MISCELLANIE S.

and great mental affluence and literary attainments, spread out their treasures of knowledge upon its neatly printed and generous pages. Its articles are always of a high order, instructive and useful to the practical man, as well as to the literary gourmand. Crosby, Nichols & Co., Boston, are its publishers. Charles S. Francis & Co., New-York.

NEW-ENGLAND Chattels; or, LiFE IN THE NORTH-|sions and presentations. Men of ripe scholarship ERN POOR-HOUSE. Pp. 484. New-York: H. Dayton, Publisher, 109 Nassau street. 1858. It is an old but true adage that "One half the world are ignorant how the other half live." And Pope said: "The proper study of mankind is man." The poor-house may not be a very pleasant schoolhouse, but there are many touching and instructive lessons to be learned there by those willing to be taught the changeful history and sad reverses which follow along the path of human footsteps. The author of this instructive volume is a clergyman, formerly a pastor, whom we have long known, and whose writings we have often read with pleasure. The forty-four chapters of this Book are filled up with graphic descriptions of character, full of interest and instruction.

MEMOIR OF REV. DAVID TAPPAN STODDARD, MIS-
SIONARY TO THE NESTORIANS. By JOSEPH P.
THOMPSON, Pastor of the Broadway Tabernacle
Church. Pp. 420. New-York: Sheldon, Blake-
Boston: Gould & Lincoln. Lon-

man & Co.

don: Trúbner & Co. 1858.

THIS precious volume of Christian Biography will be welcomed by every friend of the missionary cause and by every person who can love and appreciate the character, talents, and self-denying devotion to the cause of Christ of one of the choicest spirits of the age. We knew him personally as a friend. We have sojourned together and slept upon the same couch-and to know him was to love him. Dr. Thompson has paid a tender and eloquent tribute to the memory of his friend and class-mate, in the memoir which he has written, which we trust will be read by many, and diffuse widely its genial and blessed influences over a multitude of minds and hearts. There is a value and a sacredness in such memoirs which can hardly be too highly prized. Could every young man, and especially every candidate for the ministry, read and ponder, and imbibe the spirit which breathes through these pages, how deep and salutary would be its influence! We earnestly commend it to the perusal of the youth of both sexes.

LECTURES TO CHILDREN, FAMILIARLY ILLUSTRATING IMPORTANT TRUTH. Second Series. By Rev. JOHN TODD, D.D., Author of the Student's Manual, Truth made Simple, etc. With original Illustrations. Northampton: Hopkins, Bridgman & Co. 1858.

THE excellent author of this neat and beautiful little volume of twelve lectures, always uses a facile and graphic pen or tongue whenever he addresses a company or a congregation of children. Although this book is beautifully illustrated with cuts, yet the author has embellished it with so many word-pictures and vivid thoughts as almost to ronder unnecessary the use of illustrations. Dr. Todd has a happy talent to interest children and fill their minds with pleasant thoughts, and as there are many fullgrown children thirty or forty years old who will be interested in reading this book, we trust it will find a home in many families.

THE NORTH-AMERICAN REVIEW.-A late number of this truly National Quarterly is on our table. It is worthy of its name in the strength of its articles, in the candor and dignity of its literary discus

WEBSTER'S QUARTO DICTIONARY.-On the cover of the last number of the ECLECTIC, our readers will find ample commendations from eminent men, of this best of all dictionaries in the English language. All competent judges must pronounce this verdict in its favor. The work is so valuable, so essential, so indispensable to a full and accurate knowledge of our language in the origin of its words, roots, and the very animus of its spirit and meaning, in all praise Webster's Dictionary seems much like atthe literary and business departments of life, that to the sun in the heavens or the vital air we breathe. tempting to praise the light and genial influence of Dr. Webster is the patriarch among lexicographers. We long knew him personally, only to reverence him and admire his great learning and research in the department of language. (Published by G. & C. Merriam.)

SERMONS TO THE CHURCHES. By FRANCIS WAYLAND. Pp. 281. New-York: Sheldon, Blakeman & Co. Boston: Gould & Lincoln. London: Trübner & Co. 1858.

