The Aberystwith Observer

1 THOUGHTLESS HUSBANDS AND NEGLECTED WIVES. A Neglected Wife," in a letter to the Daily Tele- graph, thus sums up her complaints against her k^Bmvlry fond of reading the articles in The ffd- graph, and I want yon to favour me by giving a w»d yiit to husbands. I have been marnedonly a M«e [eU least lore; enoutrh to have Ljii jove him, if he you how much I loved my ^biiid, a m0 wjves ought would only be a little more kind. hln and when he to submit to their husbands In every morning, keeping comes home at one or two ™ it»g quite right, and me waiting tea till eight or nine,. he y ,f they love each that all married men do so. But X a y &11 day t0 some other. Yesterday 'Sunday) he we to whom he was friend's house, where resides a y°!"g t come home till past once engaged to be married, and d hoWiiegot away th mid right. He said he did not ^ow^^ j know Jf the young lady played and he would not say and had not ceased to love ma a^og breaking my heart I feel do these things, which are nearly brea^ t i feei so unhappy, and I have no ^ite to you, feelinVa° confide in. So I L m0 troublesome, and that vrm sured ihat yon will not think me^ hustonri.'a^ Will tlinm <?ut someI h <jr flnlj nnthinVingly ciniduml ot.hf ra. too, who tnong"^°V'gara it nnf. ifo little "lK a come rest, This letter as may be readily imagined, evoked many others on the same subject, from which we have selected the following. For many years I P^Ye read your paper daily, and have noticed the invariable fairness of your remarks but I have never read an article more just, kind, and I hope calcu- lated to do more good, than the one on a "ANeglected Wifp." Scolding wives, extravagant wives, in fact, women's weaknesses in every shape and form, are constantly held up to ridicule and reproach in the papers. Very few men would have had the fairness to admit there is a reverse side to the picture, y°u °ave now done. "Women are guilty of many follies, have weaknesses without number doubtless, but their hearts are very tender and easilv bruised by unkindness, or select from those they love. C )uld any eloquence of yours teach those men who have good wives to remember how limited are women's opportunities for enjoyment without their husbands, and also to realise how the thought might sting that wife who, waiting up hourafter hourforherhusband when he is enjoying himself away from her! "He has had all my youth and lreshness; I have helped him with my brain, onward to success I have saved to get him comforts, and hidden petty difficulties from him that his mind might have ease; ani now I am getting passle, my spirits dulled by the wear and tear of life's troubles on the system, I am over- looked, cast aside for every fresh attraction." I have a hus- band who by nature is kindhearted, and who would be horrified at the bare idea of striking me with his fist, yet who lashes me more severely than with any whip I am approach- ing thirty, and there are younger and fairer women now. V handsome, of a?reeab!e manners, and my own age, but, of course, looks younger. Five years ago he could not bear to spend an evening away from home; Bince then my diaries !record that it is seldom before two a m. he comes in. He does not mean to be unki; d, but billiard tables are increas- ing in number very rapidly. He goes for one game and stays longer. Then, if he wins, he must give So-and-so his revenge another night. Therefore, with first one attrac- tion and another, time passes on, and I spend my evenings, after the children are in bed, alone. Friends say, "Why sit up? Go to bed." Yes, it is easy to do that. But will the dull, aching heart aumit of sleep ?—Yours, &c. A WIFE AND A MOTHER. Tho letter of "A Neglected Wife" has awakened a veiy a.ad echo in my < wn heart. 1, too. love my husband very dea.T'y> Erid have the bitter sorrow of knowirg that be cares noth-'ng for me. We have met with a reverse of cir- cumstanoes, and I have done with the barest necessaries that he might have at least some of those comforts to wh'eh he has been acc*.«tomed. I keep his books, and I try to be to him all that a good and loving wife can be, and yet he has not scrupled in his moments of passion to raise his hand against me. I, too, have known what it was for my husband to pay that attention to others which should have been de- voted to his wife, and 1 have also known the bitter agony of being told bv my husband that he never loved me, but that his whole affection was and is given to this day to a lady to whem hewaseugtged years ago. Let it comfort A Neg- lected Wife" to know that there are far more miserable ibeings in the word than herself. Yoiirs, <X:c ANOTHER NEGLECTED WIFE. WUI you permit a few words of advice to "A Neg- lected Wife,' from a wife of more than thirty years, and the mother of married daughters. Do not hope for a complete and constant return of) our affection. Home is not nearly so important to your husband as to yourself. It is wise to lace early the certainty that you must find the greater part of your own happiness f. r yourself. If you hate chil- dren they will occupy your affecticns, perhaps for life. Never 4. elt up for your husband, and never inquire where he has been if he teiis unasked make no angry remark, but, if pos- sible, tell him )our occupations in his absence, as co' lly and as easily as you can, remembering you are engaeed to ttand by his side and not behind him. Many a husband grows in- <lifferet:t. becauso his wife neglects her duty to herself, lest she should be called selfish. If you have had a good educa- tion, cultivate some special part of it which needs no home ■encouragement—history, social Etnd political, drawing and painting; teach yourself some modern language, singing, gardening, even in flower-pots; visiting the sick and poor, Mot as a member of any church or society, but for yourself. Make it a duty to yourself to give a fixed time daily to your- S»TO»ne' a y°n wi''l you gradually become indifferent w wUat will be otherwise a fearful shadow on all your T»i^re aDd *utnre life and. should j on be happy enough to «n it f?i?ny p jrt of y°nr husband's affection, YOU will rejoice AN U IUUJ, and value it at its true worth.—Yours, &e., H. H. you w°uld write a few words stra.ght a„ vhe hearts of husbands who, either by thought- lessness indifference, or neglect, devote many a loving wife Ao a life of unliappiness; but I dared nnt (might seem to yon only the discontented cry of a woman A toving wife will e.idure po much in silence llJd Jnrdt thoughtless or contemptuous coldness, may, and do some' times make her heart rise in momentary rebellion; but she will never complain to relations—she will to the 'very last uphold her husband, and wish him to stand well in the sight of all. ft is, then, only through a public medium that good •can be done us. We must honour and obey our husbands-yes, indeed, that Is a pleasure to a wife. She will think no sacrifice too great for JÜs happiness she will fling herself wholly and entirely into the gulf of his necessities," and only ask for a little love, a little consideration, in return. Believe me, you can much good by a few words for wives who are linked, not to brutes who would raise their hands against a woman, or -who would act with systematic cruelty, but only to men who forget to be kind-for;,cet to be coiirteoue-foreet to show the love they feel perhaps.—Yours, &o., ONLY A WOMAN. At the time of my marriaee I occupied a very humble position in life; and, although possessing no very great busines s qualifications, J had some small amount of pluck, and starved with a determination to push onward, and have one so vvith a reasonable share of success, and now occupy, for a working man, a very good position, with an income sufficient to procure all the comforts that can be wished for. But, in coi'<«equ.;nce of my wife's ideas being very far in advance of my station in life, and, as a result, having acquainted with people having double and treble myfcco *he has become (iUs&tisfled with her bome; an«»as •entertain her friend* in a manner If' 3ife she leads ma I have not the ekill to de crlOQ out it is som^thin" awful to contemplate. Although having but a «mafi family, this constant strwning to keep up false ap- pearances has almost beggared me. Although my income is ■considerably aboye the lowest amount liable to taxatien, I am positively in a worse position than many lower-class workmen. ( I am always received with a gloomy countenance and short snappish speech. Always tired, and often unwell, there is no rest or peace at home. My wants are neglected, and re- monstrances treated with defiance. In the midst of all my misery I have never, liita the husband of your first unhappy wife, deserted my home for private visiting or public amuse- ».' confldently believe that more misery is caused by vain, thoughtless women than by neglectful husbands in the lower and Hpper middle classes. In most cases where fami- lies live above their means, the yanitv of the wife is the cause; and woe to the wretchod husband who dares remon- strate !—Yours, &c., A BROKEN-SPIRITED HUSBAND. A great deal is written and said about "neglected WtTea." Have not our dear husbands quite as much, or even more, .to complain of than we have ? They take us as we are, to work for, and they do work hard for our comforts and en j oyments. They are responsible for all our former debts if we have any and how many of them, after making our homes pretty and comfortable, as far as lies in their power, have to put up with ill temper. ill health, bad dinners, weak tea, and dislike to Bmoking I Depend ths husbands are as good as the wivea-I know mine is; and whenever we -quarrel it js I who provoke, and my dear husband, has ever a kind word and a levftig smile. We wives will worry about little things; we wives 40 not study our husbands enougit; we wives fancy we want more money, more change, more devotion than even the best &nd most devoted of husbands can give Let us alter, and th«re will be very few neg- iace^-YourV &c.. m°r° happy homes bright A WIFE WHO SEES THINGS IN A JRiqht LIGHT. Aly opinion Is, as a wife of many years' standing, that tttfie little comforts of a husband were more studied at nOIRe he would feel much less inclined to go elsewhere to seek them. Of course there are exceptions, as some men are Tnoraify bad but the generaltty of them. I feel convinced, are not <o. any more than the women. Let a woman only be agrees.ble to her own husband as she is to others, and shn TfiU always find him anxious to remain at home, rather th leave her for others that he does not in reality care ne least about. The first years of a married life are always *he most difftelilt to get over; but be blind to some faults, -!o*^n iIour husband find a cheerful, happy home and a iiv t w.lle> and he will never be wishful to leave it or her. •elpfttti waa a'waJ*! that my husband should find nothing _v"~ere that he could not have at home, and it succeeded. XUUTT(F <fcc., AN Experienced WIFE AND MOTHER. J, have iWad with a feeling of deep interest the various it K8 'Jat-have appeared in your columns on "Thoughtless and jOgiected Wives." As a wife o;. b^t four years' ?' *?ay allowed to express a few opinions ,on the whi^h caDnot thinking that much of the negieet of Vhrti Jar-in?.8 comPla'fJ-and husbands too—is occasioned by hands "g apprecia.t4,cu of and sympathy with their hus- night alter ntoht 1 be,iev0> drjven from his home derail RR hf to' .exactly oy his wife's unkindness, but tm common tl8 °ccupa&onB and hers have nothing t^TCd Wou.ld iizten with interest if hi W would witwSt e 8<ibje.ctc fit converse on which i^sttes me«nP^f.