The Illustrated Usk Observer and Raglan Herald

POLITICAL GOSSIP. THE following ia said to have been the brief dialogue between Baron Rieasoli and Prince Napoleon :—" The Prime Minister-Monseigneur, either the Tyrol and Istria, or my resignation. The Prince-Monsieur le Baron, either the signature of the armistice, or Italy abandoned by France and Prussia." The armistice was signed. THE project of the Prussian Government relative to the convocation of a. German Parliament takes for basis the electoral law of 1849, recognising universal suffrage. Every citizen of the North of Germany, 25 years of age, will be an elector. The Cabinet of Berlin intends to apply the electoral law throughout the whole extent of the Prussian monarchy and all the parts actually occupied by the PrusBian troops. As to the allied States, they will be invited to proceed immediately to the elections by the application of tlio same measure, liberty, being left to the sovereigns either to promulgate it directly or in concert with their Chambers. their Chambers. THE French representatives abroad have been told to inform the various Governments that they are to be sure not to forgot the 1st April, not with the view we attach to it in England, but that it will be the day upon which the Paris Exhibition will open. The feeling is that time is out of joint for civilisation, and war is on the card. Few countries, few merchants, and manufacturers, and inventors would like to entrust their precious wares to a country which to-morrow may be at war, and, though no one can expect it from honourable France, those wares might tempt like the gold of Frankfort has tempted the weak Prussian. MB. BASS, Eenior M.P., it appears, has been danger- ously ill. The hon. member, who is at his shooting box Glen Tulchan, Grantown, last week fell into the Spey while playing a large fish, and caught a severe cold whioh ha' neglected, and unfortunately it turned into'acute bronchitis. On Sunday night he waa seized with a most alarming fainting attack, which lasted for two hours, and during which he was in a condition of complete collapse and rigidity; but he is now progressing rapidly towards recovery. PRUSSIA, when aggrandised by the annexations, will comprise a territory of 6,333 square miles, and a population of 23,600,000 inhabitants. This is, of course, not taking into consideration the recent demands of Franco for hush money," in the shape of territory for her silence at Prussia's filibustering. THE Pall Mall Gazette has the following:-The tranquillity of India is considered assured by the pre- sence in the country cf not fewer than 80,000 British troops, required less to keep the peoples in subjection than to restrain native auxiliaries from possible mutiny. Suppose Lord Cranborne were to arm our own men there with breech-loading rifles ? The new weapon is so efficient, that then our Indian army might safely be reduced by an eighth at least, and an eighth is 10,000 men. IN an address presented by the grand jury of the county of Donegal to Lord Abercorn, they recognise in her Majesty's choice of their chief governor a high compliment to the people of the province of Lister, and express their belief that a mora judicious or satis- factory choice could not have been made. lhe -bora- Lientenant, in his reply, trusts that the fne £ re* tions existing between him and the gentry of Donepl for 30 years may be taken as a guarantee for the im. partial and even-handed administration of the Govern- ment of Ireland under his charge. He feels assured that his duties will be lightened by the support and co-operation of the nobility, gentry, and people of the kingdom in maintaining the law and in aiding him in devising and carrying out such measures as shall conduce to the welfare of all classes of her Majesty's subjects." A SINGTOLAK notice has been given by Mr. Rearden, namely, that he will introduce a Bill next year for the dissolution of the union between England and Ireland, and at the same time to appoint a Royal Prince to permanently reside in Ireland as Viceroy. WE learn that the entrance-fee for original members of the New Reform Club is fixed at £ 10 10s. to be Tnisfld subsequently to £ 26 5s. The yearly subsenp- l The committee of the Civil Ser- tion wul resolved to include in the sphere of vice "grates, deputy-lieutenants, high- membership all majiOT v /ountieB< Tk'ia sheriffs, and cx-high-snermo give them a very wi e f0gtivitiea at Inverary we IN connection WLTF 0VTnnntemporary, as a bit of may state, says & falcon P if not gossip in Parliament, than f Argyllshire arranged, that the sitting me of Mr. Finlay, will resign the seat m MSi^L^Sncellor of Ireland « the right of Victor Albert George Ea r>ran(ji. Viscount Graildison to vote as Buch ^jS00™;YrXnd son at the election of Representative Peers fo has been established to his satisfaction. A BRITISH Peerage, the Barony of I the in 1797, has just become extinct by the death or Rav. Lord Bsyning without male heirs. The) Peerage to-beeoma extinct was the Barony oi GieneiB, a little more than three months ago. IN consequence of the elevation of Colonel the noa. Douglas Pennant to the Upper House as Lord Penrhyn, the iepresentation of Carnarvonshire> has become vacant. We have every reason to believe that the Hon. George Douglas Pennant, eldest son o £ -k°r(J Penrhyn, will be returned for that county without opposition. The hon. gentleman has just arrived from Norway, where he has been on a fishing ex- cursion.

