MISCELLANEOUS.

Colonist, Volume IV, Issue 314, 23 October 1860, Page 3

MISCELLANEOUS.

Fast Men. —The Morning Post says on the modern aspect of the beau-monde and the demi-monde of London :—■" We accuse the fine young English gentlemen of permitting, practising, and fostering a lax sytein of demeanour in public which is capable of producing very serious results on society. They are becoming much more emulous of making the acquaintance and frequenting the society, even in public, of certain persons—we find them riding with them in the parks, aud scarcely avoiding the recognition of their more respectable friends —we see them descend from their mother's box at the Opera to exchange persiflage with notorious individuals—we deteot them rising from their chair in Rotten-row, by the side of Lais and Aspasia, to chat with Lady Alice or Miss Fanny over the rail; in short, avoiding no opportunity of admitting, even in the presence of iheir nearest and dearest, an intimacy which at least should be concealed, and priding them selves, as it were —what a source of pride.!—on that being the style they prefer, the tone that has the surest attraction for them. Can they possibly be blind to the evil of all this—can they not perceive that they must reflect back upon the society which they re-enter the tone which they acquire from such impure sources ; and, would they really wish their sisters and cdusins to adopt such a hue ? We fear such a hue is already not slow of adoption, We con tioually hear the remark that ' none but the fast girls get on,' and we know that nothing is more common now than the 'fast girls' tokeperfectly, rouveraant with the persons, names, uick-names-r-even the personal habits and pursuits of their riv .Is. The only remedy for all this, we believe, rests with the heads of society themselves. We appeal to the grandes dames of England to sedulously set their faces against that which assuredly is a stain on our social system. They have the power, for fashion has weapons of surer avail thau eloquence or even satire. Were half a dozen ladies to decline the acquaintance of, or refuse their hospitality to,, those sinning in the manner we have been endeavoring to reprobate, at the same time openly avowing the reasons for their conduct, were youug ladies to consider, and show that they consider it pollution to be included in the attentions vouchsafed to those whom they unfortunately cannot misunderstand, we should very soon fhid a mure manely decency of demeanour, a purer tone of sentiment, characterising the lives of the rising generation. They would no longer openly court their misstresses in the presence of their sisters—no longer expose their impudent folly to the gaze of their mothers, or those who may one d,ay be the mothers of their children. Such things were no,t done even under the dissolute sway of the regent; they certainly should uot be 4oi»a in, the res,usctabe wigo. of Victoria*'*

