others, Franklin, the Countess of Huntington, Hannah More, Bishop White, Robert Hall, Mrs. Hemans, etc. This anecdote of the founder of Methodism will be new to some of our readers: "Mr. Wesley,' said a lady, 'supposing you knew you were to die at twelve o'clock to-morrow night, how would you spend tho intervening time?' "Just as I expect to spend it now, madam. I should preach this evening at Gloucester, and in the morning at five do the same. According to appointment, I should ride to Tewkesbury, preach there in the afternoon, and meet the religious societies in the ovening. I should repair to the friend's house who expects to entertain me, converse and pray with his family as usual, retire to my room at ten o'clock, commend myself to my Heavenly Father, lie down to sleep, and wake up in glory."" The sketch of Stephen Van Rensselaer, the well-known "patroon" of Albany, is very interesting. It closes with an account of his peaceful death and the following stanzas: "A blast swept through the forest, Yet the humblest violet at its feet "Then a wail went by, and a mournful sigh "The blessings that flow o'er the sons of woe, The Lenten Season is the title of a volume of Sermons upon the subjects of Sorrow for Sin, Repentance, Self-denial, the Design of Affliction, and other themes deemed specially appropriate for perusal during what is termed the Lenten Season, that is, the forty days between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday. The selection has been made with care, and contains sermons from Secker, Atterbury, Tillotson, John Wesley, Barrow, South, Isaac Watts, and others. The volume is neatly printed from the last London edition, by Thomas N. Stanford, New York. Carter & Brothers have published, in two neat 18mo volumes, that well-known work, The Lives, Acts, and Martyrdoms of the Apostles of our Saviour. By WILLIAM CAVE, D.D. The author was a man of learning and of great diligence. He was chaplain in ordinary to King Charles the Second, and his chief work, "A Literary History of Ecclesiastical Writers," secured him a place among the best scholars of his age. The work before us has furnished the materials for several subsequent writers, and is characterized by careful research and painstaking fidelity. The Children of the Kingdom is the title of a little volume from the pen of the REV. DUDLEY A. TYNG, of Philadelphia. It is made up of lectures originally delivered to the writer's own congregation, and is intended as a contribution to the important but sadly neglected work of family religion. The lectures are here thrown into the form of chapters, entitled, successively, A Christian Wife; A Christian Husband; Parents; Training of Children, etc. The writer is well known as an able and fearless minister of The Itinerant Side; or, Pictures of Life in the Itinerancy, belongs to a class of books which has become quite numerous. We have had " Shady Side," and "Sunny Side," and many others, setting forth the trials and the discouragements, the consolations and the joys of ministers of the Gospel. Itinerant Side, despite its rather uncouth title, may fairly take rank among the best of its class. The pictures of life in the itinerancy are mostly taken from actual incidents which have fallen under the observation of the writer, and some of them will appeal for their truthfulness to the consciousness of many a reader. (Carlton & Porter.) Scampavias from Gibel Tarek to Stamboul is the title of a rambling, rollicking narrative, by Lieutenant WISE, of the United States navy. The author has acquired some celebrity as a chronicler of voyages and travels, under the nom de plume of Harry Gringo, and the papers of the present volume were originally published, in part at least, in "Putnam's Monthly." They are issued in very good style, with telling illustrations, from the press of Scribner & Co. A part of Harry's introductory chapter will give the reader an idea of the vein in which the whole is written: "I was sitting, one dull, dreary morning, with my heels staring, with great outward satisfaction, at the fire, when the bell rang, and the postman brought me a letter. It was a portentous-looking document, wrapped in a huge yellow envelope, sealed with a great splash of red wax, and franked over the address, with the ominous words, Navy Department. Official busi ness,' "I have not the least doubt that many a poor trembling mariner has endured the same heart-sick feelings as came over my spirits, on bebolding a similar terrible engine so calculated to scatter dismay in peaceful families-when about to be pried out of a happy berth on shore, and sent away out upon the salt seas, to the Lord only knows where. "The long, slim icicles, which hung stiff and sharp from the branches of the trees in front of the windows, rattling in the rough blasts of a bleak March wind, were not colder or more dismal than I was, as I slowly tore off the cover of the document. I knew, by instinct, what would be the contents, and I was not a whit wide of the mark. It was very brief-these epistles usually are-and it was couched in the ordinary cast-a peremptory, and by no means affectionate, style. "This was its purport: 