THE ARTS, LITERATURE, &e. THE most important of the papers read before the Arch geological Institute at the last congress wiil be collected and published in a volume by Mr. Murray. WE understand that Lieutenant-General Sydney Cotton, K.C.B., is about to publish a work entitled Fifty-three Years in Harness in the East, Strictures on our Military Occupation of the Indian Empire: Its Past, Present, and Future," which, coming from the pen of an officer of so much experience in Indian affairs, will doubtless prove highly interesting. THE Athenaeum says the literature of joint-stock companies is becoming an important portion of the history of finance. The last work of this class speaks of a company whose share register is a fraud. Out of the 40,000 shares, not more than 12,000 are held by bond fide holders who pay their calls." Among these non-payers are reckoned the solicitor to the company and his clerks, who are said to hold nearly 3,000 shares among them. The pamphlet which furnishes this statement is one of the many which will be valu- able to those who are making collections of works having reference to the history of money panics. IT is expected that the statue of Sir Rowland Hill will be completed in little more than a year from the present time. „ EARL PEKCY has presented to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution a fine portrait of the late Dake of Northumberland, who had been its President for many years. A BEAUTIFUL altar tomb in white marble was last week placed in the churchyard in Sandringham- I park by order of his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales in memory of the late rector. The inscription is in letters of solid lead, and is as followsJUL. S. George Browne Moxon, 39 years rector of Sandringoam and Babingley, died 28th of January, 1866, in the 72nd year of his age. Albertus Edouardus P. In memo- riam posuit." The work is very excellently executed. A NEAT and beautiful memorial to the memory of Lord PalmerBton has just been placed in the "states. men's corner of Westminster Abbey, and being, as it is, directly over the grave of the late Premier, it will serve to point out to the present and future gene. rations the exact spot where his remains are deposited. The memorial consists of a massive slab of beautifully, polished granite, neatly and effectively ornamenteo. round the borders with flower-work. It ia about eight feet long by three wide, and in the centre a large cross has been cut into the slab. The only inscription is the plain and simple one of Henry John, Viscount Palmerstoa. Oct. 18, 1865." No preparation has yet been made in the Abbey for the statue which is to be erected to the memory of Lord Palmerston, but it is expected that it will be placed there in the latter end of this, or the early part of next year. The present memorial can be seen any day after Divine service, the space where it is situated being kept clear for that purpose THE private view of the pictures and works of art won in 1866 by prize-holders in the Art Union of Lon- don, took place en Saturday at the Gallery of the Water-Colour Institute, Pall-mall. The exhibition includes several works of considerable merit. Among these are Mr. Beavis's vigorously-painted picture of horses Drawing Timber in Pieardy," which was in the Royal Academy; a small water-colour" Winter- bourne, Bonchurch, Isle of Wight," by Mr. Birket Foster; and Deborah Sitting in Judgment," by Mr. H. Warren. This painting has been won by a prize- holder in New Zealand. There are altogether 109 oil and 150 water-colour paintings in the Exhibition, with a marble bust of Hebe, a pair of bas-reliefs in fictile ivory, and a vase in repousse work with Cupid and Psyche in relief, by Mr. J. Barkentin. A reduces] copy is also exhibited of "A Wood Nymph," by Mr. C. B Birch, from the marble original for which this artist received the society's premium of £ 600 in 1864. It is intended to give a number of porcelain copies of this fine work as prizes in the current year's distribution. "WHAT shall we do with Tom?" by Dr. R. K. Brewer, of Leeds, is a remarkable book, and no one can read it without being convinced that it is the production of a practical man, thoroughly in love with his work; and all parents who are deliberating about the education of their children would receive assistance from consulting its pages. The book is divided into three parts The first, questions of every day occur- rence, such as, "At what age shall Toni go to school?" The second, topics often overlooked, such as: "The mnar, impnf rant era in tn-o, ,uu viitt TliirG, anu interesting, Hints". upon various points, such as the treatment of Indian boys, and invalids; the payment of school bills. &c. &o.

