87-Grasses. G.-For a knowledge of grasses, every botanical student should procure Sir J. E. Smith's "English Botany," with illustrations by Sowerby.

88-Obstruction to Carriages. J. S.-You are correct in your supposition. By Act of Parliament (1st Geo. I. c. 57), drivers of Hackneycoaches are to give way to gentlemen's carriages, under a penalty of ten shillings.

89-Presents. C.-A present between equals should be merely the expression of a sentiment, and should be well chosen, but not expensive, even where your means are large. Some strive to gain friends by extravagant gifts; these you may certainly refuse, for the sooner they learn their error, the better.

90-Oxford University Degrees. M. T.-Members of the University before taking a degree, are called under graduates; the first degree taken is that of Bachelor of Arts, to obtain which it is required to reside a certain number of terms, and to pass two examinations; the first, commonly called the "little go." Those incapable of passing their examination are said to be "plucked."

91-Entomology. J. C.-You cannot do better than read "Kirby's and Spence's Introduction to Entomology," a very interesting work on this science. The number of species, or individuals of a species in Entomology, probably amount to 400,000, or even more, perfectly distinct from each other; while for all the other classes of animals together, 30,000 species would be a high estimate.

92-Pet Dogs. R. H.-Pet dogs that cannot conveniently be taken out to exercise, may be kept in good health by placing in their water a small lump of stick sulphur. They should always have free access to water, which may be kept in a dish in the corner of a room, on a small mat or piece of floorcloth to save the carpet. The same piece of sulphur will last for years.

93-Treasure Trove. T. M.-The money you found cannot be considered as Treasure Trove, because it is evident that the person who placed it there had not any idea that he or she would be able to recover it again at a future period; and, moreover, it does not appear to have been in any great quantity. Ten coins-and those not of much value-could scarcely be considered as coming under the denomination of Treasure Trove.

94-Mignonette. T. H.-Mignonette should be sown in pots or boxes at various periods for successive crops, and by this means may be had in bloom, even in this climate, nearly throughout the year. The soil should be light, sandy,

95-Friendship. E. J. S.-None but the upright in heart are capable of being true friends; and none are upright who do not make a conscience of all their ways. Choose your friends from among these, and you will be spared in future the disappointments you have experienced. Adversity, as you observe, is a good test of friendship, and so far you are fortunate in finding some that are truthful. The old proverb is still unfortunately sometimes verified: "In time of prosperity friends will be plenty, In time of adversity not one amongst twenty." 96-The Cuckoo. J. S.-The lines you allude to, as being proverbial in the North of England,

are:

"The cuckoo comes in April,

Stops all the month of May; Sings a song at Midsummer,

And then he goes away.

When the cuckoo comes to the bare thorn
Sell your cow and buy your corn;
But when she comes to the full bit,
Sell your corn and buy your sheep."

97-Electric Telegraph. C. E. G.-Six questions in one letter somewhat try our editorial patience, but we shall be enabled to satisfy you shortly on every point, as we have an article on the subject in preparation. The average speed of communication by telegraph is about twentyfive words per minute, or, assuming five letters to a word, a little more than two letters per second. But in routine despatches, which, from their recurrence every day, are pretty well known as to their general order of words, the speed is often much greater.

98-The Common Furze. A. J. C- You are correct in your supposition. This is a very useful plant, its young shoots being eaten by animals, and its podded seeds by numerous birds. It helps also to cheer the hearth of the poor, being excellent for fuel. This is the plant with which Linnæus was so delighted, on his arrival in England, that he is said to have fallen on his knees, and thanked God for producing so handsome a shrub. He tried to introduce it into Sweden on his return, but failed, the climate being too severe.

99-Artificial Flowers. R. M.-The colouring matters used in flower dyeing are the following: Red, carmine dissolved in a solution of salt of tartar, or in water of ammonia. Blue, indigo

dissolved in sulphuric acid, diluted and neutralized in part by Spanish whitening or chalk. Bright yellow, a solution of turmeric in spirit of wine; cream of tartar brightens all these colours. Violet, archil, and a blue bath. Lilac, archil; some petals are made of velvet, and are coloured merely by the application of the finger dipped in the dye.

100-Silk-vorms. F.-The eggs of the moth to which the silkworm turns, are hatched early in May. The proper food of silkworms is the mulberry, though it will likewise eat the lettuce and some few other plants; it does not thrive upon them equally well, and the silk yielded is of a poor quality. Silkworms are fed, in France, on the leaves of the white mulberry, planted in hedge-rows as pollards, and raised from seeds by nurserymen. The eggs are hatched in rooms heated to 724° Fahr.; 1 ounce of eggs consume 1 cwt. of leaves, and produce from 7 to 9 lbs of raw silk.

