Miscellaneous.

Lyttelton Times, Volume VII, Issue 456, 18 March 1857, Page 7

Miscellaneous.

TheGbeat Eastebn'.—-It has been officially j announced in Great Britain-:that the mammoth j steamship Great Eastern will be launched about! the middle :of April next. -Her first trip will be to Portland, Where ample wharves are building for ./her accommodation. , Portland cannot but reap a harvest out of/an; event' which 'will "attract thousands thither to" witness "the astonishing proportions of this leviathan., Thhty emigrant vessels have left Liverpool during the past month for foreign' and colonial ports, with an aggregate number'of 7839 passengers, 5268 of whom: were -bound for the United States; 17987f0r Victoria, 543 for Tasmania,.and 230 for New Zealand. The steerage passengers -may, be. thus classified :— To -:'th'e United States, 1292 English, 106 Scotch, 3425 Irish, and 368 natives of-other "countries; to Victoria, 1122 English; 181 Scotch, 318 Irish, and 123 natives of other countries ; to Tasmania 302 Ehglisly and 225 Scotch ;;to;New Zealand, all English. ? ; Db.Livingstone .--This celebrated arid'enterprising African traveller -arrived, in London on, Dec." 10, after an absence from England, of , seventeen years. When he was taken oil board her Majesty's ship the Frolic, ori'thjrMVzAmbique coast, he had great difficulty in speaking a sentence of.English, having disused it so long while travelling in Africa. He had with him a native, from the interior of Africa; This man, when he got to. the Mauritius, was so excited with the steamers and various wonders of civilisation that he went.mad, arid jumped into'the sea and was drowned. ■ Dr. Livingstone has crossed^ the; great African continent almost in the centre, from west to east, has been where no civilised being has ever been before, and has made many notable - discoveriesi of great ;value. He travelled in the itwofold character of missionary and physician, having obtamed a medical diploma. He is rather a short man, .with a pleasing and serious countenance, which betokens the most determined resolution, He continued to wear the cap which he wore While performing his wonderful travels. On board the Candia, in which" he; voyaged from Alexandria to Tunis, he was remarkable for his modesty and unassuming manners. He never spoke of-his travels, except in answering to questions. The injury to his arm was sustained in the desert while travelling with a friendly tribe of Africans. A herd of lions broke-into their camp at night and carried off some of their cattle. The natives, in their alarm; believed that:a neighbouring tribe had bewitched them. Livingstone taunted, them with suffering their losses through cowardice, and they then turned out to face and hunt down the enemy. The doctor shot a lion, which dropped wounded. It afterwards sprang on him and caught him by the arm, arid, after wound- < ing two natives, who drew it off him, it fell down • dead, . The wounded arm : was not set properly, and. Dr. Livingstone suffered excruciating agony in consequence. Great honours await the doctor, in this country. Lieutenant Tickell, the Admiralty agent of the Candia, and the fellow-passenger of Dr. Livingstone from Alexandria to. Marseilles, arrived at Southampton on the 9th of December, and immediately called on Mrs. Livingstone there jto deliver messages from ber husband, whom she i has not seen for four years and/a half. -Before. i that period she shared withhim'some of his