Passing of the Extradition Bill. 'r In April last our chief magistrate, Sir Thomas ELenrv, being in Paris, attended Lorn Oowiey to a sonference at the Ministry of Justiee, at which both VI. Drouyn de I'Huya and M. Baroche were present; md it wo a then, after four months' discussion, at last bund out that the only grievance the Imperial Go- rernment really bad to allege was the indignity offered >y the treaty to the French magistrates in requiring hem to submit the depositions wfcich they havo aken to the examination of an inferior cf.l :• r." The lecond section of the Extradition Act provides that sopies of the depositions on which the warrant of irrest was issued in France may be taken in evidence n England, if certified under tha hand of the person ssuing such warrant, and attestedi wpm the oath of :he party producing them, to be true cor,-its of /he original depositions." Sir Thomas Henry italieieaa ihese last words, which he declares have created the mly real difficulty that exista to the satisfactory working of the treaty. Generally the party pro- ducing the depositions" is a common po:iJeman, and rather than submit te the slight of having thu authen- ticity of documents which they have certified with bheir own hands sworn to by such a pe-, soti, t' t, French judges refuse to produce the depositions at all. The Dill now before Parliament ha.a be-?n drawn by Sir rhomas Henry to apply baini to the sorely wounded pride of the judge-, by their official certifi. jates to be received here in evidence: aDd the only remark it snggests is, that if the French Government is sincere, it showed a great want of tact and con- sideration in hastily denouncing the treaty, and initi- tting a discussion likely to excite the suspicions of the English Parliament, and tha.t, if insincere, a clause making the Home Secretary'scouuter-eianatuM i«eces- sary would remove any cause for dis«ruat.—Spectator.

Banking and Currency. It is perfectly true that the crisis has been essen- fcially one of banking, and that no system of currency tvould have prevented the evil. As Sir Stafford North- 3ote pointedly observed, there is a run upon England, as there is sometimes a run upon a bank. The Minis- terial letter which authorised the extension of the Bank issues was thought on the Continent to repre- sent a suspension of cash payments, and Lord Claren- don's circular seems to have confirmed tbe delusion whioh it was intended to remove. A want of credit IBIBC from pure misconception is BO? likely to be remanent, and it eeems scarcely possible that the abundance of money in Paris should not overflow to T Tfc is however, rash to prophesv the end of h«. Hitherto MM tb» m«t sagacious financial theorists. It is certam that the Bank and the holders of foreign capital are to a certain extent reasoning or acting m a circle, for ten per cent, produces want If confidence, which in its turn renders V cent. The Government ia perhapfnot to be blamed for promising a Committee on Currency in the next session, and it is extremely unlikely that the fulfilment rendered unnecessary by tae production of any Minis- terial measure. It ia impossible to ma.se traders or financiers prudent by Act of for enlarging the paper currency would be remote from the root of the evil .—Saturday hcview.