'Sir,-You are hereby appointed Flag-lieutenant of the Mediterranean squadron, and will proceed forthwith to report for duty on board the frigate Cumberland.' "While perusing this explicit and expressive missive, I recollect there was a spark flew in both my eyes from the fire; and when the baby was brought to me, as was customary in the morning, to fondle and tumble about the carpet, I could hardly see the little witch, though her downy cheeks were buried in my whiskers, and the soft, fat arms were twined around my throat. "Another cruise, my dear,' said I to my wife, pointing to the paper, which had fallen open upon the floor. "But you won't go, will you?' exclaimed my help. mate, with a shudder, as we nearly let the baby drop, between us. "Why, you know I must, I replied, mechanically, 'unless I toss up my commission and resign; and one don't care to take a step of that nature, here in the middle of the month, for it's so apt to derange the purser's accounts, and-so I fear there's no help for me.' "The servant announced breakfast. "What will you have?' inquired my help-mate, as she took a place at the table. "Tea of the blackest and strongest decoction,' I said, sadly, for the document had taken the edge off my appetite for solids; and be assured, brother sailor, that tea is your friend on these occasions, for it gives you a stout and indifferent heart. "It is needless to relate how, for a time, there were individuals about the premises, busily employed making up all sorts of linen, and other invisible gear; while the tailors fitted me out in blue broadcloth and bullion; until finally my kit was pronounced perfect, and away I went. "Very sad it made me to go, and I was not chary of epithets upon the world at large, and the Navy Department in particular; but one may as well rail at the northwest wind, while the breakers are dashing on a lee shore, as to look for sympathy in that quarter; and so I might have saved my breath. "I joined the frigate, I remember, in a blinding snow-storm. She lay chained to the piers of the dockyard, with her lofty masts, black yards, spar deck, and battery, sheeted in snow, while the boats coming from the receiving hulk, in the stream, were crowded with a living freight, which were to compose the crew. There were about five hundred of these last, consisting of the usual reckless, careless spirits, who roam over the ocean from all climes, and of all nations, including a goodly portion of newly imported wild Irishmen, and a few hardy Yankee salts. "The ship was commissioned, and for about a fortnight after, in addition to the never-ceasing confusion which reigns on board a vessel newly put in service, there appeared to be a perfect tornado of dock-yard artisans carpenters, riggers, tinkers, and the likewho rushed distractedly about, tearing everything to pieces that had been effected before, and never seeming to please anybody. "It is worthy of remark as a general rule, that there is always a wide difference of opinion between the dock-yard people and the mariners, with regard to the comparative utility of the various improvements or fittings of a sea-going ship, and, in the end, both parties are not disinclined to part with each other as soon as practicable. "Our trials, in this respect, were not of long duration, and one bright, pleasant morning, early in the month of May, Anno Domini 1852, the sailing orders came.' How to Write is the title of a carefully prepared and neatly printed pocket manual, from the press of Fowler & Wells, of this city. It includes practical rules for letter-writing, literary composition, and the correction of proofs for the printer; with approved forms for notes, cards, and letters on business and other subjects. A perusal of its pages will do no harm to anybody; and THE NATIONAL has occasionally a correspondent who would do well to study it thoroughly. REV. ANDREW CARROLL, A. M., has sent us the first volume of Moral and Religious Sketches and Collections, with Incidents of Ten Years' Itinerancy in the West, prepared by himself, and published for him by Swormstedt & Poe, of Cincinnati. He is evidently an unpracticed writer, and his book would have been better if it had been carefully revised and razeed by a competent hand. Brief Recollections of the late Rev. George W. Walker. By REV. M. P. GADDIS. How incessantly, and on every hand, are we admonished of the uncertainty of life! Among the delegates who composed the last General Conference, at Indianapolis, there were very few who appeared to have a fairer prospect for a long life than George Washington Walker, of the Cincin nati Conference. His tall and commanding figure was conspicuous, and his appearance indicated robust health. So far as man could see, there were in store for him many years of toil and trial in the Master's vineyard. But in less than two months after the adjournment of that body he was called home. Death found him ready, and his departure was triumphant. These "brief recollections" of a good man will be read with interest, and this tribute to his memory is worthy alike of the subject and the author. It is embellished with a striking portrait, engraved by Jones, and