Soyer was a great admirer of beauty. He even carried his taste into the selection of female assistants in the kitchen. Lord Melbourne, himself a great atlmirer of the fair sex, was one day inspecting the kitchen arrangements of the Re'<>rm Club. S'yer was chaperoning him. Hi" lordship was attracted by the beauty of the many females engaged in cuisine operations, and he turned round and complimented Soyer upon his taste in more senses than one. " Ah, my Lord," was the quick rejoinder, " it wou't do to have plain cooks here !" John Bull. —Baron Ward, the famous Prime Minister, of Lucca, who died in 1858, was son of William Ward, stud groom to Mr. Bidsdale, the trainer, and was himself originally a groom. In after years, as everybody knows, he became chief adviser to the Grand Duke of Lucca, aud was created a baron. One day, about this time, when he entered the duke's room, he found him occupied with pencil and paper. " Ward," said his royal highness, "I am devising a coat of arms for you. As a mark of the esteem in which you are held by the duchess as well as by myself, you shall have armorial bearings compounded of her arms and my own. I will give you the silver cross of Savoy with the golden Jleur de Us of France in dexter chief." With many expressions of gratitude for the honor which was about to be tconferred upon him, he asked permission to add something emblematical ol his native country ; and, as he had heard that coats of arms sometimes had supporters, he would like to have the cross of Savoy and the lily of Bourbon supported by English John Bulls : "So be it," said the duke "you shall have two hulls regardant for your supportors." And thus the anus of B.iron Ward may be found in Burkes Peerage " among those of Euglishmen who have obtained foreign titles:—On a field gules a cross argent, in the dexter chief, a shield azure surmounted by a royal crown, and charged with aflleur de Us or; supporters, two bulls regardant proper. Ventilate the Churches and the Schools.—lt is proverbial how persons, youug and old, suffer from colds, bronchitis, and influenza ; all of which are said to be " caught," when they return from some public place oi assembly. The question naturally arises, how is this ? The answes is, that it is caused by the sudden change which the body undergoes •v. passing from a heated impure air to that of the natural temperature, containing also its proper proportion of elements. Man requires for his health one gallon of air every minute of his life; the individuals of a church congregation are rarely, if ever, snpplied with a quarter of that quantity. Only at the ca fhedrals is the air space in proportion to the worshippers. A mau of large lungs inhales about twenty-five cubic inches of air at each respiration; he breathes eleven times a minute, and thus requires nine and a half cubic feet of air ; every hour. Now when there are a thousand persons under one roof (some of the metropolitan churches and ohapels coutain 2500 persons, for a couple of hours, it is evident that twenty thousand cubic feet of air are required to supply that which is necessary for existence to these thousand persons in a pure atmosphere, so that of course a much larger quantity than that is required in order that, a current can be established to remove the effete matter of exhalation. The evils of vitiated air are also more to be guarded against, because persons can live in it without beiug aware of its danger, as far as their sensations are concerned. When we enter a crowded assembly on a cold day the air is always at first repulnive and oppressive ; but these sensations gradually disappear, and we then breathe freely, and aie unconcious of the quality of the air. Science, however, reveals the fact that the system sinks in action to meet the conditions of the impure air, but it does so at the expense of having the vital functions gradually depressed, and when this is continued disease follows. No disease can be thoroughly cured when there is a want of ventilation. It is related that illuess continued in a family until a pane of glass was accidentally broken, and then it ceased; the window not being repaired, a pleutiful supply of fresh air was admitted. The practice of building sepulchral vaults under the churches was fraught with the greatest evil to the health of those who went into the edifice for sacred purposes. But with few exceptions it is now interdicted by the legislature. The Sunday schools also, as a general rule, are very ill ventillated ; and lessons in the second hour are far worse rendered than in the first, solely arising from a semi-lethargic caused through breathing carbonic air, which has already done duty and been inhaled by others several times. England and Feance.—The prize offered by the Rev. Dr. Emerton, of Hanwell College. Middlesex, for the best essay on the immense importaace of a close union of England and Frauce has been awarded by the adjudicators, Lord Brougham, the Earl of Clarendon, and the EarJ of Shaftesbury, to the Rev. W. N. Molesworth, M.A., P. 0., of St. Clements, Rochdale, Mr. Molesvrorth is the son of the Rev. Dr. Molesworth, Vicar of Rochdale, was formerly of Pembroke College, Cambridge, prizeman, sen,, opt. and 8.A., 1839, and is the author of variour publications. The French aujtidicators, Messrs. Theirs, Mignef, and Merimee, have not yet awarded the French prizes of IOOOf. and 250f. offered by Dr. Einertou on the same subject. Niggers.—He will hear natives spoken of almost universally as " niggers," with prefixes of strong adjectives, referring to the supposed future state of "niggers and "pandies." He will be taught that the height of his ambition should be "to make a good bag," which is the specific name used on all occasions for killing a good many of the enemy—that mercy is " snivelling white pandyism," aad that " potting a pandy" is one of the highest and purest enjoyments of which Christians are or ought to be capable. He will learn that the " nigger " is a being incapable of feeling either gratitude or affection, that it is preposterous to speak to him as a fellow man, that he is not eutitled to participate in an equal administration of justiqe, that he ought to have a distinct code of his own, framed, it is to be presumed, on different principles, and the argumentum, baculinum is the only ratiocinatory process he can appreciate. Of such doctrines I dread the influences and the consequences, but I can give you chapter and verse, printed passages from newspapers, for each, and for much worse, and if called upon I shall do so.— Times. Some one says of a certain congregation that they pray on their knees on. Sundays, aud ou their neighbors the rest of the week. We have, heard of asking for bread and receiving a stone, but a gentleman may be considered as still wors3 treated, when he asks for ft lady's hand, and reecim her. father's foot I

