Flintshire Observer Mining Journal and General Advertiser for the Counties of Flint Denbigh

SUPERSTITION IN COREA. A report by Mr. Carles on a journey made last year in two of the Central Provinces of Corea has been issued as a Parliamentary paper. In spite of the early civilisation of the country," says Mr. Carles, the only subject of historical interest which we saw in our travels was a curious structure resembling a rude altar, consisting of one massive slab, placed horizon- tally on small blocks of granite, which supported it on three sides, leaving the other side open and a hollow space some 16 feet by ten feet beneath. Of these quasi-altars several were standing in the valleys but though it must have cost immense labour to place these stones in position, no legend was current to account for their existence, except one which con- nected them with the Japanese invasion at the end of the sixteenth century, when the invaders were said to have erected them to suppress the influences of the earth. Whatever their origin, they have been left undisturbed. Of the influence of superstition over the people constant evidence is seen, in offerings to the spirits of the mountains in the shape of rags tied to branches of shrubs, heaps of stones on the tops of mountain ridges, long ropes hanging from trees, shrines two or three feet high placed by the road side, and, most quaint of all, in thick planks set in the ground, with one face rudely hewn and painted to represent a human head, with teeth fiercely prominent. These figures are said to be intended to keep foxes out of the vil- lages, ancl thus protect the people from their spells and witchery. Beyond these few objects and a small Buddhist temple, near a fine figure of Buddha cut in the rock not far from the North Gate of Soul, there was no trace of any religious feelings having any hold upon the people. Had we gone a few miles further north we were assured we should have found at Chin Kang Sliang not only the most beautiful scenery in Corea, but moun- tains thickly studded with temples, to which pilgrim throng in summer but we neither saw any such nor any trace of religious observances among the people, even at the new or full moon. We were told, however, of sacrifices being offered to the mountain spirits before a mine was opened. Graves as a rule are placed close together on the slope of a hill, without any stone or mark to identify them; but occasionally a horseshoe clearing is seen in the woods where some distinguished person lies buried, whose name and birthplace are given on a rough slab of stone. The funerals that we met were of the simplest character, and at one village the remains of the body of an old woman, who had been eaten hya tiger, were being burnt in a fire of brushwood lighted on the spot."

FOUND.—" I meant to have told you of that hole,' said a gentleman to his friend, who, walking into his garden, stumbled into a pit of water. No matter," said the friend; I have found it." THE ALBERT MODEL FARMS IN TRELAN,).-Tlie Dttilg Ncv.s says: Amid the general depression in agricul- ture, it is satisfactory to know that the Albert Model Farms, established by the Government in Ireland for educational purposes, are exceptionally prosperous. There are three farms one of five-and-a-half acres cultivated as examples for cottier holders; the second a farm of twenty-five acres, worked with inexpensive appliances on a scale suited to the great majority of Irish farmers; and, lastly, a farm of 140 acres, managed with a view to training large farmers. On the first the expenditure last year was £12G, and the receipts S248, showing a profit of nearly cent. per cent. On the second farm the expenditure was E375 and the receipts £ 527; whilst on the largest farm the profits were £ 482 on an expenditure of S2852.

THE STOPPAGE OF LIGHT GOLD. In an article on "Light Gold," the Daily News says The Coinage Act of 1870 fixes the weight of the sovereign at 123'27447 grains troy, and that of the half-sovereign at 01 "63723 grains; but as it is practi- cally impossible to ensure absolute accuracy in all new coins, and, moreover, if it were possible to do so, use would soon reduce them below the standard, a certain "remedy" or margin is permitted, and any sovereign the weight of which is not below 122'5 is a good and lawful tender. On an average it is found that a sovereign will knock about the world for about eighteen years before it becomes attenuated below the lawful minimum, and then, says the Act, every person shall by himself or others cut, break, or other- wise deface any such coin tendered to him in payment." This, of course, withdraws it from circulation, and reduces it from coin to bullion, and in that con- dition it may be handed back to the individual presenting it. It is undoubtedly a bad law, because it seeks to impose on some individual holder all the loss of wear and tear during an average eighteen years' circulation and the law is in some respects the worse, because it does not impose any penalty for non-com- pliance with it. If it imposes a penalty a person might plead that as a cogent reason for breaking a coin. But to clip a person's sovereign in two and give it back would always be pretty sure to be regarded as an act of ill-will, even though the law might require it to be done, unless the neglect of it involved peril. Instead of returning the clipped coin, the person to whom it is tendered may, of course, accept it at its value as standard gold, and this, properly speaking, is what all the banks in the kingdom ought to do. They should take the light gold brought to their counters, deface it and then debit their customers with the difference between its nominal value and its worth as bullion. Banks, how- ever, like other trading establishments, are under the pressure of competition, and do not care to make themselves the instruments of a law which they are at liberty to disregard if they please, and which though it may operate in the interest of the community at large, certainly imposes a very unmerited fine on indi- viduals. The only establishment complying with the law in this matter is the Bank of England. All light coin-- gold coin, that Is -paid in to the Old Lady of Thread- needle-street is sure to be detected and destroyed, and the bringer of it debited with the difference between what it really is and what it ought to be. The detectives of the bank consist of a row of sixteen or eighteen little pieces of mechanism which come as near to human intelligence as mechanism can perhaps ever be expected to do. In point of performance they are excelled indeed at the