MISCELLANEOUS.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume v, Issue 422, 18 August 1849, Page 3

MISCELLANEOUS.

The Army and Navy. — The dinner given to Mr. Cobden by bis Yorkshire friends Mfas distinguished by one peculiarity from any other great public festivity of the like nature within our remembrance. It is a matter of universal- custom in England, at such enterltinments, to 'propose,, amongst other loyal toasts when the cloth has been withdrawn, the health of the " Army and Navy." We do not under ordinary circumstances attach much importance to these toasts. They are given as a -matter of course, and received as a matter of course. It is the omission of any of them which is significant. One would as so-on think of protesting against any of them, as of humming'a polka at a funeral. Any such proceeding is-simply an evidence of bad taste 1 and vulgarity of mind and feeling. This has' just-been the case at Wakefield. No one can urge any Jfegititnate objection to the advocacy of Mr. Cobden's views upon naval or military retrenchment, but why at a great public dinner throw a meditated slight upon the two gallant " services" to whose past exertions and past services it is mainly owing that York* sbire is what it is ? There was nothing to ! compromise -the < assembly - in following the i usual routine of courtesy. ' It is difficult to, see haw a full and hearty acknowledgement of the services rendered by the Aciny,,and Navy to the commerce and manufactures of Yorkshire and thri circumjacent districts in by-gone days should i' 1 any way 1 interfere with such a proposition as • return to the 'military expen-

diture of any particular year. There is no perpetual obligation on the men of Lancashire and Yorkshire to advocate the maintenance of the two services upon the war footing of 1815, simply because they acquiesce in n compliment usually paid to them for the sake of other times. There are, however, a few historical facts that ihe present discourtesy of the Manufacturers towards those who foughi their battles, and won them, can never change. Whether or no the Aimy and Navy be toasted, it will certainly remain true, that, for the last twelve years of the war the Navy swept the seas 'of all impediments to the commerce of Great Britain, and placed in the hands of these very Norihern men the manufacturing monopoly of the world. It will also remain true that- such an Empire as that of China has been opened to the enterprise of these manufacturers by the valour cf British seamen. Not a vessel sails out of Liverpool, or Bristol, or Southampton, or any other English port, but may traverse the wide seas in safety, and convey her c-irgo to what part of the globe she will, secure from insult or injury — thanks to the perpetual watchfulness of the Admiralty and its delegates. We will not say with how much wisdom or foresight, bat these things are now, it seems, forgotten. They will probably remain so, umil some portion of the worldly substance of these grateful Yorkshiremen is imperilled at sea, and then there will be talk enough about ihe Navy. So with regard to the Army. We remember something about Berlin decrees, and various other trifling measures calculated to exclude the manufactures of this country from the Continent, and we remember also by what means they were rendered null and void. Yorkshire shouted loud enough for the red coats when it was only by their help it could hope to pass broadcloths and calicoes upon the Continent of Europe. This, however, is but one great historical fact. To convince the public of what different views can be taken in the North at not very remote times of the value of the Array -it would be necessary to get a peep into Sir George Grey's portfolios and blue boxes. It would be amusing to contrast the tone of terrified mayors and startled magistrates from those districts, in the face of a combination of workmen or a little gust of Chartism, with the contemptuous silence of the other day. A troop of dragoons, or a company of infantry, was then welcomed as the guardian angels of these soMier-hating men. Loud and frequent were the complaints against the commanders of districts and the paucity of troops. It was but the other day that the Mayor of Liverpool— so the Home Secretary lately informed the House — applied to him in the most urgent terms for military protection. When the warehouses and shipping were threatened, even the President and Secretary of the Fin incial Reform Association would be willing to postpone the issue of their most caustic diatribes upon " clothing Colonels" until they were well out of the scrape. We cannot help thinking then that, considering how constant is the protection afforded by the military to the manufacturing districts, and how much and how continuously they stand in need of such protection, a studied insult cast by them upon their defenders at a public dinner, was, to say the least of ft.pre-eminently bad taste. — Times April 14. Highly Important Discovery. — A few eveniugs , since, Mr. White met a large body of gentlemen, associated with commerce, at the Palatine Hotel, Manchester, on which occasion Mr. William Fairburn, civil engineer, was appointed to the chair. Mr. White 'commenced by expressing his gratification at being honoured with so large an attendance of the gentlemen of Manchester, who were capable of appreciating the importance of the subject, and of deciding whether the hydro-carbon gas, of which he was the inventor, was likely to prove a benefit to the community. After explaining the composition of water, and the injurious effects resulting from the use of coal gas, Mr. White said, — It was evident that an economical and easy method of decomposing water was the only thing wanting, in order to make it available as an illuminating agent, and by experiments he was about to submit to them, he thought they would be satisfied that the important desideratum had been accomplished. The method he adopted was to permit a regular stream of water to fall upon a mass of iron and charcoal, contained in a retort heated to redness, by which the water was instantly decomposed. - The oxygen combined with the carbon, or charcoal, forming oxide of ca-bon, aud also with the iton, forming protoxide of iron. Hydrogen was given off with the oxide of carbon ; "but, owing ta the absence of any soIiH body, these would of themselves give no lijit. The gas was then passed through a second retort, where it was made to combine with bi-carburet of hydrogen, obtained- iYom the decomposition ot rei»in (or other -substance), which, owing to its exuemei richness m carbon, gave light to the flame, and formed a pure hydro-carbon gas, free from sulphur, ammonia, or any of their compounds;

