MISCELLANEOUS.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume VIII, Issue 726, 17 July 1852, Page 3

MISCELLANEOUS.

Fjres at Washington. — The fires which occurred yesterday morning in our city will long be remembered* with a distinctness of recollection far beyond ordinary conflagrations. The first in point of time broke out a little past one o'clock inthe Franklin Hotel, at the north-east corner of D and Eighth streets, kept by Mr. Thomas Baker. It was communicated, as we learn, from the bedroom of a lodger in the upper story, and had got so great a hold of the building before the engines could be brought to bear upon it, that by no efforts could the house be saved, though the chief part of the furniture was happily rescued from the devouring element. The building was owned by Mr. Patrick Kavanagh, and was insured. The second fire, in point of time, but by far the most considerable in magnitude and importance, took place at about a quarter to eight o'clock in the spacious and beautiful main library room of the Capitol, whereby 35,000 volumes of most choice and valuable books were destroyed, together with precious collections of manuscripts, paintings, maps, ' charts, medals, statuary, and articles of vertd, the property of the Government and people of the United States. The origin of the fire is enveloped in mystery, which we hardly thiqk will ever be cleared up. From the best information we have been able to obtain, it appears that smoke or flame, or both, were observed through the windows from without. Immediately upon this, Mr. John W. Jones, one of the guards in charge of the Capitol, with another person, a Mr. Hollohon, forced their way into the library by the principal entrance, and found, that the large table at the north end of the room was on fire, together with a portion of the shelving and books in the alcoves on the right or north-east, and between the table and the door at the north end of the room, leading to the law library. At this time Mr. Jones say 3 that half-a-dozen buckets of water would have sufficed to extinguish the fire. His companion and himself perceiving this, immediately ran below, for the purpose of bringing the requisite water, but the draught which their entrance had necessarily produced lent such vigour to the flames, that by the time they returned the whole room was irrevocably in the power of the destroying element. The flames seemed to glide over and above the gallery, as if its materials were of the most combustible character, for scarcely any appreciable time was occupied in wrapping the whole vaulted hall in mingled volumes of smoke and fire. ' At the earliest possible moment the fire companies of the city repaired to the scene, the Columbia, as we think, being the first, but its hose, being in -a frozen condition from its use a few hours before at the fire in Eighth-street, with the thermometer at zero, had to be taken to the new gas factory on the- canal to be thawed. Five minutes afterwards the Anacostia engine arrived, and its appearancei^eing in good working condition, it was the first to act with effect. In quick succession seven engines were on the ground, gallantly vicing with each other to render service. Very soon a body of United States Mai ines from the Navy Yard were ordered up to assist in bearing water, keeping order, and protecting property ; and very useful indeed did they prove throughout the day. A large engine was drawn up the steps of the east portico, and another run into the Rotundo, and thence supplied a jet of water of great power and efficiency. This was done', we believe, without any injury being sustained by the great historical paintings around the Rotundo walls. Notwithstanding the fortunate circumstance that the. walls of the library rose so high, as, in a measure, to separate that department of the Capitol edifice from the rest, at least to the extent of giving it a distinct roof, it was found that fire had communicated to the main roof, which was, however, stopped by the gallant members of the Anacostia Company, who cut away with their axes so much" of the roof as seemed to be in harm's way. In like manner a portion ,of the -stairway leading to the top of the dome having taken fire was" extinguished by the same devoted band. The heat from the fire at the distance of the pillars in front of the library (for the fireMtself never reached them) was so great as to scale them off in places a quarter of an inch thick, taking not merely the painting, 'but the btone under it. We have stated that about 35,000 volumes of books vrere destroyed, this is estimated from the supposed number saved, which is 20,000, the original contents of the library being about 55,000' volumes in all. The contents only of the principal hall were consumed, the north room and" law library not having been visited by the fire, owing to the thickness of the intervening walls. Besides the books a number of superior paintings, hanging around the library walls and_ between the alcoves, were included in the destruction. Of these we can call to mind Stuait's paintings of the first five Presidents ; an origi; nal portrait of Columbus ; a second portrait of Columbus ; an original portrait of Peyton Randolph ; a portrait of Bolivar ; a port! ait of Baron Steuben, by Pyne, an English artist of merit ; one of Baron de Kalb ; one of Cortez ; and one^of Judge Hanson, of Maryland, presented to the library, by his family. Between 1100 and 1200 bronze medals! of the Vattemare exchange, some of them' more than ten centuries old, and exceedingly perfect, are among the valuables destroyed. Of the statuary burnt and rendered worthless, we recollect