Mint, where they have similar machines to weigh coins before issuing them. At the Mint the new pieces are of course sometimes too heavy as well as too light, and their machines take a pile of shining sovereigns, very deliberately weigh each one, and, if it is too light, it will drop it into this little spout; it is too heavy it will drop it into that; and if it is of correct weight it will drop it into a third. The machine holds the balance steady until the coin is in position, and then lets it go, weighs it, until with unerring accuracy it determines to which- of the three classes it belongs, and then instantly shoots it off into the proper receptacle. They do not, of course, get coins too heavy at the Bank of Eng- land, and their machines have only to discriminate between good and light, but the principle of construc- tion is the same, and there is the same curious appearance of intelligent action. The machines stand all in a row busily engaged in the operation of singling out the defaulters from among the good coins, which are piled up in a huge heap on the table in front of them, while the light ones are carried away to a destructive little engine which runs them swiftly down a spout, cutting a slit in each one as it passes. It is rather a painful operation to the im- pecunious to witness, and an offer to take them just as they are, with all their faults and shortcomings, is among the good old familiar jokes of visitors to the regions of the Bank. Formerly the Bank was under the necessity of melting the clipped coin into bars, which then had to be assayed and forwarded to the Mint, accompanied with a sort of testimonial to character in the shape of an assay report. This, of course, entailed ex- pense which the Bank authorities estimated to amount to about 2Jd. an ounce, and a3 this was 2 also required of all other banks, which were thus involved in expense themselves over ;and above what they had to deduct from their customers' tender of gold on account of its lightness, it is not very surprising that the loss was a dead letter, and that as a matter of fact instead of banks with- drawing worn gold from circulation they did their best apparently to avoid the necessity of paying it into the Bank of England. The authorities of Threadneedle-street, however, in 1870, pointed out that this melting into bars and assaying involved un- necessary expenses, and that if the Mint would accept Its own impression of the Queen's head upon the coins as evidence of their standard quality, and receive the gold in the form of clipped money instead of bars, they would be in a position to allow other banks and the public the full statutory rate of £ 3 17s. 9d. per oz. instead of £3 17s. 61d., as they had been wont to 2 do. This, it was expected, would, by materially reducing the loss to bankers and the public-a loss which had thus far been estimated at no less than fourpence an ounce, or at the rate of about S4200 on a million of sovereigns—eventally clear the metallic currency of all worn coin. It was accordingly agreed upon by the Chancellor of the Exchequer that this arrangement should be carried out. Since 1870 the Bank of England has Eaid £ 3 17s. 9d. per ounce for light gold coins, and as received from the Mint £ 3 17s. 10id., the addi- tional three-halfpence being allowed in consideration of the employment of their capital and expenses inci- dental to the withdrawal of coin. Of course, the X3 17s. 10cl. which the Mint was authorised to pay the Bank of England for coins under weight would be at the rate at w-nich payment would bo made to any other bank or to the public bringing light money in not less than a certain specified quantity, and at first one or two banks seem to have tried the experiment. But they speedily dropped it; and notwithstanding the greater inducements offered, nobody stops light gold except the one grand institution at the head of all banking affairs in the kingdom.

THE FUTURE OF THE TRICYCLE. The Standard in a leader, says It is well within the mark to say that no vehicle has ever risen to such a sure place in public estimation in so short a time. Seven years have not yet elapsed since the first Tri- cycle made its appearance; and now the supply cannot keep pace with the demand. Last year ten thousand new machines were told, and this year it is anticipated that not only will manufacturers work full time, but that the stocks in hand will be entirely ex- hausted. Already ten thousand workmen are engaged in the manufacture of Tricycles and the capital ap- proaching a million sterling has been sunk in their manufacture. It must not be assumed that because the Tricycle is a more steady-going machine that it is, therefore, slow. Only last year sixty- seven gentlemen started off from London early one morning to see how far they could ride in twenty- four hours. The result was remarkable. Four rode two hundred miles; five rode one hundred and seventy- five miles; twenty-one rode one hundred and fifty miles; seventeen rode one hundred and twenty-five miles; and ten rode one hundred miles. But the best score made then was exceeded afterwards by a gentleman in the Midland counties, who ran two hundred and twenty-one miles in the same period of time. No horse has ever performed such a journey. Nor are these long rides confined to riders of single machines. The Sociable, or Double Tricycle, is en'1 capable of covering a very great distance, even when ridden by a lady and a gentleman, as was proved by the ride a day or two ago from Hyde-park-corner to Bristol, a distance of one hundred and twenty miles in twenty-three hours. These achievements show what an admirable vehicle is now in the possession of the public and though few may care to test their endurance by such long runs, many will find themselves able to enjoy trips, in very short holidays, which have hitherto been impossible. It is the man who is satisfied with cover- ing a few hundred miles leisurely who gets the greatest amount of enjoyment out of his tricycle. A man may ride, for instance, from John o' Groats to Land's End within a fortnight; he may go to Paris, ride from that city to Geneva, and return home by train, within ten days or he may, starting from Lucerne, ride round the Swiss Lakes, cross the Alps, and, running down into Italy, pass through the enchanting scenes by Lake Maggiore to Lucarno, aad return home within twelve days. The future of the tricycle is assured. A machine which ministers in so many different ways to enjoyment and to health, which fosters the best faculties of the mind and developes independence, is not likely to go out of fashion.