^e{eDga8e- Instep ,pf making him feel Wfato haTO Wm r aVd comfort te Iier, and that she wou him tboth body andmind aiie? the fatigue and tc ^e„d^.shefc^aHy by her indifferenoe di-es him from he. ■ K'eets him with a volley oi re- proaches this is, in many homes, the cause of; eBtrangemei, »Witw^en husband an4 wife; and not only •his, but I havb' loving husbands wounded and degraded »Llh! Wlfe'4 tr, his friends. Should he urex- ot of y ^ri Tina. to dinner or i?a,instead a hea»n^ welcome from his wife, thete is in in the „ er a positive courtesy and kindness, been Presence.. why ? iicrely because she has lose ail Jt.Ijttle out of her v "UcIi tu'iinKa make a husband as to choose hence in the won he has BO highly honoured can we woru)l^r. above all other^ v g^fce his home and how look forenjoym In8t«»d of seeki he should that the e>ewhere? I do Wish even to suggest but I believe thatS, Wife" is one of fciT)d of women and hardened, n^°s^en, unless they depraved Those neglected won over by love ftu^ sympathy. «'zenhyr-iuPe(i8prite» have never tr* what this nnon it we shall have n? ^0> them try now, depend lewer Neglel-ted Wives "^5v ^0,1shtful HuBbanu8 'and &C., JUSTICZ?.- J have been married now aom t, Rifled to give my oplninn^ „ years, aud am there- iSa wK» «4 Bmb-rtJiSjSJajif of one as the other, I least doubt* ?n«fr\hink that the greatest cause of this negieet ig And of .en commences from the most, trivial occurrences bntat last assumes the mastery °vff tdfll8rc;,eUon, and Caise?ul to say and do things which obilite!p P«ot for each other ana thus kill love, for without re p ioye canaot exigt' How often do we find trifling things, doors would be passed over without comment, uPBe, *"Qt|y of ht.r.}^ which the slightest control of tongue and temper wouid prevented Does it not behove everyone oth man and "ife, to exercise this control? And I maintain tnat, if e*er- "C. 8^d, there would be far less neglected wivt i, Yours, &c., AN experienced hua&AISD. It "vi]3g read the letters in your paper, referring to 'cted husbands and wives, I beg to say, I think p P for** Dahke troubles for themselve?. I have now been a wi year and nine months, and can only say, it hits been there k "'P'eat time of my life. I have no family, therefore event* ^nld be more excuss for my husband spending thinti having nothing to amuse him. I cannot help inaitA KK w'fe'3 fault if she does not contrive to has Ko 4.^ '^hand's home comfortable and happy alter he will «i 8 all day for her. Many of my acquaintances nnf auo\ v their husbands to smoke in the house. I can- miaia fry laying that I think the men are quite right in going where they are allowed that luxury. My husband always spends his evenings at home with me, smoking and reading tho pai*T.—lr.-maln, yours truly, ONE WHO WOULD NOT BE UNMARRIED FOR WORLDS. I will not cease to sympathise with the "Tender Mother," the Devoted Wife," or the "Neglected Wife," but all I ask is just or e kind word for that poor, sad, forlorn, lonely cre-tturf The Widow." Now, to you I, for one appeal We want your advice—your guidance. We have the rich widow—sy, and the poor wltow; we have the blue-stockiog widow and the namby-pamby ditto j we hfive the bonnie wee, sprightly widow, and we have the flat- footed frumpy widow—the black-ejed, the blue-eyed, the loving-eyed and, yes, the artful, cunning-eyed widow. All have their own particular charm, or vice versa; but still they are and must be styled, unhappy widows. They did love they were devoted, ever fond, ever faith- ful hut now, sad, desolate, forlorn. Will you not, can you not, be the grand philanthropist of the day, and conceive some good, wholesome scheme for setting these lonely ones once more' in the hemisphere so peculiarly their own ? It strikes me that it Í3 in your province to tell us what we ought to do. Once in Sour years-that dear delicious leap year—I am toll we are allowed the privilege of selection. Yet, then we may ask for the love, the pro- tection-may I say the fond adoration ?-of the nobler sex; but whp.t do we get in return for our long cooped-up courage? Nothing but a quiet No." and a red petticoat (a silk one). nell, tt J'bil pbttiuuab is yuuil lu i!y wiiy | but wlmi Willit HS U'lllll, BlunMily, it)ge, and happiness.—llavinu once-oh, yes, truly once-known its bliss, don't think us very wicked if we say we'll try it again only alloir us tho. chance —Find a corner for this lament,, and you will oblige yours truly ONE OF THE KOKLORNS. I venture to make a practical suggestion, which, if it were acted on, would tend, perhaps in no slight degree, to lessen the number of "Neglected Wives"— and "Neglected Hus- bands," for there are suchfilso. Letthehusbandbe*'though?- ful" tnou^i, from the earliest period of his married life, to keep his mother-in-law at an affectionate but respectful distance; not to allow her to have too close and constant personal intercourse with his wife. And I would say the same thing with regard to his unmarried sister-in-law, if that sister-in-law happens to be an elder sister to his wife— especially if swe happens, through disappointment of ad- vancing years, to be losing the probable chance of forming ctAtjugal ties herself and, still more especially, both with regard to his mother-in-law and sister-in-law, if they happen to be ladies who claim to be strong-minded and who go in warmly for the independence and rights of women. Such an influence allowed to come in constant contact with the wife, especially if she be of a more plastic nature, and without the most consummate tact and judgment to counteract it, it is apt to act as the thin end of the wedge, disturbing the absolute unity which ought to be entire and inseparable between her husband and herself. Other ears. other hearts are open to her unconsciously she is rendered leas wholly dependent upon his. In the little differences which will arise between the best regulated couples she gets her mother's and sister's sympathy they take her part as against her husband's; the husband feels that there is a cloud, which, at first no bigger than a man's hand, has yet risen over the sunshine of his home; he becomes, however, slightly, touchy and restrained. Other differences arise they magnify as they multiply. The mother and sister no longer sympathise or, rather, they do more-they either commiserate "poor dear Mary," who stung by their pity, settles down angrily or sullenly into the notion that she is ill-used, or they advise her to resist; and resistance means—what ? A henpecked husband, or a house divided against itself-and such a house cannot stand it falls, and amid its ruin wanders either a neglected or forsaken husband or wife. When domes1 is differences have become chronic, it is often hard to say whe, e any one quarrel has begun; but I think that the first outlet to the waters of strife miy often be traced back to such an unwholesome influence as I have alludcd to heing allowed to interfere with, till it take the place of, that influence which eveiy husband ought to have and exercise ovrr his wife, and which it ought to be the honour of the wife, and not a thinx unworthy of her, to acknowledge as supreme. Let the young husband, then beware of bting in too close quarters with his mother-in-law and lethim cherish affectionately, but at a distance from himself and wife, any e'der and strong-minded "Sister Anne."—I am, sir, yours, &u. F. The discussion now proms: on in your paper is being read with a great deal of interest, not only by the married folk, but also by those who have themselves some hope of entering upon the blessed (?) state of matrimony. Some wives that I know, when their husbands come home in the evening, immediately commence asking numerous irritating questions relative to business, and then annoy them by detailing all she little domestic affairs and grievances that have happened curing -the day-how Sarah was an hour longer than she ought to have been sweeping the dining-room, and how cook was in a bad temper, and had been rather impertinent and various other trifle* that cannot interest a man. Let her not forget that no matter how worried she may have been during the day he also has been much perplexed, and comes home to find rest. If she thinks continually of this she will en- deavour to meet him always with a cheerful countenance and loving worns; then, when women learn to do this we shall have very few complaints from neglected wives." But a word or two to thoughtless husbands When your wives thus study > ou, do not take it altogether as a matter of course, but show them-as you can in hundreds of ways-that you are grateful, and that you fully appreciate their for- bearance. lUchter says, "That love requires not so much proofs as expressions of love." It would be well if both hus- bands and wives would think of this maxim.-I am, Sir yours, &c., PETITE. I am, very hopeful of the good that will come out of all this wordy war, and beg to add my mite of experience of twelve years of married life. Now, alas I am without the happiness, but I can look back to much of solid comfort, and truly believe that matters would have been much better if we had seen ourselves as itheas see us." The vast majority of people marry on slight knowledge of each other; they c. have not, nor can they create, the constant opportunity of being in each other's society, by which means the knowledge of character and mutual fitness maybe ascertained. There must be a similarity of thought or a happy spirit of ac- commodation." This is the basis of all future comfort, between two classes as wide apart as the poles, the re- ligious and the non-religious wcrld. The former will ac- commodate from principle^ the latter from motives of expediency; the first will always be, the litter seem to be. I, as a medical man, see plenty of both classes. I feel that I shall be quite safe, in a future choice, if I select a woman, who from girlhood to maturity has been always the same type of character, known by all to be such. My avocations would deny me the constant opportunities others have, although it may lurni-sh me with special facilities for knowledge of character; but I shall be quite content to trust my happiness and my children's to this common groundwork of action, without which I could not respect the woman, nor would she understand me. Husband and wife must be all to each other. Tneir ta.