THE SHEEP DISEASE. A supplement, to the London Gazette, published on Saturday, contains an Order in Council, dated the 10th inst., which recites certain provision of the Act 12th Victoria, entitled an "Act to prevent spreading of Contagious Disorders in Sheep, Cattle, or other Ani- mals," and also the provisions of the subsequent Acts to continue and amend the same, which said Acts pro- vide that a penalty not exceeding .£20 shall be inflicted for any violation thereof. And the order farther says that whereas a contagious or infectious disease, de- scribed as sheeppox, or variola, ovina, now prevails in a certain part of the United Kingdom, it is expedient to take measures for preventing the disorder from spreading, and therefore the Lords of the Privy Coun- cil ordain the following orders and regulations1. It shall not be lawful to remove any sheep or lambs from the parishes of Great Oakley and Beaumont, in Essex, or to drive or conduct any sheep or lambs through or by way of such parishes. 2. That no skin, wool, horns, or hoofs of any sheep or lambs shall be moved out of said parishes without a certificate from some person authorised by two or more justices of Essex that such &kin, &c., did not belong to any sheep or lambs affected by said disorder, or on a farm or premises where said disorder prevails. 3 All sheep and lambs dying of such dis- ease shall forthwith be buried by the person in whose possession such sheep or lambs may be, with their *kins and wool, in pits not less than five feet in depth, and the carcases shall be covered with quicklime. 4 All sheds and places whatever, and all railway trucks or other vehicles which have been occupied by diseased sheep or lambs, shall be thoroughly cleansed with water and purified with chloride of lime by the persons in possession of such sbeds, vehicles, &c. 5. Every person in possession of any sheep or lambs in which such disease shall manifest itself shall forth- with give notice in writing to the chief constable or superintendent of police in the county or borough ia which such sheep cr lambs may be. 6. This order to continue in force till revoked. This supplement also contains an Order in Council, dated 11th of August, 1866, reciting that the disease commonly caiiea cattle disease has now ceased amongst the cattle in Scotland, and it is therefore expedient to suspend the orders heretofore made so far as they relate to the movements of cattle and other animals and the sale of cattle within Scotland. The Lords of the Council therefore order as follows :-I. This order shall apply to Scotland only, subject to the limitntion hereinafter expressed. 2. That from the 13th of August instant, and subject to the further orders of the Lords of the Council, all the said orders heretofore made shall be suspended, pro. vided that nothing herein contained shall prevent any local authority in Scotland, or the officer and officers appointed thereby, from granting "fat stock or store at.ock" licences, under the order of the 11th of April, lo66, for the removal of cattle from Scotland to England or elsewhere beyond Scotland. 3. Notwith- standing anything to the contrary contained in any Order of Council, it shall from the 13th instant, subject to tha further order of the Lords of the said Council, be lawful to introduce cattle and other animals by land from England into Scotland, provided the person introducing them has obtained a licence -n PurP039 from the local authorities i_. Roxburgh, or Dumfries, into whichsoever of severa Icounties said animals have been first introduced, or from some officer appointed by said local authority; and any person obtaining such orsler shall fulfil all the conditions contained therein. 4. If the cattle plague shall break out in any district of Scotland after the 13th icsfc the clerk of the local authority shall forthwith summon a meeting of said local authority, who shall at once slaughter the animals affected by said cattle plague, and declare the place which is or has been infected subject to the con- ditions of the 26th and 27th sections of the order of 11th April, 1S66. 5. Nothing in this order shall affect the regulations now in force under any Order kIll Council respecting cattle brought by sea from any place whatever into any town oi place in Scotland; nor shall it affect the prosecution for any offence against any Order of Ccuacil before the said 13th inst-. 6. This order shall be construed ia like manner as the order o? 11th April, 1866, and any violation of this pre j sent order shall be subject to the penalties incurred under said order of 11th April, 1853. --+-