WORK ON HOME FARM. < Mangels constitute one of the most important of I the root crops grown upon the farm, and in their cultivation it is necessary to first of all take into con- sideration the character of the soil, and to determine which of the types is the most suitable. There are about six types of mangels, and of those the long red and yellow are the most productive where they can have a good depth of soil, and are unquestionably the best for deep loams. The next in productiveness are the red and yellow Intermediates, and these should be selected for soils of medium depth, and for thin or shallow soils the Yellow Globe is the most suitable, for although not producing such large bulbs as either of the others, it will when allowed just sufficient space, and no more, produce a heavy weight of roots per acre. As all the foregoing types differ consider- ably in character according to the care that has been taken in maintaining the purity of the stocks, it is essential to purchase the best quality obtain- able. As mangels require more time than swedes for the full development of the roots the seed should be sown about the middle of April, vary- ing the time slightly according to the character of the season and the condition of the soil; and the inex- perienced will do well to bear in mind that it will be better to wait until the beginning of May than to sow when the soil is cold and wet, for the seed will not germinate until the ground is moderately warm, and when it lies dormant in the soil for any length of time there is a risk of its perishing and large blanks occurring. The soil should have a dressing of farm- yard manure in the early part of the winter, and be ploughed up deeply and the surface soil left as rough as possible to more fully expose it to the action of the weather. Previous to breaking down the surface before drilling the seed a dressing of common salt at tho rate of 2 cwt. per acre should be applied, and at the same time as the seed is drilled apply guano at the rate of 1 cwt. per acre. Similar applications of guano at the first time the space between the rows is liorse-hoed will be most beneficial in promoting and sustaining a vigorous growth. When no farmyard manure is available artificials should be employed at the rate of about six cwt. per acre. The drills for the seed should be on the flat, and from twenty-four to thirty inches apart. The plants will require a space ranging from fifteen to twenty inches, or more if extra large roots are required; and in thinning it will be necessary to take into consideration the time of sowing and the character of the soil, for as the roots raised from late- sown seed will not in the ordinary course attain so large a size as those produced by seed sown early, or those in poor soils become so large as others in soils more or less rich, the distances must be varied some- what to avoid any loss of space and a failure to harvest what may be described as a full crop. Thin- ning must be commenced as soon as necessary, and the hoe plied freely from the time the young plant can be seen until the leaves begin to spread freely over the spaces.—Gardeners' Magazine.

GARDENING FOR THE WEEK. CONSERVATORY AND GREENHOUSE. Camellias not yet started into growth must have assistance now, if no more than keeping rather closer and more moist than usual. Cinerarias require abundance of water now; if allowed to be dry for any length of time the lower leaves will turn yellow and fall. Give plenty of air when weather allows, and shade only when the sun is very powerful. Puchsia" require shifting on; keep them warm; give plenty of water at the root and overhead; let the soil be rich and light, the position rather shady. Never stop and repot at the same time. Pelargoniums showing their trusses will be greatly benefited by weak doses of clear liquid manure of a moderate degree of strength. Tie out carefully as required, never neglecting this operation, as if the shoots get hard before tying the operation is apt to snap them. Shade as little as can be helped; the sunshine acting now on the advancing buds will ensure brilliantly-coloured flowers, which will not be the case with plants that are much shaded during the forma- tion and growth of the buds. FORCING ANT) ORCHARD HOUSES. Cherries changing colour to have as much light and air as possible, and less water at the roots. Gross shoots may be better checked by stopping once or twice than by hard cutting back, which only results in another growth as rank as the first. Melons must have all the sunshine possible, and to prevent scorching give plenty of air during midday hours on very fixe days. Plant successions, taking care to make good beds for them, as with plenty of heat at command a little air may be given night and day in mild weather, and a free strong growth secured without any forcing. Teaches in the early houses are swelling fast, and the final thinning must be accomplished without delay. Give a good soaking of water at the roots, and from this time till the fruit begins to show colour use liquid manure freely. Strawberries must have abundance of light and air, and a decidedly cool temperature by night as compared with the day temperatnre--Iay, 65 deg. day, 50 deg. to 55 deg. night. FLOWER GARDEN AND PLEASURE GROUNDS. Asters sown immediately will grow freely from the first, and make as fine plants as the earliest sown, though a week or so later to bloom. But this is tho latest period for them to do anything like justice to these superb annuals. Auriculas require the most airy position possible now, with shade and shelter and covering, as wind, frost, rain, sunshine, and heat are all alike injurious to them. Carnations and Picotees to have as much air as the state of the weather will allow, and not on any account to suffer through lack of water. As soon as possible place them in their blooming quarters, fully exposed to all weathers. Pansies sown now will bloom well at the end of July, when many herbaceous and annual flowers are over. Choose a shady spot for them. Stocks sown at once will give less trouble than those sown early, and the annual kinds will flower well this season, and the biennials acquire strength to stand the wintir. KITCHEN GARDEN. Beet must be sown now, if not done already. Choose soil that has not been recently manured, but which has been deeply dug, and is in a thoroughly pulverized state, the object being to obtain roots of moderate size and regular shape. All the dark-fleshed and short- topped varieties are good. Cauliflowers may now be planted out, and will take cf.re of themselves. Let the ground be abundantly manured; plant firm give a little water to each if needful. Cucumbers in bearing to be kept as nearly as possible at a uniform temperature. Air-giving must be regu- lated by circumstances, giving air when Reeded. Fork up the beds, and apply linings if necessary; and, as air-giving is a pretty safe operation now, the heat may be allowed to rise to rather a high pitch—much higher than would have been safe a month ago, when it was often impossible to give air. Lettuces of all kinds may now be sown on open borders, the Cos and quick-growing large kinds of cabbage lettuce being most useful. 