ENGLISH EXTRACTS.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume IX, Issue 827, 6 July 1853, Page 3

ENGLISH EXTRACTS.

A complete collection of the " literary" works of the Emperor Napoleon (I.) is being made in Paris, to extend to 30 or 40 volumes. It will cousist chiefly of proclamations, despatches, &c, bat will also contain some curious literary production's. It appears that uhen Napoleon was yoang, he was not unambitious of gaining literary reputation, andbe employed his pen in the concoction of sundry tales, and essays. Of these some few have been preserved from destruction, and they are to figure at the head of his works. Amongst them are, we understand, a " Roman Corse ;" a series of Noles en my Infancy an.l Youth ;" a tale or play called the " Earl of

Ettex;" "The Mask," an Eastern tale; " Gioli'o," a sentimental ale ; aud a " Dialogue oo Lore 1 " rather free in thought and expression. " Uncle Tom" ha* been cordially welcomed even in Russia 1 The French translations of him hate, it appears, been eagerly devoured by the beau monde both of Moscow and St. Petersburg, and translations into Russian are now prapat ing tor the profanum vulgus. Poor Tom *bas gained another, but perhaps not a greaterbonour — his name was given to the baufjgras which, in accordance with ancient custom, was paraded through the streets of Paris with -bands of music, triumphal cars, and a grand cortege, on Tuesday last, being shrove Tuesday. "It seems that social ostracism has been pronounced against our countrymen in Vienna. The correspondent of the Times says, " The resolution which the best families here have taken to admit no Englishman into their bouses, is just as silly as the language of the Lloyd, which says: •If Messrs. Ledru Rollin, Kossutb, and Mazzioi continue to enjoy the hospitality of Britons, the generous hosts cannot longer enjoy ours. We can as easily dispense with the visits of the sons of Albion as with those of the people of Ticino. The importation ot English goods is not indispensable,' &c. In this trashy style does the public discuss a great international question. Some i»f our fellow countrymen feel excessively annoyed at being sent to Coventry, but the ' demonstration' is so petty and ridiculous as to be unwbrttiy of notice." The return of Count Leiningen, and the success of his mission, was known in Vienna on the evening of the execution of Libeny, and had the salutary effect of checking a panic which had set in on 'Change the day before. At the recent f&e of the Golden Fleece, the Emperor of Austria wore the decoration of that order which formerly belonged to Charles' of Burgundy, and which has in the centre the magnificent diamond considered to hold the third place amongst those existing, and which is worth a million of florins. The decoration, which was made part of the coronation attire by the Archduke Maximilian, is preserved in the same room that contains the coronation robe of Charles the Great, and of the Emperor Napoleon as King of Italy. It seems that a murderer of his slaves does not always come off scot free in the United States. Clark, a planter, near Paulding.Mississippi,carried on a series of atrocities almost too revolting for narration. He flung a knife at a negro woman point foremost, compelled her to draw and return the knife to him many times. -He prioked his wife over the head with the knife. Then be sent her to fetch a negro man, and on her returning without him be whipped her. Subsequently he shot the negro. Disgusted at these proceedings, the citizens arrested, tried, and sentenced Clark to be hung. At Francfort-on-the-Maine, on Sunday last, a banker's office in one of the most frequented streets was broken open and robbed during church time. One of the partners, who probally interrupted the thieves, was found murdered, his throat being cut, and his hands very much wounded. The perpetrators had not yet been discovered.

