argument in favor of the derivation theory is furnished by the affinity of the land animals now existing in any part of the world with those which inhabited the same country at an earlier period, as evidenced by their fossil remains. In the diluvial and pliocene deposits of South America, for instance, are found the remains of Marsupials and Edentata, as armadilloes and sloths, intermediate between those forms which still exist and those which are found in the lower tertiary strata of the same region. The ape-remains again of the bonecaves of Brazil can be assigned to living New World genera, while those found fossil in Europe and Asia belong to existing genera of the Old World. The fossil remains of Mammalia hitherto

found in Australia belong exclusively, like the living forms, to Marsupial orders. All these facts are what would be expected were the theory of evolution true, while they would be inexplicable by any doctrine of special creations.

Crocodilian Remains in America.-At the meeting of the Academy of National Sciences, Philadelphia (November 1), Professor Leidy remarked that he had recently received from Professor Hayden's expedition a collection of fossils, mostly consisting of remains of turtles and crocodiles. He had formerly expressed surprise at the absence of remains of the latter among the great profusion of remains of mammals and turtles in the Mauvaises Terres deposits of White River and the sands of the valley of the Niobrara River. He now felt some wonder at seeing so many crocodilian remains, apparently of contemporaneous age with some of the latter. The reptilian remains are generally in a very fragmentary condition, and have been picked up from the surface of the country. Several undescribed species of turtles were recognizable, but these would be characterized at a later period. From among the crocodilian remains he had been able to obtain a large portion of those of a skull of Crocodilus Elliotti, indicated some time ago from a jaw fragment. The skull appears to have nearly the form of that of C. vulgaris and C. biporcatus. It is about a foot and a half in length. Teeth appear to have been absent at the extreme fore part of the jaw. Immediately behind their usual position the palate presents a deep pit at each side of the naso-palatine orifice. The jaw is deeply indented laterally, just back of the position of the fourth tooth, and a less indentation is situated back of the ninth tooth.

The Discovery of Chloralum.-This does not appear to rest with Professor Gamgee, as was supposed at first. Mr. J. Carter Bell, writing to the Chemical News (February 3, 1871), says: "With regard to the much-vaunted Chloralum,' I see Professor Gamgee says, in his letter of January 13, The agent (chloralum) had never been thought of in therapeutics until last January;' again, in his letter of the 27th, since I first thought of the chloride as an antiseptic just a year ago.' In Ure's Dictionary,' 1863, Article 'Disinfectants,' chloride of aluminium is mentioned as an antiseptic; it says, 'Meat, if well packed, cleaned, and washed with a solution of chloride of aluminium, will keep three months.' After that I hardly think Professor Gamgee can lay claim to the discovery of the antiseptic and therapeutic properties of chloride of aluminium."

This is of course too clear, and we are surprised that a volume so well known should not have been previously consulted by Professor Gamgee.

Action of Alcohol on the Body.-A new medical periodical, styled "The Doctor," gives a note in its January number on the above subject. It says that Dr. Heinrich Timmerberg ("Inaug. Dissertation," Dorpat, 1869) found, as the results of his investigations and experiments on animals:1. That alcohol constantly lowers the bodily temperature. 2. That it lessens the frequency of the heart's contractions. 3. That the blood-pressure in the carotids is lowered, indicating diminished force in the cardiac action, and that this effect was

produced partly by direct action on the heart and The retardation partly through the vagus nerve. of regressive metamorphosis by means of alcohol action, as well as to direct influence on the blood. is to be ascribed to the weakening of the heart's

Dr. Carpenter's Views Opposed.—Mr. A. H. Green contributes a very able paper to the Geological Magazine (January, 1870), in which he analyzes Dr. Carpenter's argument. Can, he chalk of to-day is forming, be said, on a broad asks, then, the fauna of the sea on whose bed the

view, to be the same as the fauna whose remains are preserved in the chalk of Dover? He is not surprised that certain low forms should be common