20 Onions will be greatly benefited by a sprinkling of soot, which will both quicken the growth and drive away the vermin that usually destroy them. Onions for pickling to be sown this week on poor ground. Sow thick, and if possible, cover the seed with a sprinkling of fine siftings of charred rubbish. Scarlet Runners may be sown on dry sheltered borders, but it is early yet for the main crop. Spinach to be sown again, but not in great quantity, as the later-sown breadths will be liable to become seedy before they are all used. FRUIT GARDEN. Very little can be done by the cultivator to assist outdoor fruits at this season, but the fruit garden must not be neglected. Trees newly planted may require stakes to prevent their being rocked about by the wind. Wall trees will require to be freely disbudded, but only a skilful hand should be set to such work. The object of disbudding is to remove all useless buds at the first. start, to lessen the after labour of pruning, and to prevent the gumming that too often follows pruning with the knife; also to save the trees the trouble of producing shoots that are not wanted. Never thin any tree severely at one time; if there are many shoots to remove let it be done in several operations, so as not to cause any serious check to the flow of the sap. Raspberries not yet mulched should have two or three inches of fat manure spread over the ground as far as their roots extend. Trees under protection to have plenty of air, but do not remove the material yet. THE HOUSE. As the sun is now acquiring power it may perhaps be useful to mention the fact that strong light is very hurtful in its effects upon the occupants of the aquarium. Therefore, in all cases where it occupies a more or less sunny position the blinds must be carefully regulated to screen it as far as possible from the direct action of the sun. Aquaria placed in the conservatory should have a shady position from early in the spring until quite late in the autumn, if not throughout the year, and where it is practicable those indoors should be removed to apartments having a north aspect. But this is not always convenient, and if the aquarium is drawn away from the window, and when the sun is shining brightly the precaution taken to draw the blinds down, any serious mishap will be prevented. There is not perhaps any better place for an aquarium than an entrance hall, and where the arrangements will admit it should as a rule be placed in it. The water will not require 'changing so long as the fishes continue in good health, but the glass must be kept clean on the inside, and there is no better plan of removing impurities from it than by simply wiping it over with a large zine.

Upon the marriage of Miss Wheat, of Virginia, an editor hoped that her path might be flowery, and that she might never b.e thrashed by her husband.

LORD BURY ON ATHLETICS. The annual dinner of the South London Harriers took place on Saturday evening at the Holborn Restaurant, at which about eighty members of the association were present. iscount Bury, the presi- dent of the National Cyclists' Union, occupied the chair. In proposing the toast of the evening, the Chairman said lie regarded the development of athletics as not only extremely interesting, but as extremely valuable from a national point of view. He had it in charge to mention a matter which was of great importance to them, that shortly an American deputation would visit this country under the auspices of their association, and that they would be accompanied by men who were well known to the athletic world, the name of one of whom, Mr. Myers, he frequently heard during a visit to America from which he had just re- turned. Another, Mr. Fredericks, was a long-dis- tance runner. Another, Mr. Wa-ldron, was a short- distance runner, but he believed there were many present who would show him the way even at 150 yards. He had some sympathy with short-distance runners, because there was a time, many years ago, when he was a 150 yards champion himself. Mr. Murrav. another of the deputation, was a celebrated walker. He did not know whether Murray could emulate the deeds of his compatriot Weston, who had iust completed that extraordinary walk of his, but he said that he would engage to walk double the dis- tance that Weston did and drink his ten pints of beer a day. (Laughter.) If he could do that he could only say that he was a very extraordinary man. He thought that much good would be done as regarded athletics if this and all kindred as- sociations, while each preserving its own autonomy, should so interchange with the headquarters of other associations 0 that the decision of one should be regarded in all athletic matters as the deci- sion of all. Athletic associations had .in important duty before "fhem, and especially the one with which p I he was more immediately connected Since the old coaching days had passed away the roads in all Eng- land had got into a dreadful state, and he believed the Cyclist Association, by the influence it could bring to bear, might be the means of remedying that defect, which would be a national benefit. Other athletic associations in the several departments to which they directed their attention might also be of national service. When the youth of a nation devoted themselves to athletic exercises they performed in that respect a good national work, for these exercises gave health to the body, and without a sane body there could not be a sane mind.