OUR MISCELLANY. Dangerous Sport.—Tom Gatoh, a friend of mine, had great faith in my skill with the pistol, and he proved it one occasion while we were at this place by holding a tin eup in his hand for me to shoot at with my revolver; and, after I had put three balls through it, he made a bet with a comrade that he would put it on his head and I could hit it, which I did sending a ball through the bottom. His nerve was good, and, of course, I would not have fired had I not felt sure of myself. Indeed, there were few in the army who could beat me with the pistol. I would bet on hitting every telegraphic pole on the roadside as I passed at a gallop. -Three Years in the Saddle, by Colonel Harry Gilmor. Swine in Attics.—Not long ago, both in Edin- burgh and Glasgow, such discoveries were made as that of swine being reared in the garrets of houses, eight and—particularly in regard to the former city- ten storeys high. It was found that, in some instances, swine, which had been taken there when they were young pigs, and, of course, easily transportable, had become so big, unwieldly, and heavy, that they had to be slaughtered in these elevated situations, so as to be removable piecemeal. Since that period a more vigorous police system has led to such outrages against the sanitary weal of the inhabitants being abolished although there is still much to be done in the same way.-The Beggar's Benison. Busby and the Priest. — During the brief ascendancy of the Romanist friends of James, which led to this second revolution, he met one of his old pupils, the well-known Father Petre, one day in St. Jamea's-park. Petre accosted his old master Busby declared he could not recognise him in that dress, and Petre mentioned his name. But you were of another faith, sir," said Busby, when you were under me how came you to change it ? The Lord had need of me," replied the convert. Need of you, sir ? Why, I have read the Scriptures as much as any other man, and I never read that the Lord had need of any- thing but once, and then it was an ass."—Blackwood's Magazine. Short Commons.- Of commoners and gentlemen, And lords still in the hatch, In England's royal bakery We knead a common" batch. There's much loose ohaff, some reedy stalks, With grains of every sort— Choice-picked, chance-found, sheer rotten; Some stolen and some bought; And yet the British Commons Runs miserably short." Not short and sweet," like Scottish bread, But short in pith and strength, And only in its windy mass Intolerable in length; Far short in sterling qualities, And, what is worse than all, Far short in weight, and very full Of bitterness and gall. Oh. wer't not sinful, I would pray This Commons bread might fall. We thought 'twould give us sustenance, And make ua quick axd strong- Not fill us full of bran and worms, And blister up our tongue. We thought 'twas good and wholesome, And not more stalks and chaff; We thought the whole loaf we should get Was more than twice the half We thought our earnest cry for food Worth more than sneer or laugh. 'Tis clear short commons is not fit For men full grown and hale; Man cannot live by bread alone, Muoh less bread scant and stale. We must have our fall commons," Or else grow deaf and dumb; We must have our full commons," And keep it under thumb; We will have our full commons," If we win it crumb by crumb.. — Working Man. York House.—The locality of York House is still ] shawn by the water-gate, commonly attributed to Inigo Jones, but which, as it seems from an entry in an old book of works in the Soane Museum, was erected by Nicholas Stone, master mason to King Charles, of whom it is said, The water-gate at York House hee dessined and built; and ye right hand lion hee did, fronting ye Thames. Mr. Kearne, a Jarman, his brother, by marrying his sister, did ye shee lion." Here the great Lord Bacon lived, and hoped to end his days, but did not, for, being within the verge of the court, it lay within the boundaries inside of which he was forbidden to take up his abode. His successor was that Duke of Buckingham who was murdered by Felton, who purchased the weapon with which he did the murder within sight of the Thames, and beneath the walls of the Tower; within which lie, between two queens, the remains of one who once lived in his immediate vicinity, the Duke of Northumberland. The Thames was, in fact, the great highway to the Tower, and many who were more deserving of pity than the ambitious duke just mentioned, were conveyed thither by it.- Once a Week. I Buffon and his Valet.-The career of Comte ( de Buffon furnishes a remarkable illustration of the power of patient industry, as well as of his own saying, that Genius is patience." Notwithstanding the great results achieved by him in natural history, Buffon, when a youth, was regarded as of mediocre talents. His mind was slow in forming itself, and slow in reproducing what it had acquired. He was also constitutionally indolent; and being born to good estate, it might be supposed that be would indulge his liking for ease and luxury. Instead of which, he early formed the resolution to deny himself selfiah pleasures, and devote himself to self-culture. Regard. ing time as a treasure that was limited, finding that he was losing many hours by lying a-bed in the morn- ings, he determined to break himself of the habit. He struggled hard against it for some time, but failed in being able to rise at the hour he had nxed. He then called his servant Joseph to his help, and pro. mised him the reward of a. crown every time that he succeeded in getting him up before six. At first, when called, Buffon declined to rise-pleaded that he was ill, or pretended anger at being disturbed; and on the count at length getting up, Joseph found that he had earned nothing but reproaches for haviBg per- mitted his master to lie a-bed contrary to his express orders. At length the valet determined to earn his crown and again and again he forced Buffon to rise, notwithstanding his entreaties, expostulations, and threats of immediate discharge from his service. One morning Buffon waa unusually obstinate, and Joseph found it necessary to resort to the extreme measure of dashing a basin of ice-cold water under the bedclothes, the effect of which was instantaneous. By the per- sistent use of such means Buffon at length conquered his habit; and he was accustomed to say that he owed to Joseph three or four volumes of his Natural History. -Self Ilelp neto edition. The Prussian Army.