%tea may be dis similar, but there must be endurance of each other's weak- nesses. It is bad policy to shelve a husband's hobby," to snub him to her female" advisers "—a class that ought to be shut out of every home—and to m^be him feel uncomfortable at her want of good breeding or taste. If a woman, like the drowning tailor's wife, will cry "Scissors" as long as she has reath, let her but to husbands that are to come. to those in existence, to the candidate wives or widows, I will say real love will find out the approach to the most stubborn heart • and If religious life comes after marriage, you have «L nower sure to win sooner or lafer—the source of prayer— and th" exhibition on your own part of a life, different it may be to the past, but consistent with the new life you have re- ceived.—Yours, &c., VIATOR. Having fulfilled the three phases of womanhood as wife, mother, and, alas widow, I can speak from the ful- ness of a woman's nature to the hearts of my young sisters, and bid them be of good cheer and go on to meet the shadowy future of wifedom without fear and with a brave heart." Can it be that the women of England, who possess the happy privilege of choosing their husbands, are so weak, so untit for the post of a wife, as to take to wailing in the public papers over their private woes, thereby disclosing their,own unfitness to he the companion of a man ? It has been said by a cynic that "man is the natural foe of a woman. Truly, there might be some excuse for his becoming so when he finds the woman whom he has chosen as his "companion for life" guilty of the treachery of exposing the misery of his home to the public. Let our "girls" know early how to help in making home" happy. Parents should cultivate the special gifts of their daughters, looking on into the future, when Euch "hived honey" may prove sweet and supporting in time of need. It is said, A) en, as a rule, are selfish. Be it so. Pelf-abnegation in a woman may be a virtue, where in a man it might be deemed a weakness. It seems to me that, if sisters would study their brothers in the home-life, it might help them to the better understanding of the value of feminine influence over the masculine nature. Men require not so much the comforts < f a home as its brightness. '-L'hey return from the external life—weary if they work, bored if idle. Let them find affection and cheerfulness to greet them on the threshold, and then "home "will be to either brother or husband all that the sweet English word is meant to express. A wife must study find guide the idiosyncrasies of the husband she has given herself to. This is not weak- ness, but strength.-Youfs &a., C. J. M. R. As a sympathiser with neglected husbands, I would Prefer an alteration of yonr title to Neglected Husbands and Thoughtless Wives." I am sure there are many who will agree with me in this particular; for how many are there, hard-working, earnest, and active business men, up early and late in order to provide for and raise their wives and families to a higher position in life, when he returns to his home after the labours of the day-perhaps after some misfortune or unforeseen loss in trade, things not having succeeded accord- ing to his expectatIOns-finds himself rather irritable and in- disposed, which acts as a natural consequence of disappoint- ment, instead of meeting with cordial sympathy and kind- ness from the partner of his life, is exposed to sharp criticisms on his so-called carelessness, and why did not you do so and so ? —the consequence of which is, unless the hu*band is one in a BhaJP display of anger and turmoil, and through le^H om °;1 tl,ePart of the wife I hope tbought- .'l1 glv? a nere attention to their husbands' nortant oM^tatPhP1?etiS' remembtI";ng that it was for this im- portant oh] ct that they were first created. And may this discussion lead many wives, and young ladies also, to emulate those virtues of which the wise man speaks when he says j, a virtuous and wise woman is rather to be chosen than thousands of gold and silver," is the earnest desire of W. P. H. I have been much interested in reading the corre- spondence about "Neglected Wives. Not .one of your cor- respondents appear to give what I consider the true reasons of matrimonial unhapplness. I believe them to be simply these. In nine cases out of ten, courtship ends at the altar or, in other words, the same care is not taken to please or study each other after marriage as before. What girl thinks of going out if she expects her lover ? Does she allow him to fllJd her in slovenly attire, sitting fuming and grumbling over petty troubles ? Do they not generally make the best of themselves, and, if they have been in trouble, endeavour to appear all'smiles$nd sunshine? But take the same girl after marriage. SIie ha* attained the height of her ambition -a husband, home, and probably a position. Very soon her husband and her home, instead of being her first study, are her last, and only sought as a last resource when out-doer pleasures cease to please. The Neglected Husband comes home to find his wife out, his evening meal left to the servant; no bright face to cheer him—all looks desolate. Poor man! he might as well be single. Is it to be won- dered at If, after perhaps a succession of lonely meals, he avoids his home, and seeks companionship elsewhere ? The second reason, I believe, of unhappiness is—women are too fond of striking the iron while it is hot The husband returns, tired and worried with business; perhaps may utter a hasty word. The wife, instead of keeping quiet, uses her sledge-hammers of remonstrance, ajid at the same time poura into his already weary ear all her fancied grievances. Would she only wait until her husband has cooled a little, and then in a gentle, loving way remonstrate, and inquire the cause of his vexation, men would not be so ready to run away from home to avoid being henpecked. We have been married five years, and are as happy as the days are long; each year teems happier than the last. I have always ftlt that we are lovers still, and take more care to please my detr hiulj md now than when we were courting. If he is a little bit crusty I let hnji alone, and all soon comes right. We have no family, but are perfectly contented in each other's society, and consider our home the dearest place on earth. If I can Or only induce one out of the many who will read this to profit by these hints, I aliall feel that f have given my mite towards lessening the number of "Thoughtless Husbands" or "Neglected Wivea.Yours, Ac NUMBER TWO WHO WOULD NOT BB UNMARRIED FJR WORLDS, I am a husband of nearly thirty years' experience, ^4 I thought this morning that the face of my old woman was poft and as fair as it was some twenty-nine seasons back. I tui&Jf I can tell why. I do not play at any game of er chance, I ne,ver ¡j¡et drunk, nor stop out o'nights; indeed, I am only too glad to rp«t at home, and, above all, I court my wife as much now as I did wi.en she was "sweet eighteen." If I can manage it, I remember her birth and weddiug days A new dress, a jewel, or even a simple flower and should she boo jveji I try all I know to smooth her pillow, and, above all, I never tUow either children or servauts to rebel against her authority as distress of the house—I need scarcely add ferity* house is s. happy home. I said to a would-be dauoht the other day, Lbot .cut for a loving, affectionate lovin* 8ister, and if you use her well you will get a (' e aild mother for yourself and little ones." M&?18 a thing, I take it, nch what the couple please to make it." ■ Yours, &c., FAOT. artfif/orcfever'eaonirh^at the "Neglected Wife" is not ffiMAn^vtokeeohfrn umuae and ioterest her husband sufficiently R/H?? home during the evening. A younc wife should ind that a man's habits and pursuits KQ totally different as a bachelor, or even as a married man. to those of a woman; and it is necessary that he should be weaned or schooled gradually and carefully to a new mode of life. Be has been accustomed to spend all his spare time m roaming about, going here, there, ánù everywhere: in fhnrt, always on the motion, indulging in the freedom and licence of his friends' chambers, and making IIp their parties of pleasure, enlivened frequently by the fair sex. In pur- suing this sort of life, much money is spent unprofitably, and lrequently upon those whose interest it is to use the art of fascination, or worse, to trade upon the passions and weaknesles of our sects; but it is exciting and enjoy- ab'e to a rational extent, and a good knowledge of tne world and its ways is gained. In my opinion a man should have sufficient moral courage to resist mar- rying until he feels that he has had enough of it, and can settle down and appreciate a quiet home aBd the love and care of one, and one only. But it is too often the case that a man hurries a young woman to become his wife because "other fellows are after her," and he is afraid of 10si.LIg her, or has become weary of the monotony of courtship. The honeymoon is an agreeable change for both, but the hus- band begins very soon to tire of wandering through shady groves, and mooning, and quoting scraps of poetry, and is anxious to get bacl^tohis business, or to see his bachelor friends, and breathe freely and carelessly. Generally the young wife is rather spooney, and hang» about him, wishing to go wherever he goes, particularly if she suspects (as she generally does) that he will see some pretty girls or an old sweetheart; and she. generally assumes a look of severe ..Tirl t-aof- ha.A.l.'l. tn O littlfl qilifct Oil i fnlH dignity H* mmna '.la htmm. fhillp.j care to give them a hearty i:1Vita.tion, particularly iI hi5 means be limit6d. Now for my receipt. The young wife should stUdy her husband's disposition and habits, aud be- come acquainted ",ith. the extent of his msan*. It' lie showa any restlessness, rr de-sire to go ont at nights, she may feei certain that he craves for 1. hat which he cannot obtain at home, and sbe should act accordingly, and satisfy his desires. She should sympathise, talk, and take an interest in his business or pleasures, and keep him amused aud interested by discussing his favourite topics, He will won flud tllat it is more agreeable and saving to wn1k out with his wife. hnd stay with her during tte evening and jf she would en- courage him to invite his friends, sans certUnonie. and brine their sisters now ana then, so much th3 her,ter. He wIll feel proud of her and she ounht not to show jealousy or annoy- ance, for she can at any time, in a quiet way, weed them out to her own liking. She should also get into the hahit of reading to him, particularly if he is not agoodtulktr. Young married ladies too frequently show a coldness to their hus- band's bachelor friends, and will leave the room and sit like Patience upon a monument, instead of joining in conversa- tion and keeping them indoors smoking their cigars, and listening to a little music. Alas! mu'ic is generally for- gotten after marriage, and she is no longer the fascinating girl that sbe ns id to be, but quiet and commonplace. I tep.r I have trespassed too much upon your valuable space, but will write again if my letter is a-ppreciateù-Yonr obedient servant, AN ARTFUL DOG.