101-Chicory. W.-The substance sold under this name-sometimes called Succory-is the roasted root of the wild Endive (Cichorium Intybus), an indigenous syngenesious plant, extensively cultivated in Holland, Belgium, and Germany, from whence it is largely imported for the purpose of mixing with ground coffee. The root is cut, dried, and roasted like coffee in heated iron cylinders, which are kept revolving, and it is then ground in mills. It is used on the Continent, both in the green and the blanched state. The blanched is prepared in the same way as celery, and the green in the same way as spinach. The blanched part is also used for salad; and, having a strong bitter, is considered wholesome.

102-Linnets. H.-When wild, their food is all kinds of seeds that they can shell, and these remain in the crop some time to be moistened before passing into the stomach. In the house, it is only summer rape-seed. It is not necessary always to give them hemp-seed with it; and they must not be fed abundantly; for, taking little exercise, they easily become fat, and sɔmetimes die from this cause; but a little salt mixed with their food is useful, as it preserves them from many diseases, and they like it. When linnets are allowed to run about, they will feed with the other birds on the common universal paste; but they must be given green vegetables, water, and sand, as they are very fond of bathing and dusting themselves.

too freely in the gratification of a host of imagin ary wants, is one into which young men of generous minds are too apt to fall. Limited to a small income previously, and compelled to deny themselves at nearly every point, they find it almost impossible to resist the impulse that prompts to self-gratification, and are thus led to spend, perhaps for years, the entire sum of their earnings, and, more than probable, to run into debt. The folly of this everyone can see and ackn. wledge, and yet too many have not the resolution to act up to their convictions. 104-Legend of the Dragon-flies. H. M. E.-The nursery rhyme to which you allude, refers to an old legend respecting the dragon-flies, whose sting or bite is supposed by some country people to be venomous. These insects are also believed, by the credulous, to distinguish the good children from the bad, when they go fishing; if the latter go too near the water, they are almost sure to be bitten; but when the good boys go, the dragon-flies point out the places where the fish are, by settling on the banks, or flags, in the proper direction. A proof of great discernment, truly! hence the children's song:

While all the little naughty boys shall only lick the dish."

105-Electrical Experiments. F.-The feat of lighting gas with the tip of the finger has, we believe, been performed, and may easily be explained. Friction, it is well known, will produce electricity in certain substances, and the friction of a gutta-percha or common leather working belt upon the fly-wheel or pulleys of a steam engine and shaftings produces it in considerable quantities. If a person will insulate himself by standing upon a board fixed upon glass insulators, common porter bottles would answer, and hold an iron bar or a number of iron spikes in his hand, their points almost touching the belt, he may, by extending the opposite hand to a gas-burner, light it with the tip of his finger as easily as with a match. He will feel a sensible shock pass through him, a pricking sensation in his fiuger joints, and sec a brilliant spark pass off with a cracking sound to the gas-burner. The electric fluid will pass through several persons joining hands, the same as with an electric battery, and the last may

self down, with the hunting pouch beneath his head, on the roots of an old oak, whose leaves afforded some protection against the stormy shower.

Bob cuddled himself up in the smallest possible space by his side, and let his head fall on his chest, but remained awake, for he carefully listened to the white man's breathing, till he convinced himself of his unconsciousness, and crept lightly towards

him.

The storm raged, in the meanwhile, still more furiously; but without paying the least attention to it, Bob felt the hunting-pouch with careful hand and noiseless movements, and gradually, almost imperceptibly, inserting his fingers beneath the sleeper's head, he succeeded, after a few moments, in drawing out the spirit bottle. Had it been daylight, it would have been possible to see a triumphant smile pass over the Indian's features, as he silently and with practised hand, drew out the cork; but soon after the gentle and illicit sound was heard, as the hot, refreshing, draught poured down his throat, and his lips were, for a long time, glued to the narrow neck of the wicker bottle. The last drop was at length drained, and Bob now employed himself in restoring the bottle to its place. Still, not to excite any needless suspicion, he pushed it back into the pouch with the mouth downwards, and let the cork fall in the leaves; he then crawled back to his old position, and soon slept calmly, in spite of the violent rain and furious wind.

Day broke coldly and gloomily, the storm had passed, but heavy, dark masses of clouds lay on the tops of the trees; a fine, thin rain poured down, and bursts of wind shook the large drops in a shower from the branches.

Sechingen, although a long time awake, was almost afraid to stir in the damp, cold, folds of the blanket, and lay motionless till day fairly broke. At length he took heart, jumped up, and looked around with a comfortless and dejected glance on the far from smiling landscape.