-In Prussia every man is a soldier. The very boys at school are commonly formed into squads, and learn their military exercise as they travel through the Latin grammar. After serving for about four years in the regular army, they are drafted into the Landwehr—troops liable to be called upon at any emergency, but not. as a general rule, in active service. Thus, in the Landwehr, scat- tered all over the country, engaged in every imagin- able pursuit, haa Prussia the trained material with whioh to recruit the gaps in her victorious army. There is not a finer body cf cavalry in Europe than the Landwehr cuirassies; not a finer body of foot soldiers than the infantry of the guard. The hussars are quaintly but showily dressed, and make a grand effect in a military spectacle. They wear shakos, red jackets with white cords, green trousers with red braiding, and white cartridge belts. Their arms are heavy cavalry sabres and a carbine, not a needle-gun. The horses look well, and are plainly caparisoned. The infantry all have blue uniforms, evidently, damaged by service. The men carry needle-guns, some of the officers swords, others sabres; the un- mounted officers have a knapsack, like the men, but lighter, of black leather. The Landwehr regiments have no brass bands, their music consisting only of fifes and drums. Tlia artillery wear helmets. Tha guns are each drawn by six horses, and both carriages and horses are very large. The sanitary corps also I wear helmets, and have the white international neu- trality colours printed upon their carriages, bearing themselves the distinctive armlet with the red or black cross. The appearance of all the men. is good many are truly martial figures. The majority are men over' thirty, and many wear the medal for the last Danish war. The officers are generally youi3g. The [ behaviour of the men has hitherto bees courteous and J good.—CafseH's Far.iihj Paper.

OLE DAN WALPOLE. ArR-" Ole Dan Tucker.™ I oltme to town de oder night, I hear a noise, I saw a eight, Do roughs dey all out for a lark, A rioting and rowing in Hyde-park. Oat ob de way, Ole Dan Walpole, Oat ob de way, Ole Dan Walpole, Out ob de way, Ole Dan Walpole, You ain't got de brains for de place in your small pole. I went across dat park alone, I wouldn't ha' done it if I'd known, De roughs were forty-five to one, Dey stole my watch, and away I run. Oat ob de way, &o. A lady chanced to go dat way, De brutal mob dey made her pay, Dey hit her all about de bones Till she dropped half dead upon de stones. Out ob de way, &o. Dis child him pay him rate and tax, Am dis de why he get dese whaeka ? Oh, in that Park I'd like to see Massa Walpole wallopped instead of me. Oat ob de way, Ole Dan Walpole, Out ob de way, Ole Dan Walpole (bis), You'd cry out "Police" when dey break your small polo.

SHE WORE A TALL SPOON BONNET. (To a well-known air.) She wore a tall spoon bonnet The day when first we met, Beneath it fell, in clusters, Long curls of deepest jet. Her skirts were of the widest, Her crinoline of steel, Her hose were chequered red and mauve, And lofty was her heel. I saw her but a moment, Yet methinks I see her now,: With that spooniest of bonnets High towering o'er her brow.yf.; A pork-pie hat so tiny, When next we met she wore, A fall of scantiest measure Hung tightly down before. Her hair was like the niggers', Yet still of raven hue, And o'er it, pennant-like, behind, Streamed out a ribbon blue. I saw her up at Highgate, And methinks I see her now, Aa she wheeled a p'rambulato: Adown the leaf-strewn brow. And once again I saw her, No pork-pie hat was there, A Leghorn bloomer shaded Her face so plump and fair. And, oh, her hair, once raven, Was now of carrot-red, And tied up in a knob behind As 1 p~ge as was her head. I saw her crinolineless, In tiger-striped attire, A-playing croquet with a gent Who called her his SopHiAr."

NATURAL HISTORY. [The following letter has been, we suppose, inadver- tently addressed to us instead of the editor of Land and Water.] Sir,—Will you grant me space to record a curious fact ? Observing that the French beans in my garden were rather backward, I introduced them to some stioks in their native tongue (supplied by my son who has began the language this quarter). Surprising to tell, they have flourished ever since.—Yours, &o., NATURAL. P.S.- Will Mr. Buckland inform me whether Ihe harvest of the sea" is meant by the "Mown of the tide?"