African;labours and Angers. staying at the residence of- Edward Bandall, Esq., one of the magistrates; of ;the borough,:and has, been suffering much frpm-anxiety on, account of the -May "> the arrivaljof,the: 'Candia.v: Some Ftirrie previously "her husband 'had been mourned as dea4,for mouths,, _She was-almost-overwhelare'd "■^ith emotion tb : hear of the ■safety /of her husband /after so many .perils, Valid/was "deeply grateful to LieutenantTickell for his kindness ;ahdattention. /As she is umvelh-it Jjs -thought likely that Dr. Livingstorie, stfter presenting himself to theTLpndqh Mission House, will proceed 'to "Southamptbri, \fhere- probably he: will narrate . his interesting exp6riences.~Zro?»e 72Ve^ December 12th..// r 7"7,7 /r i „7.7,' 7 - Ji Thetext of'a cbhven^ibh'be^tyeehbur Gbverirment and the Ttepuhlic of Honduras, touctiing the Mosqriitb Indians; arid/the property /of-Bri-tish settlers on the; main or "in Rutuan and the adjacent islands, has been published. ../Britishsubjects are to be secured in, the. enjoyment-of their property--the boundaries.'of the'lndians are defined; the border lah^s which th% claimed are surrendered to Honduras .bn payment of] an annual sum as indemnity; 'arid a joint commission is to be appointed for the settlement of disputes or grievances. .: 7 On the L Bth. December,, during' a review, a soldier imade fan attempt; on tlie. life of the^King of Naples. A slight Wound oiily,was inflicted, and the soldier, who probably had.Mr. Walter Savage. Landor's prehliufn /for /tyrannicide- in view, is' said 'to havWbeen; 'immediately despatched. ' The Emperor Fraricis Joseph has been making a tour of his Italian possession's; and has granted an ■ amnesty at "Venice.: '.'His 7"; reception," has . generally been of a cold, cheerless Lady Fbanklist and the Em.pijessEtj'genie.—The following is a passage from a letter, now first published, which the 'Empress Eugenic, shortly after her marriage, addressed to Lady r Franklin,:—-"lt,, is; above all "'/as a woman and a'wife that I shbiiid with; pleasure see -France associated with in those generous expeditions, the' firltfobject of which is to rescue a'man whose private/, virtues are surely equal to his talent and his,'courage, since he has inspired'iri you1 suchan'admirable devotion. Ultimately, I'hope that 'Heaven will grant you the success that ybur conjugal affection merits ; and then, Madahi, there will be a : person who will most"sin'cerely~pafticipateirithe joy of the wife of Captain Franklin—the wife of the Emperor Napoleon." . A scientific expedition, including several eminent Americans, is ;now on, '-the/ way 'from' the United States to South America, 'its object being to made a thorough -exploration of the' fauna, flora, and geographical peculiarities of New ; Grariada,-the Magdalena, and the country round the head waters to the Amazon, then following the course of that river to "the Atlantic. This country-has not been traversed by any scientific investigator since the exploration of Humboldt,-fifty years ago. The uridertading originated with some gentlemen.of:lowa,and is independent of Grovernment support. Art of Milking.—The art of milking isnot taught in a hurry. It requires long practice to milk 'properly, and therefore all the young, people on a farm ought to be shown how the labour should be done. It is quite imp'ortaiit, that this branch of the dairy should be particularly attended to, for a good milker obtains at least a quart more from, the same cow than a poor milker. •"■ The first lesson to he taught to the young people is gentleness and kindness to the cows. They never need be. treated harshly, in case the business is properlycommenced. . Cows that" have Been caressed' and' uniformly well treated are fond of having their ;milk' drawn 1 from the udder at the regular time.of .milking, for it gives them relief from the d|s.feiitib.ii-;oif tlie milk ducts. Letyoung people.be put to milking the farrow cows 'first,or such as are to be soon dried/ and the loss from bad milking will !>e less injurious; ;the- haiiij should extend to the extremity of the teats, for the milk is then drawn easier. They should be taught to milk as fast as possible. More milk is .always obtained by a rapid milker, than a slow oue. They shonld therefore be taught to think of nothing else while, milking, and no conversation must be permitted in the milk-yard. They 'shbiiid sit close to the cow, and rest the left, arm gently against'-Tier' shank.' Then if she raises her foot on account of :pain occasioned by soreness of the teats, the*nearer the milker sits to her, ;and the harder she presses her arm against her leg, the less risk will be run- of being injured. Cows may be taught to give down their-milk at^nce^and/they may/be taught to hold ;it a long "time. 'The, best way is to-milk quick; arid . riot to-lise the' eowtd'along "stripping,, or an after stripping.—-Hamilton (Canada) Gazette,