1-10 horse power, but it is always ready, and is perfectly safe, and when gas is employed for heating, requires only two feet per hour. Externally, it is cylindrical in form, widening at one end conically, and placed at an angle of 45 degrees, and turns on supports, a conical toothed wheel on the top converting the motion into horizontal or vertical. FUNCTIONS OF THE BRAIN.-Recent researches made in England appear to establish the fact that each convolution of the brain is a separate organ, though several of them may work together, and often do; that the great motion centers are collected in the front part of the brain; that the muscles of the jaw are moved by the convolution just above the ear, where the phrenologists locate alimentiveness; that the main, if not the sole use of the cerebellum is to move the muscles of the eye, which is thus more amply supplied with brain power than any other portion of the body of equal size; and that epilepsy is caused by a lesion between two convolutions of the brain. VARIETIES. VESUVIUS.—All around is spread a magnificent prospect. Immediately below lies the Atrio, just above which may be clearly seen the three small craters which gave rise to the lava of 1858; the current itself may be traced running from them against the walls of Somma, then turning to the west, in which direction it is hidden for some short distance by the more recent flows of 1867 and 1868, and again appearing with its ropy structure south of the Salvatore ridge; shorter currents from the same craters are also seen run ning eastwards, farther into the Atrio. Beyond frown the steep and lofty cliffs of Somma, a little to the west is the ridge of San Salvatore, a fragment of old Somma, standing up amid black lavaflows (1855 and 1868 on the north, and 1767, 1858, and 1867 on the south). Farther off lie the plain, with scattered towns and villages, surrounded by green vineyards, the beautiful bays of Naples and Baiæ, the islands of Ischia and Pro cida, the old volcanic mountains of the Phlegræan Fields; and farther off still, bounding the fertile plain and marking an old sea-coast, are the higher mountains beyond Capua and the snowy Apennines. Turning from this magnificent prospect, the crater-edge is gained; the sides are seen to slope steeply inwards, but the volumes of smoke constantly passing upwards hide the structure of the interior except for momentary glimpses. Leaving the edge of this great smoking caldron, some small holes attract attention, holes not more than a yard or so wide, but of unknown depth, up which is constantly ascending a powerful current of hot air, so that fine sand or fragments of paper thrown in are at once blown forcibly out. Passing round the edge of the crater, a view to the south is obtained; the plain on which Pompeii stood lies directly below, bounded by the mountains behind Castellamare, again forming the boundary of the old sea before mentioned. Across the blue waters of the bay the hills behind Sorrento and the island of Capri please the eye by their soft outline and delicate tint, while black lava-flows form a well-contrasted foreground. On the south-east side another flow of the 1867 lava can be traced; while those of 1850 and 1834 run also to the south or south-east, and, far below, the red craters of 1760 are conspicuous. Having about completed the circuit of the crater, the descent upon the south-west side is very instructive. The first part is made very rapidly, plunging up to the knees in fine black ash (which near the summit is quite hot below the surface), accumulated about and among the lava-flows of 1834, &c. In this easy manner about half the height of the mountain is descended in a very short time. The ash is for the most part very fine, and on examination is found to contain many separate crystals of leucite and augeite. The several little red craters of 1794 are now reached; small model craters, at present very shallow, all close together, and one of them double-the birthplace of the lava-stream which destroyed Torre del Greco and ran far out into the sea. Just above these might be observed the sudden termination of a much more recent stream, presenting the appearance of a low line of steep cliff, and far below, only just above Torre del Greco, may be noticed the eleven little craters opened out along a straight line in 1861, and which again threatened the town with destruction. Soon after leaving the craters of 1794, the region of vineyards is once more gained, not before passing, however, signs of their former higher extension, in the shape of ruined huts enveloped in lava yet not overthrown. Sometimes a wall of lava may be seen approaching within a foot or so of a hut, which it may partly surround yet not overthrow. It seems that such an elastic resisting cushion of hot air is entrapped between the hut walls and the lava as to resist the progress of the latter for some time, though finally it usually curls over the summit of the dwelling and envelopes all. As regards the character of the Vesuvian products, both lava and ashes, a good deal of variety is exhibited. There are the trachytic tuffs of earlier eruptions associated with leucitic lavas or greystones; there are basalts of modern eruptions, crystals of augite in a dark matrix; and there are modern leucitic lavas. So that we have the three classes of volcanic rocks represented. Ist. Trachytic, essentially fels pathic. 2nd. Basaltic (Doleritic), mixture of felspar and augite, the latter predominating; the augite is often crystallized out in a compact base, formed of mingled felspathic and augitic matter. Greystones, an intermediate class formed of felspar (or one of its varieties) and augite; in the greystones of Vesuvius leucite takes the place of felspar, and is frequently crystallized out in a dark augitic base.-Hardwicke's Science Gossip. 