is neatly printed for the author by Swormstedt & Poe, of Cincinnati. Of JUVENILE Books upon our table we may notice: (1.) About Right and Wrong, a profusely illustrated volume for very little children. It is made up of short stories and lessons, entertaining and instructive, from the well-known pen of JACOB ABBOTт. (Harper & Brothers.) (2.) Faithful Nicolette; or, The French Nurse, is an original story, founded upon facts, and showing the wonderful providence of God, and his paternal care for those who put their trust in him. It is gracefully written, and we trust the author (MRS. SARAH A. MYERS, of Carlisle, Pa.) will be encouraged to write frequently, and to devote her talents rather to American than to foreign subjects. (Carlton & Porter.) (3.) A Swarm of B's is the fanciful title to six stories for little children. They are, severally, Be Obedient; Be Thankful; Be Forgiving; Be Truthful; Be Contented; Be Good-tempered. (4.) Ellen and Sarah; or, the Samplers, including, also, Deceitful Rachel, and Dermot, the Fisher Boy. (5.) Margaret Craven; or, The Beauty of the Heart, a narrative of touching interest. This, and the two preceding, are reprints from English publications, selected and adapted to American juvenile readers, by DR. WISE, and published by Carlton & Porter. (6.) From the same publishers we have a volume entitled Sunday-School Facts, by the REV. J. T. BARR, which, although found in the juvenile department, will equally interest teachers and superintendents. (7.) The Prompter; or, The Sunday Scholar's True Friend, is a serial, edited by the Secretary of the Sunday-School Union, of which the second volume is now published. It is a well-selected miscellany of original and selected articles, illustrated with cuts. (8.) Of the same size and general appearance as the former volume of ABBOTT's Histories, we have now, King Richard the First of England. The author's name is a guarantee for the vivacity of the narrative, and the romantic features in the career of the lion-hearted king were never painted with more fidelity to historic truth. (Harpers.) (9.) Minnie Ray: a Story of Faith and Good Works, is far above the average of recent publications for juvenile libraries, and we are pleased to see that the very efficient Sunday-school editor is adding to his catalogue books of real value, and of American authorship. Minnie Ray is from the pen of MRS. C. M. EDWARDS, author of "The Herbert Family," and is worthy of all commendation. (Carlton & Porter.) The Farm and the Flower-Garden. The Chinese Yam has made a good deal of noise among farmers and gardeners; and not a few are even yet disposed to regard it as not altogether a humbug. Our friend of The Rural New Yorker is not of the number, but satirizes the thing and those who puff it on this wise: "If any of our readers happen to have a five dollar bill in their pockets that is troublesome, they can get rid of it easily, by buying a dozen Dioscorea batatas, and we pledge our word, that they will never be troubled with a lack of room to store the product thereof. This is a recommendation that cannot be said of all vegetables. If a man plants an acre of carrots, sugar beets, mangel-wurzel, etc., he is often sorely tried in spirit, to find room in his cellar or out-houses for the crops, when harvested; but fortunately for the world, the Chinese Yam (Dioscorea batatas) never subjects him to such affliction. A peck basket, a nail keg, or soap box will generally hold the entire product of a half acre or so, and a vast expense is saved in picking up and carting the crop to the cellar, which accrues in harvesting most other root crops. The only drawback to the business is, the person who digs, and ho who picks up the yams, have to carry a magnifying glass, in order to discover them. One of our neighbors last fall attempted to gather his crop, simply with the aid of a pair of spectacles, but did not succeed. The demand for magnifiers is so great, that it is doubtful if a supply can be had for the gathering of the next crop, and what the growers of yams will do is beyond our comprehension." Sowing Clover with Spring Crops.-Many farmers prefer seeding to clover with oats, barley, or spring wheat, in preference to sowing upon winter grain, but we are not aware, says The American Farmer, that success is much more certain. It is true, the seed has a fresh bed in the former case, but the washing by rains and the cracking and crumbling of the soil where winter wheat is grown, makes a good bed and a sufficient covering for such light seeds. It is a common custom when seeding with spring grain, to sow the grass seed before the last harrowing. By this practice the seed, or a large portion of it, get covered too deep, and never vegetates. A better mode is to finish the harrowing, then sow the grass seed, and either roll or bush it. Our plan is to roll the ground on winter wheat. This presses the seed into the earth and the earth firmly about the seed, so that the tender germ at once attains a firm hold and finds nourishment at hand for the growing plant. Sowing Flower Seeds.