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A VOICE FROM PARIS.

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OWN the Champs Elysées flows the tide of fashionable Paris, and a pair of solitary rooks have built

their nest on the top of a plane-tree at the corner of Rue de Morny, to contemplate at their leisure the ever-flowing human stream between the Tuileries and the Arc de l'Etoile. I wonder what these rooks think of Paris, and how they came to establish themselves in such a spot. That may be a problem, but there is a greater problem yet unsolved in the Champs de Mars. It is the Great Exposition of 1867. Let the stranger cross the Pont de l'Alma, and obtain his first glance at the extraordinary mausoleum in which lie entombed so many of the fondest hopes and the rarest achievements of Science and Art which the Great Fair of 1867 has collected together from all parts of the civilized globe, and he may well ask himself if that is indeed the temple which the most artistic of civilized nations has dedicated to universal genius. It might have been designed for a big gasometer, or an elliptical railway station, but, spoilt for both these purposes, it has become the Great Exposition. What is it possible to say, even yet, of the contents of such a chaos as the interior exhibits? And yet there are a few objects of interest which have already emerged from the packing-cases, to which an allusion may be acceptable. Everybody knows that, although the "show" is opened to the public, it is not half complete; and what is unknown and hidden always acquires a mysterious importance; hence it becomes a feasible excuse to plead that the most wonderful things are not yet exhibited. It is reported that the Chevalier Bonelli, No. 29.

of Milan, has produced or invented a novel optical instrument, called a Photobioscope, which depends for its effect upon the property possessed by the retina of the eye of retaining for a brief space the image of any object after the withdrawal of the latter from the visual range. But its great efficacy is said to result from the alliance of microscopic photography, which, by reproducing the delicate gradations of any given movement, produces marvellous effects. The Photobioscope is a stereoscope which in addition to the appearance of solidity imparts that of life and motion to the object seen through it. "Ships are seen gliding on the surface of the deep, the waves twinkle in the merry sunlight, the cataract descends in glittering spray and foam from the brow of the jutting rock, cattle roam in search of pasture on the mountain skirts, the leaves are trembling in the breeze. Hands and arms are never still, mouths open and shut, the very eyelids wink." Such marvellous results are attributed to the Photobioscope, but as many of the treasures of Art and Science from Italy still slumber in their packages, it is impossible to verify the glowing account from actual observation, or even to affirm whether such a thing as a Photobioscope is exhibited in the Italian department of the Exposition of 1867.

Amongst the things that are really worth seeing may be mentioned one of the great attractions of the Rue des Indes-that is, the avenue of the building in which the contributions from British India are exhibited. This is a most masterly and lifelike group of stuffed animals, consisting of the body of a deer, over which a lion and tiger are engaged in deadly conflict. The grouping is happy in conception, and in execution leaves nothing to be desired. All day long a crowd blocks up the passage in front of this group, the work of Mr. Edwin Ward, of Wigmore Street, London; and it promises to be literally one of the "lions" of the Exhibition. Nearly opposite are Messrs. Smith and Beck's and Mr. Ross's microscopes, almost the

F

only first-class microscopes I have yet seen in the Exhibition. But more of this anon. Microscopy is not one of the social institutions of France.

As a naturalist I was disappointed, after hearing the glowing descriptions at the "Silver Swan," which is located not very far from the above-named group. I was perhaps wrong in expecting too much of nature from art. Back again to the Indian Court I am accustomed to wend my way to take another look at the stuffed fishes which Captain Mitchell has sent for exhibition from the Madras Museum. They are certainly the most praiseworthy efforts at reproducing the natural appearance of these most difficult objects in Natural History which I remember to have seen, and are by no means the satires upon fish-life which most of the attempts at preserving fish, even in our best museums, have hitherto been. There is, however, one drawback, in that the glass eyes which have been employed are very convex, instead of being nearly plane.

Several allusions have been made in these pages to the gigantic extinct birds of New Zealand, and it may be of interest to allude in passing to the remains of one of these birds which Major Michael, of Madras, will exhibit in the New Zealand Court, as soon as that court is ready for their reception. They are portions of a bird which must have attained a height of not less than fourteen feet.