to the two, because the conditions under which such creatures live do not in all likelihood involve that struggle for existence to which specific change is probably due; they have ample space and ample sustenance for animals of their simple requirements. Some few forms, too, somewhat higher in the scale, seem to have lived on in "the dark unfathomed caves of ocean" but little affected by the round of changes that have so largely altered the dwellers on the upper world, though here it seems cally allied, and not specifically identical, with the that the modern representatives are only generiolder forms, a point of the highest importance. But, leaving these cases out of the question, are the two faunas, as a whole, a bit alike? Take one simple instance. The older chalk swarms with ammonites, scaphites, baculites, and belemnites, all well-marked and typical forms, not one of which will be embedded in the chalk of to-day; and the old chalk has not yet furnished a single fragment of a marine mammal, many species of which will be preserved in the modern chalk. A palæontologist would readily point out any number of similar contrasts between the two faunas ; but what he has said will, he thinks, make it clear why it is that he cannot understand how any one can say we are living in the cretaceous epoch, unless he at the same time asserts that the age of a geological formation is to be determined from those beds only which are formed out of Foraminifera, and by the Foraminifera alone of the fossils contained in such beds.

Power of Photography.-In the recent eclipse expedition an excellent photograph was taken of the corona which is seen streaming forth all round the sun during totality. On subsequent examination of this photograph, the image of the planet Venus has been discovered among its rays; and in this we have an example of the power of photography in representing objects which the eye has not seen and could not see. Another example has

been recently described by Mr. C. F. Varley. He was making experiments by passing a current of electricity through a vacuum tube, the results of which were indicated by strong or faint touches of light about the poles. In one instance, although the experiment was carried on in a dark room, the light was so feeble that it could not be seen, and the operators doubted if the current were passing. But at the same time photography was at work, and in thirty minutes a very good picture was produced of what had taken place. This is a remarkable fact. Indeed, it borders on the wonderful that a phenomenon invisible to the human eye should have been, so to speak, seen by the photographic lens, and a record thereof taken by chemical agency. It is highly suggestive, and we may anticipate that it will be turned to good account by practical philosophers.

Ireland's Resources.-The industrial resources of Ireland, as many readers know, have been much written and talked about. We are glad to learn that one of them has of late been worked, and put to profitable use. In the northern part of the county of Antrim there are miles of what geologists call "black band ironstone," and of hematite, or red ore, similar to that found in Cumberland. Of these two valuable minerals, more than eighty thousand tons were shipped last year to be smelted in England; but this quantity is now to be exceeded. The demand for iron and steel grows larger every year; and some of the enterprising men of Ulster have made up their minds to aid in satisfying that demand by converting the iron on the spot where it is dug. Less than a ton of coal is required to convert a ton of ore; so, instead of sending the ore to England, coal will be fetched from England, and the country between Carrickfergus and the Giants' Causeway is to be. come busy and black with smelting-furnaces, forges, and rolling-mills. If Ireland is to be "saved," there can be no more promising way to do it than by fair rivalry in work and enterprise

with other countries.

Migrations of Insects.-Some naturalists argue that the migrations of insects and creeping things must always have taken place by land, as it would be impossible for them to cross great breadths of water. Mr. Wallace, in his anniversary address to the Entomological Society, combats these argu ments, and gives facts in support of his views. Living beetles have been caught at sea nearly twenty miles from shore. Swarms of locusts fly from Africa to Madeira, 300 miles, Mr. Darwin once caught a locust 370 miles from land; moths captured 260 miles from the coast of Portugal have been exhibited at a meeting of the Zoological Society; and recently the captain of a whaler caught a white butterfly 400 miles from the Azores. It was vigorous, for on being placed in a drawer, it laid eggs. From these and other instances, Mr. Wallace infers that, under favorable circumstances, insects would be able to cross even greater expanses of ocean.

ART.

Mr. Church's New Picture.- The Evening Mail gives us about as sound and discriminating art criticism as we get from the New York Press, and

we take pleasure in quoting a portion of its remarks concerning Mr. Church's new picture recently on exhibition at Goupil's:-The "Jerusalem" of Mr. Church is, to our mind, the best of his large canvases; and in saying this we think we are uninfluenced, as far as it is possible for us to be uninfluenced, by the charms which any picture of the Holy City, which is not an outrage on our sense of form and color, must always possess. This painting has a unity and breadth which neither the "Heart of the Andes" nor the "Damascus" possesses, and has certain subtle charms of color which evince a refinement and knowledge not seen in either of his paintings of Niagara, whose chiefest claims upon us are on this ground of color. For the benefit of those of our readers who may not be within reach of the picture, and that we may be the better understood in what we have to say of it, we shall describe it.

