Roman Empire in the reign of Gordian, down to the death of the great Teutonic emperor whose name gives title to the book-a period of about four hundred and fifty years. The life of Charlemagne embraces the period between 742 and 814 A.D.; but some knowledge of the early settlement and inroads of the Frankish barbarians is necessary to an intelligent understanding of the reign which forms the central subject of the book. This the author gives with commendable brevity, and at the same time with clearness and spirit. The style is familiar without being flippant; and the author draws for his materials upon the more picturesque among ancient and modern authorities. The story of Charles the Great, as thus told, will not fail to be useful to many who have not the leisure or means for studying more elaborate works. A knowledge of what this great Emperor did, and what he aimed to do, is essential to a clear understanding of European history in medieval and modern times, and may be said to lie at the very root of it. This volume by Mr Cutts will render the subject accessible to any who have the desire to acquaint themselves, briefly, clearly, and comprehensively, with the leading characteristics of the person and history of this great mediæval monarch. M.P. *.* A vivid idea of some of the treasures of the Boolak collection of Egyptian antiquities at Cairo, may be gleaned from a book recently published from the pen of Mr Villiers Stuart of Dromana, The Funeral Tent of an Egyptian Queen (London: John Murray) is the title of this work; the greater portion of the book consisting of a description of the remarkable tent or canopy which -as we have noted in our article on Recent Egyptian Discoveries-belonged to one of the royal mummies recently brought to light at Deiral-Bahari. A representation of this wonderful work of art, composed of hundreds of pieces of leather carefully dovetailed together, is printed in colours; and we learn that the tints of the original work, here reproduced, are almost as fresh as they were when first the pigments were coaxed into such quaint characters nearly three thousand years ago. There are many other features of this book which will cause it to be valued as an addition to our knowledge of the treasures of ancient Egypt. its bounds during the day, but disappear at night. They have offices in the City, but they do not sleep in the City. Consequently, when the census of London was taken in April last year, it was felt that, as being a night census, it failed to represent the true condition of that portion of London known as the City, and steps were adopted to have the defect rectified by the taking of a day census. The sum of twelve hundred pounds was voted for this purpose by the City Corporation, and the census was taken between the 25th and 31st of May following the Imperial census. The results of this special counting of the people have been published under the title of a Report on the City Day-Census, 1881 (London: Longmans, Green, & Co.). Under the Imperial census, the number of people found to be in the City of London during the night was 50,526; but this number under the day census is found to be 261,061. That is, there are more than five times as many people within the City of London during the day as there are sleeping therein during the night. And not only may the City be said to be thus depopulated during the night, but this tendency of things is constantly on the increase. In 1871, the night census showed a population of nearly 75,000, as against the 50,000 of 1881, being a decrease of fifty per cent. within the ten years. No wonder, therefore, that the old City churches, notwithstanding their many sacred and historic associations, are nearly empty on Sundays; seeing that the suburbs and surrounding towns connected with the Metropolis by rail and omnibus, draw more than two hundred thousand persons out of the City every working day at the close of business hours. The book affords many points of curious study to those who are fond of statistical information. *.* To the number of popular books on science, The beetle, as is well known, figures promi- in which the scientific spirit is not sacrificed to nently on all Egyptian monuments, and is repre- the mere demand for an hour's amusement or sented in the above canopy as flying with a ball relaxation, we must add Talks About Science, by upon his head. Mr Villiers Stuart gives a plate the late Professor Thomas Dunman (London: representing in various attitudes a beetle of this Griffith and Farran). Mr Dunman was one of description which was caught by himself, and the men who had to toil upwards more by his he accompanies it with an interesting descrip- own energy and application than by the assistance tion. The male is furnished with horns, these of others; and like many more who have thus horns enabling him to perform a duty which had the bloom of life rubbed off in the friction is peculiarly his, namely, to carry balls of wet of their early years, his health was undermined, Nile-mud balanced on his head, for his mate at and he died young, leaving the world just at home to deposit her eggs in. The female is with- the moment when he was best equipped to serve out these horns, and therefore cannot carry the it. This little volume has been prepared rather pellet necessary for the security of the egg. as a slight memento of his method of teaching, The Egyptians, says Mr Stuart, having seen the by which he was endeared to a wide circle beetles industriously rolling the globe of clay, of students, than as containing any original like their emblem of the sun, and seeing them contributions to the general knowledge of the also during flight decorated with the horned disc, subjects of which it treats. These subjects their emblem of divinity, came to the conclusion are such as the mechanism of sensation, prethat they were worshipping the sun, and held historic man, volcanoes and coral reefs, ice and them in corresponding veneration. Again, the egg the ice-age, how the earth is weighed and