and containing no carbonic acid ; all of which were found, in greater or less quantities, in coal gas. The gas was then passed from the second retort into condensing pipes, and from thence into the gasometer, without any purification being necessary. From a series of experiments, conducted through a period of years, he was enabled to state that 401b. of lesin, tar, or fats, with 251b. of water, would produce 1,000 feet of gas ; which, at the average price of resin would cost about one j shilling; and, by a proper arrangement of, the furnaces, the cost of luel would not exceed 3d. per 1,000 cubic feet of gas. The I saving, therefore, oi\ a large scale, l>y his system, would be so immense as to become a matter of national importance, independent of its purity for private as well as public use. On account of its pei feet purity, as well as cheapness, it would be admirably adapted for cooking purposes, and, by a very* simple apparatus, could be,so managed (or either private families or public establishments. The gas from the water alone, which could be rapidly'produced, at a few pence per 1,000 cubic feet, was more adapted for that purpose than any other gas kno<&n, and he bad no doubt that ere long it would become an esssntidl object in domestic economy. The lecturer then put in operation a small furnace fixed near the fire-place, having a pipe into the chimney. It contained two retorts, and that for decomposing the water was first employed. Tie gas from the water produced merely a blue flame, which, the lecturer said, was without light. While this gas was being generated, by allowing water to drop from a tap into the first retort, the lecturer explained a diagram of the apparatus. Within the furnace were two vertical cylindiical tubes or retorts. The first retort was for decompos'ng water, and within this cylinder there was another tube, which was peiforated with holes and filled with iron scraps. The outer cylinder was filled with charcoal ; but there was a communication between the two cylinders by means of the perforations in the lesser one. The furnace was surmounted by a copper vessel, consisting of two compartments ; that over the first retort containing water, and that over the second retort containing liquid resin. Each compartment was also supplied with a tap from which the water and resin could be dropped into the retorts. When the water fell upon the iron and charcoal, it became decomposed, and underwent the chemical changes above described, when, by means of a communication at the bottom of the first, it was conveyed to the second retort. This cylinder was filled with pieces of chain, one end attached to an upright iron bar in the centre, the other end to the side of the retort. At the top of the cylinder was a small cup for the reception of the resin from the tap, and this cup was surrounded -by diverging wires, similar to the tibs of an umbrella, for distributing t e resin uniformly over the redhot chain. The bi-carbure't of hydrogen, obtained from the decomposition of the resin, combined with the gas from the first retort, then passed along condensing pipes into the gasomever. Whilst this description was being given by the lecturer, a sufficient quantity of gas was generated ; the water from the tap having dropped at the rate of thirty times a minute. r l he communication was made between the small gasometer anJ the burner, and a blue flame was produced, emitting heat, but scarcely any light ; that kind of gas, the lecturer said, was peculiarly well, adapted, from its cleanliness and cheapness, for cooking purposes. A portion of this gas was consumed, and the remainder left in the gasometer. Mr. White then turned off the tap from which the water was dropping, and opened the one which allowed the liquid resin to fall into the second retort. This was continued until the resin produced about the same quantity of gas as that previously remaining in the gasometer, and which were thus mixed together in equal proportions. The communication was again made with the burners, and a clear, brilliant, white flame was produced, which elicited the applause of the audience. Mr. White said the room in which they were assembled had cost the proprietor £30 during the preceding year, in order to repair the mischief done to its decoratious by the gas in use ; but that could not happen if his gas were employed, which was free from sulphur, and produced no stnoke. * Mr. J. C. Dyer said that when be entered the room he "had some doubts as to the value of the discovery, but the explanations which had been given had cleared them away, and he begged to propose a vote of thanks to Mr. White for ilie interesting and satisfactory explanations he had given of his method of making gas. The motion was seconded, and carried unanimously. We understand all the necessary apparatus for a private house, including the license, may be purchased for £10. — Weekly Disuatch.