Postage in India. — Almost all the postal authorities whom we have consulted have recorded their conviction that many letters are carried, bearing postage in this country, which, though refused by the parties to whom they are addressed answer all the purpose of the sender ; and this is effected in three different ways :-— First, by letters being sent unsealed, which are eilher openly read, and then rejected on the plea that the contents hate shown that they were not intended for the reader, or brought again to the delivering peou from the interior of a house and refused, without mention being made.of their contents having been secretly read. The postmaster at Secundrabad has written : — ' It is the case at this station that not a few of the natives will first receive letters from the peons, telling them they are for themselves, but afterwards will say no, and immediately return them. Very many letters are received open and unsealed, for delivery. How can the postmaster know whether they have not been read by the addressee, and afterwards returned to the peons. In Calcutta, it is said to be a common practice, especially among natives, to retnrn unpaid letters to the delivery peons, with a request that they may remain in the Post-office until they have money to pay the postage. Secondly, by a practice, not very uncommon with the natives, of writing all the pith of their communication in the adJress of their letter, and thus putting the receiver in possession of the desired information without any necessity for his breaking the seal. On this head the postmaster of Lower Scinde says : — ' Those letters refused or unknowu are all scrawled over in different hieroglyphics independent of the English direction, and when opened for the purpose of discovering the sender, in nine cases out of ten the writing cannot be deciphered, or there is no signature. We never see a native letter which has been prepaid, refused.' And thirdly, by parties on a long journey posting, at each post town on their route, an empty cover directed to the person whom thly wish to inform of their progress. This is sent bearing postage (unpaid) with the intention of its being refused by the addressee, the handwrit nj of the address, and the postmark ou the cover having given all the information that was intended of lbs writer's arrival at a particular stage of bis JQUtntj.—At7ien(Euni.

The Perverted BiSHOP.—Extract of a letter, dated Philadelphia, Jan. 31 :—": — " I can imagine thct the gain of a bishop by the Church of Rome from the English or American communion, which the conversion, using the word in a general sense, of Bishop Ives is, will have given pain to many of your readers, and will have been looked upon by them as a matter of no little importance. Here, however, where the facts of his later history are known, the feeling is only that of sorrow for him personally, not unlike the grief which the news of his death, or of any sadden affliction would have caused. He has been for years past in a strange state of mind. In early life he was insane, and was an inmate of a lunatic asylum. Four years ago he had a violent attack of yellow fever, which affected h» brain, and from which it is thought he has never fully recovered. At that time he made a declaration in favour of Rome, which, on coming to bis senses, he retracted. Subsequently he advocated opinions with regard to confession add the worship of the Blessed Virgin which led to a good deal of controversy in his diocese. A A meeting, on his conversion, followed, at which he made the most remaikable and, perhaps,

humiliating acknowledgments of baying been wrong, and said that his bodily health had been such that that must be in part his.excuse. But the best evidence that bis mind at present is unsound is the'coorse he has pursued in this very matter of abandoning bis faith. He drew from -his diocese his salary for a year in advance to pay the expenses of his tour in Europe, concealing his intentions, which it is supposed were fully formed before be started, with that art which men not thoroughly sane often employ. As he has borne always an irreproachable character, has been looked up to with reverence, and been loved by all abont him, surely common charity obliges us to think him at least a monomaniac, and such is the universal opiuion here ; of the truth of it I have no doubt myself whatever. It will become our Roman Catholic friends to be caiuicus how they make much of a convert gained under these circumstances." — Guardian.

Looking out in Time. — A few days ago a decent married womaD, in whose husband's name a small sum was deposited in the savings-bank here, called upon the actuary, and intimated that she wished to have the whole amount withdrawn. It happened to be after bank hours, and she was requested to call again that day.sennight. The blank aspect of her countenance, when this announcement was communicated, instantly betokened that there was something wrong. She was allowed to go, however, unquestioned. Punctual' to the hour specified, she made her appearance that day week with her pass-book in her hand, trod renewed her request. The visible anxiety which she betrayed induced a question as to the motive for her conduct, when out at once came the secret : — the thrifty pair had got a newspaper seiit them in which some apprehensions were expressed as to the probability of a French invasion and the sacking of the Bank of England by the hostile troops, " so that," quoth she, " the guidman and mysel 1 though^ the sooner we wad tak' our money out o^your bank the better, as it wad , be safer in our am keepinV The good woman j suffered herself to be persuaded that her alarm was somewhat premature, and finally became reconciled to the leafing of the "siller" where v was. — Inverness Advertise*'.