No one who has seen and experienced the kind of life in which the entire Parisian population indulge, can be surprised that they do not pursue more closely the study of minute life through the medium of the microscope. The habit of dining in the evening at the café or restaurant, and spending the close of the day out of doors, the absence of anything approaching the domestic life of England -solitude, retirement, study, or even intellectual recreation, whilst it surprises an Englishman, forces on him the conviction that it is not here he must look for improvements in that instrument which, of all others, is becoming so widely the source of amusement and instruction, and attaining the position of a national institution in his own country.

After carefully searching through Class XII. in the Exposition, I have found small microscopes exhibited by E. Gundlach, of Berlin, in the Prussian Department, and in the court devoted to mathematical instruments on the French side are Nachet's, Hartnach's, and Chevalier's small microscopes. The best of any of these, as they stand in their showcases, only remind me of the instruments furnished by good English makers at from five to ten guineas cach. What they may be in operation is still a mystery, but the impression is anything but favourable. No one would suppose that the instruments shown under the name of Nachet are those which Frenchmen are in the habit of speaking of as the

best and most expensive that are made in Paris. The stands are low, and by no means elaborate in construction; the stage is devoid of any movement, for it is observed that both French and Germans prefer moving the slide containing the object with their fingers, and at the same time declare that they do so with greater precision than with any mechanical motion. The microscopes are all small, say about nine or ten inches in the entire height, when ready for work, and look as if they had been constructed somewhere about twenty years ago. Certainly there are two binoculars which from peculiarity of construction have a most singular appearance. Moreover, microscopes are exhibited with two or three divergent tubes which all unite at the lower end in a nozzle containing the objectglass, and two or three observers are supposed to be able to see the same object at the same time, by looking down the respective tubes. How much light can be thrown upon the object under such circumstances never appears to have entered into the consideration of the designer. Under any circumstances they deserve a place amongst the curiosities of microscopy. The Germans are said to prefer an instrument which is permanently erect, and the facility of inclining the body at any angle is regarded as an innovation, and not as an improvement. This reminds me that a friend has informed me that an enterprising manufacturer at Hamburg constructed a large instrument on the English pattern two or three years ago, and has never been able to dispose of it, so that it remains in his window as a monument of disappointed hopes. Surely the continental microscopists cannot be addicted to bending their heads and stretching their necks over a microscope hour after hour as Englishmen sometimes do, or they never would be so infatuated with their erect bodies. Every one has his tastes, but mine does not include either French or German microscopes, as far as I have hitherto become acquainted with them.

Another evidence of the want of universality in microscopic pursuits on the Continent appears to be the entire absence of all the little contrivances for mounting and observation which are so common in all the opticians' shops in London. One sees none of the "knicknacks" which accompany the microscope at home, and my own travelling microscope is looked upon here, by all who have seen it, as a kind of curiosity. Microscopical societies are almost unknown. The Microscopical Society of Paris is confined only to a few members, and is not even known by name, save in a limited circle.

In the Belgian Court a large series of photomicrographs are exhibited under the name of A. L. Neyt, of Gand; they are of a large size, but deficient in clearness, and are by no means equal to those which we are accustomed to see. The same photographs are exhibited also by agents in other

portions of the building. The objects selected are diatoms, acari, &c., many of them identical in subject with those produced by Dr. Maddox. At present I have been unable to find any exhibits of this kind in the American Court; but only a portion of the objects here are yet exposed, and photo-micrographs may repose still with other mysteries in the packing-cases.

SOMETHING TO DO.

"He would pore by the hour O'er a weed or a flower,

Or the Slugs that come crawling out after a shower;
Blackbeetles and Bumble-Bees, Bluebottle Flies,
And Moths were of no small account in his eyes;
An Industrious Flea' he'd by no means despise,
While an Old Daddy Long-legs,' whose 'long legs' and
thighs

Pass'd the common in shape, or in colour, or size,
He was wont to consider an absolute prize;
Nay, a Hornet or Wasp he could scarce 'keep his paws off'
-he

Gave up, in short,

Microscopic objects are exhibited in the British section by Mr. Topping and Mr. Norman, of London, Mr. Cole, of Liverpool, and Mr. Webb, of Birmingham; and in the French department by Messrs. Burgogne and Aliot. These require a more careful survey than I have yet been able to make, before any special objects can be indicated. Messrs. Burgogne's injections attracted much attention in 1862, but the display here is far inferior SIR THOMAS THE GOOD, made famous by in number, though probably fully equal in quality.

