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been very successful in her attempts at con- | the idea that he could cry had never entered verting her dragoman :— our heads."

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"In a conversation with Mahomet on the subject of his religion, we gathered that he looked upon Jesus Christ as one of the three "The dahabëéhs, like royal courts in olden thousand prophets whom God had sent into times, are, in general, provided with one the world from the beginning, and some of member who acts in the character of fool' whom were in it still. He denied the divine to the rest of the party, in order to keep them nature of Christ, simply, he said, because alive and in good humor. It is impossible. How can man be God? Comic,' who was thus designated on account There was a dogged obstinacy of manner of the tricks and buffoonery with which he about him, which would seem to repel all was forever amusing the company, seemed to idea of the possibility of persuading him of stand in this position to our crew. His voice any error in his creed, and a eadly curious had not been heard for some time, when we self-confidence when he concluded the sub-suddenly discovered him, lying comfortably ject with these words, Very well, Mrs. in the small boat alongside, with a magnifiC. When come the end of the world, cent turban twisted round his head, and comthen you be there, and I be there, and then posed of the strip of carpet which formed our we'll see, and then I tell you how it is true.' divan. There he lay, with a most comic exThey do not pray to their saints, he said, al- pression of grandeur and independence, waitthough they are perpetually singing out their ing till we should turn round to have a look names in their songs, whether in times of at him. Poor fellow! he had certainly fordanger or otherwise. The basis of the Mos- gotten himself; and, in the eyes of the draglem faith is the first grand truth, that there oman, had exceeded even the bounds of foolis but one God, and that he orders all ery.' Mahomet ordered him and his turban things, even to the most trifling circum- off, with a reprimand, when, to our regret stances in life, to which order man must im- and astonishment, a small stick was produced, plicitly submit. Mahomet seemed to know and the bastinado' was inflicted. The culno other article of faith; and the imperfect which he did instantly, sitting on the side of prit was ordered to hold up his naked feet, knowledge of the Moslem converted this one into the mere idea of a destiny, to which it the boat, and two sharp strokes were laid was his duty wholly to resign himself. All across the soles, which must have been exwas destiny, carried to such an extent that tremely painful, though not a muscle in his Mahomet frequently would not venture an countenance betrayed it. We remarked upon opinion on the merest trifles; even he would what we considered unnecessary severity; not say at what hour we were likely to reach but Mahomet said, No, he never remember And as Mahomet, though our destination. More than once he begged only words.' of us not to ask him such questions, be- passionate, was certainly tender-hearted, we cause, if I say we get there by five o'clock. believe he may have been right. The poor the wind sure to rise, and we not get half feet were rubbed for an instant by a sympaway there to-night.' Swearing and drink-thizing hand, but no other sign of feeling was ing are wholly forbidden by their law; the upon the subject by either party.' former vice had one day met with condign After their return to Cairo from the second punishment in the person of the unfortunate cataracts, our party proceeded by rail to Suez, cook-boy, who cried like a real child after and thought of going as far as Mount Sinai the shame of his beating. We looked up-but that was not to be. "Cousin Phil," from our work and book in astonisht ent at who was generally carried in an invalid chair, hearing the familiar sounds proceeding from so unfamiliar a form, for I do think that our cook-boy, though a very good boy in general, was the most unlike specimen of the human race that could have been produced, and

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borne by stout Arabs, was upset at this part of the journey, and, though fortunately not seriously hurt, considered it more prudent to abstain from further explorations.

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From The Reader. filth, and prevent its destroying the life of DR. LANKESTER ON THE MICROSCOPE. higher animals"-heaven-sent scavengers, Half-hours with the Microscope: being a Popu-making filth all but sublime!

lar Guide to the Use of the Microscope as a Means of Amusement and Instruction. By Edwin Lankester, M. D. Illustrated from Nature by Tuffen West. Third Edition (Hardwicke.)

After accompanying us on our holiday at the sea-side-and what wonders there await us!-in the last chapter our author shows us that we need only, after all, stay at home and look around us to equal the

Wonder, and the feast

Of beauty out of West and East which the whole material universe pours out at our feet.

The eight plates which are dispersed throughout the book illustrate, in Tuffen West's best manner, the appearances of two hundred and fifty objects under the microscope. An appendix gives full instructions as to the mounting of objects, and to the manner in which they are best prepared.