a statue of Jefferson ; an Apollo in bronze by by Mills ; a very superior bronze likeness of Washington ; a bust of General Taylor by an Italian artist ; and a bust of Lafayette by David. We have onh heard of three books saved from the principal library, namely, the librarian's Register, an account book, and an odd volume of Lord Kingsbury's magnificent work on the Antiquities of Mexico. We must say that we consider the system adopted by the government for the protection of the public buildings and property is essentially' defective, as the various conflagrations which have taken place, first of the War-office building, next of this very library, part of the Capitol, in 1826, theri "of the Treasury building, next of the General Post Office edifice, and now of the CongrcssionalLibrary again, must prove. We must express our unqualified admiration for, and warm thanks to, the firemen and other citizens who, in such a freezing night, turned out to save from destruction, if possible, the propei ty of their fellow citizens, and with an energy and perseverance beyond all praise, continued their exertions till noon the next day, when the fire at the Capitol was at length subdued, and they were permitted to seek rest at home. Indeed the engines were, as late as 3, pm., yesterday, still throwing water into*'the burnt hall, and upon its immense mass of charred and smoking, steaming rubbish, to insure the utter extinction of the flames. A strong guaid of Marines fiom the Navy Yard, with a body of the City police, were posted last evening around the Capitol, to be ready in case any new emergency should arise. Congress, at its resumption of business on Friday, will, no doubt, take measures by' which a searching investigation into all the circumstances of this sad conflagration will be had. - " Visibility of tub Air. — An interesting paper of M. Andraud, the engineer, who is so well known to the public by his experiments with compressed air, as a substitute for steam on railways, was presented at the last sitting of the Academy of Science. This paper is entitled by the author, " Aeroscopie," or the visibility of the molecules of the air. M. Andraud proves that, by a very simple contrivance, the air is rendered visible. By taking a piece of card, coloured black, and piercing it in the centre with a fine needle, this interesting fact is established. If we look throug-h this hole at the sky, on a fine day, or at a strong lamp, having a ground glass, we see a multitude of little transparent globes moving in the midst of confused nebulosities. These - little globes, some of which are more transpaient than others, are molecules of air. Some of them are surrounded by a kind of halo. These latter, says M. Andraud, are the elements of oxygen, whilst others are the elements of azote. After continuing the observations for some time, we shall see small points detach themselves, and disappear in falling ; these, says M. Andraud, are atoms of carbon. This phenomena of vision, it is essential to remark, passes within the eye itself; the molecules of air which are observed are those which float in the liquid which occupies the anterior part of that organ. According to the author of this paper, the discovery is not interesting merely as a phenomenon, but may be applied to important purposes of medicine. He says, — " The physician will one day make use of the aeroscope as an important means of diagnosis. The vertigo, the giddiness, which are the forerunners of apoplexy, will be announced by the pei turbation in the molecules* Fever always exists when the molecules- under the action of a magnetic current circulate on a vertical ground,,sometimes.in one sense and sometimes in another : and when this movement becomes more precipitate, the patient experiences the singular sensation of turning, as it were, upon a wheel of Ixion. I cannot resist remarking, that in most cases of ophthalmia, a prompt cure might be effected by securing the eye completely against contact with the external air : for inflammation (which is only an oxydation) is kept up by the tuo abundant absorption, of our molecules of air, which is effected by the pores of the prunella; this absorption being prevented, the malady must cease. This observation may apply to all cases of inflammation, for the air is^an element of which the affected part must be deprived. — GalignanL Discovery op Galvanism. — In the whole history of accidental discovery, there is no event more remarkablethan that by which that form of electricity, known as galvanism, was brought to light. To quote M. Arago : " It may be pioved that. this immortal discovery arose in the most immediate and direct manner, frojii a slight cold with which a Bolognese lady was attacked in 1790, for which her physician prescribed the use of frog broth." In accordance with the medical advice, a number of frogs were prepared for stewing, and by some chance a few of them were laid on a table near an electrical machine, in the laboratory of Galvani, professor '.of anatomy at Bologna, and husband of the lady ia question. An assistant working in the apartment had occasion to draw sparks from the machine, and each time that he did so Signora Galvani observed that the limbs of the dead frogs moved as though alive. She called the professor's attention to' the fact. He repeated the experiment, and with the same .result. But, without intending it, he went further than this, and found that the limbs of frogs could be excited as well by means of good conductors as by a machine. The power was present, and required only an efficient cause to develop its action. Galvani, it is said, having prepared the hinder halves of several frogs for anatomical investigation, " passed copper hooks through part of the dorsal column which remained above the junction of the thighs; for the convenience" of hanging them up till they might be required for the purposes of experiment. In this manner he happened to suspend several upon the iron balcony in front of his laboratory, when, to his -inexpressible astonishment, the limbs were thrown into strong convulsions." On examining further into the phe-" nomenon, he ascertained that it could be produced at pleasure by touching- the surface of a nerve and of a muscle at the same time with a metallic conductor; and arguing from the whole body, of facts that ..came within his experience, he propounded a theory of animal electricity which for some "time, dazzled the imaginations -and stimulated^ the enthusiasm of a host of - partisans, according to whom the