Bakers and Printers.—According to the repor; «f Dr. Guy, the journeyman baker habitually works in a polluted atmosphere from eighteen to twenty hours a day, and towards the end of the week nearly two entire days in succession. Is it to be wondered at that, under these circumstances, the trade of the baker is one of the most unhealthy in the metropolis? Compositors who work in a heated atmosphere, we are told by Dr. Guy, are peculiarly subject to chest diseases of a severe character ; they spit blood (a very grave symptom) in proportion of twelve and a-half in 100; but journeymen bakers, we are informed by the same authority, spit blood in the proportion of thirty-one n the 100. Amongst the journeymen of the under-priced bakers, we are told that no less than every other man spits blood. We do not wish to pursue this unpleasant subject further than is necessary to ensure public attention to the suffering of a class of workers who have hitherto borne their cross with almost culpable patience.— Once a Week. Ingenious Order.—A Volunteer Rifle captain desiring to cross a field with his company, came to an opening in the fence large enough to.admit two persons, but no more, to pass abreast. Unfortunately he could not remember tho word ot command which would have accomplished the difficult task, of filing through; but his ingenuity did not desert him, and therefore he ordered a halt, and then said, " Gentlemen you are dismissed for one minute, when you will fall in on t'other side of the fence." Mustard Poultice.—A person named Samuels, (says the Age) who is described in the police report as " managing clerk " to a Mr Owen, a solicitor, has been winning notoriety at rnglewood. It appears from an account which is published in the Mount Alexander Mail, that Samuels is likewise a money lender on s limited scale, and thatin a luckless hour he lent £5 to a Mr. Heron for a month, for which ho received an acceptance for £1 10s, being interest, ai the rate of £360 par cent, per ar.num. Tim biU was dishonored, and Samuels, instead of proceeding in the usual way issued a writ from the Supreme Conrfc A levy was consequently made on Heron's piope-ty, expenses iucurred by the philanthropic usurer to the amount of £19 16a, making a total of £iQ 16s. The Sheriff's officer accordingly proceeded to sell Heron's tent and other trifling possessions, and Samuels, thinking that a good thine, was to ba got out of them, likewise proceeded to become their purchaser In doing this it is a'leged that his conduct was so insulting to his unfortunate victim that the latter in a moment of irritation smothered the f«ce of his tormentor with something like a mustard poultice, for which assault Samuels takei Heron, this time, into the Police Court, and gets £5 damages. The * damages' being, as it seems, more likely to render the plaintiff unpopular than any quantity of mustard plasters. The Mail concludes its report of the case with the following: ' A subscription is being made to pay the damages, and the piece was dramatised at the theatre on Frid&r night.1 Important to Storekeepers.—ln the report of the Camden District Court proceedings, the law as administered in the District Courts, according to the ruling of his Honor Judge Cary, has caused no small excitement among our business neighbours. It has been usual it appears to put in the dealers books as evidence, of course on oath. Judge Cary however entered into the accounts in detail, and demanded posiotive proof of sale , and delivery of each item. In consequence of thh, many items were struck out of some of the accounts on account of the absence of the parties who had served the goods Mr. Thompson found himself shut out of Court for want of. evidence of his late book keeper, who is dead, and a shopman who has left hid service. Mr. Foulks was plaintiff in one case, and obtained a verdict for all the items in the account served by himself; but goods served by Mr Foulks, or by his shopman, were struck out in consequence of the inability of those parties to prove delivery. If this be really the law it cannot be too widely known, for undoubtedly it must stop, to a great extent, the present system of credits at stores, for it cannot be that a storekeeper can close his business for one or two days with all bis servants to prove delivery of every petty item in a shop score. Besides, should one or more of his assistants die or leave his establishment, he is entirely prevented from recovering the value of any goods served by such assistants, it is the first time such doctrine has been propounded in this district, and has caused our storekeepers and. others no little alarm.— Sydney Herald. The gun-boat Caroline—formerly coasting-schooner Ruby, built by our enterprising fellow-colonist, Mr. Mucklejohn—sailed with Government despatches from Alanukau, for New Plymouth, in charge of Mr. Hannibal Marks, on Thursday last, has just returned after the quickest trip on record, having been but three_ days seventeen hours out and home. The Caroline took her departure on Thursday, at 10 a.m. proceeding to sea by the main channel—wind S. by E., a moderate breeze—after a dead beat the whole way, she fetched the New Plymouth anchorage on Sunday, ct *i a.m. Having delivered her despatches, and received on board ten of the Iris's ship's company, she took her departure the same day at 2 p.m., wiud still S. by E., but a strong breeze. Passed through the Manukau heads, by the South channel, on Monday at daylight. The Caroline behaved admirably throughout the trip, proving herself to be fast, weatherly, and easy, and in every respect a credit to her constructer.— Mew Zealander.