THE MAIL.

Evening Star, Issue 3112, 8 February 1873, Page 2

THE MAIL.

THE GEOGRAPHICAL SOCIETY AND DR, LIVINGSTONE.

The second meeting of the session 1872-73 of the Royal Geographical Society was held on Monday, 25th .November, in the hall of the University of London. THe chair was occupied by the president, Sir Henry Hawlinsou. The president said that, before the papers to be read that evening were submitted, the meeting would doubtless desire to receive from him whatever information he was in a position to impart in reference to the African expeditions which had been organised When they last met he stated that, owing to the generosity of Mr Young, an expedition was about leaving this country for Africa, to start for the interior, and to be called the- Livingstone Congo Expedition Ho was glad to say that since that time Mr Young had sent him a note, in which he said he was happy to see that the preparations wee going on, that he enclosed a cheque for L 2,000, and asked him to acknowledge receipt They had made arrangements, the effect of which was that Lieutenant G randy was on the point of leaving England, and would certainly start for Africa during the present week. The Government, he was happy to say, had also given them all the assistance in their power. L ; eut. Graudy started under very favorable auspices. He bad himself a considerable acquaintance with the West Coast of Africa, and he would receive all such assistance as could be afforded him by the Portuguese authorities on the coast. His first object would be to strike the Congo somewhere about the rapids, and then to follow the river towards its source in the interior of the continent. If their expectations were realised, they might hope that Lieutenant Graudy would fall iu with Dr. Livingstone somewhere towards the end of next year, in the ne ghborhoal of the unknown lake, the one descending the Lualaba and the other ascending the Congo. The other ex; edition, which was about to proceed to Zanzibar, and would stait from the East Coast into the interior, was placed entirely under the dir- ction of Sir Bartle Frere. Sir Battle Frere had left England, and he believed would start that day from Paris for the south of Italy, Trhere he would stay five or six days. Thence he would proceed to Brindisi, where he would be joined by Lieutenant Cameron, who, with his party, would leave England in three or four days. They would then proceed on board the Enchantress, through the canal to Zanzibar, where Air Bartle Frere would give his final instructions to those gentlemen who were to form the expedition. They had reason to place ever- reliance on the zeal of the officers by whom Lieutenant Cameron was accompanied. He had been for more than a year intent on this expedition, and was determined to penetrate into the interior of Africa, and to avail himself of every possible opening for that purpose for his own credit, for the advantage uf science, and for the pm pose of aiding and relieving the great traveller Livingstone. SUNDAY AMUSEMENT, A source of tierce social contention in London is the proposed Sunday opening of the Bethnal Green Museum. The conflict between the rival parties would be amusing were it not that the principle involved is most important. The real question at issue is—which forms the least of two evil*, a Sunday visit to the Museum, or a Sunday visit to the publichouse ? It is admitted that the great mass of population which crowds the courts and lanes of East London cannot be e opted into visiting a place of worship. The preachers may go to them, but they will not go to the preachers. And so they 101 l about the streets, make rambles into the metropolitan suburbs, or patronise the publichouse. Against these amusements the opponents of the Sunday opening of museums have nothing to say, for they have learnt from bitter experience the impossibility of so doing; but they are up and doing at the prospect of furnishing woikmen with a m ire elevated mode of spending their Sundays. To hear them speak, one would think a museum was the stronghold of the evil one, and that there was more harm in studying the wonders of than in passing an evening at Gremorue or the Argyll Booms. Museums never }et made people irreligious, but displays of fanatical zeal have done so. A city missionary once Slid tome—“ Get a man away from his Sunday drinking into a garden or a picture room and there are hopes of him, but nut otherwise.” This, however, is too common sense a view of the matter for our religious Pecksniffs. MISCELLANEOUS. Lord A. P. Cecil, son of the second Marquis of Exeter, has returned to the dominion, where he i§ preaching in connection with the Plymouth Brethren. A sister of Mr Spurgeon has been preaching with much success at Willingham, in Cambridgeshire, where her husband is a Baptist Minister,

At the Vienna International Exhibition of 1873, there will be models of private dwellings of all kinds, built and furnished according to the style and requirements of the climate and habits of the different countries represented, A fire has occurred at the mill of Messrs. Simpson and Kiug, cotton spinners, Swinton, whereby damage to the amount of L 15,00 / was caused. The coalmasters of South Wales, in conjunction with those of the Forest of Dean* are about to effablish an association for their protection against labor. At a meeting of the Birmingham Republican Club, held on 20bh November, it was resolved— “ That it is desirable to elect a Republican to represent Birmingham, and we pledge ourselves to give him our support.” The “funeral” of Pere Hydcinthe took place, according to the London on September sth. It is the custom of Homan Catholic communities to consider any member that deserts them dead, and the ceremony of burying him is gone through. This was done at the Convent of the Dominicans to which M. Hyacinthe Loyson belonged. Australian preserved meats have achieved another triumph in England. A dejeuner, of which some three huiidred guests partook, was given by the Mayor* of Southampton in the Philharmonic Hall of that town on the 6th of November, the object, being to demonstrate the possibility'of deriving from the Australian Colonies an import aut addition to home food at prices but trilling in comparison with those which English meat now commands. The soups were julienne and kidney, as imported, and vermicelli made from imported essence. 'I he joints, which were cold, consisted of spiced beef, lamb, corned beef plain, boiled mutton, roast beef, spiced mutton, and ox and sheep tongues, while entrees of mutton stew, seasoned mutton, beef d la mode, stewed lamb and sheep’s brains d Vitalknne formed portion of the fare. The whole of the viands were of such excellence that an English paper, describing the breakfast, says, “It would be difficult in Iced to imagine the most fastidious palatd* not stamping them with approval.” One of the guests adverted to the ridiculous prejudice which existed against Australian meat, and stated that at the formation of a working man’s club at Romsey, he had heard the Rev. Canon Kingsley say, “ I have had the Australian meat for myself and my family, and it has been constantly served at our table, but such is the prejudice of our servants that they will not eat it.” It is the old story of the potato famine in Ireland over again, when the starving people refused to cat merely because they thought it was forced upon them, and because they conceived it was unfit for food. While time and patience cau only overcome prejudice, such flattering testimonies as were paid to tbs Australia meats at the Sogthwjjptoa

banquet cannot fail to pave the way for its adoption as an article of food by the working classes of England. Monsignor Capel asserts that the next Pope has already been fixed upon in the person of Cardinal Antonio Panebiauco, a Sicilian, who is said to have made a vow to restore the Society of Jesus to its former greatness.