The Exhibition catalogue contains, amongst other things which are scarcely possible to find, an intimation that microscopes are exhibited by N. E. Evrard, A. N. Lebrun, J. N. Wentzel, and A. Miraud, of Paris; by J. J. Van Zelst Zaalberg, of Amsterdam; F. A. Nobert, of Barth; S. Merz, of Munich; J. Cavalleri, of Milan; as well as microscopical preparations by J. Nacovich, of Padua, P. Marchi, of Florence, and E. Oehl, of Pavia. Time will, perhaps, reveal all.

Messrs. H. and W. Crouch and M. Pillischer have microscopes exhibited in the British section, but these are too well known to our readers to need description.

It does not enter into my province to discuss the system of classification which the Imperial Commission has established, or to indicate how here a country and there a country has a classification of its own,-how vainly some have struggled to follow out the indicated arrangement, and how others have apparently despised it, and consequently how exceedingly difficult it is to find anything which may be required, especially in some groups, though it was prophesied that it would be so easy to find everything, that all former exhibitions would, on this point, be left far behind. Alas! that all the prophets should have prophesied so falsely; for some of the juries cannot determine, in many cases, whether certain goods belong to their class or to anybody else's, and the same natural products in one or two instances are referred to three different classes.

There is certainly much to amuse, and there are many sources of instruction in the Exhibition of 1867; and when everything is in its place, it will undoubtedly, as a whole, prove a superior exhibition of what is excellent in Science and Art to any of its predecessors; and it may be added withal that it deserves the honour of being the ugliest and best abused of all the great collective fairs of the present century. M. C. C.

Both business and sport,

And abandon'd himself, tout entier, to Philosophy."

INGOLDSBY.

Ingoldsby, must indeed have been a model Naturalist. His tastes, as described in the above passage, were very comprehensive; and his observations must have embodied the fruits of long and careful study. It is quite clear that he could not have been a mere collector. None but a true Naturalist, and a patient one withal, would "pore by the hour o'er a weed or a flower;" and we shall find much in his example that we shall do well to imitate, although we may hope that his sad fate will not befall us.

Nature is now beginning to awake from her winter sleep. The Botanist hails with delight the Violet and the Primrose, the Pilewort and the Marsh Marigold, bright forerunners of the floral train which another month will unfold to our view; the Entomologist, when he sees the gay Brimstone Butterfly on the wing, instinctively gets his net in order, and prepares for "the pleasures of the chase;" and the followers of every branch of Natural History feel that it is indeed time to be "up and doing." It is delightful to a Naturalist to learn that every year witnesses an increase in the number of Nature's votaries, that each returning spring gives a fresh impetus to the desire of becoming better acquainted with the wonders of creation. And surely he must indeed be apathetic who can wander on a genuine spring day through lane, field, or wood without really feeling, as well as seeing, the general awakening of all around, without feeling that simply to live, is in itself a wondrous pleasure.

As in a former paper we attempted to show what might be done in the way of "Winter Work," so will we now hint at a few of the ways in which novices in Natural History may learn to appreciate the wonders contained in the fast-unfolding pages of the great book of Nature spread over the world.