OUR LIBRARY TABLE. We have been permitted to glance at an unpublished collection of anecdotes which a learned society is ibout to give to the world. The narratives are in svery instance authenticated by the name and address af the writer, not necessarily for publication, but as a guarantee of good faith. We trust that we are not betraying confidence in printing a few extracts from this treasury of the wit of all ages: A JOKE ABOUT HORSERADISH. "Sheridan was once dining with Charles II. at Cre- mome. The merry monarch had not wherewithal to pay for more than a simple biftek aux pomines de tcrre frites. I'fackins,' said his Majesty,' beef is better than nothing tough though it be.' 'True, sire,' said the wag, with a, roguish twinkle in his eye, but I'll trouble you to pass the mustard.' The king did not forget to repeat the jest at court that evening A PUN ON A WHHRKY. "When Queen Elizabeth landed at Margate from the Grand Armada, which in those days plied between Herne- bay and Teddington, she observed a vessel trying to beat up Channel with clewed scuppers and three reefs in her fore- taffrai!. 'I trow,' said the virgin queen to Sir Luke Smithett, who was splicing the mainbrace of his speaking- trumpet, 'that I wonder if she will do it." 'That, your Majesty,' answered the gallant knight, 'depends on the wearher'"—a reply wkich procured for him the immediate reputation of a wag." We have but one more quotation to make. A BON-MOT OF THEODORE HOOK. Good morning, Hook,' said the well-known Smith on meeting the famous wit in Piccadilly. said the ex- governor or Mauritius, but it. was wet yesteraav,' Smith laughed ap.a carried the jest to Carlton-llouse." A SEASONABLE RENDERING. (Persico odi. £ C,—HOE.) I dislike all yeur racket and fuss— Greenwich dinners, routs, balls, and the rest, And for rose shows I don't care a "CUBS "— They may go, one and all, and be blest! But I like what ia simple and nice- This hot weather to lounge at my ease, To drink cider-cup (plenty of ice), And to smoke my pipe under the trees. A PETITION TO MR, GATHOENE HARDY. Pity the sorrows of a Guard-i-an, Whose stumbling steps hava borne him to your door; To keep his rates down this hISSlmplt; Plan- Don't grant relief." Then why hia efforts floor r TABGET-PRACTICE. (By an TJnsvxxssfid Rifleman.) As the gamester at Epsom's by pea under thimble So i^the marksman most steady, yet nimble, done Brown by the wind, light, and weather at Wimbledon. A BLACK OFFENCE. —-We understand that tha Jamaica Council have determined to prosecute any persons who are found black-berrying. J THE HEALTH OF TEE METROPOLIS.—MUCH. TIRPRE may be looked for about the time of harvest invariably a sickle-y season. iS AN ENGINEERING PUZZLE.-—= A crab ? -When it's a bolster. U a CEab not & WHY is a long-haired hired horsa like a kr atu P Banansa if a a mr.ne-y hack f— WHY.did not Sir John Thwaites lay the of the boutaern .&mbankm«»n<- —li&oauss he got lite. 0na wi?.no\fee completed for eLe -if- In *sean time he is inundated wi*h Sp suggestions from ell kinds of pec- K 3 m0St °RJSMAL idea. perhaps, is that sug- gested by one writer, of sinking an iron tube for the trails to pass tnrough, the tube itself to be suspended by bT-ioy3 m tae Channel. 4

Further Suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act. Lord Wodehouse got credit for gooa sen?e whethor justly or not is another question. His explOJts in the House of Lords on Monday will unq^ostionaoly lead to grave doubts as to his possession of that estimaoie quality, the reputation of which procured tor W an earl's coronet, and no end of fulsome piaise. Mr. Fronde's view of the case, it may be eh&ri',amy hoped that it is the Cireean power of Ireland wni1ca has been again operating upon a rational .^ngusn nobleman, as it did in other days upon Lord-Wepucy Grev. The time of Lord Ximberley's call to agitation lS unhappIly not favourable to this hypothesis, ana the fact that the odious, hypocritical, and unmanly cry is uttered in concert with Mr. Gladstone's and Lord Russell's appeals to the roughianism or England, shows that the only magic which can be sapposedto have effected those faot-ionariea is, wounded vanity aaid the promptings of the most vulgar ambition. Lord Kimberley has been expelled from office: if he can get back, what matter even though his path lie through the embers of an insurrection. Another Fenian conspiracy-another round of agrarian out- rage—would not, in the eyes of this heartless coxcomb, be too dear a price to pay for his restoration to his viceregal wranglership. Take them at their worst, the Fenians had the merit of discarding ecclesiastical leadership in politics, and denouncing with a violent honesty the hypocrisy and self-seeking of demagogues. During the Fenian excitement the agitators were dumb, They feared a collision with the people, who despised them. The people despiee them still, and they dare not challenge an expression of public opinion either on land tenure or the Church question. Lord Kimberley, in turning his back upon Ireland, has shot these Parth'an darts into Irish society. The contempt of every honourable man will, we trust, diluie the venom of his ignoble weapons.—ZhtbHn Evening Mail.