WIFE MUKDER THROUGH JEALOUSY. On Sunday morning considerable excitement was created in Warwick by the rumour that Charles Chap- man, aged 27, residing in that town, had drowned his wife in the Warwick and Napton Canal, near to Lea- mington. It appears that on Saturday evening, about eight o'clock, Chapman accompanied his wife to Leamington, about two miles from Warwick, for the purpose of purchasing her a pair of boots. They then seemed to be on good terms, and nothing further was heard of them until Sunday morning, when Chapman went to the Warwick police-station with his father and the former, addressing Police-constables Satchwell and Fletcher, said,—" I have come to give myself up for murdering my wife." The officers thought the man had been drinking, but he repeated the statement, and the father said he believed the statement was true, as his eon had been to his house and was wet through when he arrived. He had, however, since changed his clothes. The officers at last en- tered the charge, and the prisoner then said if they would go to the side of the canal, near to Leam-bridge, and drag they_ would find his wife's body. He had drowned her in the bridge hole, a deep part of the canal. All the prisoner appeared so positive in bis statement, the officer placed him in a cell, and went with the drags to the place be mentioned. After drag- ging the canal for about an hour, they found his wife's body in about the place he had indicated. Her dress was very much torn, and round her body was a rope, as if hw husband had tried to tie her arms together. On the bank were evidences of a severe struggle, and the officers found one of the prisoner's coat-sleeves on the embankment, as if his wife had torn it off while struggling with him. Her apron and also three pence were found on the path, and, from the appearance, it is evident the murdered woman fought hard for her life. The deceased is the mother of three children, the youngest of whom is four months old. The alleged cause of the murder is jealousy, the prisoner asserting that while he was absent at work in Birmingham, a few months ago, his wife was familiar with other men. The murdered woman was only twenty years of age, and was much respected. On Monday, the prisoner was brought before the magistrates at Warwick, charged with the wilful mur- der of his wife, Ann Chapman, on Saturday night last, by pushing her into the Warwick and Napton CanaL The prisoner is about twenty-seven years of age, of middle height, dark complexion, and swarthy skin; but there is nothing absolutely repulsive or brutal in the expression of his face. He appeared remarkably self-possessed when placed in the dock, though evi- dently conscious of hia position. Police-constable Satchwell deposed that, as already stated, the pri-oner went to the Warwick police- station at an early hour on Sipiday morning and gave himself into custody on the present charge. He also deposed to having fouid the body of the deceased in the canal, and the precise Fpot where the prisoner stated he had thrown her into the water, and that there wera marks on the towing-path of a severe struggle having occuired. Mr. Superintendent Hicknng deposed that, after the body of the deceased had been found in the canal, the prisoner, who hc.d been detained in custody, made the following statement, after having been reoiiivied that the charge was a serious one, and cautioned that any statement he might make would be given in evidence against him. The prisoner's confession, which he had signed with his mark, after it had been read over to him, was as follows :— Last (Saturday) night I went home about six o'clock, and gave my money to her mother. We lived with her. I stayed at home until I went oat with my wife. I told her we would go to Leamington and look round there. We started a little after nine o'clock. I called at Page's, near ii6*^ a of a!e! that was all I had all tne night. W e looked in the .*hop windows and went on to the Lmscote-cuS-bridge. I said Come on this way. She said she did not like to go by the water side. She sald she was all of a tremble. I said, What makes you ;\e: wl?at have you to tremble for ?' I ss, id, if she would go nirt w c, slt*e,we c°ild get out at the Leam-bridge, on to the old 'Yalwick-roaci. We were talking as we went along the sai/i .ir was sure lhe last child was not mine. She cpivnd ou sca™P ^ne of them are yonrs. I have de- bridpB r^f k°°i i,s-' Wam We got under the Leam- in shf. ion 1 n *r 'a'°*the water. As she was going could n'i+ « 1116 and pulled me into the water. I t»st hold nf if10?1 lle-r for a lon £ while, she kept so awav from Vioi o a<* '^e to have drowned me. I got mind to dlo^n h cut of the water- I made up rnv ™ en av'Bv fmm if befPre I went out of the house. I have last camB hni!?.i,OI?e, ^hree months together. When I pattern for v^n ? T *eV'tlle last UP aQd said, 'Rere'a a and not mine Sh ? her the chlld was Cllarle8 Harris's had a recular ioh t-6 hed and called m" an old fool. I ber to March ^'rmingbam Gas Works from Octo- week13, Iful anVofceU^6™11 yearS" 1 6Very signed th«P«^f<'tn^tIlt Sickling said the prisoner K and nf^lement after bad been read over to since ren(.afHji,ODe or two Vf,rbal alterations. He had wife the first time'hfhf/^h 4° dr°T hi3 then remanded. a chance* The accused was