THE character and talents of Dr. Wayland as an eminent divine and eloquent and forcible preacher are well and widely known over the country, and a simple announcement of a volume of sermons from his pen is amply sufficient to all who know him to obtain and put a copy of his work in their library among its choice treasures.

SPURGEON'S GEMS. Being Brilliant Passages from
the Discourses of the Rev. C. H. SPURGEON.
Pp. 360, with an Index. New-York: Sheldon,
Blakeman & Co. Boston: Gould & Lincoln.
Richmond: T. J. Starke. 1858.

acquired a power of language and vividness of ex-
THIS eloquent preacher and very gifted man has
read his published discourses carefully have been
pression such as few men possess. All who have
impressed with the richness of his diction and the
gems of thought which have sparkled on his pages.
These, gathered and arranged in one volume as they
are, and published by the enterprising House in
New-York, will be very acceptable to the numerous
admirers of this eloquent author. We should be
glad at some time to place upon our pages some fine
specimens.

THE USE OF THE MAGNET IN SURGERY.-A young man a tailor, named John Keuuy, ten weeks ago broke a needle into his hand, near the wrist, from which he suffered so severely that he was unable to follow his employment. Having tried the skill of several surgeons without receiving any relief, be last week called at a chemist's shop in Barnsley. The chemist examined the wound, and found that a portion of the needle was still there. He applied a magnet to it and extracted it from the hand, and by this means Kenny received immediate relief. piece extracted was half an inch in length.

The

THE QUALITIES OF TOBACCO.-Dr. James Paxton, of Rugby, has sent the following circular to his patients: "The exceedingly prevailing custom of smoking, and the different opinions upon this subject, may justly suggest an inquiry whether the custom is good, bad, or indifferent. Having carefully watched the effects of tobacco on the human constitution, I feel no difficulty in pursuing the inquiry or furnishing a reply. The properties of tobacco are soothing to the nerves. While a person is under its influence, he feels forgetful of past sorrows, a freedom from anxiety about the future, with a gentle lull to all the faculties of body and mindsimply from a temporary intoxication. There is, moreover, a desire created to indulge these sensations until the indulgence in many cases becomes excessive. Such are the results produced by smoking. It is, therefore, no wonder young and old, rich and poor, have fallen into this unnatural habit. Now we might have thought these remarks uncalled for, were there nothing further consequent. But other physicians as well as myself have examined the subject medically, and the truth ought to be told; namely, although the smoker soon gets over the disagreeable excitement and peculiar sense of giddiness and sickness occasioned by his first attempt at smoking, yet there follows, by insensible degrees, a weakness of the powers of the heart and the circulation of the blood. It is a fact deserving earnest attention, that a yielding to the acquired taste of tobacco can not be gratified for any length of time without manifestly affecting the health. There are, indeed, some whose systems resist the injury; these are exceptions to the general rules which apply to the vital economy. The pale complexions, debilitated frames, and disordered digestion of young men of the present day, attest the noxious influence of tobacco. My design in this communication is chiefly to recommend my patients to avoid every form of using tobacco. It possesses no healing qualities, removes nor mitigates any disease, and neither supports the body or refines the mind. On the contrary, by burning it, the essential oil is volatilized and inhaled-an oil most injurious, nay, when administered to auimals by way of experiment, it proved a deadly poison. Many smokers express doubts and misgivings, and say: 'I think smoking does me no good.' These suspicions are just. Therefore, however tranquillizing to the nerves, such sensations are too dearly purchased when a train of bad effects on the constitution are. produced. I assure you, both British and foreign physicians disapprove of the use of tobacco as being subversive of all the purely natural operations of life, and as impairing the finer senses of tasting, smelling, and correct feeling."-London Times.