“Such, then, are the backwoods," he said, with a gentle sigh, as he tried to frighten away a few mosquitoes which made an attack on him, in the teeth of the rain: a fine prospect assuredly! How I could be such a fool as to follow that

fellow's advice in Little Rock-and yet the Indian sleeps through it all in his thin, cotton hunting shirt, as if he were lying in the softest feather bed."

To speak the truth, Bob was not really asleep, but had been walking backwards and forwards for an hour to keep himself warm: he had, however, thrown himself under the tree again, as he noticed his companion was waking, in order to avoid any inquiries about the bottle.

"Bob!" Sechingen tried to shout, but he could hardly utter a single sound; his throat seemed laced up, and he could scarce hear himself speak for hoarseness. He then walked up to the Indian and shook him, till he sprang up and slowly observed the trees and clouds, as if awakened from a deep sleep.

"How far is it to the next house?" Sechingen asked in his low, hoarse tones. "You can speak loud," the Indian said as he wiped the lock of his rifle and put fresh powder in the pan. "No game here -but we shall find some good day for hunting."

"I cannot speak loud-I have caught cold," Sechingen whispered angrily.

Caught cold?" the case-hardened Redskin asked; "what's that?" "How far is it to the next house?" "Five miles," said Bob.

"Well, we had better make haste and get there, for I am half dead from hunger and exhaustion. Pest!" he cried, though, at the same time as he drew out the empty flask-"that, too-empty-to the last drop -the only comfort I had left."

"What a pity!" said Bob, looking sorrowfully at the bottle.

There was no time to waste in complaints, and both shouldered their guns. Bob hung his blanket, which he had wrung out as well as he could, once more on his back, and away they started again through the forest. The German now saw how useful to him the Indian's knowledge of localities and innate instinct was, for without him he would never have found his way out of the thickets and swamps which, resembling one another so closely, could not make him comprehend how any one could find a straight road in such a labryinth. The forest became more and more impenetrable; they crossed repeatedly little deep streams and at length stopped

66

Through and through!"

Bob said nothing more, but waded on, though the water reached up to his throat, and in a few moments stood on the opposite bank. Sechingen looked after him sadly, but soon convinced himself that there was nothing else to be done save folfowing him, for it would not do for him to remain behind. Putting the things he did not wish to get wet, such as pocketbook, watch, powder-horn and caps in his hunting pouch, and holding it and his rifle above his head, he commenced his involuntary passage; soon got over safely, shook himself, let the water run out of his boots by lying on his back and resting them against a tree (though, of course, too high at first), and then followed his guide, who walked silently before him.

Although Sechingen had shown such zeal at the commencement of their wanderings, he was now thoroughly disgusted with all that surrounded him, and hardly looked up from the ground for fear of stumbling over the countless trees and branches that lay around: his rifle hung peaceably on his shoulder, his cap was pressed over his eyes, and the only sound he uttered was, now and then, a murmured word, when the wet boughs struck his face, or his foot, spite his care and attention, was caught in the thick creeping plants which, at many places, covered the ground

as with a solid net.

After two hours marching, they reached the house Bob had spoken of, and Sechingen, more dead than alive, welcomed with joyful heart the low roof which promised shelter and warmth, from whose clay chimney a thin, blue column of smoke

arose.

After the two men had climbed a low fence that surrounded the house, they reached the building, the door of which,

in the fashion of all the windowless blockhouses, was wide open, to let in air and light at the same time, and entered the room, where they found a group that appeared, at least to Sechingen's eyes, a very strange one, assembled round the capacious chimney.

There were two women and three children, who sat around the fire in a picturesque position, and were only so far disturbed in their various employments by the entrance of the strangers, that one of the women, probably the hostess, moved her chair a little on one side, and said "Take a seat."

Now this would certainly have been a very kind invitation, for the fire looked most cheerful as it roared and crackled in the huge chimney, if there had been a seat to take; but the German looked in vain around him for any piece of furniture of the sort, and before anything else rested his rifle in a corner, laid his hunting-pouch near it-an example the Indian followed without any special invitationand then stepped into the space made for him by the chimney nook.