nn^Morft?^^eld on the body of the deceased, diet of VVilfn?ril0on' the jury returned a ver- Coroner made out^w aga,in,8t thf? aCCUSed'and the prisoner to the countygao! the commitment of

A GOOD FRIDAY PILGRIMAGE. nf fimeStprevfli^ £ TfuQ whi°b is lost in the obscurity iS r.S r neighbourhood of Guildford of HAllon Good Sf t(^\ Mi\rtha'8 (^Martyr's) via vouths and m — Thither, from all the country 'Lives and f,n^ulen8' °ld folks and children betake Khea^if iT"p^ in ^hered to^ther on °*e of ^e most br^h which ciU>rey'in ful1 of an old Norman green Imrr;mit of the hill, onTFriSU^s?»Srt5°<i K*el wer°,h°,d M uallal 2-ZSS XTVO°W«0= jUiSS* s r?.rs X in DI1l00^ of th« bill was crowded with Sned'to attain their favounte amusement, Others who were too old u .ru?. enjoyment. e them to eimV, or whose inclinations did not prompt tbemt^8uchactlve exerdge ^ded the hm f3 Lav from anv b, °burch, which stand# alone, the Opportunity of en & where they had i j- a of a pplrndid panorama, in- neUar Haslemere where °! C°ln-? hfmself » new abode and i.Poet Lau,reate ha3 bmlt ..d some of the 'b ^.whence may be expected to ™ e^rv indLirPpiest efforta o £ his muse. °«nt that the ni'i°U- wbi°b presented itself it was apparent wasthe pilgrimage to St. Martha's what- t Vef" nf the present », .c^ commends itself to the St o?,\tr°hV;,d-1' ^eiy to ik aa lone an tif u to 1TJcrease in popular estimation as 1 the ereen hill lasts to attract the Worshipper oi natural]I beauty, or to furnish the mere tunity for a pleasant holy^0 excuse and the °PPor"