The painting is some seven feet long by five feet high. The spectator is supposed to stand on the Mount of Olives, facing the West; the season of the year is Spring, and the time about two hours before the sunset. The further limits of the Holy City, from north to south, form the horizon line of the picture, if we except a limited space in the south beyond Mount Zion, where we get a glimpse of distant valley and more distant hill. There are clouds in the sky. The shadow of one passes over the eastern portion of the city, and that of another wraps the middle distance. The unbroken sunlight falls over the nearer city, bringing out in bold redefining for us the Temple platform, and making lief the Mosques of Omar and of Aksa, clearly luminous a belt of green beyond the eastern wall and between it and the buildings we have named. These two buildings, that ascribed as the place of Holy Sepulchre, and the Russian Hospice, the Wall and St. Stephen's and the Beautiful Gates, are the only prominent features of the city; the rest is suggestive merely.

shadow, which covers all between us and the city This side the wall, and on the edge of the cloud but the Mount of Olives, upon which we stand, are the indications of the Moslem cemetery. Still lower down, and still nearer us to the right, are the Garden of Gethsemane and the Tomb of the Virgin, with the path leading thereto from St. Stephen's Gate. To our left the conical tower above the Tomb of Absalom is seen rising behind the slope embraced by the Jewish Burial Ground. In the depth of the valley, and between us and Mosque of Omar, is the Bed of Brook Kidron. And now permitting our glance to leave the hill on which the Holy City rests and the valley of these sacred places, we see, nearer us, the Pool of Siloam, and nearer still the rugged, ragged trunks of the olives on either side the road, down which we may well permit ourselves to fancy the Saviour passed on his first entry into Jerusalem, where the "great multitude spread their garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees and strewed them in the way; and the multitude that went before and that followed cried, saying, Hosanna to the Son of David; blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest."

On this road, and in the immediate foreground of the picture, are the figures of men and camels coming towards us; and these, with the clouds seen towards the south in heavy masses, complete

the list of the prominent forms of the painting. But if, as we presume it to be, the picture is topographically true, there must be many other points, in the broad expanse embraced, of almost equal significance and interest with those we have named, and observable at a glance to those who have made the sacred pilgrimage, which pleasure, we regret to say, has not been ours.

The Limitations of Art.-We extract the following from Mr. Hamerton's Preface to the American edition of his admirable "Thoughts about Art: "One of my English critics has blamed me for want of faith in Art, because I admit that its power is very limited. All spiritual power is limited in reality to those who receive it willingly; if it ever seems to exercise any other action, it intrudes on the domain of temporal power. For instance, when Lacordaire preached in Notre Dame he was exercising the spiritual power; but when the Church of Rome enforced her authority by punishing heretics, she resorted to temporal means, and was so far a temporal power. Now, painting is purely a spiritual power, and it influences only those who are willing to be influenced. A power of this kind is great or small in proportion to the numbers of its willing adherents, and the numbers of persons who are in any appreciable way influenced by painting are not great in proportion to population. The fact that adherents are willing does not prove weakness, but the fact that none but willing adherents obey the call, when few are willing, places every spiritual power at a disadvantage in comparison with the temporal powers, because these last, with the strength given to them by the adhesion of some, compel the adhesion of others. But I should be sorry if any reader supposed that I under-estimated the power which Art does possess. Art has a kind of influence which it would take pages to define, but which, if a man wields it, places him amongst the spiritual powers. A painter has no lordship over the liberty of men; he cannot govern them in the temporal way, but he has access to very deep and subtle feelings in the few who understand him and receive his ideas, and through these feelings he exercises lordship of another kind. It is the old duality of priest and baron. The baron of these days is not always a soldier, he may be a manufacturer; and the priest of these days is not always a clergyman; he may be a writer, or even a painter. But the broad distinction remains, and all who govern by force or money are of the temporal power; all who influence by persuasion, by intellect, by sympathy, are of the spiritual power.

The Pitti Palace.-In Florence an event has happened of no little interest for the lovers of Art. That part of the long passage going from the Uffizi to the Pitti Palace which joins the end of the Ponte Vecchio part with the Uffizi, has been re-opened, after having been in the hands of workmen all the winter. The cases of Etruscan vases, and the shelves of antique urns for the dead, which used to be on both sides of it, have now been placed in the Egyptian Museum; and a collection of old prints cover the walls instead, and engage the attention of whoever passes, from the moment he leaves the paintings and sculptures until he arrives at the Ponte Vecchio, where the original old-master drawings and sketches are. On leaving the Uffizi,