ALL who busy themselves with that everinstructive instrument-the microscope—will welcome this new edition of Dr. Lankester's valuable little work; most welcome, however, will it be to the amateur who has only lately begun to interest himself in the hidden beauties of nature. It is highly gratfying that no fewer than seven thousand copies of this work have already been sold. Such a fact argues well for the progress of microscopic investigations in this country, where, at length, the instrument is beginning to be While thus we find Dr. Lankester, one of appreciated for its many practical applica- the editors of the Quarterly Journal of Mitions; as, indeed, it should be, even were the croscopical Science, forsaking for a time scienknowledge it revealed less valuable, or the tific description, and what is too often conbeautiful forms with which it makes us ac-sidered the "high and dry" part of this quainted less beautiful.

In the present edition, in the first chapter, has been introduced a full description of the structure of the compound-microscope, and of Mr. Wenham's beautiful arrangement for binocular vision, which is now so generally appreciated, and of which it has been well said that the importance is especially apparent when applied to anatomical investigations, their injections assuming their natural appearance at once, and no longer appearing flat and picture-like as heretofore.

At page 40, after we have been invited to take our microscope into the garden, the curious T-shaped hairs of the crysanthemum are noticed inter alia, while smokers are furnished with an infalible test of the purity of their tobacco. Fungi, mosses, and ferns-those beautiful objects met with in the country, and so interesting-are amply discoursed upon and next come the treasures of the ponds and rivers, dermids and diatoms. After these are described the cenfervæ amabas, and vorticellæ, and wheel-animalcules which we are told we can study if "we go to every dirty pond, indeed, into which cesspools are emptied, and dead dogs and cats are thrown;" where "we shall find abundant employment for our microscope in the beautiful forms which are placed by the Creator in those positions to clear away the dirt and

subject, and writing this most charming popular little book, our opticians are not unmindful of the requirements of those about to enter the great Temple of Nature by its smallest door. The instruments constructed for the amateur are as remarkable for their convenience as are the larger ones for the perfection of all their parts.

We have lately in this journal called attention to the last victory achieved by our microscope-makers in the shape of a one twenty-fifth object-glass admitting of ordinary manipulation, and giving a magnifying power of three or four thousand diameters without any loss of definition. Nor will our opticians rest here; we believe that Mr. Wenham is not the only one who does not despair of constructing an object-glass having a focal length of one fiftieth of an inch.

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ployed, and then the third generation will wonder how they ever bore with the memorytaxing alternative. But violent dealing with the mass of the people will simply produce a prejudice which may be fatal to the reform.

From The Spectator, 4 July. DECIMAL WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. MR. EWART's bill for enforcing the decimal system of weights and measures contains three separate principles-first, that the national annotation shall be the decimal one; sec- The two great principles of the bill remain, ondly, that the units adopted shall be those and the House, in voting the acceptance of now spreading over the Continent; and, both by one hundred and ten to seventy-five thirdly, that the new system shall, after three has, we believe, shown its wisdom. Nobody years, he compulsory upon all classes of peo- able to read these words needs, we imagine, ple. The third we need not discuss, as it to listen to argument in favor of the decimal was resisted by Government, and given up by system. It is not in itself the absolute best, the mover, and would never have been intro- ten being only a multiple of two and five, duced except by men whose logical faculty whereas twelve is divisible by two, three, had blinded their political judgment. Three four, and six, and would, therefore, could it years would not suffice to make middle-aged be introduced, be exactly twice as useful. men forget the system under which they were Mathematicians, however, do not cry for the brought up, and it is middle-aged men who moon more than other adults, and the Arabic control every branch of our petty commerce. notation being already the one in use over Compulsion will, no doubt, one day be essen- Europe, the decimal system is the only one tial in order to keep dealers honest, but to worthy consideration. It is just as superior to introduce it before the new generation have all other practicable systems as the Gregorian been educated and the people have reconciled calendar would be to a medley of all the calthemselves to a most annoying change is to endars invented or used by mankind, or as a court certain failure. The law would be re- fixed price in a shop is to a haphazard haggle. sisted in every village shop by the buying Everybody knows how to count by tens, and many as well as the selling few, and no ma- as everything can be most easily counted by chinery which Englishmen are likely to tol- tens, the introduction of other modes of erate would suffice to keep the penal clauses counting-and there are about twenty in in operation, or even in public remembrance. common use— -is just so much time and caParliament might as well pass a law that pacity and labor wilfully thrown away. If every man shall know logarithms, as compel we say that the mass of English children magistrates to punish everybody who cannot throw away one year of education on learnat once understand a foreign-sounding, and ing systems of arithmetic which are utterly therefore detested system of weights and useless, and three years of life in applying measures. The French annotation is, say all them, we shall be far within the mark. The its advocates, simple, clear, and symmetrical, Rev. Alfred Barret, said Mr. Cobden, calcuand therefore, there can be no difficulty; but lated that it would produce a saving of two plenty of ideas deserve all those epithets, but years in education, and that the study would will, nevertheless, never be understood of the be much more agreeable and complete than mass. Nothing can be more simple, or clear, at present. "Dr. Farre also produced a or symmetrical than the deductions by the letter from Lord Brougham, stating that he spectrum analysis, but Mr. Cobden would had collected the testimony of schoolmasters find some difficulty in making the green- on the point, and had come to the conclusion grocers of Rochdale see them. Let him only that a third of the time might be saved.” remember the difficulty of driving a new idea Why sums in plain figures should be counted into the House of Commons, the years it in tens, and in money by fours, twelves, and takes to secure the smallest reform, the blank tens, and in grocery by sixteens, fourteens, dullness with which members, most of whom and a hundred and twelves, and in cloth dealcould work rule of three, listened to the un- ing by twelves, fives, and threes, and in land answerable figures produced in defence of dealing by twelves, threes, forties, and fours, free trade. By and by, as the lads grow up and so through every description of trafficwho have learnt the new system in national not to mention new varieties introduced with schools, the old one will be voted cumbrous, every change of locale-is certainly one of and a gentle compulsion may fittingly be em- the anomalies which it might tax a consist