VIRTUE AND ITS REWARD.-At a late meeting of the Académie in Paris, the principal Montyon prize of three thousand francs, for acts of virtue, was bestowed on Françoise Durand, of Apt, (Vaucluse.) The Academy, in awarding the prize, were desirous of rewarding conjugal devotedness, that attachment to family ties which becomes tightened by misfortune, and particularly that delicacy of feeling which the acquittal of a husband could not satisfy, and which could not rest until his innocence had been clearly proven. Mdme. Durand, a poor peasant woman struck by misfortune, evinced a courage equal to the struggle which she was called upon to sustain. Her husband was accused of a capital crime, and brought before a Court of Assizes,

where, although serious charges were brought against him, he was acquitted by a small majority. Mdme. Durand, who was convinced of his innocence, never ceased to support his courage while before his judges, and during the seven succeeding years she devoted her incessant efforts to the discovery and prosecution of the real criminals, and at length they were condemned, and the complete innocence of her husband proved to the most skeptical.

A SMART RETORT.-The following story respecting Lord Chesterfield, "the pink of politeness," is told in the Memoir of the Rev. J. Hodgson, M.A. Lord Berkeley was once dining with him in a large party, when it was usual to drink wine until they were mellow. Berkeley was a plain blunt John Bull, and had, whether by design or accident I am not told, shot one or two game-keepers; and Chesterfield, under the warmth of wine, said: "Pray, my Lord Berkeley, how long is it since you shot a gamekeeper ?" "Not since you hanged your tutor, my Lord!" was the reply. You know that Lord Chesterfield brought Dr. Dodd to trial, in consequence of which he was hanged.

AERIAL NAVIGATION.-The scheme of crossing the ocean with a balloon has been proposed by Messrs. Wise and Steiner, and each has offered to build an air-ship of the requisite size, and make the trip, but has failed in getting a subscription_of twenty thousand dollars for the purpose. Mr. La Mountain says he will remain in this city during the present winter, and build a balloon sixty-five feet in diameter, with an extensive power of five tons, with which he will cross the ocean, starting from this city in May next, and land within twentyfive miles of any given point in Europe. He has discovered a principle which will enable him to retain the gas in his balloon for any length of time, and he is confident that the air can be navigated as well as water, and with as little difficulty.-Troy Times.

THE GREAT DUKE'S LAST PLACE OF REPOSE.The public are now admitted to view the sarcophagus which contains the remains of the late Duke of Wellington in the crypt of St. Paul's. The material was sought upon the continent, but in vain; and at length it was determined to appropriate for the purpose a huge porphyry boulder, which had lain for ages upon the Treffray estate at Luxalyan, in Cornwall. Here, in the field, whereon it was found, the intensely hard material was cut into the form of a sarcophagus, and polished by steam power, and, being completed, was conveyed to the cathedral, to be deposited in the center of the cryptal chamber already mentioned. The color is rich reddish brown, with yellowish marking; and the sarcophagus is placed upon a base of light granite, each of the four corners being sculptured with a lion's head. On one side of the sarcophagus is inscribed, "Arthur, Duke of Wellington," and upon the opposite side, "Born May 1, 1769. Died Sept. 14, 1852;" and at each end, and upon a boss, is an heraldic cross, the outlines of which, as well as those of the inscription, are in gold, which has a rich effect. In each angle of the chamber is a candelabrum of highly polished red granite, from which rise jets of gas to light the apartment. The floor is laid with Minton's tiles, and the appearance of the tomb and the sepulchral chamber, if not sumptuous, is grand aud massive. The tomb is stated to have cost £1100.

A SUBSTITUTE FOR EMBALMING.-On Saturday there was a numerous assemblage at the Anatomical Theater, Bartholomew's Hospital, of medical and scientific gentlemen, and others interested in the sanitary condition of the population, for the purpose of receiving some explanations of a process which has been designated the process Falcony, after the name of the distinguished chemist, M. Falcony, whose reputation stands deservedly high on the Continent, in connection with this department of chemical science. M. Falcony has succeeded in bringing to perfection two processes, one for preventing decomposition of the human body after death, and of arresting it even after it has set in; and the other for permanent preservation, or, to use

a

RAILWAY TO HEAVEN.-Mr. White in a recent excursion in Westmoreland Co., England, says there are many Methodists near Whitby; and their hymns must be curious, to judge from the specimens given by Mr. White. Here, for instance, is an account of the "Railway to Heaven," written in perfect good faith:

Of truth divine the rails are made,
And on the Rock of Ages laid;
The rails are fixed in chairs of love,
Firm as the throne of God above.
About a hundred years or so
Wesley and others said they'd go-
A carriage Mercy did provide,

That Wesley and his friends might ride.