there are old blocks by Andreani, Boldini, Niccolo Vicenzio, some original, others after Raphael, Titian, the Parmegiano, &c. There are also a great many old engravings after Raphael and Michael Angelo, and the antique. Amongst them is Bonasone's profile of Michael Angelo; and after these are about fifty yards of interesting engravings after pictures. At the end, close to the turning where the Italian sketches are, there are ninety-one etchings of Albert Dürer, and a few woodcuts, some of the larger "Crucifixion" being amongst them. A large number of Rembrandt's and of his imitators are in process of being arranged; and beyond again miscellaneous English, French, and German prints, ending in a large number purely French, which lead the visitor back to the Italians at the staircase again. Altogether, this collection is a great treat to the artistic visitor in Florence,

Our National Academy.-The attendance at the Academy continues good. This is altogether the best exhibition season in its history, and is in proof that there is no dearth of interest in our artists and their works on the part of the public. The annual meeting of Academicians is at hand. Much interest is felt in the result of the coming election of officers, Academicians and Associates. No ticket for officers has yet been decided upon by any party. In fact, we are happy to say that party lines are not defined. All now claim to be progressionists, whether they work in that direction or not. The probabilities are, we shall have a num ber of candidates for the office of President. Perhaps we had better say nominees, in deference to the delicacy of gentlemen who are too courteous to oppose anybody. Mr. Gray will doubtless be urged to submit to re-election. He has a large country constituency and may go in. Mr. Page is, of course, on the carpet, and with many energetic supporters; and so we believe is, or will be, Mr. J. Q. A. Ward. Should this gentleman, who is now Vice-President, permit himself to be voted for, we might safely guarantee his election. A man of big heart, he is much beloved and by many. He is eminently practical, and has clear notions of what ought to be done for Academy success, and how to do it. He lacks in no particular the requirements of a President. In fact he is just "the man for Galway."-Evening Mail.

Maclise's Portrait of Talleyrand.-Mr. Dante Gabriel Rossetti, in a recent number of the Academy, pays the following tribute to Maclise's portrait of that arch diplomatist, Talleyrand:-But one picture here stands out from the rest in mental power, and ranks Maclise as a great master of tragic satire. It is that which grimly shows us the senile torpor of Talleyrand, as he sits in after-dinner sleep between the spread board and the fire-place, surveyed from the mantel-shelf by the busts of all the sovereigns he had served. His elbows are on the chair-arms; his hands hang; his knees, fallen open, reveal the waste places of shrivelled age; the book he read, as the lore he lived by, has dropped between his feet; his chap-fallen mask is spread upward as the scalp rests on the cushioned chair-back; the wick gutters in the wasting candle beside him; and his last master claims him now. All he was is gone; and water or fire for the world after him-what care had he? The picture is more than a satire; it might be called a

diagram of Damnation: a ghastly historical verdict which becomes the image of the man forever. This is one of the few drawings which Maclise has signed with his nom-de-crayon at full length; and he had reason to be proud of it.

Egyptian Sculpture-In his "Ancient History of the East" Prof. Philip Smith writes thus :"The whole spirit of Egyptian sculpture is symbolism, rather than direct imitation of Nature; and an attitude of repose, expressive of religious peace. In these two principles we have the simple answer to many faults ignorantly charged upon the knowledge and the power of the artists. The absence of anatomical display is not due to the want of that knowledge of the human figure the Greeks acquired in the palestra . . . . details were designedly suppressed for the sake of simple majesty. Both in architecture and in sculpture the Egyptian artist had learnt that great lesson,the ignorance or neglect of which is the ruin of the best technical skill, and never more so than in our own day, when to let things alone. He also adapted his workmanship to his material; and knew better than to make mouldings of hard stone like cabinet work, or a granite colossus like a figure

carved in wood or cast in metal."

Several stone coffins, probably containing the remains of monks of Saint-Ouen, have been discovered in the garden of the Hôtel de Ville of Rouen, the site of the ancient Presbytery: some of the coffins are hewn out of solid stone, while others are built of stones from ancient buildings, cut in the Roman fashion. The Abbé Cochet, who has superintended the excavations, declares that one of the coffins is of the seventh century, and that the monk interred therein may have been contemporary with Saint Ouen; another, said to be of the eleventh century, contained a skeleton, complete with the exception of the skull, which had fallen into dust.

VARIETIES.