A VOYAGE TO AUSTRALIA FOR HEALTH. It is becoming such a common thing with English doctors to recommend a long sea-voyage to their patients, that no apology is needed for one who has tried the- prescription for relating his experience, says a writer in Moc/nillan's Magazine. Well or ill told, it must have interest for a large number of readers. It is a serious remedy, and for that very reason its probable effects are almost certain to be over-estimated. It is supposed by many that the climate of the ocean between England and Australia is pretty nearly all in favour of the invalid. This is far from being the case. A very trying part of the voyage is the season c.f hot weather that sets in within about a fortnight after leaving the Channel, lasting perhaps a month. The warmth is pleasant'enough at first; but, as it increases it becomes enervating, and we nearly all i found, while passing through the tropics, that we were steadily losing weight. Bad coughs became worse, and the real invalids began to despond. Before returning to England I spent nearly nine montlis in Australia, so that I am not in a position to offer any opinion as to the merits of a voyage out ar.d home for the sake of the voyage only. Whether it is desirable to return at once, or to remain for a time in the hot, dry climate of Aus- tralia, is, of course, a question for the decision of a medical man in each individual case. With the in- valid's arrival his difficulties and hardships really begin. He is a good deal disappointed, it may be, with the effect of his long sea voyage, from which he hadbeen led to expect so much, and finds at once that to get real benefit from a residence in Australia he must set out upon a fatiguing and expensive journey by land. Where he is to go, and where to live when be gets there, will be questions of very serious difficulty. Lodgings, such as we know them in England, are not to be met with. The choice of accommodation lies between boarding-houses and the so-called hotels, which are often little better than a common Dublic- house: and, except in the neighbourhood of the largest towns, visitors must depend entirely upon the latter. Anyone who has made acquaintance with a Bush hotel would be slow to recommend it as a resi- dence, even to a man in health, and would certainly advise an invalid by all meams to avoid it. Practically speaking, it comes to this, that, except for those who are so fortunate as to have friends living in the in- terior in a favourable locality, Australia is not a suit- able resort for invalids at all. I had it from a medical man, practising in ono of the large cities, that, out of hundreds of persons with weak lungs who had consulted him during a period of twenty-five years, not one of those who remained on the coast had materially improved in health. His advice to all who, from want of means, want of friends, or want of strength were unable to proceed to the interior, was to return to England as soon as possible. We deter- mited to make a trial of Albury in the Riverina, on the borders of New South Wales, seven hours from Melbourne by railway. We found it a clean and pleasant little town, prettily situated on the banks of the Murray, anct surrounded by ranges of hills. We were so fortunate as to secure comfortable accommodation with board in a private house and as, during the first three weeks of our stay, we enjoyed pleasant summer weather, we made up our minds to remain at Albury during the two months that must elapse before we could start for Queensland, where we had been invited to spend six months in the cooler part of the year. We did not long enjoy the pleasant weather I have spoken of. About the middle of January it became very hot—the thermometer for some days standing at over 100 deg. in the shade (once as hiah as 104 dee.) during the day, and at 90 deg. in the house at night. It was considered a cool summer," in Albury-Ill) deg. for a week together being by no means exceptional. From this heat, how- ever, we could see no oscape. We could not hear of any place where we should be likely to find cooler weather without encountering, at the same time, the cold southerly breezes and changeable climate that had proved so trying to me in Melbourne. Besides that, we were reluctant to leave our comfortable quarters. For equable weather and continuous warmth I had been pining for many months; but I had not anticipated heat like this, nor could I have believed it would prove so rapidly enervating as it did. Towards the end of February we started for Queensland, and arrived at our friend's station" on the Barcoo in the middle of March. Our route was from Albury to Sydney by railway, sixteen hours, a voyage of five days by steamer to Rockhampton, after which another day's railway journey brought us within two hundred and seventy miles of our destination—a distance to be covered by two days of coach travelling, and as many more in a buggy." A journey of nearly three weeks, with a rest of two or three days here and there, would be a formidable undertaking to a person in bad health, even in England. It is a much more serious business in Australia, especially when it extends beyond the railways. To rise at four o'clock each morning, and to be jolted about in a coach for fourteen or fifteen hours, along the roughest and, at times, almost impassable roads, under a blazing sun and enveloped in clouds of dust, is enough to try the endurance of the strongest; which is further tested by the coarse fare and bare accommo- dation of the roadside huts. -Nor was there anything in the aspect of the country in the parts of Australia through which I travelled, to relieve the tedium of the way. The eye was wearied day after day by a dreary and monotonous waste of dried grass, sand, and scrub. A sudden fall of rain may delay the coach for hours, perhaps for days and as it is all that five horses can do to drag coach and luggage through the mud, the passengers must get on as best they can upon their legs. Happily, of this last misfortune we had no actual experience but it is a danger from which the traveller is never quite free, and the fear of it was always in our minds. The shorter stages made in our friend's conveyance were less exhausting, but even a station buggy is not the most luxurious vehicle in the world. It took me fully a month to get over the effects of my journey, if, indeed, I have ever done so. Yet, it was to Queensland, and to this particular district of Queensland, that I had been specially recommended to come and we- had travelled in the easiest way possible. A great disappointment was in store for us. We had been led to understand that the heat would be over by the end of March, and that we might lo4 forward, after that, to five or six months of really pleasant and refreshing weather. In fact, great heat lasted till the beginning of May, and we found that "the winter" extended over something less than three months, during which a week or ten days of really cool weather—say from 05 deg. to 75 deg. in the shade at noon—might be expected at intervals. It is fair to say that the winter we spent in Queensland was said to have been an unusually mild one. An Englishman is entitled to use the expression great heat of a tem- perature of 98 deg. in the shade, though probably a resident in Queensland would speak of it differently. It should be remembered that heat and cold are only relative terms, the use of which conveys very different ideas to different persons. It is of the greatest im- portance, in making inquiries about climate, to know accurately in what sense the words are used, and to obtain the readings of the thermometer at different seasons. I have often heard the words pleasantly cool applied to days which I could only describe as exliaustingly hot." An opinion prevails now that the western towns of Queensland are highly favour- able for consumptive patients but I very much ques- tion its accuracy. In some cases, where the general strength is only slightly impaired, it is possible that, the light, dry air of these districts may do good but for persons who are really in weak health the in- tense heat must be extremely enervating. There is nothing sufficiently bracing in the climate of the winter months to compensate for the severity of the summer. But it would be folly to go for the winter only, as nothing but a stay of many months could possibly compensate for the necessary journey. Before the end of the hot weather I was con- vinced that it would be unsafe for me to re- main through a second summer in Australia; and, being quite unfit for the discomforts of a journey to Tasmania, we determined, as soon as the winter was over, to make for England by the shortest po-sible route. Accordingly, at the beginning of August we started for Queensland. We reached Sydney on the 27th of that month, and left by steamer for England on the 31st, arriving at Plymouth on October 20th. Through the kindness of our friends, in placing at our disposal a suitable con- veyance, relays of horses and two of their most careful men as drivers, the fatigues of our land journey were mitigated. But kind wishes could not improve the miserable accommodation on the road, nor make five days in an Australian steamer anything but tedious and disagreeable. Many will think that to return to England in October was unwise but the result in my case has justified the conviction that, with proper care taken, a winter here would prove less injurious than the exhausting heat of an Australian summer. It will be seen from the foregoing pages that my journey to Australia ended in disappointment. I returned to England in a very much worse state of health than I left it. I am not aware that this result has unduly coloured the expressions I have used.