deposited in the mud-pellet, after passing through measured, with papers on the stars, on atoms the usual transformations, broke forth into life and molecules, and on the lobster and common as a perfected scarabæus, and gave the Egyptians frog. His lectures, of which the papers here the emblem of life out of death. Hence its fre-printed are examples, were, says his biographer, quent appearance on the tombs and funeral vestments of ancient Egypt. In the City of London—that is, the City proper, as distinguished from the Metropolis in generalthere is a large population which appear within enlivened by allusions to poetry and romance, and full of living interest; while here and there were flashes of quiet humour which won his audiences, and afforded abundant explanation of his popularity with his students. This applies to the papers in the book before us, which are at once clear and precise as regards the information that is to be conveyed, and interesting and attractive in respect of the style in which that conveyance is effected. We have no doubt the book will prove eminently useful in arousing in the mind of readers a renewed interest in questions of popular science. THE MONTH. will surely mislead the ingenious calculator of the antiquity of shell-heaps a thousand years hence.' The recent bombardment of Alexandria naturally gives a zest for naval and military information, and the following note, communicated to a contemporary by the Superintendent of the Royal Laboratory at Woolwich, giving as it does the particulars of the cost of each charge fired from one of the Inflexible's eighty-one ton guns, will be of interest: Cartridge filled, 425 lb. P. powder......£10 2 0 Tube, electric... 0 12 6 .11 16 5 2 17 9 004 Total cost of one round......£25 9 0 That is, in round figures, £100 for every four shots fired from the Inflexible. of another expedition to the 'Dark Continent,' in order to explore the mountains Kenia and Kilimanjaro, and the country which separates them from the eastern shores of Victoria Nyanza. This expedition is to be under the command of Mr Joseph Thomson, and will start on its mission early next year. A FEW artists, bearing well-known names, wrote a joint-letter to the Times, praying that, if possible, precautions may be taken to save picturesque Cairo from the fate of Alexandria. A somewhat similar cry was heard from archæologists, owing to the rumour that the wellknown Boolak Museum-which in their eyes is the most valuable, if not the most picturesque adornment of Cairo-was to be sold to replenish It is reported that the Council of the Royal the coffers of Arabi Pacha. This Museum Geographical Society contemplate the equipment owes its existence to the French antiquary Mariette Bey; and, as our readers are aware, it contains the principal part of those treasures and curiosities which the Egyptian tombs have from time to time revealed. In one way, the dispersion of these memorials of ancient Egypt provided they found their way to the safe custody of European Museums-need not be regretted, for the building which at present holds them is said, from the undermining of the Nile, to be in a rather dilapidated state. But the mere suggestion that such a man as Arabi has cast a wistful glance upon them, raises fears that some of his fanatical followers may from utter wantonness destroy relics of their country's past which can never be replaced. It is to be hoped, however, that such a catastrophe may be averted. Although civilised nations have left the records of their former greatness in their tombs and other monuments, those whose lives were spent in a savage state, and who had no such heritage to leave behind them, have not passed away into silence without leaving very distinct traces of their whereabouts. The kitchenmiddens,' or vast heaps of shells which are now found on so many coasts, together with the bone and flint implements buried in them, tell us of the food and mode of life of these very early dwellers on the earth. Many attempts have been made to calculate the time which must have elapsed before these heaps of refuse could have attained the dimensions which they now exhibit; though a writer in a recent number of the American Naturalist endeavours to show in a very interesting manner that these calculations are likely to exaggerate the time necessary for such accumulation. His observations are directed to the Innuit tribes on the Alaska coast, who, in common with other savage people in various parts of the world, are at the present day contributing to its surface these remains of their daily meals. He tells us how he has watched a healthy Innuit family despatching their meals of echinus or sea-urchin-how their teeth crack the spiny shell, and how the luscious contents are licked out before the debris falls in a continuous shower to the ground. He says: The heaps of refuse created under such circumstances during a single season were truly astonishing in size. They The Royal Agricultural Society have been very unfortunate of late years, owing to the persistent rain which has driven sightseers from their annual shows. The present rainy year has proved no exception to the rule; but as a set-off, the wet weather has called attention to two new modes of hay-making which would perhaps have been forgotten, or lost sight of, if the sun had been more generous with its beams. One plan which has already been in vogue for some years is that of Mr Gibbs, who by passing wet grass through a hot-air machine, is able at once to convert it into valuable hay. At the late Agricultural Show at Reading, six acres of grass, estimated to yield twelve tons of finished hay, were converted into dry hay in six hours; whilst, had it been allowed to lie on the ground, and left to the tender mercies of such weather as we have since had, it must have rotted and spoiled. The other process of saving wet grass is that of Mr J. Coultas. Mr Coultas does not use hot air, but directs all his attention to the construction of the haystack and to means for keeping it cool. His