RIGHT HANDEDNESS. If asked *.he human body seems chiefly affected by adva ing clViilsati0Ii j wouUbe inclined to ^lamals Sht ^and- At first sight the four- handed mama^nnght be thought to have an ad- vantage an,j j, °Ur. bands are employed both for prehe^ or £ ra;i8 f^otlon> while in the man there la one pa t2ie an » e^°b> man's two hands are worth more *Pe« four. As man rises from «he rudest stag. ^u^h as digging roots, hunting, and tending cattle, to arcs which are hiehlv mechanical tbe right j^jeft^tlT ^re special and serviceable organ that the>1 0 ^atthe loss of it to an engraver, a !r Vrn much more EpPared to the loss of the Jeft> would ba a much re serious affair than it would be to a drcver, who could clutch his stick 0r gesticulate to his dog_ Admin-^ with the one hand as tbe •.•'y.f rooo that, physiologically tboro is a s ig on for the preference of the right hand, aU our toolg and fashions lend them- seives to ^courage its furt^ dexterity. Screws, gimblets, Tonia° the supinating motion of the rightband. loolsof the scissor kind are also made for gD j 'nan^ I have seen a print- cutter s guage made for a left-handed person fetch a very low pnee when it came to ba sold. The slant in wilting, f the hair in boys, the manner ia which buttons and hooks are placed on'clothes, and the system of writing from left to right, all seem re- lated to right-handedness In drawing, the pupil L recommended to,begm at the uppermost corner on the left band side, where the ornament is of a small and re- peating character, so as to avoid fingering the part already olmatter I kn«w was able to detect left-banded boys, when they used the pen with the l ft against orders, by the writing either being straight or sloped the wrong way. Most boys know that it is easier to draw a profile with the face looking towards the left band; yet on looking over the hiero- glyphs in the British Museum the faces will be generally found towards the right, The normal way of writing the hieroglyphs is from right to left, though frequent instances occur of their being written from left to right. I bslieve there is a constitutional reason for the ^re- ference given to the right hand, but I also believe that habit has strengthened nature's tendency, and that as the touch of the hereditary Hindoo weaver has become proverbially fine, so the aptitude of the right hard over the left is greater, with advancing civilisation, than in a state utterly savage. At that period of a child's life when creeping seems a more natural mode of progression than walking, there is no apparent dexterity in the right hand more than in the left, and when man was almost utterly without arts, I can believe his state to have been ambidexter or ambisinister. The elephant is known to employ one tusk more than another in rooting, &c., and when I asked Sir Samuel Baker which tusk went by the name of the servant," he informed me that it was the right tubk generally, but the exceptions to the rule were far more numerous than was the phenomenon of left-handed- ness with human beings. We have no reliable statistics of the proportion of left-handed persons to right in ancient or in savage nations. If Judges xx. 15, lG, is to have any weight, ir the matter, the proportion of left-handed in the trile uf Duiijiimiu nfcitiWH to have batiii gremtr than m tliu [jrwunt tf&y. Left-handednegs is very/mysterious; it seems quite against physiological deduction* and the whole ten- dency of arts and fashion. Prof. Buchanan, of Gks- goiv, who wrote an able memoir on right-handeduet-s in 1862, thinks that, lett-haud dness may be due to transposition of the vis:era, and tells me tbaS his friend Dr. Airken found such a case. But surely transposition cf the viscera must be far rar r than obstinate left-handedneas. In cases of left-handei persons which I have examined, the limbs of the lert side were proportionally larger, just as those of the right side are in normal cases. I have also found that left-handedneas is hereditary.—J. S. in Nature.

LABOUR AND HEALTH. We (Pall Mall Gazette) would again direct the atten- tion of those who take an interest in the well-being, both moral and physical, of the British soldier to the happy results that have been obtained in India from employing him in the execution of certain engineering works, such as road-making and the like. The follow- ing figures speak for themselves, more especially when it is remembered that the working parties chiefly con- sisted of men who had been suffering from maladies of various sorts, and who had been sent to the hills for the re-establishment of their health. The average number of men employed during each six months has been 4 640, the average under hospital treatment being but 3 per cent. The death rate was 8'18 per 1,000; but in this were included those who were accidentally killed and those who were not sent to the hills until all probability of recovery from long-con- tinues illness was past. The true average de&th-rate per annum was but 4 3 per 1,000-11. minimum of mor- tality never previously approximated to in India, and hardly ever reached even in more healthy climes. No casualties occurred from cholera, heat, asphyxia. diarrhoea, or liver complaint, while but three men died from fever and one from dysentery. Now, would it not ba possible to devise some system of military labour here in England which, without entering into competition with the free labourer, might bring about results similar to those so happily attained in India? Surely a Scheme of the sort might be organized by which soldieTg would be so employed that tsheir bodily health would be improved, their minds made more content, and their strength and energy utibzed to the advantage of the commonwealth as well as of themselves. Enforced idleness is equally as bad for the body as for the mind, and of this we have far too much in our present system of military discipline. If, instead of the present dreary routine of deadly dull drill, from which no one can escape during the whole course of his service, be he as perfect a machine when in the ranks as can be imagined—if, instead of this, we set him to some work which would interest his mind while it exercised his body, he would surely become a better man and a better soldier. To those military philanthropists who desire to benefit in a last- ing manner the British soldier, we recommend this problem- How to provide remunerative employment for the soldiery in England without interfering with the free-labour market ?

HOPING FOR THE BEST. We may entertain a reasonable hope that for some years to come the problem to be annually considered by the ChanceHorof the Exchequer will be what shall be done with his surplus. It is true that the conduct of an littipire so vast as our own is necessarily subject to many chances. Mr. Lowe referred to some of them when he brought in his Budget. The indiscretion of a SUK°!i ^e half-a-dozen glasses of wine too much drunk by somebody in a responsible situation, the merest accident, may involve us in trouble from which there is no refuge except in enormous outlay." Nor does this review by any means exhaust the dan- gers to which we are necessarily subject (remarks The Times). It is not merely tbe indiscretion of an official of our own, the indiscretion of an official of another Power may bring down upon us moxt serious calamities. It was the French Consul at Tahiti more than Mr. Prichard who almost set France atad England at war five-and-twenty years since. An over-zealous Yankee captain in the Bay of Fundy, a misunderstanding, brought on no one knows how, with a few hundred trappers in Rupert's Land, the jaalousy of a half- savage autocrat at some fancied affront, the offioious- nesa of a provincial Mayor in some unknown part of the Continent, may produce a flame not easily allayed. But, in 8pite of all these ehane"8, We are entitltd to hope that we are at the beginning of a prosperous period.

SEA MONSTERS. We take the following from the Pall Mall Gazette:— Sir,—It has already been guessed that the "delicate monster lately seen in the American teas may have been a species of sepia. It is tolerably well ascertained that a øepiæ of enormous sizs exist; but authentic notices of such monsters are rare. I copy the following account from a memorandum supplied by Mr. Holdswoitto, the l&te Governor of Dartmouth Castle, to Colonel Hamilton smIth, tbe well- known and well-remembeiod naturalist. So far as 1 know it has never yet appeared in print :— I remember to have heard my mother's father say that, when engaged in the Newfoundland trade about fifty years ago or rather more, one of his ships was flshmg on the banks, when something appeared on the waterof very great size. As it did not seem to be alive it was examined in the boat, and secured by ropes. Then, the sea being calm, it was dragged alongside, and on close examination the men made out that it was a squid, and that they had Rot hold of the head. They lowered the runners, aud carried the fall to the windlass, and, having secured the runners to ropes round the head, hove it as far as they cauld above water. They had many empty casks on board '°1r. Pur- poses of the voyage, and these they soon filled by cut- ting off portions off the fish, but whether they used it for bait or for oil I do not remember. They also cut off one of its feelers to the bill Of the size of the latter I ani not quite certain; but it is so large in proportion to that of common squids, that no doubt could be entertained of the magnitude of the creature to which it belonged. The feeler, when brought home, having been dried (Ill which operation in the hot summer days no doubt it was very much contracted), measured thirty-six (36) feet. This feeler was sent to the coffee-room, or, properly speaking, llews- room, at Totnes, where it hung round the walls for a long time. It was afterwards removed to a house in the country, from which it was never brought back. It probably decayed and was thrown away. "I have heard of squids having been washed on shore 'as large as feather-beds;' but the size of this monster can only be guessed at. (Signed) A. H. HOLDSWORTH. "Dartmouth, January 20, 1832" A MS. note of Colonel H. Smith's records that the entire crew of a frigate (commanded by Captain Filmore) were assembled together on the body of an enormous Fepia, thrown up on a low sandy shore in the West Indies. Unfortunately, the date and exact place are not given. A drawing of this creature—little more than a rounded mass of a greyish blue colour—was made by the Colonel from Captain iilmore's description. In the Sailor's Magazine and Naval Miscellany supple- ment to Vol. VI[, p. 520, Dec. 1826) is a very curious notice of a colossal sepia, supplied by the Rev. J. F. England, a Weslejan minister. Crediton, April 16. EICHAKD JOHN Kisa.