WILLS AND BEQUESTS. (From the Illustrated London News.) The will (dated April 7, 1883) of Mr. John Ilyem Wolton, J.P., formerly a hop merchant in High- street, Borough, and late of Woodlands," Peckham- rye, who died on Feb. 23 last, has just been proved by his sons, Arthur Wolton and Edward Hyem Wolton, the executors and trustees, the value of the personal estate amounting to upwards of £ 030,000. The testator leaves an immediate legacy of £ 1000 to his widow his horses and carriages to her abso- lutely the furniture at his residence, with all pictures, prints, paintings, china, books, and other effects to her for life. He also gives her the use of his residence for life, or until she desires to give same up, in which case an allowance of £ 200 per annum is to be made to her for a residence. He likewise leaves her an annuity of X2500. Three several sums of X40,000 each are bequeathed for the benefit of each of his three daughters and their children—viz., Mrs. Emily Dunnet Collings, Mrs. Sophia King, and Mrs. Ella Elizabeth Harris. No marriage portions of gifts are to be deducted from the said sums and there are several pecuniary legacies to relatives, friends, and clerks. The residue is given equally to his four sons, Arthur Wolton, Edward Hyem Wolton, Herbert Wolton, and John Hyem Wolton. The will (dated April 3,1883), with a codicil (dated June 7 following), of Mr. William Bird, J.P., and a Chevalier of the Legion of Honour, late of No. 32, Great Cumberland-place, who died on Jan. 23 last, was proved on the 7th ult. by Mrs. Sarah Bird, the widow, William Macdonald Bird and Edward Bird, the sons, and William Bevan, the executors, the value of the personal estate amounting to upwards of £ 122,000. The testator leaves to his wife £ 1000, and his furniture, plate, pictures, wines, and household effects, with the exception of some plate, pictures, &c., specifically given to his children; he also leaves her his residence for life, or so long as she thinks fit; to his son William Macdonald, the silver service pre- sented to him by the shareholders of the San Paulo Railway Company; to his son James, S300 per annum during the joint lives of himself and testator's wife; to his niece Harriet Matilda Bird, an annuity of £ 110; and to Sarah Ransome an annuity of £40. The residue of his real and personal estate is to be held, upon trust, to pay the whole in- come to his wife for life; at her death he gives £ 7000, upon trust, for each of his daughters, Mrs. Gertrude Vigor, Mrs. Margaret Bevan, and Mrs. Ellen Wilson, their husbands and children E5000 upon trust, for Mrs. Mary Bird, the wife of his son Arthur, his said son and their children; X4000 upon trust, for George Bird, the husband of his late sister, for life, and then for his daughters; S14,000, upon trust, for each of his sons, James, William Macdcnald, Walter, Edward, and George and the ultimate residue to his said son, William Macdonald. The testator, after making some specific bequests to his daughter Mrs. Sarah Oxley, as a token of affection, mentions that he leaves her nothing further, as she is already amply provided for. The will (dated June 10, 1879) of Mr. Thomas Hewitt, late of Grafton Lodge, Kilburn, Middlesex, who died on Feb. 28 last, was proved on the 1st inst. by William Hughes Hughes, J.P., of Highbury Quadrant, and Arthur Turner Hewitt, of No. 32, Nicholas-lane, E.C., solicitor, nephews of the de- ceased, the executors, the value of the personal estate amounting to upwards of £ 83,000. The testator bequeaths his residence, Grafton Lodge, with the furniture, plate, pictures, books, wines, household effects, horses and carriages, to his wife, Mrs. Phila- delphia Hewitt, until her decease or re-marriage, and on the happening of the first of the said events he gives the same to her niece, Mrs. Augusta Clara Vyvyan, together with a pecuniary legacy of XIOOO and there are legacies of £ 2000 each to most of his nephews and nieces, legacies and annuities to his three sisters, and bequests to his executors. The residue of his real and personal estate is to be held, upon trust, to pay the income to his wife until her decease or re-marriage, and subject thereto, for his nephews, William Hughes Hughes, Arthur Turner Hewitt, and Augustus Field, in equal shares. The will, and four codicils of Mr. James Gingell, late of the Kent and Essex Yard, Whitechapel High- street, and of Wood House, East Ham, Essex, hay factor, who died on Feb, 16 last, was proved on the 6th ult. by William Henry Gingell, the son, Thomas Baddeley, the Rev. John Morley Lee, and James Alexander Cruickshank, the grandson, the executors, the value of the personal estate amounting to over £ 39,000. The testator bequeaths £100 each to the Friends School, Saffron Walden, and Ackworth School, Yorkshire, both