English and Foreign.

Lyttelton Times, Volume X, Issue 595, 17 July 1858, Page 4

English and Foreign.

House Taming.—Mr. John Field,, Veterinary Surgeon, of Oxford Street, London, has a "letter on this subject in the'Times,'of-March 13. _ He,says :- —My conviction is,that all. hprses can be temporarily .subdued ;' bufc.l'find that some require a much 'longer time'for t the purpose than others, and that the operator must possess, a, commanding self-possession' -and energy of will. I do not believe in the eradication of what is undeniable vice. ■ The vicious horse can be quieted even so as to be "entirely under control; but after the,.influence "of ; the operator has been removed, and,''the,, effect "of this operation has subsided,' he will resume hi* constitutional tendencies. With nervous horses the case is altogether different. Repeated operations act upon them as a kind of education and training; they become habitually quiet. For instance, a bay gelding was bought in the country by a London dealer for a large sum, but on his,arrival in town it was found to be dangerous to wash his feet, or to shoe him, and of course he could not be disposed of, although repeatedly offered for sale. I purchased him, and have made him so quiet that any one may take up his feet. Again, a brown mare, the property of Colonel T., to whom I had communicated my mode of treatment, had a " trick '* of kicking when her clothes were being removed, and is now entirely free from the habit. Where it is dangerous or inconvienent to put a bridleupon a horse, or to shoe him, or to tie him up, or to get him quietly into a railway box, or in in any such difficulties, which are more the results of nervousness than vice, the animal may be reduced to a willing submission. To operate with success it is neccessary to be alone with the horse in a confined space, aud to take care that there is nothing to divert the animal's attention. The articles required are oil of cummin, horse castor, or the warty excresence from the horse's leg, and oil of rhodium. The plant from the seed of which the oil of cummin isextracted is a native of Ethiopia, and it is ex* tensively cultivated in Sicily and Malta. It was more us,ed in ancient times than at present. Mention is made of it in the sacred-and other ancient records. It is of an orange colour. The horse castor is easily pulled off, and must be grated fine. < • It has a peculiar rank,-musty smell, the ammoniacal effluvium of which seems to be very acceptable to,, the horse. For oil of rhodium, however, he, has a , remakable fondness. This is extracted from a wood which is brought from, the Canary Islands, and is ; usually sold: as perfume! ; It is retailed' at ld> per jdropi The > modus operandi is t~Rub one >qr two drops of ■ oil of cummin over your, hands, and : pass your hand over his nostril so that he inhales it. This mode must be continued until you get his entire attention.; Then put a little of; the castor (about the quantity of a good-pinch ,of snuff) on a lump of sugar, and if the horse will »°* eail it from your hand put it into, his mouth. Take eight drop's of oil of rhodium, in a liifcle bottle

or thimble, ;or any convenient thing, and pour it iuto his mouth.. Usually this, with kind treatment, makes him your "obedientservant " " and he will follow you about arid permit you to take any liberty with him. In extreme cases, the process may have to. be repeated before you , acquire the desired influence over him. If you are so inclined this operation may be repeated four or five times a day, but above all things the utmost care must be taken to aviod hurting, him. These directions will enable any one to make a friend of his horse, and if he be addicted to any " tricks " he can be cured.