-When the seeds of annuals are sown, it is recommended that the ground be first enriched with well-decayed manure, dug deep and broken with the spade, and A writer in the Rural Intelligencer of Maine lightly raked. Sow in drills or circles; the says: "We started it early in our hot-bed, which, of course, is rich as manure could make it, and there we let it remain and grow all summer, sole occupant of the premises, after the young plants for which the bed was chiefly made were removed. It grew to its heart's content. The other day we concluded to dig for our peck of huge yams, when, after following the main root down one whole foot, we came across one Discorea batatas-one, just one-and that was about as large as a little potato, too small for the pot. We cooked it, however, and found it not a disagreeable esculent. So much for our first experiment." A writer in the Prairie Farmer says of several hills that he planted: "They came up in due time after planting, grew, looked, and ran up a stake like our wild morning glory: first frost killed the vines. They were harvested a few days ago, and the entire crop is seven potatoes. They ran down perpendicularly and have to be dug with a spade. The whole crop would not make half of one meal for any well man." Guano for Melons.-An exchange paper says: "We had a very fine melon patch which was wellnigh destroyed by the striped bug. The vines had just commenced running, and in two or three days the bugs had stripped nearly every leaf. As a desperate remedy, we applied a handful of guano on the top of the hill as far as the vines had run, taking care that it did not fall on the leaf. In twenty-four hours not a bug was to be seen; the vines had assumed a healthy and vigorous appearance, and are now loaded with fruit. This experiment was not on one vine only, but hundreds. The remedy, however, is a dangerous one, more frequently killing the vines than the bugs." It will certainly destroy the plants wherever it touches them, and should therefore be applied with great care, if at all. Any strong, pungent odor will drive insects away; but to keep them away-"that's the question." first may be made with a blunt stick; the last by the rim of a flower-pot. The depth must vary according to the size of the seed; very small seed requiring only a very slight covering. Tender annuals may be started in the house in pots or shallow pans, or in a hot-bed. When they come up, if they are too thick, thin them out, and transplant them. Some kinds may be grown in clumps, while others require considerable room for their development; some will also require to be supported by stakes or strings. Keep all free from weeds. Planting out Verbenas. Verbenas may be planted out in beds or masses, or distributed singly in the borders. The former method is now in general use, and the most gorgeous and beautiful effects are produced. The beds are usually cut out of the sod, of figures to suit the fancy, and each bed filled with plants of one color, which, as they grow, are pegged close to the ground, and not permitted to bloom, but nipped back frequently until the bed is completely covered. A watering with weak liquid producing an abundant bloom; great care is manure, or soap suds, will greatly assist in necessary to keep up a uniform and symmetrical growth of the plants, which is indispensable to & proper effect. Old and New Varieties of Flowers.—A writer in the London Gardener's Chronicle inquires, very pertinently, whether the arts of the cultivator should be limited, as they now are, to the domestication of a few fashionable races, to the entire neglect of the ancient inhabitants of the flower-garden. A hollyhock, he thinks, is as showy as a dahlia, much easier to culti vate, as prone to run into varieties, and hardy instead of tender. In England, and here also to some extent, the hollyhock for some years was nearly superseded by the dahlia; but they are now both assuming their proper place. There are some who affect to decry the dahlia; but the truth is, it is a noble flower, and cannot be spared from the list of fall-blooming plants. The amaranth, also, so magnificently referred to by Milton as the flower inwoven with the crown of angels, is another old plant peculiarly suited for rich autumnal decoration, quick growing, and long enduring, and no doubt susceptible of further change. The amaranth has become quite popular in the United States, and deserves a place in every garden. It is a beautiful bedding plant. Geraniums.