The Reform Meeting in Guildhall. The meeting in Guildhall had this great advantage over its predecessors-that it was possible for a large part of the audience to hear. At the beginning of the meeting the hall was filled, and an outdoor meeting was made up of those who could not get in or were unprovided with tickets. Even when the meeting began to thin the hall was about three-fourths filled. Yet several of the speakers made themselves heard even at the further end, and the people having their attentions fixed were, of course, orderly and patient. The experiment proves, if proof were needed, that it is more reasonable to hold political gatherings in places of moderate size and to make the limit of the human voice the limit of a public meeting. Even the Guildhall, indeed, is too large for effective speaking, and some of the speakers were scarcely audible half- way down the hall. We trust that the League, if it continue its agitation daring the autumn, will profit by the lEsson of the last fortnight, and spare us any more monster demonstrations. Mr. Beales and his frienda have proved that many thousand people can be brought together to hear popular speakers, or to show their sympathy with the canse of Reform. So far they have achieved something in favour of their cause; but the more reflecting members of the League must be conscious that the oratory addressed to these great assemblages has not been of a high order, and even the speakers must feel that they could do them- selves more justice if they were discussing the merits of a definite Reform scheme, instead of shouting out generalities at the top of their voices to au indiscrimi- nate multitude. Out-door meetings have a disquieting effect on the neighbourhood where they are held; it is impossible to make sure that they will not be the means of bringing together numbers of persons who cara less for Reform than for riot and mischief. While the Leaguers are thus uncertain as to princi- ples, it can hardly ba expected that they should be very accurate in the details of what has passed during the Session now coming to a close. That Mr. Glad- stone's Reform Bill was a most imperfect measure, and introduced in a manner which provoked almost universal distrust in the Commons, is well understood by everyone who has made himself acquainted with recent politics; but all the Leagueand Working Men's Association are based on the supposition that the majority of the House of Commons, composed of Tories and Liberal renegades, have absolutely deolared against Reform in any shape. The same wildness of state- ment and violence of denunciation run through most of the speeches, but such language can have no real influence. We think the audience themselves will feel surprised this morning at the difference between the speeches as they heard them and cheered them last night and as they read them printed in the newspapers. When the loud voice, and the energetic manner, and the sympathetic crowd are gone, and when nothing remains but the naked words, then comes the test of public speaking. Speeches that do not bear reporting can have but little effect in this country, and the audience ma.y judge for themselves whether these speeches* of last night, which were so animated and suc- cessful, really add much to our knowledge either of Reform or of the working class. The only argumentative speech of the evening was that of Mr. G. Potter, who cited the industrial associations of the artisans to prove that they are capable of intelligent combination, and have that stake in the country whieh the Conservatives —t <-„ an taut. This was legitimate 1 reasoning, and we cannot but regxet that it stood isolated amid the declamation ot the evening.-The Times.

AFTER THE BENEFIT. Mr. Punch. Help yourself, Mr. Buckstone. Mr. Buckstone. Sir, I usually do. Mr. P. It is well. Now, my dear Buckstone, one word about one word in your speech. Why did you begin by saying that you had "concluded to close? Mr. B. So I had, sir. Mr. P. Why, conclnded? Mr. B. The word is sanctioned by Webster. Mr. P. Mr. Webster is an admirable manager and a personal friend of mine, but what have you to do with the Adelphi ? Mr. B. Bother, I mean Webster, the American die- tionary-man. Mr. P. You supposed yourself to be American ? Mr. B. Certainly, Our American Cousin. Mr. P. I am answered. As guardian of the British language, I was bound to ascertain your meaning. Take another cigar. Mr. B. I will. (Does).