method of procedure is briefly as follows: In building the stack, an aperture, or rather inner chamber, is formed, by placing in the midst of the material a stuffed sack, which is withdrawn before the stack is complete. From the lower part of this chamber there is carried an air-shaft or pipe to an exhaust fan outside the sack. Apertures are also made in the stack for the insertion of thermometers. When the heat from the wet mass rises above a certain limit, the fan is set in motion; and while it extracts the saturated air from the stack, the outer atmosphere is dragged into it from every pore. In this way the temperature is rapidly reduced and the grass quickly dried into sweet hay. The unseasonable weather has perhaps had something to do with the invention of a very clever little contrivance for recording the duration of rainfall. Most of our readers must be familiar with the form of the ordinary rain-gauge or Aug. 26, 1882.] pluviometer, which may be roughly described as a funnel leading to a graduated glass vessel, by which the amount of liquid collected can be easily read off in hundredths of an inch. This rough-and-ready apparatus, although it has been improved upon so as to prevent loss by evaporation, &c., leaves much to be desired. It would take no note, for instance, of very light showers, which would therefore pass unrecorded. The new rainfall recorder, the invention of M. Schmeltz, appears to meet this want, for it will register the falling of a single drop, provided that drop falls upon its sensitive surface. It consists of a box containing a slip of chemically prepared paper, which moves by clockwork from one reel to another, a certain length of the paper passing, as in the Morse and other printing telegraphic machines, within a given time. The paper in question is first treated with a solution of sulphate iron, and after being thoroughly dried, is brushed with tannic acid. A drop of water on such a surface is sufficient to bring the two chemicals into nearer relationship, and a dark mark is the result. (Our chemical readers will see that the two agents named are the constituents common writing-ink.) It stands to reason that if the paper be graduated into hours and minutes, the exact time and duration of the rainfall will be recorded. It will be noticed that this rainfall recorder does not afford any means of judging of the amount of water received by the soil, and perhaps for this reason it will serve as an aid to the ordinary rain-gauge, rather than a contrivance destined to supersede that instru of ment. At the recent distribution of prizes and awards in connection with the late Smoke Abatement Exhibition at South Kensington, it was stated that the Committee have determined that their labours shall not yet cease if they can obtain the support of the public to carry them on. They hope to be able to form a permanent Institute, which would have for its chief objects the pro motion of schemes for the better utilisation of coal and coal products, the improvement of means for heating houses as at present constructed without producing smoke, and to deal with those subjects generally for the public information and benefit. Such a scheme should most certainly meet with cordial support from the dwellers in our large cities, where the increase of smoky chimneys is doing such damage to health and property. This In an article 'Simple Facts concerning Water,' we recently pointed out how hard water can be made soft by the addition of lime, and the theory of the chemical changes which occur. method has long been known as Clark's process, and although thoroughly effectual, it has the disadvantage of requiring the water to be stored in precipitating tanks for about twenty-four hours before it is ready for use. A modification of this system, by which the water can be softened without being left to settle, has been introduced by the Atkins Water-softening and Purifying Company of 62 Fleet Street, London. In this system, a jet of lime-water is introduced into the liquid to be treated, which is then conveyed to a mixing-chamber, and afterwards to some rotary disc filters, where the precipitated lime is quickly collected on cloth-covered discs. The water, thoroughly softened, then flows onward for immediate use, or can be stored in reservoirs until required. This new method of dealing with hard waters has already been tried with success for some private water-supplies, and has now been adopted by the Henley-on-Thames Water-works. The Brighton Railway Company are also erecting the necessary plant for supplying their engines with softened water. Whilst the English farmer has had much cause to anticipate the prospect of another bad season, the Americans have had as much reason to rejoice at the splendid weather with which they have been favoured. But the transatlantic farmer has enemies to guard against such as his English rival knows nothing of. Thus, in the San Francisco Call newspaper, we find a curious account of the means which are found necessary to protect the wheat-crops from the invasion of wild-geese, in a certain farm of seventy-five The invention and quickly increasing employthousand acres in Colusa County, California.ment for various purposes of explosives such as Forty men armed with rifles patrol this farm nitro-glycerine, dynamite, and others of the same not only in the daytime but on every moonlight family, compared with which gunpowder is but night. Flocks of geese-which, we are told, look a feeble agent, call for constant attention on the from a distance like huge white blankets-settle part of our legislature. It has been recently down upon the wheat-fields, and make havoc of pointed out by the government inspectors that the crops, unless the riflemen are on the alert, the railway Companies, in refusing as they do and knock over a few of them by way of example. to carry such dangerous goods on any terms Sometimes a thick fog will come on, and then whatever, exhibit a short-sighted policy. Such is the time that the geese will feed with impunity, things