belonging to the Society of Friends also to the London Hospital, the Samaritan Institution in connection therewith the Eastern Dispensary, Leman-street; the British and Foreign Bible Society, the British and Foreign School Society; the City of London Hospital for Diseases of the Chest, Victoria Park; and the Agricultural Society;— £ 50 each to the Church Missionary Society, the Baptist Missionary Society, the London Missionary Society, the Wesleyan Mis- sionary Society, the Moravian Missionary So- ciety, the London City Mission, the Friends Foreign Mission, the Free Presbyterian Church Foreign Mission, and the Religious Tract Society; and numerous legacies to grandchildren, sister, nephews, nieces, friends, clerks, servants, workmen, and others. He makes provision for his wife, daughters, and the children of his deceased daughter, Mrs. Cruickshank; and specifically devises various houses and lands to his sons and daughters. The residue of his property he gives to his said son, William Henry. The will (dated March 16, 1874) of Vice-Admiral the Hon. Henry Carr Glyn, C.B., C.S.I., late of No. 32, Eaton-place, who died on Feb. 16 last, was proved on the 6th ult. by the Hon. Pascoe Charles Glyn and the Hon. Sidney Carr Glyn, M.P., the brothers, the executors, the value of the personal estate amounting to upwards of £ 35,000. The testator bequeaths his swords, watch, with the appendages, and medals to his eldest son, Henry Richard; his furniture, plate, and household effects to his eldest daughter, Rose Rivers- dale and a legacy to his children's nurse. The residue of the personalty is to be held, upon trust, for all his children, other than an eldest son, in equal shares. The will (dated Aug. 6, 1883), with two codicils (dated Aug. 6 and Sept. 5), of Colonel John Rawdon Oldfield, 1.E., formerly of Oldfield Lawn, West- bourne, Sussex, and late of Linden-road, Dorchester, who died on Nov. 25 last, was proved on the 8th ult. by Henry John Oldfield, the nephew, Reginald Arden, Edgar Lucas, and Charles Frederick Arden, the executors, the value of the personal estate exceeding £ 29,000. The testator, after making bequests to relatives and others, leaves the residue of his property upon trust, to pay the income to two sisters, three nieces, and two other ladies on the death of the first four of the annuitants the Schoolmasters' and School- mistresses' Benevolent Institution and the Church of England Zenana Missionary Society in its Medical Department, take an interest during the life of the remaining annuitants in the income of his property; and on the death of the last annuitant he gives such part of the residue of his property as may by law be bequeathed for charitable purposes to the Endowed Grammar School at Dorchester, to establish ten scholarships of X20 each for boys from the National Elementary Schools, and the ultimate residue to his nephew, the said Henry John Oldfield.

A SHREWD MADMAN.—When the Earl of Bradford was brought before Lord Chancellor Loughborough, to be examined upon application for a statute of lunacy against him, the Chancellor asked him: "How many legs has a sheep?" "Does your lordship mean," answered Lord Bradford, a live or a dead sheep ?" Is it not the same thing ?" said the Chan- cellor. No, my lord," said Lord Bradford, there is much difference; a living sheep may have four legs, a dead sheep has only two. There are but two legs of mutton the two fore legs are shoulders."

-Z-30.- THE REGULATION OF CREMATION A short bill has been brought in by Dr. Cameron, Sir Lyon Playfair, and Dr. Farquharson, to provide for the regulation of cremation and other modes of disposal of the dead." Clauses 7 and 8 are as follows: "It shall not be lawful to burn or dis- pose of otherwise than by burial, or procure to be burned or disposed of otherwise than by burial, the dead body of any person until the death has been registered in accordance with the provisions of the Registration Acts, as amended by the immediately succeeding section and except in a place licensed for that purpose by the Secretary of State, and in accordance with regulations which shall from time to time be made by the Secretary of State. Whenever it is intended to burn or dispose of otherwise than by burial the dead body of any person, the person regis- tering the death shall produce to the registrar a cer- tificate of the cause of death signed by one or more registered medical persons in one of the forms, as nearly as may be, contained in Schedule B annexed to this Act and such certificate shall be deemed to be a certificate of the cause of death within the mean- ing of the Registration Acts. Any person knowingly and wilfully granting or producing a false certificate under this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanour."