"RATTING" IN FRANCE. Our lively neighbours" at Paris are really becoming Anglo-maniacs that we quite expect to hear of their en- deavouringshortlyto import London fogs tothe banks of the Seine, and to replace M. Cfaevreau by Sir John Thwaites. Not content with introducing horse-racing and pigeon-shooting into France, they have lately opened a rat-killing establishment in the Champs Elyseea, where MM. les petits crexti are enabled to see rats s'ain with the greatest ekill and rapidity by small boule territrs." As umal they have improved on English ideas in Paris, and the pit in which the un- fortunate rats are put to de^Jh is surrounded by mirrors so arranged that the victims are enabled to see the last of themselves before giving up the ghost. On Thursday the Prince Imperial honoured the the newly-opened institution with a visit, and ex- exressed great delight at tbe exploits of a small English terrier named Coquette, which destroyed twenty- eight rats in a minute* But, in spite of the Imperial patronage, the Societe Protectrice des Animaux attempted on Saturday to stop the much admired ratting sports. Having appealed to the Mirister of Justice, they were referred by him to the Prefect of Police, who gravely informed the deputation that there were a great many million rats in Paris, that the said rats did an immense deal of damage in the sewers, &c., and that really killing such noxious animals was a very meritorious act. And with this answer the Sùciété Protectrice was obliged to content itself. As, however, all the rats used for the delight of the Parisian public are first caught in the sewers and thence brought in traps to the Champs Elysdes to await their hte, it might have been thought that it would have been simpler to have knocked them on the head at once without the intervention of the boule. terriers.

PRINCE ALFRED IN INDIA. Prince Alfred, says the Bombay Gazette, after a pleasant two days' sail, reached Beynore on March 21, where he found the Governor of Madras waiting for him. By next mrraing they and their suites had been transported along the railway to Madras, and on arrival there an imposing procession was formed. At present we have only the telegraphic announcement of the arrival. Here in Bombay the natives seem to regret there was no such procession. Their idea i-? that the Prince should have sat on a howdah on an elephant's bick, and moved slowly along so as to be leisurely inspected by all and sundry. They take exception also to the extreme plainness of his attire when he appeared in public. One of the native papers criticises him for making no presents to the native chiefs, but it appears this was written under a misapprehension. Here, as elsewhere, no valuable presents were re- ceived. Sir Neville Chamberlain himself examined the articles offered with the object of returning those that were costly, and keeping such as would be interesting though inexpensive souvenirs of the country, and return presents of a fitting character seem to have been made. From a published list we quote the following :—To the Gaskwar his Royal Highness presented a handsome and very valuable gold hunting watch and chain, with the royal cypher surmounted by a crown set in diamonds on the back. To the Rao ni Kutch was presented a splendid double-barrelled gun, nude by Holland, of New Bond-street. The barrels Miegold dlt, and are to bear a suitable imcrl.ition. Mf»;r Ali Moorad Khan received a simi'ar rifle, one of R^iiiy's, with an inscripti on and the RIyal arms or it. To the Nawab of Cambay will be sent a splendid sword, specially mace for pre^eutat'oa. The Rajah of Kolapore receives a fine telescope; the Nawab of Moonaghur, a stereoscope with plates Holkar, a mag- nificent clock; Drangdra, a revolver beautifully ornamented, with carved ivory handles; Sanglee, a brace of revolvers by Purday; and the Rajah of Soanth, a handsome double-barrelled Lancaster rifle."

IMPORTANT TO INTENDING EMIGRANTS. The Mayor of Montreal, in openiTlgthe council of that city on the 14'ih of March, referred to the emigration movement in the following terms ;— Extenpive preparations are now in progress in the British Isles and other European countries for sending out to this country a large number of emigrants during the coming season. It is to be hoped that so^ e system will be adopted in embarking these people wliloh will ensure classilication and Mouer aiii anii a-.recriou W t'n t ;ey reach these shores, and that the Dominion Parliament, whose duty it is to deal with this matter, will perfect such arrangements M will prevent these people from being a burden instead of a bi«ssiug to oil" community on arrival here. During the pa.st two J vars this city has been sorely tritd by the frequent arrival <f large numbtrs of these poor people without any apparent means with which to pro- ceeii further, aud frequently (alluding to continental emigrants) without the power of expiessing or under- standing one word of any language spoken in this country. The emigrant agent had no funds, and tbe authorities whope duty it was to deal with the matter, seemed deaf to all appeal, and had it not been for the benevolent exertions of private individuals many of tbese.poor creatures might have perished from want and disease."

DEATH FROM CHLOROFORM, An inquest has been held at the University College Hospital, L'1nùon, respecting the death ot John Josiah Pye, aged fifteen, who'died in the operating theatre of the above- mentioned institution after the administration of chloroform. Mrs. Pye, mother ft the deceaeed, said her sou bad been ill some time. He was brought to the University Hospital last Saturday week, having a diseased knee. She was told that the only chance of saving his life was by having the leg taken off. She gave her consent, and on Wedms lav last an hour after the operation, she was informed of his death. Mr. Christopher Heath, F.R.C.S., and surgeon in the hospital, deposed to admitting the deceased. In. dependently of the leg, the boy was in a bad state altogether. He was very scrofulous, and both hands were much swelled. He had been treated at the Middlesex and other hospitals at various times for diseased bone at the right knee joint. As had been stated, the only chance of saving his life was by the re- moval of the leg. Having been given some wine, he was taken into the operating theatre on Wednesday, and chloroform W88 given in the usual way. The leg was removed with very little loss of blood, and while the operation was being completed the deceased gave two or three sighs, and the pulse ceased to beat. Tlle Coroner: Why did you not apply the chloro- form locally, instead of internally, by the spray ?— Witness: In large operations it was not sufficiently efficacious. The Coroner Do you think the chloroform killed this boy ?—Witness I hardly think so. I think the cauge of death was exhaustion. Tne Coroner Will you swear that it was not from the effects of the chloroform ? Witness I will not. Mr. Rigdale, physician's assistant, said he had very frequently given chloroform to the patients, and did so to the deceased. He used Clover's apparatus. He had ceased about two minutes, when the patient turned pale and vomited, and the pulse felL a s^or' consultation, returned a ver- chloroform an accidental cause, after taking