-The old horse-shoe or scarlet geranium has within a few years been wonderfully improved and its varieties greatly multiplied, and it not only gives us an abundant bloom during the winter under glass, but constitutes one of our favorite bedding plants for summer. There are a large number of very pretty dwarf varieties, such as Tom Thumb, Tom Thumb's Master, Tom Thumb's Bride, Cerise Unique, Lilliput, Commander in Chief, and many others. There are a few rose-colored varieties, of which Lucia Rosea and Princess Alice are the best; and also two or three white varieties, of which Snow Ball and Buchanan's White are the best we have seen. All of these may be propagated from cuttings of the young wood, and will grow well in compost of loam, sand, and old, well-rotted manure, with a little leaf-mold. To make fine specimen plants plenty of pot room must be given, and systematic pruning and pinching in are indispensable. Flower vases, when the plants are chosen with taste, discriminately arranged, and carefully attended to, are very beautiful. To succeed well in vases in a climate like this, where the sun strikes on any isolated object, as a vase, with extraordinary power, considerable attention is required in the watering, so that the flowers never become parched. A mulching is of great benefit to arrest evaporation. The scarlet geranium will do well for a center plant. About this may be arranged some of the following, as fancy may dictate: Cuphea platycentra; Heliotropes, Verbenas, Petunias, Alyssum maritimum, Phlox Drummondii, etc. Hot Water for Plants. It is not generally known that if parlor plants are watered occasionally with warm water, a little above blood heat, they will be brought forward with great rapidity. The health of room plants is greatly promoted by also syringing them frequently with warm water. It is some ten years since we had occasion to press this matter upon our amateur friends, after due experience of its gratifying results. The Moss Rose.-This flower affords one of the most singular and striking examples of that divine creative power that brings proud man to the knowledge that, with all his artful skill, he may not "paint the lily or add fragrance to the rose." We first hear of moss roses in England in 1727, though they are supposed to have been introduced from Holland in the sixteenth century. The mossy appearance is now admitted to be a mere lusus naturæ, as is fully To Destroy Weeds. With regard to weed-proved by their sometimes "sporting" back to the original Provence Rose. grown gravel-paths, they may be cleared with a scuffle or pushing hoe; but this is only a temporary clearance. The following preparation is said to be used at the Mint in Paris, with such good effect that the weeds do not re-appear for several years: twenty-five pounds of water, five pounds of quick-lime, and half a pound of flour of sulphur, are boiled in an open vessel, and the liquid having been allowed to settle, the clear part is drawn off and used more or less diluted for watering the pavement and alleys. Great care, however, must be taken in watering paths with it, to prevent its touching the root of box or other edgings, which it would inevitably destroy. A preparation like the above, but greatly diluted when used, we have found an excellent remedy for the destruction of insects, more especially that abomination, the red spider. Its application to gravel walks is new to us; but used as directed, we have no doubt it will kill anything. Transplanting Roses.-Be careful, if the roots are in the least broken or bruised, to trim them smooth with a sharp knife just above the bruise, also making all the jagged ends smooth. This is important to insure health. Any root inclined to grow directly downward should be shortened, and those growing horizontally carefully handled. The ground must be well trenched and highly manured, and the roots of the plant exposed as little as possible to the sun while being transplanted. At the same time the plant must be well pruned. Sanvitalia Procumbens.-This showy bedding annual deserves a place in every spot of ground devoted to the culture of flowers. It is very easily managed: have the bed well "trenched" that is designed for its growth, and if the soil is of a strong, retentive character, add sharp sand sufficient to keep it porous, and let it be thoroughly incorporated. Sow the seeds the end of April, if the weather is dry and settled; take a five inch flower-pot inverted, press it into the soil the depth of half an inch, at regular distances of about fifteen inches apart, and sow the seed in the indentation thus made, and cover lightly; thin out the plants to about four of the best; keep the soil free from weeds and often stirred up, and the result will be satisfactory. Should any beds be occupied with hyacinths or tulips, it may be sown in five inch pots, and transplanted in showery weather in their place, when their bloom is over, and the sooner it occupies its position the better. It seeds freely, and enough can be saved in the fall for operations another season. Manure has a tendency to make it produce too much vine, and diminish its blooming propensity. Sweet Peas.-This is one of the earliest of out-door plants, and may often be planted as early as the close of the month of April. Make a circle round a pole, or some object to which they may cling, and put the peas an inch deep into the ground. Each month you may add another circle of peas, and thus keep up a continual bloom until late in the autumn. THERE is, perhaps, scarcely one indi- | sturdiest intellects, apparently, of our THE NATIONAL who is not already aware of the tragical fate that has recently befallen the eminent man whose name stands at the head of this sketch. One of the VOL. X.-36 overthrown and wrecked. Science has lost one of her foremost and favorite sons, literature an honorable votary, and religion a distinguished champion. A career, |