existence of a " nervous fluid " had .been demonstrated by the. experiments. — From Chambers's Papers for the People. Married, in Spite of Himself. — A reraarkal)le legal process, still possible in tbe province- of Pomeranid, has required ihe intervention of the Supreme Tribunal of Berlin to cancel ir, on the grounds of common law and common sensed Compulsory baptisms are possible in all parts of the' Monarchy, but in New or Swedish Pomerania, a man>. may be married against his consent and protest, by the judge of tbe district Court, if it has " sentenced " the party to matrimony. The form of procedure is thus described : — " If, after a verbal promise or " engagement/ I certain consequences result which generally render a marriage very necessary, and the mau refuses that satisfaction, the, Court of law can, not only at the instance of the woman sentence him to marriage, but, in case of disobedience, execute the sentence whether he will or not. The decision having been published, the parties are summoned before the Court, _ which has a clergyman in attendance. If the condemned mau refuse, to say " yes " to the usual question of the marriage service, the judge merely says IS yes " instead of him, and be is duly, and legally married, any protest to the contrary notwithstanding. Some time ago, a case actually occurred. A man was sued for breach of promise, and sentence of marriage pronounced agai^t him, to be performed within six weeks. v^Me summons to the Zwangstranuing, or compulsoiy wedding, had been thrice issued, and the day fixed for the legal execution of the sentence, when, suJdenly, an order from the Supreme Tribunal of Berlin quusbed the proceedings and demanded a report from the Court at Griefswald, as to the authority on which it had issued such an impracticable decision. The report tbe local authority was that the proceedings were based on the consistorial instructions of Charles XII, issued in 1705, levised in 1775, and still considered the rule of piactice in the province, though nothing similar is known to the general law of Prussia. The Supreme Court was' also informed that in the provincial code the question of common law, whether a compulsory marriage 5s peimissible or not, had been answered in the affirmative, aud the mode of putting the law into execution was decided* by practice and precedent. The Supreme Tribunal, not convinced of the wisdom of precedents in this case, or of that of the instructions of Cisarles XII. has thought it advisable to issue an edict, declaring sa<h a measure is wholly repugnant to the essence of the matrimonial contract, which requires a free consent ; the execution of the sentence, therefore, cannot'be justified fay any law, and tbe mere customary practice of the Court, which caniiot authorize anything so unheard-of, cannot \ be regarded as having any legal validity, and the [ Distiict Court is, therefore, forbidden to proceed any further with the compulsory marriage service, I in which the affirming word of the defendant [ before the clergyman performing it must be spoken by the ju'lge. The sensation caused in the legal circles of the province, rejoicing in this i relic of Swedish legislation, is described as ! tremendous.

The Preserved Meat of the Navy. — A board of examination, consisting of Mr. John Davies, R.N., master-attendant of the Royal Clarence Victualling Establishment, Gosport; Mr. Joseph Pmhorn, R.N., storekeeper; and Dr. Alexander M'Kecbnie, -surgeon and medical storekeeper of the Royal Naval Hospital, Haslar, has bepn employed since Tuesday last, December 30tb, in examining the cases of preserved , meats supplied by contract to the Navy, the Admiralty having cause to suspect their purity. The examination has disclosed some horrible facts. The canisters containing the meat are upon the average about 10lb. canisters. On Tuesday, 64$ of them were opened, out of which number no few.er than 573 were condemned, their contents being masses of putrefaction. On Wednesday, 779 canisters were opened, out of which number 734 were condemned. On Thursday 791 canisters were opened, out of which number 744 were condemned. On Friday (this day), 494 canisters were opened, oat of which 459 were con- , demned. Thus, out of 2707 canisters of meat opened, only 197 have proved fit for human food, those condemned for the most part containing; such substances as pieces of heart, roots of tongues, pieces of palates, pieces of tongues, coagulated blood, pieces of liver, ligaments of the throat, pieces of intestines — in short, garbage and putridity in a horrible state, the stench arising from which is most sickening and the sight revolting. The examining board and party were compelled to use profusely Sir W. Burnetts disinfecting fluid to keep off, or in the hope of "keeping off, pestilence. To-day, however, they deemed it prudent to desist from fuither exposure for a lime, to guard against danger, and will consequently uoi proceed with the examination until next week, the greater part of which wilr be taken with the filthy investigation, as there were upwards of 6000 canisters to examine at tha commencement. This stuff was supplied to the Admiralty and delivered into store at the Clarence Yard last November twelvemonth, warranted equal to simple, and to keep sound and consumable for five years. We are informed it came from Galatz, in Moldavia. The few canisters containing meat fit for 'humau beings to eat have been distributed under the direction of Captain Superintendent Parry, to the deserving poor of the neighbourhood, and those containing the putrid stock have been conveyed to Spithead in lighters and thrown overboard. The consequence of such frauds as, this cannot be too seriously estimated. Suppose, for instance, Franklin and his party to have been supplied with such food as that condemned, and relying upon it as their mainstay in time of need, the very means furnished for saving their lives may have bred a pestilence or famine among them, and been their destruction. — Times, January 3.