Cleanings.

Colonist, Issue 71, 25 June 1858, Page 4

Cleanings.

ORSINI AND HIS CHILDREN:

In the year 1854, when about to start on the desperate mission which led to his arrest'at Hermannstadt and confinement in the citadel of Mantuaj Orsini (one of the conspirators lately executed, in Paris), entrusted the education of his daughters to his brother and uncle, and to the former addressed the following better. His frame; of mind at the time is- thus depicted by himself in his memoirs. He says :— "Before leaving for Italy I waa again overcome with melancholy. I was sick of everything. A sad presentiment told me that I should gee my children, my uncle, my brother no more. I wrote to the two latter that I was going into Asia, bo . that they should have no suspicion that I was engaged in a new conspiracy. I sent the letters open to Mr. Colombo, of Nice, to forward them; they were dated, from Geneva, so that the police, if they opened the letters, should notknow where I was." " To Emestina andlda Orsini. ".Switzerland, 28th Sept.,-1854. "My dear daughter's,— : These few lines, together with two little hearts,.which con- ; ;tain two locks of' my hair, will; be consigned to ;you when X ani t alive^,;^||it)nger; -you will ako receive a portrait greatly<;iesernbling me, and I have left the necessary instructions with my brother .Leohidas, so that you may have it, and keep it in memory of your poor father. "I left you ia your tender, age; you were very little, and the last time that ever I saw you was in the prison at Nice. < I was driven from Piedmont, because I had conspired against the foreigners who occupied my country. "The vicissitudes of Italy do not permit me to watch over your education myself, and I had not the sweet pleasure to caress you in your most beautiful period of youth. "In the lines which I have written to my brother Leonidas and my uncle, I have explained that I leave everything to you. I have begged them to transfer to yoa two everything which they might have intended to do to my advantage. I have recommended you more than myself, because I am anxious they should love you, and take the greatest care in your education. Igo to far-off lands embittered by everything, I carry with me two thoughts-—-of you two dear children, lend that of ray dear country; and I trust thatinay occupations, my sacrifices, may be useful to both. If I die soon, itwill not be my fault that I have not executed these two objects; it will be that, of death.

"Before concluding I, must give you some advice, which you will retain my dear children as a paternal memorial, which may be a valuable guide to you throughout ypur lives; at least I hope and wish so. First, believe in God;, I have a firm conviction of his existence. Seppnd, possess unalterable principles of honor! Mark! I do not mean those malleable #nd material principles; no, but, thoseivhiQh^ire universally recognised as such \)y a!lf people and nations, which do not alter wim the changes of time, of country, of governments; T mean those principles which are eternal truths, absolute, immutable, not depending on anyone's caprice. Pay attention to this. Everybody considers himself honorable; but this is not always seen in his acts, but instead of it we find deceit, hypocrisy, 'equivocation, and cunning to deceive others. This is what the greater part of men do, who regard the principles of honor as a piece of India rubber. When the true principles of honor have taken foot in you, as I have explained, and that they are considered by you as the basis of public and private morality, you must necessarily be lovers of your country, honest, affectionate towards your parents, pure in your youth, pure and faithful to your husbands to whom you may be married: in fine, loving towards your children, and adorned ,with the finest qualities which can be desired in woman, destined by Grpd and nature to embellish the life of man, and to render his existence less miserable.

"Gain as much instruction as )'ou can, and inform yourselves well as to what belongs to the familiar or domestic life, and recollect that the greater part of the crimes and errors of men proceed from ignorance* J that enemy to civilization, progress, honor, j and the liberty of nations. Remember; that as soon as you can use your intellectual faculties, the world will seem a paradise to i you; everything will smile on you; it will j •eem like a beautiful spring full of swreetsmelling and beautiful flowers, a spring which promises everything lovely and dear that the imagination can.conceive ; all that is lovely will smile upon you, and your hearts will expand with sweet hopes and affections towards whatever, fascinates you, towards that ideal-T-beauty,^goodries3, arid■■] love, which, alas^ in feality do riot exist. My dear children j do not believe in or be dazzled by the appearance which this world will at first present to you. Be careful. It is but the appearance, the external! surface which facinates, and if you afedazzlecl by its witchcraft, disappointment must come—and then—you will.'. find. an im-: mense void; a void which you' would* never have, experienced,, if you had looked upon . the \ world as it really is : a void; that will show ypu but too plainly. that the world is full-of rottenness, deceit,; 'and ingratitude \ that we must not here seek the summit of felicity, but a tempered contentment. You will fall into despair —in tears you will wish to retrace your steps, but you are too late. Give ear to these, words. which your father composes' •with tears in his eyes; I hope that you jmay never suffer the lightest of the misforjtunei experienced 'by me ;■ the']eagt:of the! jdisappointment in frienidship* ,If s'you ; marry, te careful How you make your selecition; let him be honest; honourable, a lover ;of his country jletfhisheartb^ ! let him be capable of true ■friendship, ■ and J noble, and ah affection: equally.pure.. Be ;faithful ■to the husband whom -you select Ifbr your life-companion;: letv the".''Tery.' thought of infidelity stnke youwith horror}:

destroy yourselves rather than fall into that

fault; an error like that, nothing -can ever remedy; the pardon which might be conceded does not remedy the evil; in you remains an eternal stain, in the husband an eternal rancour; an eternal remembrance of your guilt, of your dishonesty; remember that such an action on the wife's part poisons-the husband's existence, if he has a heart, or a feeling of honor: that it extinguishes domestic peace for ever; that it destroys domestic tranquillity; thatit causes the love and sweetness, which. should exist between husband and wife, to cease; cools and abates the love of-the parent for his child; that it, in fact, casts dishonor upon the husband,, upon you, upon all the family. Take care of yourselves, and keep this as a general. maxim, that the greater part of men are bad and wicked; and lastly, in leisure moments, cultivate your minds with pleasing, and moral reading, which will have the effect of guiding your minds early. towards good, and nourishing you with the fruit of wisdom! Do I weary you with this long letter! Pardon me! I must have written to you, ' even if I had not wished. These lines have, been the first, and may be-the last I shall ever address to you, and, as.you per.ceive, they are written by, the hand of your unhappy father. [. "May you have a serene and a long life! take a thousand and a thousand kisses ' from your father, who carries with him the pain of not being able to see and embrace you, impeded by the infamy of men. Receive the paternal benediction of your father. "Felice OrSini. " Farewell, farewell, farewell from my heart."

Arrival of Spollen in New York.—Spolleh, the alleged murderer of Mr. Little, in D.ublin, has.arrived in New York, and notwithstanding his endeavour to change his appearance, so as not to be recognised, the first tavern he entered tjiiar landlady presented him with his portrait,' to the back of which a drawing of the scene of the murder was affixed. The fellow 'was completely unnerved, and burst into tears.

The Winter in Northern Italy has been of almost unexampled severity; at Farara, the Po has been so firmly frozen over' that man and beast have crossed the ice for some days. At Turin, the low temperature has increased sickness and mortality. Shooting a /Seducer. — M. Ponehpn, the mayor of Habouville, in France, having learned that his daughter Clementine, fifteen years of age, was in the habit of receiving a young farm-labourer, named Basset, in her chamber at night,. ordered his son Hubert, only eighteen years of age, to wait on the evening of the 21st December, in the chamber with a loaded gun, and to shoot Basset dead in the event of his presenting himself. The order was unhesitatingly obeyed. A few days ago both father and son were tried for the murder, and acquitted.

Rumoured Resignation of the Pope. — A rumor has been afloat (says that steady chronicler of all rumors, the Court Jpnrnat) the last few days in Paris, of an anticipated change in the -temporal government of Rome which will create snrprise in the mind of every people in Europe. Some talk of the abdication of the Pope as a certain thing, and already has Father Ventura been spoken of as his successor. The nomination of the latter to a Cardinalate, in preparation for this event, has frequently been announced. Upon- an emergency, such a measure would not be considered indispensable. As General of the powerful Order of Ignatius, Father Ventura's position would enable him to accept the Papal" Crown without probation. Slavery. —A letter from an officer on board the Sappho, a vessel cruising off Western Africa, gives a stirring account of the rescue of a cargo of slaves. A slaver chased by the. Sappho run ashore. The crew escaped, leaving the American cploure flying. " Then we all beheld a dreadful scene: the slaves forced their way from below, jumped overboard, and soon disappeared in the rollers; it was terrible to. see them. Our officers and men, regardless of their own lives,' pulled through the surfi to leeward of the ship, but her heavy lurching for some time prevented their;boarding; when they succeeded, the scene was horrifying,—the slaves still forcing their way up from the slave-decks with loud yells, running to and fro, and continuing to .throw themselves overboard. All attempts to pacify them were useless; force was necessary to drive them below until preparations could be made for their , safety. We were' told by one of the slaves who could, speak" Portuguese, that they were, told the English would cut all their.throats. As soon as the boats could be attended to, the cutter,was backed under her stern^and a rope thrown her; then three of the slaves were .permitted up at a time and lowered into the boat,-the whale-boat conveying them through- the rollers to- the large boat, arid,so on to-the Sappho; this continued until eightip.rn. The surf increased and it was impossible to save more that night; 180 were rescued. 1' A guard was left on board. The next da}-* in spite of the rollers, and a fire of musketry from the beach, the English saved'2oo more. Then, burning the ship!.they sailed away. The negroes suffered terribly^ icAs Jfood and warmth restored them, in various ways they signified their sense of kindness. There was one poor creature with an'infant a,t her breast, naked, cold, and exhausted* apparently dying;'. a little wine .was.giyen her, then some rice, wljich she forced from her own to her baby's mouth. A'sheet was given to cover her;' she wrapped her-baby in it, pressed it to her heart;with that: look of maternal love which God has -given to • the dark as well as the pale-face race." Advantages of OrlnoUne.-j-A: jsb.ort.time since, a young lady of-Manchester, ;whilo, skating, broke through the ice in-twelvel feet of water. Her hooped skirt made a wide ring on the ice, and buoyed,hjjr up, until she, was respued., ",*''-.•