are easily concealed as ordinary luggage; for the men are afraid to use their weapons in and the railway Companies must know that in case of mutual injury. their trains, parcels containing them must often The electric light has found a novel employ-be surreptitiously conveyed. It would be far ment in the hands of some ingenious Frenchmen, better to carry them as acids and other who have lately, by permission of their govern- dangerous commodities are now carried-by ment, been experimenting with it as a lure for specially appointed trains, and with proper fish. The lamp was contained in an air-tight appliances to protect them from accidental igniglobe, and was lowered at night into the sea, tion. It is a fortunate circumstance that most with the result that thousands of fish of all sizes of these new explosives need percussion fuses were attracted to its brilliant light. Boats to rouse them into full destructive fury, many furnished with nets gradually closed in upon the of them burning harmlessly away if a simple living mass and made a great haul of fish. We flame be applied to them. It will thus be seen hardly know whether this mode of enticing the that dynamite is not such a treacherous fellowfinny tribes will be considered quite legitimate traveller as might be supposed; still, we should by the angling and fishing fraternities. be glad to see it relegated to a train of its own. The recent exhibition at the Alexandra Palace the plant's system, reaching and spoiling the of Means and Appliances for the Protection and tubers. Mr Jensen's theory is that it does not Preservation of Human Life,' contained many reach the tubers in that manner, but by the spores inventions of a very interesting and valuable being washed by rain off the leaves into the nature. It included a full-sized pair of facing- soil; where, coming in contact with the tubers, points fitted on a railway, showing the extension disease is induced. Mr Jensen's cure is to of the inter-locking system to all the various earth up the potatoes high enough to afford promoving parts of the railway system; contriv-tection. His method is to remove as much soil ances for preventing boiler-explosions; safety- from one side of the row as will allow of the lamps for use in mines, detectors of fire-damp, stems being bent over at an angle of forty-five boat-lowering gear, and many other life-saving degrees, and then to heap up the soil with the appliances. In the section devoted to life-belts hoe-or with a plough of his own invention-to and means for keeping the body afloat in the a depth of four inches over the tubers. This is water, we noticed two exhibits which appeared made steep enough to shed the rain which washes to have the merit of novelty as well as the spores, not among the potatoes, but into the efficiency. The first was the employment of ditch thus formed. As Mr Jensen claims to have powdered burnt cork for stuffing life-belts, secured potatoes with no more than from one ships' mattresses, cushions, &c.—giving greater to three per cent. of diseased tubers, when others buoyancy than the usual unburnt material. not so treated were smitten to the extent of thirty The other exhibit to which we refer con- per cent., the plan is well worth a trial. sisted of life-saving garments. Most dresses of this kind are of a cumbrous and unsightly description, such garments, in fact, as no one would from choice carry about with him. But here we saw greatcoats, ladies' dresses, cut in the latest fashion too, so skilfully furnished in the linings with little cylinders of cork, that their presence was quite undetected until pointed out. People in the habit of yachting, or who are engaged in any occupation which brings them into daily chance of falling into the water, would do well to make further inquiries relative to this useful adaptation of the life-belt principle. The manufacturers are Messrs Wentworth & Co., of 12 Museum Street, London, W.C. A few weeks ago, Mr Benjamin Askew delivered a lecture to the Royal Scottish Society of Arts, on the use of powdered stucco in the welding of cast steel; and in a day or two afterwards a Committee of the Society had an opportunity of witnessing at St Margaret's Works, Edinburgh, the welding of steel by the process described. The welding is done by means of powdered stucco used just as smiths are accustomed to use sand in other weldings. Four pieces of cast steel from two different makers were welded into one square bar, which was afterwards broken. The fracture showed no mark of the joining, but the grain of the two qualities of steel could be distinguished. Two old files were welded together and hammered into the shape of a chisel, which was then hardened, tempered, and sharpened, and used to cut an inch-bar of iron. The process is so simple that any skilled smith may practise it; he must use heat enough to flux, or melt, the stucco, but not so much as to fuse the steel. A writer in the Gardeners' Chronicle, hailing from Devonshire, claims to have practised the above method for a number of years with decided success. He learned it from an old labourer, who had always saved his crop by such means, when his neighbours had lost theirs. ROD AND LINE FISHING IN NORTH UIST. With reference to the article on the above subject which appeared in last month's Journal, we are requested by the proprietor to state that all the lochs, &c. on the island are preserved, more especially as regards salmon, sea-trout, and salmon-kind;' some of which, such as Salmo salar (salmon) and Salmo eriox (bull-trout), are, we are assured, occasionally taken. AUTUMN LEAVES. WHAT memories come, O Heart, Goeth down ere the day is past, Bright hopes have died like the leaves, But, unlike them, no more shall bloom; The shadows I see are those Who have passed from my side away, And oft in the midnight lone, When the world is wrapped in rest, I think of the leaves that fall, J. H. Printed and Published by W. & R. CHAMBERS, 47 Paternoster Row, LONDON, and 339 High Street, EDINBURGH All Rights Reserved. |