ently Tory intellect either to understand or defend. The advantage of the decimal scheme is, with the educated, beyond the reach of argument, and the House of Commons in affirming it merely proved that it was composed of decently civilized men. But was it wise in also affirming that in the new decimal system the units for England should be the same as those adopted in France?

in use with civilized nations, i.e., the French, which again has the stamp of experience and the approval of most scientific men. Our Asiatic and American customers deal with France as well as ourselves, and would find increased ease from the use of a single calculation. Mr. Henley's funny objection, that Englishmen ought not to borrow a standard from Frenchmen, cannot have been seriously On the whole, and with certain reserva- intended, even by a man who objected to the tions, we conceive it was. A local standard arc as a standard because the world was for money is of comparatively little impor- growing. As well consider it humiliating to tance; at all events, till the world has adopted use the last French discovery in astronomy, a single standard instead of a double one, and or mathematics, or medicine, as a standard made up its mind on the most durable fine- which is only French, because they first deness for gold, and devised some method of cided that a measurement common to all making the assay of all mints uniform, abol- geometricians could and should be so used. ished paper as legal tender, and settled two Only, we repeat once more, do not let us buror three other points not likely to be consid- den ourselves with a French terminology ered at present. There is no real harm in a which the people will either reject or so mislocal system, provided it be decimal, and in pronounce as to create new words. The England this reform could be carried at once words matter nothing if the measures are uniby merely dividing the pound. We have the form, for gramme can be as easily translated florin, and if we only struck a hole in the into "grain" as oui into “ yes." The prejcentre of the present silver threepence, we udice seems unphilosophical; but English should have a cent worth the tenth of the shopkeepers are not philosophers, and, as a florin, and very convenient to carry, and the matter of fact, our countrymen always make mite or tenth of that is, at an inappreciable a mess of half sounds, and will, therefore, loss to the mint, just the existing farthing. be specially prejudiced against the French The wretched existing currency might, we terminology. The greengrocer who would believe, in this manner be abolished in a very call a pound a pfund, without much grimacshort time without irritation to the popular ing, would inevitably call a livre either mind or disturbance to smaller trades, and "liver 66 or leev," sounds requiring transwith the gain of at least six months to every lation as much as English words. The way ordinary life. A local system of weights and to overcome prejudice without injuring the measures is, however, a real disadvantage reform is to adapt existing measures to the even where decimalized. It is not only a French standard, by prefixing the word " imdirect inconvenience to all merchants, and one perial as is now done in liquids. Let us so great as to amount almost to a percentage have an imperial grain, ten grain, hundredagainst English bookkeepers, but it has an grain, etc., the latter looks cacophonous, but indirect effect in diminishing demand. Our is not a whit more so than hundred-weight best customers do not understand the quan--and wait till the adoption of the new eystity or the price of things offered in English tem renders the prefix only a surplusage. weights and lengths, and the first temptation Then, and not till then, the use of the decito purchase is facility to calculate price. mal may be made compulsory by a very simThe difficulty will not, of course, stand in the ple device. We would at once kill all other way of high rates of profit, but competition systems, and render an inestimable service to is growing keen, and the Parisian who finds the poor by giving the mint a monopoly of Liège ware, the weight, size, and price of the manufacture of measures. which he can comprehend without counting, illegal to use any weight, or rod, or quart, offered nearly as cheap as the Birmingham without the mint stamp upon it, as it now is goods, which involve for every consignment to use any false measure, and as dangerous a wearisome sum, is pretty certain to choose to imitate it as to imitate the coin, and the the former. Of course, if we choose a new reform would be completed with the minimum standard, we may as well have the one most of innovation. England would then be com