THE SOUTHERN FLORIDA PENINSULA. Under the heading, A Winter Tour in the Southern States," a correspondent of the Times writing from Kissimmee City, Orange Co., Florida, gives some particulars respecting the Southern Florida Peninsula. We make the following extracts: The newly finished railway, open to travel but a few weeks, carries us to the table land of the central part of the peninsula, elevated about 100ft. above St. John's River, a region of forest and swamp, as yet almost unsettled, although this line is expected soon to bring settlers in. It passes Kissimmee City, on Lake Tohopekaliga, and turns sauth-westward to still higher lands. It was this route across the peninsula that De Soto's chivalrous invasion followed, then led by Indian guides, and now adopted by the railway surveyors more than three centuries afterwards. It leads to still higher land, past several forts that are abandoned relics of the Indian wars, and along the line a small remnant of the Tallahassee tribe still live. We rise to 250ft. elevation above the Gulf of Mexico, whence the unfinished line seeks an outlet upon the Gulf coast at Tasuga Bay. Gangs of negroes are at work ballasting the new line, and wo pass several con- struction trains. These negroes are thick-lipped and shiny-faced fellows, working and playing alternately, and in most cases endeavouring by their methods to convince you that it is not good to do to-day that which may better be done to-morrow, which is said to be the Florida negro's maxim. We ran to the end of the finished line, where, at the most elevated parts of the peninsula, the land was gently rolling with hills made by the salamander everywhere throwing up the white soil, and the numerous lakes interspersed with cypress swamps. At the end of the line was the brand-new town of Sanitarium, where a colony of 20 families from Tennessee have started a settlement fronting on Lake Ariana, named after-an Indian princess, who is said to have befriended De Soto's men. They have 0000 acres, almost all land for orange culture, and already there are large orchards started. They were busy cutting down trees to build houses, had their saw-mill running, and their store in full operation, the sign outside announcing that Indian corn was sold at 1 dol. 10c. per bushel, oats at 85c.. and hay at 1 dol. 05c. per 1001b., all for cash." This busy hamlet, just born in the Florida upland forest, was for the moment the limit of settlement, But the railway will in a few days push on to the Gulf, and new towns spring up beyond. Tohopekaliga was a chief of the Tallahassees a century ago, who revered him so highly that they named the largest lake of this region in his honour. We returned from the end of tho railway to its pleasant shores to spend the night. Kissimmee City, another new town, barely a year old, yet having 600 population, is located here. It has already two churches, a newspaper, a shipyard, and five hotels, while the people are ruled by a mayor, and enjoy all the rights and privileges of a city. Its new Tropical Hotel," where we stayed, had been just finished, and accommodated 140 guests, the porches giving a grand outlook over the broad lake and its pretty islands. The great drainage operations of Southern Florida have made this town. The Okeechobee Lake is about 200 miles southward by the water line, and, through a chain of lakes and swamps, this lake's waters flow into it. Okeechobee had no natural outlet, and about three years ago Hamilton Disston conceived the project of draining the swamp and overflowed lands of the penin- sula, embracing a region at least half the size of England, and, under a contract from the State, is to receive for his drainage company one-half the lands reclaimed by the process. The work has been going on for about two years, an outlet being made from Okeechobee to the Gulf by cutting a canal to the Caloosahatchie River, and other canals have been dredged to unite the internal waters. The level of water in all these lakes has been decidedly reduced, and already 500,000 acres are stated to be reclaimed. The project is regarded by many as scarcely promi- sing adequate return, but it is earnestly pushed, and the new lands are claimed to be excellent for rice, jute, and sugar growing. Nearly XSO,000 has been already expended on these drainage operations, thus adding another to the various undertakings on a large scale, by British and American capital, to brin<* Florida lands into market and facilitate their settle- ment. From Lake Tohopekaliga through the tortuous water route to Lake Okeechobee and thence by the Caloosahatchie to the Gulf is a winding channel of about 460 miles, although in a direct line the distance is but 140 miles. The dredges for opening the drainage canals were built on this lake, the boilers and machinery being sent from the northern States. The lake is about twelve miles long, and covers an area of twenty-six square miles. We crossed it to examine the drainage canals, making the voyage in a flat- bottomed, stern-wheel, high-pressure steamboat. The lake is from 12ft. to 18ft. deep, its waters a dark amber, and having a decidedly swampy and sulphurous odour, as, in fact, all the waters of this immediate region have. The shores are very low, and the drainage already accomplished, having reduced the water level about five feet, the broad, sandy edge of land and uncovered cypress roots were plainly visible all around, as a bright yellow rim enclosing the water. This lake's surface elevation above the gulf was 72ft. when the drainage operations began in 1882, so that this fall was available for the accomplishment of the work. To the eastward and separated by a low strip of land three miles wide, is Little Tohopekaliga Lake, upon which drainage will soon begin, its elevation being 12ft. higher than the main lake, and its surface 23 square miles. Upon the shores of this lake the "Florida Agricultural Company" of London have about 40,000 acres of land which they are opening for settlement, and they contemplate establishing a town and steamboat line to Kissimmee City through the drainage canal. To the southward of Tohopekaliga the Florida peninsula is very sparsely settled and not very well known. It is a vast region of swamp and lake, and water-grass covered prairie, into which the forests gradually dissolve. On the Atlantic shore, skirting for miles along the sea coast, is the Indian River, a country of orange groves that is steadily attracting new settlers. In the interior is Okeechobee, a vast depression in the centre of a water-grass prairie, which receives the drainage of all the surrounding swamps and juicy land, and like the everglades to the southward is a mystery into which the white man is just penetrating. The everglades, or "grass- water," which cover almost the whole southern penin- sula, are a broad expanse of grass and swamp, generally treeless, but with forests on higher ground, scattered like islands, and having here and there through them a trail that the troops made during the Seminole war. Here live the remnants of that tribe, and from this slightly explored region usually originate the tales of alligators and other Florida animals, exaggerations which are sent northward to regale the fancy of newspaper readers. There is scarcely any white population in that country. Dade county, an enormous section stretching over 100 miles along the Atlantic coast, has barely thirty voters. The penin- sula ends with the long chain of coral-built islands stretching into the gulf known as the Florida Keys," with Key West as its chief, a populous and attractive town. Such is the Southern Florida peninsula, whose tropical fruit belt seems destined to be the home of a large population of new settlers in the near future, and which is moving ahead at a pace distancing all other parts of the Southern States of the American Union.