One very common error into which such people are liable to fall is to be found in the idea that they can begin in the middle, as it were, and thus make

or themselves a "royal road to learning," forgetting that he who would read must first master the alphabet; and many, when they find that Nature, too, has an alphabet which all must learn, give up the whole affair in disgust. They won't begin to study Botany, for instance, in the early spring, when the Groundsel and Dead Nettle claim their attention. No: these are not sufficiently "interesting" for them; they will wait until the spring flowers appear, and then they will set to work. They forget the parable which tells us that he who was made "ruler over many things" was first "faithful in a few things; " but when every day brings with it a fresh flower, they begin to find this out-they have much more to do than they expected, and so the year is wasted. It is here that we would offer our first hint: the sooner in the year you begin, the better. Gather yourself a January posy-Shepherd's Purse, Groundsel, and Red Dead Nettle; study well each of these; find out the names of their various parts; and when found," as Captain Cuttle says, "make a (mental) note of." If this seems a dry way of commencing, remember that nothing worth knowing was ever learnt without little trouble. You will have made a good beginning, and you will therefore stand a chance of persevering not to the end, that is never attained, but to a more perfect degree of the knowledge of the wondrous, though neglected, works of God.

Novices in Natural History frequently suppose that, in order to become well acquainted with the branch which they have taken up, they must "collect;" that bundles of dried plants are necessary to the study of Botany; a drawer of insects to that of Entomology; and so on. This, too, is a great mistake. We are quite aware that a really good collection of dried plants, brought together by one's self, is both valuable and interesting, particularly when each specimen brings back to one's mind the circumstances under which it was gathered. But few, comparatively, have sufficient time at their disposal to form a good collection; and some, thinking that this is essential, give up the study simply on this

account.

Now, a mere collector is, in a Naturalist's eyes, a creature of a very low order indeed: he it is who greedily seizes on every rare bird, plant, or insect, simply that each may be placed in his own collection;" " and then remains content in the knowledge that they are his. Nothing comes amiss to such an one: he is Geologist, Botanist, Entomologist, Ornithologist, all in one. The consequence is, that, being "Jack of all trades," he is "master of none;" he names his objects, certainly, but look over any one of his collections, and you will scarcely fail to find glaring errors. Such an one had much better turn his attention to Postage Stamps, or Trade Marks, of which he may form a collection which, if

it does no good, will not, at any rate, destroy Life→ that mysterious principle so easy to remove, so impossible to restore. For this reason, it is by no means advisable that every incipient Naturalist should be a collector; at least, he should restrict himself to common objects, so that, should he feel disinclined to pursue the study, he may not have deprived others, more persevering than himself, of their reward. Natural History is not a thing of books, or of preserved specimens; a mere museum, or hortus siccus: no, it is a living study, having its sermons in stones," its "books in the running brooks."

66

And now for a word or two to those who are already professed Naturalists. Have we not a tendency to wander too far abroad in search of objects for our contemplation? Do we not often find that we are better acquainted with the Botany of a place, two or three miles distant, than we are with that of a mile round our own residence? Again, have we not too great a desire to obtain rare species? are not the common ones often neglected? because "we can get them at any time "-and is not any time too often no time? Are we always as careful as we should be, not to take more specimens than we really require of any plant or animal ?—especially the latter-for we may well remember that many, both naturalists and divines, affirm that animals will be sharers with us in the Land of the Hereafter."

To those who are not already acquainted with them, let us introduce the advantages of keeping a Kalendar, after the fashion of good old Gilbert White, in which should be recorded the dates of the appearance of birds and butterflies, or the leafing and flowering of plants. We ourselves have kept such a Kalendar for the last eight or nine years, and very interesting we find it. At first, our Kalendar was not only useful, but ornamentalan elaborate (not to say troublesome) arrangement showed, not only the Latin name of the plant, but its English equivalent, the date of its appearance, the locality in which it was gathered, with other particulars; while the pages were embellished with divers and sundry striking (not to say illegible) headings, in astonishing letters of red, blue, and black ink! But after a year or two, we gave up this style of thing; first, because the embellishments, etc., took up more time than we could conveniently spare; next, because we found it impossible always to remember on our arrival at home all that we had seen during our walk; and a book 8 in. long by 6 broad is of an inconvenient size for the pocket. The plan which then suggested itself to us, and which we still follow, was this a lined MS. book, 8in. long by 3 broad, has each page divided into five columns: the first of these is about 18 in. broad, and allows ample space for the Latin name of the species, while the

remainder is divided into the four other columns, the placing of specimen No. 2 interfered very each being devoted to one year: thus

1865. 1866. 1867. 1868. Leontodon Taraxacum Jan. 4. Jan. 2. Jan. 24.