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pletely within the continental circle of trade, | in consequence of physical forces adjusted to and merchants need only translate the names develop this form (that which, mechanically of their measures as they now translate the names of their goods.

VEGETABLE MORPHOLOGY.

To the Editor of The Reader.

considered, possesses the greatest number of advantages as the form of an individualized object surrounded by others which react upon it), all individualized objects in nature, from the heavenly bodies to the most minute molecule, tend towards it so far as the type of hereditary form or the conditions of existence will allow; although, as often as the form surpasses microscopic dimension, it succeeds only very partially in consequence of the extreme difficulty of the construction of this form amid so many linear currents and irregularly incident forces.

SIR,-In your "Scientific Summary" of last Saturday week, which is commonly the first thing I look at on opening my Reader, there is a notice of a paper on Morphology by Mr. Warner, published in the Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadel The living being starts from the solid sphere phia; and it has occurred to me that you (ovum, seed, fruit, tuber, bud, etc.)—that might not be displeased to learn that in the is, from the form whose contents is a maxiEdinburgh New Philosophical Journal, Vol. mum compared with its exposed surface, and XII., No. 2 (October, 1860) there is a paper under which therefore a limited portion of on "Vegetable Morphology, its General Prin-living matter can be most safely and happily ciples," where views are advanced which ap- conserved till the moment arrive when develpear to be similar to those of Mr. Warner, opment may take place. and the others whom you name in your very interesting but too short notice. In the paper referred to I have endeavored to show that the plant-form is a thing of which reason can give an account-that in fact it is determined by these two laws :

And that development consists in the protrusion of the contents of the solid sphere or spherule, and the nisus of the living particles through nutrition to group themselves in the form of the hollow sphere--that form in which precious matter may be spread out to the greatest extent without breach of continuity. The construction of the hollow sphere is, however, easy only when it possesses micro

I. The law of continuity (or diffusion between dissimilars on their mutual confines) operating in this case between the rare mobile air and the dense fixed earth, and real-scopic dimensions; and here, throughout the ized by the vegetable kingdom, which clothes our planet on the mutual confines of the air and the earth, maintaining continuity between them as far as possible-the planet consisting on the one hand (in its combustible parts) of air become dense (carbonic acid, ammonia, vapor), and on the other (in its ash constituents) of earth (lime, silica, potass, etc.,) become as aeriform in position and distribution as the nature of these terrene concrete substances admits.

whole organic world, the existence of the hollow sphere-the cell-is universal and paramount. When the form becomes large, the spherical superfices (or sphere in the proper sense) appears ouly in fragments as frond (convex or concave), apothetium, etc., etc.; ultimately as a group of leaves, peltate as a group, or normal to the branch that bears them-the branch (or radius of the hollow sphere) being given by the law of diffusion. The direction of the force of light from above, and of gravitation from beneath, along with that unity of axis which is implied in the organizaion of an individual that is to live, are the chief modifying circumstances. Still, it is wonderful to what an extent the free individual, from protococcus to the forest tree,

Hence we are able to account for the chemical compositions of plants, and to see the necessity of a supply of ash constituents for the growth of a crop no less than of organic manure, and to understand the ascending and descending system of plants, their spreading and much divided-in a word, their mobile affects a spherical contour. and aerial-structure.

II. The law of the spherical, or of perfect symmetry, in virtue of which I maintain that,

JOHN G. MACVICAR, D.D.

Manse, Moffatt, Dumfriesshire.

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