Whitby, it appears, is a great place for fossils, and especially for ammonites, which abound in the neighborhood, and which, according to a local tra dition, are remains of snakes turned miraculously into stone by St. Hilda.

more familiar expression, for embalming the body. It is to the former that the attention of the general public will more particularly be directed, inasmuch as, in a sanitary point of view, nothing can be of more importance than to be put in possession of the means, at a moderate cost, of preventing the decomposition of a body which it is our custom in England to retain for a fortnight if possible. There are some diseases which are the cause of POOR GOLDSMITH.-Goldsmith is again riding on death, where decomposition sets in so rapidly that the crests of the wave, and that tide which flows the greatest danger often attends this practice; through the memories, not less than through the and, in too many instances, amongst the poorer affairs, of men, is in his case running high and classes, compelled to sleep even in the same room strong. Dignitaries of that Dublin University, in with the dead relative, numerous cases of infection which he received his education, and benchers of and fever have taken place. Now, this process of that Temple, within the precincts of which he laid M. Falcony for the prevention of all infectious his bones, are alike stirring in his name. gases, is simple and cleanly in its application. It proposes to erect a statue, and a sum of money has consists of a powder composed of various chemical been raised already to that end. The benchers of constituents, of which sulphate of zinc is the base; the Temple propose to erect some sort of monument and this being mixed with sawdust is placed under-form not determined. Oliver was buried in the and over the corpse, leaving the face exposed. Covered with this dry preparation the body can be kept for five or six weeks without any apparent change, whilst not the slightest exhalation escapes.

Mr. Farrow was present on Saturday, and Dr. Holden was obliging enough to favor the gentlemen present with the results of a test to which that process had been subjected at Bartholomew's. On the 9th of June, the remains of a leg and foot, which had been amputated at the hospital, were deposited in a box filled with this preparation. The leg and foot were in an offensive condition of putrefaction, and in a few days would have liquefied. On Saturday the box was brought into the theater and uncovered, when all putrescence had ceased and the flesh had become indurated, somewhat resembling India rubber. Dr. Holden further stated that upon its being put into the preparation, the offensive smell ceased almost instantaneously. The conclusion, therefore, to be drawn from this fact is, that if such result can be obtained by the application of the process to a body in a high state of putrescence and decomposition, the same application, if made soon after death, and before decomposition begins, will be even more striking and efficacious. The demonstrations were highly satisfactory. An examination was afterwards entered into of the process of embalming, which is performed by the injec. tion of a liquid, and without the mutilation of the body, but as the explanation of the details of this system would be somewhat too technical for our columns, we feel that we shall be best performing our duty to the public by inviting the immediate and earnest attention of the Board of Health to this important practical discovery.—London paper, August 3.

Dublin

Temple church-yard, and according to Mr. Cyrus Redding, the memorial stone, which upwards of half-a-century ago marked the spot of his grave, was first broken during a great fire hard by, and then the pieces were carted away, and all about it has been forgotten. It is to be hoped that whatever is done will be done in good taste and upon proper consideration. Meanwhile we are thankful for the opportunity of recording progress.—Athen

еит.

OLD STYLE IN MODERN DRESS.-Almighty God, the Creator of the Universe, made this earth of ours in the form of a sphere, not a plane. If it been a plane, the operation of sin, working through the passions of nations and individuals, would have driven the weak to the extreme brink of humanity and hurled them over the precipice, once for all. But our merciful Father has appointed it otherwise. Our planet is spherical. It is cut up on its surface by oceans, seas, mountains, rivers-it is diversified by latitudes and longitudes-it is peopled by all tribes, tongues, and nations, and yet its inhabitants have been perpetually struggling to overcome these physical boundaries, and to hug each other more and more as old acquaintances of the same original and universal family too long estranged and separated.-Extract from City Address to the Telegraph Company, Sept. 1.

M. PHILARÈTE CHASLES, the well-known French writer, is about to publish a work in English on the Sonnets of Shakspeare; and one of the sons of Victor Hugo is employed on a translation of Shakspeare's plays into French.