' .The Auckland Islands. — An account rdf.lhe&e islands, by Mr. Charles Euderby,

his just been issued, embodying all the itr-y facts at present known regarding their «li« mate, soil, and pioductions. It developed also the general views of the company formed for their colonization, and whch, we are glad to say, is now commenci'Jg aciive operations — the first vessel being about to depart immediately, to be followed by another with Mr.' Euderby himself in May. The descriptions merely embrace the statements of Captain B istow, by whnrn, during a whaling voyage for Mr. Emlerbj's father, the islands were discovered in 1806, together with those of Capt. Morrell, Commodore Wilkes. Admiral D'Urville, and Sir James lloss, with all of which the public are familiar. A panoramic view, however, from drawings by Mr. R. MfCo'rmick, "supplies at a glance almost the entire character of the proposed settlements ; and, with this, coupled, with the knowledge that the islands are subject to high windtf and much rain — that they are exceedingly healthy — that neither the heat nor the cold is equal to what occurs in England — that they have a virgin soil of great richness, capable of Feeding on one acre as many sheep as can. be, (ed on six "acres in Australia — that the land is equalfy suitable for feeding cattle, horses, &c, and for the growth of all such products as are usually raised in this country-^-tbat the streams of water are numerous and pure — . that the islands are mountainous and covered with dwarf trees — that ihey consist in all of only 120,000 acres — that they are about 180 miles south of New Zealand — and that at present they are wholly uninhabited; the" emigrant has apparently everything that can be essential to enable him to form his plans, and to guard against disappointment. As respects the results to arise irom the opera* tioiis of the Whaling Company, Mr. Enderby points to the extraordinary influence of the mere visits of whaling vessels in causing New Zealand, the Marquesas, the Friendly Islands, and particularly the Sandwich Islands, to spring into importance, and to the stress w.hich has consequently been laid upon the expediency of encouraging such visits not only by the Australian colonies, but by the authorities of Manila and elsewhere. One of the chief anticipations regarding the future greatness of San Francisco in California was, that it would be a place of resort for the numerous whale ships of the United States— a circumstance of itself which, to quote, from the President's last message, " would largely contribute to build up a gieat city ;", jwid,--as at the Auckland Islands the trade will be permanent instead of casual, the inference is that we shall speedily, from this cause alone, find them the hardy home of an active and prosperous community. In addition to the fact that at the lowest estimate of success the annual expenditure of the Company at the islands cannot fall short of £40,000, and that this expenditure will be increased just in proportion to its prosperity, it is also to be borne in mind that a mercantile advantage will be enjoyed by the settlers peculiar to a connexion with the fisheries, since "they will .obtain from the masters of the whaling fleet, who will visit every part of the world, but be precluded from trading for themselves, accounts of new markets opened, old markets ill or short supplied, and new products of various kinds." It is also an important consideration that, as whaling vessels proceed to the fishery in ballast, the opportunity exists for conveying emigrants and their stores free from all charge beyond that of provisions for the voyage, and that also all commodities to or from Europe, Asia, or America, can in like manner frequently be conveyed at a comparatively small cost. The Company wisely avoid fixing uniform price for their land. Parties must state the quantity they require, and its precise locality before any price can be fixed, and everything will depend upon its situation and its water frontage. It is likewise satisfactory that the Company have no intention of undertaking matters for themselves (such as building their own boats, making their own casks, curing their own provisions, grazing their own cattle, &c), which could be better left to the private enterprise of the settlers. Looking at the scheme as it now stands upon the eve of its commencement, and taking into account the position and practical experience of its promoter, the -singularly advantageous situation of the islands, and the average profits which have long attracted capital from the United States into these species of adventure, it is impossible not to entertain a strong hope that, while it will certainly prove of great national utility, it will also yield a full reward to those who have brought it into existence. — Times, 14th March.

Joking at a -Discount. — We have had a I - ast deal of comic literature ia this country during the last dozen years ;" quite; a torrent of face use, a surfeit of- slang and puus. One or two popular humorists gave- the impetus?, and set a host of imitators sliding and wriggling down the inclined plane leading from wit and humour to buffoonery and bad taste. The majority reached ia.an instant the bottom

<^f jjije^oye, apd" have ever since remained thf re*. The truth is, the funny stjle has heen overdone ; the supply of jokers has exceeded fehe'demand for jokes, until the very word "comic" resounds unpleasantly upon the public tympanum. — Blackwood.