EMPLOYMENT FOR PRISONERS. Wakefield prison (the only one in England with steam-power) is a hive of industry, but, as in many other gaols, too much oonfined to mat-making. Leeds eaol exemplifies a great variety of occupation. So do Holloway prison, Coldbath-fields prison, and some others. At Coldbath-fieids, printing and book-bind- ing, carpentry and blacksmith work, are included among the employment. At Swansea gaol the pri- soners weave their own blanketing, cloth and Welsh flacneL At Pentonville convict prison about 10.000 pairs of boots and shoes were made last year. The manufacture of dowlais for exportation has recently been introduced with satisfactory results." In the prisons ot balford. Bedford, Taunton, Durham. Devon- port, Newcastle, York, Stafford, Bristol, Cardiff, &c., the expenses are kept low by employing prisoners at the masonry, carpentry, and other useful work required within the walls. At Devonport the expenses per head are £17 per annum as compared with £26 at Exeter. At Salford the cost is even less. Several hundred separate ledger accounts with private purchasers of prison goods (mats, &c.) indicate the great attention devoted at Salford to efforts to turn the prisoners' occupation to some at.vantage for the ratepayers and for themselves. The official report of Sussex county gaol at Petworth states that the factory profits (bandloom weaving and making ship's fenders), after deducting instructors' wages, are £100." (with about 100 prisoners). Shrews- bury prison report says :—" The classification of prisoners, and substituting remunerative for penal Jabour, according to their conduct after three months, has been attended with excellent results." (At this prison out of 1,600 committals, the averages of sen- tences is one month.) The average cost per prisoner of all English gaols is;E37, the average earnings £2 10s., less than 2d. per day. In many prisons the cost is £40, jE50, JE60, or upwards, rising to B104 at Dover gaoL

CUTTINGS FROM AMERICAN PAPERS. New York school children now carry loaded revolvers or self-protection." The man who brought eighty-seven ladies to a ball in Birmingham, Pennsylvania, received the prize—a gold watch. There are thirty murderesses in the Michigan beautiful^' many of whom are said to be positively A New York drayman owns a horse so thin that a knot is tied in his tail to prevent his body from slipping through the collar. A youthful belle named Fanny Joy has just married. She was a thing of beauty, but had ne desire to remain a Joy for ever. Some ungenerous biped baJ a patent medicine to make a fellow rise early in the morning. A six months' old baby can beat it wholly. The Yankee papers are asking their readers to re- peat the following reply And she stood in the arbour welconring him in." A lady excused her extreme love for diamonds and other precious stones by saying, They are the only bright things on earth which never fade." Chickens are taken at the box-office at Brigham Young's theatre, and change is made with eggs. Of course the drama witnessed is Fowl Play. A young lady in Philadelphia advertises that she will give SO 000 dollars to any respectable young man who will marry her. An Indiana paper reports that a young lady in that State was recently licensed to marry two gentlemen, and adds that she made only one happy. The paper does not state which one that was, but it must have been the one she did not marry. A Quakeress said recently to a friend, in reference to the Quaker formula of marrlftge It is true I did not pro- mise to obey when I was married, but I might as well, for I had to do it." One of the reigning belles of New York was heard to remark that tbe did not think it compensated one to go to parties and ue introduced to a lot of small boys who should be accompanied by their nurses, aa they did not know how to behave at the supper table. One of the Boston preachers says I have great hopes of a wicked man slender hopee of a mean one. A wicked man may be converted and become a pre-eminent saint. A mean man ought to be converted six or seven times, one right after the other, to give him a fair start and put him on an equality with a bold wicked man One of the modern specimens of fast ladies who wish to be men, in some respects, has been reading law. She is now in agonising doubts as to her being a wife. She says, marriage is the greatest lottery in life," and as lotteries aie illegal" the inference is harrowing. The young women of Lewistown, New York, have formed a society pledging themselves not to kiss any man who uses tobacco, and the young men have formed a society pledging themselves not to look at a young woman who wears false hair. As a consequence marriage licences are not in aotive demand. The presentation of a diamond ring to a Cincinnati actress, the other day, gave a gifted reporter of that city the opportunity for thil remarkable outburst: "It was a ki1Hng tribute from an humble admirer of the noble drama to a brilliant beacon upon the shot tower of histrionic genius." An American paper gives the following reply to an imaginary correspondent" There is no stated rule for writing love-letters. You should write on foolscap paper, and bear on as soft as you can, using words of such burning love that they will sizzle on the point of the pen. It is also advisable to sling in a hunch of pathos occasionally, such as Dearest Augustus, I love you with a love larger than an elephant's; I think of you every day, and by-and-bye, when ttie days grow longer, I shall think of you twice a day.' It is also well to put an ink-blot in the corner, with the obser- vation, Darling, I kissed this spot,' or, 'I have a sigh in this vicinity.

THE MARKETS. MARK-LANE.—MOKTbAY Fresh up to Mark-lane this morning the receipts of wheat from Essex and Kent were only moderate. Owing to the holidays the attendance was thin, and the trade was oniat. at previous quotations. With foreign wheat the market wu fairly supplied. Very little business was doine in anv de- scription, and prices were nominally without variation Moderate supplies of barley were on sale; although not active, the demsnd was firm, and prices irai* well maintained. Malt was quiet, but firm in value The supply of oats was ess extensive only a i^e £ te biS £ ness waBcoYlu^but the transactions eff ec^dw^Tat S. full rates ot laBtwoek. geang were pric# and realised full currenciet!, but the trade waa by no meana brisk. Owing to the supplies maize commanded more atáeBtioD.. and the quotations hatt an upward tendency. :r.tour w.. quiet, at stationary currencies. n METROPOLITAN CATTLE MARKET.—MoSDAY. siinnii?.5 ?vthe cooler weather, and to the less extensive supplies, the cattle trade has been firmer TherJ T?D last week's reductioa has been recorarad here has been a decided falling off in the receipts of beasts, but the quality has been good. The demand has been steady, at enhanced quotations, the best .Scots and crosses selling at 4s. 6(L to 5s. per 81b. As regards sheep, the market has been less freely supplied. There has been an increased amount of activity in the inquiry for all breeds, at an advance of quite 2d. per 8lb. The best Downs and half-breds have sold at 4s. 8i. to 4s. IOd., and in some instances 5,. per SIlt. Our quotations now refer to. clipped sheep. There has been a g )fd sile for lambs to-day and 8s. per 81b. has been readily obtained. Calves have beeoi steady in value and inquiry. Pigs have been firm. WOOL. Owing to the holidays the business doing in th « wool market has been very moderate. Tne tone, howler has continued healthy, and the value of both colonial a^ EnirlUh. produce has been well maintained. Current pric^ of Kmriula wool:—Fleeces: South Down hoggets, is. 0*(L ta 1.1?? half-bred ditto, Is. 3d. to Is. 4d. Kent fleeces, is Sd tn 3Jd.: South Down ewes and wethers, Is. to is lid ter ditto, Is. 2Jd. to Is. 3Jd. Sorts Clothin* ii tni, iu oembing, lid. to Is. SJd. *• POTATOES. Only moderate supplies of potatoes ha e been on >.l.. the markets. The trade has been st^dy at owo^tSi^ English Shaws, 1003. to 120s,; Regents, 100s. te 120s. • Scotch Regents, 100s. to 120s. Rocks, 9Ds. p6T «OXU per ton. HOPS. Veiy Httle business has been doing in the hop market. Ttm SUP £ Vtv ^tV,tn,0t been extensive, and there hai b £ nY grSi nominally »- i i and East Kents, £ 7 to £ 22 rg« t0 £ 8; Sussex, £ 6 12s. to £ M 18s • BsVsirisni £ 6 6s to £ 9 French, £ 6 to £ C 10s. AnuwW. Ju6ktoSB'- Yearlings, £ 1 los. to £ 8 15a. per cwt. FISH. Salmon, Is. 3d. to Is. 6d. trout, Is. 4d- to i* M. mackerel, 2SL 6d. to 4s. per dozen; smoked haddocks, 18s. to 37s. 6d. per barrel; lobsters, Is, to 2s. 6d.; crabs, lTto aT«d! each; native oysters, £ 10; commons, 16a, to 86a per hnallitl