"Take a seat," the woman said for the second time, and nodded toward the opposite corner; but not a single object could be seen that bore any family resemblance with such a piece of household furniture or could be employed as a substitute; the corner was quite empty, with the exception of long, narrow boards that rested against the wall. Bob, however, seemed better acquainted with the objects and customs of the house, or a sort of instinct must have guided him, for he had scarcely removed his wet blanket, before he caught hold of the board and rested it on two projecting pieces in the wall. He then made a sign to the German that he should take his seat on it, which he accomplished after a few cautious attempts, while Bob remained standing by his side and turned round slowly, like a piece of meat roasting on a spit, in order that every part of his body might obtain an equal share of heat. The damp steam soon rose from their clothes like a cloud up to the roof, and found its way into the exterior air through the hams and sides of bacon that hung there. However unpleasant was this process o drying, it was attended, at least, with prospective comfort to Sechingen.

120-Microscopes. W. J. J.-The price of a microscope of sufficient power for every useful purpose would probably be from seven to twelve guineas.

121-Manners at Table. A. H.- It is absurd to press people to eat or drink. To force a man to consume more than he desires, is to place him in the character of a simpleton for the purpose of obliging his host.

122-Milk Measurer. J. C. W.-The instrument to which you allude, is termed a lactometer. It consists of a tube of glass, eight or ten inches in height, and about an inch in diameter. It is graduated into one hundred parts, zero commencing from the top, and, consequently, the scale increases towards the bottom.

123-Manuscripts. H. W. L. In all cases it is desirable that manuscripts intended for the press should be written, as much as possible, with a tolerable degree of uniformity, each page containing about the same number of lines, and each line about the same number of words. To write on ruled paper is perhaps the most effectual mode of accomplishing this.

124-Ages of Trees. M. E.-The ages of trees, when no record of their planting has been kept, cannot be ascertained until they are felled; at which time the concentric layers composing the axis may be seen and numbered; the amount from the pith to the circumference being equal to the age of the tree, or in the pine tribe, the number of knots from the base to the apex of the tree.

125-Sea-shells. D. H. G.-To prepare seashells requires much care and experience. The shells are first burned, to get rid of the animal matter that remains in them. Their rough outside is next removed by mechanical means. They are then carefully treated, some with nitric, others with muriatic acid, according to their nature, until the proper surface is reached. This is then polished by friction with leather and the hand.

126-Clarendon's History of the Rebellion. J. C. R.-This history has had great renown; but has been severely criticised and depreciated in the present age. The style is bad, but the candid reader will be struck with the moderation of the author, and his strong and impressive sketches of character. The state-papers interspersed in the volumes, are drawn with an ability and perspicuity that would do honour to any age; and the leading actors in those turbulent and revolutionary scenes were men of the most exalted endowments.

127-Sweet Oils. M.-The sweet oils of general use, are obtained either by the expression, chiefly of seeds of different plants, or by dis

tillation from sweet scented flowers, as the rose and jessamine. The delicate oil of ottar of roses is the pure essential oil of roses, and is found in Persia, in small particles on the surface of newly distilled rose-water, of which it requires many gallons to yield only a few drops of the ottar. When this has been skimmed off, the rose-water is sold to those who are not rich enough to indulge themselves with the more expensive perfume.

128-Original Poetry. W. H.- Among the trials and afflictions of an editor's life, there are few more exhaustive of patience than the toil of examining the reams of original "poetry," as it is called, which are sent to him by corre spondents. Like all our contemporaries, we presume, we receive scores of pieces for publication which do not contain a single element of poetry. A string of verses must have something else to recommend them than the fact that the lines begin with capital letters, and end with jingling terminations, to save them from the waste-basket. We have, however, received several poems of merit which will receive due attention.

129-Market Gardening. T. S. C.-Our correspondent inquires where all the vegetables are procured with which the markets of the metropolis are so abundantly supplied. Within a radius of fifteen miles from London, there are two hundred thousand acres of land in the hands of market-gardeners, all labouring for the London market. Ten thousand loads of turnips, 100,000 sacks of peas, 20,000,000 heads of celery, 40,000,000 cabbages, and 1,000 tons of watercresses are said to be sold annually in Covent Garden market alone, to say nothing of the potatoes, carrots, beets, onions, herbs of all kinds, &c., which are sold in immense quantities.

130-Water-Cresses. J. M. The sanatory qualities of this plant are well established, but some knowledge is required to distinguish it. A dangerous plant, the water-parsnip, grows in close companionship with the water-cress, and when not in flower, so nearly resembles it, that mistakes are often made. The water-cress is of a darker green, and is sometimes dashed with brown; the leaflets are of a rounder form (more especially the odd one at the end, which is larger than the rest), and their edges arc irregularly waved. The water-parsnip is of an uniform light green without any tinge of brown; the leaflets are longer and narrower than those of the water-cress, tapering at each end, and notched at their edges.

131-Bark-Bound Trees. W.-You have been misinformed. Some over-wise people have an