First Arrival oi? Australian Gold at the United States Mint, — A few days ago a deposit was made at the United States Mint of gold from Australia, the first, w6 believe, that has been received there. The depositor was a young man of this coantry, who had been in California for two years, but was unlucky, and made uotbing. Terrpted by the reports from Australia, he sailed for that countcy, and went to the diggings. In two months he succeeded, by great good luck, in getting about five thousand dollars' worth of the dost. With this "bird in hand" he concluded to come home, and deposited a portion of his earnings as we have stated. The gold is superior in richness to that from California, being worth about two dollors more to the ounce. Philedelphia Bulletin, November 30.

Superstition in Paris.-^-Oii Tuesday last I saw a sight which I could scarcely have believed possible in this disbelieving, scoffing, and blaspheming city of Paris. In the ex-Pantheon, near the church of Saint Generiere, crowds of people of all classes, from the grande dame in silks and diamonds, down to the peasant in wooden shoes and coarse woollen, assembled around a sort of box very tawdrily gilded and bedecked — and one after another handed to a surpliced priest, who stood by, rings, gloves, pocket handkerchiefs, caps, fans, necklaces, chaplets, and articles of dress. These things were pressed by the said priest against the side of the said box, and restored to the owners ; after which the owners weut their way — some muttering prayers, others crossing themselves, and others laughing. The priest himself, a jovial looking fellow, seemed to think the occupation, though apparently monotonous *nd fatigning, very amusing, —as he laughed frequently, "Pray, sir," said I to one of the beadles, "can you tell me what that box is?" " A box, sir," he cried, H It is a shrine !" "A shrine —and whose shrine, pray ?" "That of the blessed Saint, Genevieve, patroness of Parii I " Dear me 1 and what does the shrine contain ?" "The bones and skin of the blessed Saint." " Excuse me, sir," I remarked, " but if you will refer to the official MonitenrioT the year 1793, you will find an official register of the destruction of the shrine, and all its contents — the bones, skin, coffin, garments, everything, in short, that remained of the Saint ! "Oh yes ! it's true that the Government did cause the shrine of the blessed Saint to be destroyed, yet notwithstanding some pious people took care to remove a few of the bonei — and there they are 1" " Will you permit me to remark that it is scarcely probable that the sans culotte gentry who presided at the dispute, were at all lifcely to have allowed that to be done V "But lock here, sir — " he said,, and be triumphantly pointed to this passage in the Life of Saint Genevi&ve which 1 had purchased at the doors for three halfpence : — "During the revolution, the tomb- of the patroness of Paris was removed from the church, and her shrine was conveyed to the clrorch of Saint Etienne dv Mont. In 1793 the shrine was taken to theMint. The relics of Saint Genevieve were, alas ! burned on the Place de . Gr6ve at Paris (the place of public executions) on the 3rd December, 1793; but very fortunately for the pious Parisians some considerably portions of the precious relics escaped the sacrilegious fire, and were at a later period deposited in her church." " There !" triumphantly cried my friend the beadle. " Why yes," said I, "it certainly is asserted that part- of the relics escaped destruction : but where is the proof ? The worthy beadle looked puzzled, and then gave his shoulders one of those comical shrugs ly which a Frenchman expresses so much without saying anything. I was half disposed to press tbe poor man for proofs, but refrained, on reflecting that if proofs were to be required for every statement of the Popish "church, wiser and more learned men than he wduld be sorely perplexed : Cardinal Wiseman, for instance, would fiod it no easy matter to establish the wooden doll at Gambrai, which he publicly worshipped a few months ago, really did, as his church teaches, catch in her lace apron the cannon bills with which the English bombarded, the town. " But," said Ito my friend the beadle, " admitting the authenticity of the bones, or whatever they may ie in the shrine , — will you tell me what is the use of touching the shrine with articles of dress, or personal ornaments?" "Oh sir," he answered proudly, " those things when touched possess the power of coring all sons of diseases ! "Good gracious!"

exclaimed I, "then Saint GeneviSve is no friend to the doctors !" and I went my way— wondering at the credulity which slill exists— and in Paris, the " capital of civilisation," too {—Correspondent of the Britannia.