National Steamship Co.-The attention of all our sea-going readers is invited to the advertisement of the National Steamship Co. on another page. This line is composed of ten noble steamships, built after the most approved models, in water-tight compartments, with flush decks from stem to stern; and we know from the personal experience of several voyages, that in the elements of safety and comfort these ships are unsurpassed by any that plough the seas. Ample state-rooms and dining-rooms, and well-spread tables, with attentive servants, are among the attractions offered by this line; and the whole is under the watchful care of the General Manager, William B. Macalister, Esq., of Liverpool, England, and of the General Agent at New York, Wm. Hurst, who will give courteous attention to all patrons. The scale of prices, moreover, on this line is very moderate indeed, and that the public appreciate the solid attractions offered by the National is indicated by the fact that none of the other companies was able to show a more encouraging balance sheet last year, nor to put a larger amount into the pockets of

stockholders.

W. H. B.

Brain-Weight.-An eminent German Professor once assumed that, as a certain size and mass of

brain is essential for the exercise of the mental faculties, therefore all the human race must be furnished with an equal amount of brains. This truly Teutonic theory has since, however, been effectually dissipated. An elaborate paper was read, not very long ago, before the Royal Society, in which the existing evidence as to the weight of brain among different nations was analyzed. The average brain-weight for the English is stated to be 47.50 ounces; for the French, 44.58; for the Germans, 42.83; but there are discrepancies in the results of different observers, some giving a greater average than this to the Germans. The Italians, Lapps, Swedes, Frisans, and Dutch come into the same category with the English. Among the Asiatic races, the Vedahs of Ceylon and the Hindoo Mussulmans afford a slightly increased average of The skulls of give a mean of over 42.11 ounces. brain-weight over those of the Hindoos. Two skulls of male Khonds-one of the unquestioned aboriginal races of India-show a brain-weight of only 37.87 ounces. The general average of the

The

Asiatic table shows a diminution of more than two ounces when compared with the Europeans. general mean of African races is less than that of European races, although there are great differences; the Caffre rising high, and the Bushman sinking low, in the scale. The average of the whole of the aboriginal American race reaches 44.73 ounces, which is 2.14 ounces less than that of the European races. The Australian races show a brainweight one-ninth less than that of the general average of Europeans. The Malays and others of the Oceanic races, who migrated boldly, for commercial purposes, over the North and South Pacific Ocean, and occupy the islands, show a tolerably high average of brain-weight; and, on arriving at this section, we return in some measure to the large brain-weight of Europeans.—Once a Week.

Statistics of the Reign of Terror.-The Monde of the 5th, in order to show that the first revolu tion in France was not directed principally against the higher orders, quotes the following figures: "The French Revolution, which certain writers have set themselves the task of justifying, was not, as they say, the work of the people, who suffered as much or even more than the wealthy, for the odious excesses for which efforts are now made to render them responsible. The following statistics are eloquent on the point: Nobles executed, 1,278; women of the same class, 750; together, 2,028. Nuns, 350; priests, 2,135; together, 2,485. Females of the laboring classes, 1,467; commoners of all conditions, 13,633; together, 15,100.

Women of the people killed in La Vendée, 15,000; children, 22,000; together, 37,000. At Nantes the number of Carrier's victims was 32,000, of whom the nobles and clergy formed only a very small proportion-namely, nobles drowned, 1,400; priests shot, 300; drowned, 460. In recapitulation we find commoners or working classes, 82,000; priests and nobles, 6,673.”

mend the able article on The Usages of War," Some International Questions. in the last number of the Quarterly Review, to gently Prussianizing public sentiment in this counthe careful perusal of those who have been so dilitry during the past few months. It sums up the following eight points as necessary to be settled by a new Convention like that of Geneva :-

Ist. To decide whether forces like the Prussian Landsturm, the Francs-tireurs, the Garde Nationale Sédentaire, and our Volunteers, are to be recognized or not; and to enact uniformity in this respect; so that a State may not lay down one law at home and practise another abroad.

2d. To decide whether volunteers, not being natives of the country in whose armies they fight, are to be treated on the same footing as natives, when made prisoners of war. This question was raised in the Danish War, when the Germans refused to treat Norwegian and Swedish volunteers in the same manner as Danes.

3d. To regulate the principles on which an invading army may obtain supplies from the inhabitants, and to abolish all needless and arbitrary requisitions.

4th. To determine whether the civil population may be made to perform military work, such as digging trenches, and so forth, for the invading force, as the Prussians have compelled them to work, both in Denmark and in France.