This book slips easily into a side-pocket. The list of plants should be first made out at home, and should include all that are found, or may possibly be found, in the district. Only one side of the page should be used for the list; as the opposite one may be handy for brief notes, or local names, for each species. The saving of time effected in this manner is very great: besides which, each plant can be noted down with a pencil as soon as observed, so that the risk of forgetting it is done away with. The list is also a very useful companion when we are spending a day in a new district, and want to learn as much of its Botany as possible; as a pencil mark affixed to the name of the plant will be sufficient to indicate that it has been observed. Of course a table of birds or insects can be added at will: so that one's pocket-book may be made a useful vade-mecum.

On a botanical excursion, we must, of course, carry a good-sized vasculum, alias sandwich-case; but on a short stroll, we need not thus encumber ourselves. Some of Huntley and Palmer's biscuits are sent out in little flat tin boxes, about 4 in. long, by 3 broad: one or two of these will travel very comfortably in our pockets, and the lids may

materially with the comfort of specimen No. 1. In conclusion, we may inform those who are as yet ignorant of the fact, that dried plants may be sent by book-post, according to the Post-office regulations. This was first ascertained a few years since by a friend, and we have frequently availed ourselves of the privilege. The name and, if wished, the description of the plant may be written on the sheet to which the specimen is affixed: though, of course, anything in the shape of a letter must be excluded. We would, however, advise our friends to see to the posting of packets of plants in this way, themselves; for district postmasters are not all aware of this privilege; and, although open to conviction, will occasionally, as we can testify, demur.

Let us, during the coming season, endeavour to become better acquainted with the inhabitants of our woods and fields: let us try to make our own district, as it were, a Selborne; and increase our knowledge, as well as that of others, of the wonders which it contains, remembering the words of the poet:

"He prayeth best who loveth best
All things both great and small;
For the great God who loveth us,
He made, and loveth all."

THE SWALLOWS.

B.

be secured with a stout elastic band. Those who BY way of an appendix to the elaborate and

know Fry's Chocolate Paste, will find the neat little round tins, in which it is enclosed, very handy companions if their shape is less convenient than that of the former, the tin is less flexible; and, if accidentally sat upon, does not sustain the same amount of injury which, sad experience convinces us, is suffered by the former; besides which, the lids fit closer. These boxes are suitable receptacles for beetles, snails, and many other objects; and are none the less useful because of their homely origin. The field Botanist will also find a small book of any description, which has a tightfitting clasp, very convenient for blossoms, such as those of Speedwells or Poppies, which are better pressed as soon as gathered; and specimens dried under such circumstances frequently retain their colour better than those with which more trouble has been taken. As a general rule, however, we do not think it advisable to dry plants while "on the march;" it occupies a great deal of time, with scarcely any compensating advantages. One of our botanical brethren (used to sally forth, with an elaborate arrangement of paper, boards, and straps, at his back; but we remember that the wind, on several occasions, violently resisted his attempts to spread out his specimens satisfactorily; while

learned essay by Lieut.-Col. Austen which appeared recently in SCIENCE-GOSSIP, perhaps I may be allowed to say a few words in defence of the antiquated and now generally abandoned idea that a certain portion of the hirundines winter in the countries which they inhabit during the summer months. I have long taken an interest in this subject, because it is one upon which theory and experience seem to differ very widely. The most eminent naturalists deny the possibility of the hybernation of swallows; eye-witnesses innumerable have at different times declared that they have found them in the winter months in a torpid state. It is scarcely probable that science can lead naturalists far astray, now that our knowledge of and interest in nature have so much increased; but, on the other hand, it is incredible that all these witnesses can have been deceived. Only one course remains open, viz., to acknowledge both theories to be partially correct, and to attempt to discover the reasons for the migration of one portion of the hirundines, and for the hybernation of the other; by doing this we shall be rendering a far greater service to the cause of truth, than by hastily adopting one or the other theory, and branding the supporters of the opposite idea as ignorant and credulous.

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