The country will receive with lively regret the news that the gallant Major Hodgson, who has given his name to an invincible and almost übiquitious body of cavalry, was killed in the attack on Lucknow. Major. Hodgson has been from the very beginning of this, war fighting ' everywhere and against any odds with, all the spirit of a Paladin of 01d.,, His most remarkable exploit, in the,capture of the King of Delhi and his two sons, astonished the world by its courage and coolness. Hodgson was, indeed, a man who, from his' romantic daring and his knowledge of the' Asiatic character, was able to beat the'natives.at their own weapons'. We' could better, have spared an older and more highly placed officer. ■ A New Paddle Wheel.—There is now exhibiting in the Exchange News the model of a new'paddle wheel, 1 patented'by W. W. Muntz, son of the late member for 'Birmingham. The wheel is of a very.novel- construction, the floats being made of boiler-plate iron,; and divided into 2 pieces. The wheel consists of a large ' middle rim or' circle,' witH '2 small circles i for side rims. The 2 portions of the floats are placed at angles to each other, the bass of each float being fixed into the outer small rims, their points meeting in the form of a triangle on the large centre f im. ' The floats that enter and leave the -water with much less concussion and " lift" than the ordinary.horizontal floats, saving of course a great expenditure of engine power, while at the same, it is contended, the peculiar form of the angular float gives much greater propelling power. An additional advantage is, that by building the paddle boxes sharp to'the point fore and aft as well as at the top—adapting them thus to the shape of the wheel itself,; ;they are enabled to offer little or no. resistance to the air, and may, if necessary, be detached and used as lifeboats,. The invention has been tested at New York with the most successful results, a great deal of the usual, vibration being done away with. Messrs. Taylor and Lewis, of the Britania'Foundry, of Birkenhead, are the agents of Mr. Muritz, and they are courteous in explaining to anyone the peculiar features of the .;.. invention.; , ' • • i

Prussia and Austrian the Chinese Seas.— It is said that the Prussian Government is about to send a frigate, to the Chinese Seas. The Austrian Government despatched a frigate, which has probably arrived at Canton by this time.

The Speaker op the.House of Commons, — As long as Denison presides derision, is the standing order of the day, and disorder the ditto of the night. That must ensure, a general election, if nothing else does. It will be impossible * to get on with the unfortunate functionary, and ' another case of pension and peerage, as in the instance of Abercombie, Lord Dumfermjine, is in store for,us as the fruit of-jobbing and incompetence. If Denison have a dozen words to utter, he makes four stammers, three hems, two haw-haws, one aw-aw, and the rest you can't hear.. He«-. thinks," he " supposes," he " believes," he "imagines," he "hopes," he "trusts," he " presumes," he " expects," everything—but he knows nothing. Such a head for such a body we never beheld. Timid, peevish, rash, bungling, boggling, miserable presence of person, no. presence of mind, nothing to recommend him but the favour of Palmerston, and now Palmerstonis squashed for the present himself; what hope is there that such a man can rule such a House, disorganized, : and disrespectful as it is, with not one dominant individual in it, and the Treasury leader in a minority of two hundred! Bauble indeed may.the mace be called when its dignity and significance are burlesqued by such" a guardian. — Correspondent of Liverpool Albion. " Friend* thees not Wanted Hebe." At the Taunton Assizes, on Monday, John Stalker Dv Barry, 21 j herbalist, was indicted for burglary. Elizabeth Barnes said—l am. servant: to Alexander Downie, Esq. of 19, Norfolk cresent/ Bath.; On the night of the 6th of February, about eleven o'clock, I heard a noise in the dining room, and went up stairs. On opening the dining room door, I saw the prisoner with some plate in one hand, and a dark lantern in the other.: • I, said, " My - friend !*"; -He said, " Yes ; lam come to pay you a visit." I said, "it does: not appear so, certainly, but thees not wanted here. Your appearance might pass, but y.our.company won't suit,, so the sooner you are out of this .house the better. Ido not think .your life is safe here" Being much alarmed, I sa^d, ';.Georgebring the gun."l opened;t|ie"db6r, rarid let the prisoner out. Iwent^into the dining room and picked up the plate. The prisoner had on a pair of goloshes. a check shirt, and a kind of Quakers hat, ; (These^article>; : were,;afterwards produced, found $n the prisoner's ■ room, and, identified by, the witness^) I" had seen1 him before^ but never spoke to him-f/.-iip. ? w The, Jury found the prisoner gujj|y,' and hV was sentenced to four years penaV servitude. „„ _ \.