5th. To abolish, totally and unconditionally, the system of hostages, as useless and barbarous.

6th. To forbid the system of vicarious retaliation, as exercised by the Prussians, and particularly the practice of official incendiarism.

7th. To put an end to the system of executing prisoners or civilians, otherwise than for armed resistance, and after investigation by court-martial.

8th. To exempt towns from bombardment where they are not used as part of a defensive position, and where the bombardment does not serve to give the attacking party immediate possession by dislodging the defenders.

We are convinced that none of these proposals, if adopted, would render war less effective for its legitimate purposes; and that their adoption, besides the immediate diminution of suffering and loss and demoralization, would tend to cherish that better spirit which, we have the highest authority for believing, will one day make an end of

war.

The Dread of the Monkey toward Snakes.Brehm gives a curious account of the instinctive dread which his monkeys exhibited towards snakes; but their curiosity was so great that they could not desist from occasionally satiating their horror, in a most human fashion, by lifting up the lid of the box in which the snakes were kept. I was so much surprised at his account that I took a stuffed and coiled-up snake into the monkey-house at the Zoological Gardens, and the excitement thus caused was one of the most curious spectacles which I ever beheld. Three species of Cercopithecus were the most alarmed; they dashed about their cages and uttered sharp signal cries of danger, which were understood by the other monkeys. A few young monkeys and one old Anubis baboon alone took no notice of the snake. I then placed the stuffed specimen on the ground in one of the larger compartments. After a time all the monkeys collected round it in a large circle, and staring intently, presented a most ludicrous appearance. They became extremely nervous; so that when a wooden ball, with which they were familiar as a plaything, was accidentally moved in the straw, under which

it was partly hidden, they all instantly started away. These monkeys behaved very differently when a dead fish, a mouse, and some other new objects were placed in their cages; for though at first frightened, they soon approached, handled and examined them. I then placed a live snake in a paper bag, with the mouth loosely closed, in one of the larger compartments. One of the monkeys immediately approached, cautiously opened the bag a little, peeped in and instantly dashed away. Then I witnessed what Brehm has described, for monkey after monkey, with head raised high and turned on one side, could not resist taking momentary peeps into the upright bag, at the dreadful object lying quiet at the bottom. It would almost appear as if monkeys had some notion of zoological affinities, for those kept by Brehm exbibited a strange, though mistaken, instinctive dread of innocent lizards and frogs. An orang, also, has been known to be much alarmed at the first sight of a turtle.-The Descent of Man, by C. Darwin.

The Great Cañon of the Yellowstone.-The Great Falls are at the head of one of the most remarkable cañons in the world-a gorge through volcanic rocks fifty miles long, and varying from 1,000 to nearly 5,000 feet in depth. In its descent through this wonderful chasm, the river falls

almost 3,000 feet. At one point, where the passage has been worn through a mountain range, our hunters assured us it was more than a vertical mile in depth, and the river, broken into rapids and cascades, appeared no wider than a ribbon. The brain reels as we gaze into this profound and solemn solitude. We shrink from the dizzy verge appalled, glad to feel the solid earth under our

feet, and venture no more, except with forms extended, and faces barely protruding over the edge down, down, we see the river attenuated to a of the precipice. The stillness is horrible. Down, thread, tossing its miniature waves, and dashing, with puny strength, the massive walls which imprison it. All access to its margin is denied, and the dark gray rocks hold it in dismal shadow. Even the voice of its waters in their convulsive agony cannot be heard. Uncheered by plant or shrub, obstructed with massive boulders and by jutting points, it rushes madly on its solitary course, deeper and deeper into the bowels of the rocky firmament. The solemn grandeur of the scene surpasses description. It must be seen to be felt. The sense of danger with which it impresses you is harrowing in the extreme. You feel the absence of sound, the oppression of absolute silence. If you could only hear that gurgling river, if you could see a living tree in the depth beneath you, if a bird would fly past, if the wind would move any object in the awful chasm, to break for a moment the solemn silence that reigns there, it would relieve that tension of the nerves which the scene has excited, and you would rise from your pros trate condition and thank God that he had permitted you to gaze, unharmed, upon this majestic display of natural architecture. As it is, sympathizing in spirit with the deep gloom of the scene, you crawl from the dreadful verge, scared lest the firm rock give way beneath, and precipitate you into the horrid gulf.-By N. P. Langford, in Scribner's for May.