3rd. THE EVERY-DAY FALLACIES OF GAMBLERS.The answer which we publish to day to our correspondent of last week who described his gambling experience at Saxon-les-Bains is a curious illustration of the depth to which a common superstition reaches in educated men. It is a popular but very erroneous belief that because it is beforehand much more unlikely that a very uncommon event-say the accidental finding of a sovereign in the street-should happen on two days in succession, than that it should happen once, therefore when it has once happened, it will be much more unlikely for it to happen again at once than it was that it should happen the first time. There is no fallacy which enters deeper into the public mind than this. We have known men who had lost something valuable one day in their walk, go out with quite an easy mind the next, on the ground that it was antecedently so unlikely that they should have such a misfortune two days running, that its occurrence the day before must be considered an insurance against its happening again. People sometimes say that a burnt child dreads the fire. And undoubtedly an unlucky Fire Insurance Office dreads a fire. Yet we doubt if even all Insurance-Office Directors are quite free from the false impression that a run of ill-luck against them is less likely after such a run of ill-luck has already taken place, than it would be if the prosperity for years back had been unclouded. Proverbs like "It's a long lane that has no turning," which are quite true in themselves, are misapplied by the naturally defective logic of the human mind, into arguments why a man might fairly expect the turning to be nearer if he had already walked far without one, than it would be reasonable to suppose it if he had only a very short bit of straight lane behind him. If one person in a family slips on a piece of orangepeel on Monday and breaks his leg, the other members of that family will sometimes go out Tuesday with a moral certainty of not slipping on pieces of orange-peel and breaking their legs, because it would be so absurdly unlikely that such an event should happen twice running; and gamblers habitually act on that extraordinary confusion of ideas,‚—as modified, however, by another strange superstition which is precisely as unreasonable, namely, that there is a secret tendency now and then to "runs" of luck, so that if for two or three times a particular number comes up in a game of chance, they are half disposed to give Fortune credit for having taken a caprice in its favor, and are disposed to stake upon it for at least once or twice more. Of course, all these notions are equally groundless. It is no doubt quite true that it is much more improbable that you will find a sovereign in the street two days running, than on one single day; but the reason why it is more improbable is that the chance of two intrinsically improbable, and yet quite independent, events happening in succession, is com on pounded of the two chances of each of these events happening, and is therefore much less than either chance separately. But directly one of them has happened, the part of that improbability which is due to the first event of the two is already surmounted, and now the probability of the joint event happening is precisely the same as the probability that the second would happen alone.-London Spectator. BENJAMIN WEST.-West's life of eighty-two years was peaceable; it was as correct and dignified as his art; and, like the art, had in its dignity something which, at the distance where we are, turns comical and a little pathetic. The Quaker house from which he sprang was of a good old English stock, settled in the colony half a century before his birth. That birth the painter, always somewhat of a Glendower beneath his meek exteriors, loved to recount as premature and portentous. The eloquence of a preacher had so overcome his mother that she brought forth before her time. The same preacher had watched his cradle, and foretold him a lofty destiny. In his early beginnings with the pencil, in the smoothing of his path by ready patrons, in the circumstances of his voyage as a young man to Italy, and the curiosity and acclamations that there attended him as the herald of the new and loftier culture that was to be upon those Western shores of freedom, -in these and all the courses of his life there was that which showed he was not on the roll of common men. It was in 1763, at the age of twentyfive, that the young prodigy of New England travelled from Italy to the mother country, at first with no purpose of making more than a mere passage. But here fortune opened her gates wide, and closed them behind her favorite. His pictures from Greek and Roman story were admired; his presence imposed with the appearance of genius, for his brows were lofty and his eyes flashing; and however this outward parade of nature's was belied in the proof by a somewhat plain intelligence and tedious discourse, nevertheless his discreet and compliant demeanor saved him from making such enemies as might have found it worth while to lay their hands too rudely upon the mask. And presently he had found patronage which was itself sufficient to stay all hands from such temerity. Before he had been four years in England the Archbishop of York had been his introducer to the King; and from that day forward West was painter-in-chief to George III. Outside the royal employment his commissions were comparatively few; but in the course of thirty-five years he earned from the King about as many thousand pounds,-by historical pictures and portraits, by the immense series on Revealed Religion in the New Chapel at Windsor, and by the Edward III. series in the state rooms of the Castle. On the death of Sir Joshua he was chosen President of the Royal Academy. One or two clouds, blown by the breath of sarcasm or envy, did late in his life disturb the lustre of his career in his own and the world's eyes; but they passed away; he did not outlive his fame.-From "The Portfolio." THE COBBLER AND HIS MONKEY.-At another time he was much annoyed by a gentleman who lived just opposite his little shop-or rather, his shop was opposite the gentleman. The said gentleman had a monkey, who played a thousand tricks on poor Blondeau, for he watched him from a high window, when he was cutting his leather, and noticed how he did it; and directly Blondeau went out to dinner, or anywhere on business, down would come the monkey, and go into Blondeau's shop, and take his knife, and cut up his leather, as he had seen Blondeau do; and this he was in the habit of doing every time Blondeau was out of the way; so that, for a time, the poor man could not leave his shop, even for his meals, without putting away his leather; and if sometimes he forgot to lock it up, the monkey never forgot to cut it to bits, a proceeding that annoyed him greatly; and yet he was afraid to hurt the monkey for fear of his master. When, however, he grew thoroughly tired of this, he considered how he could pay him out. After having noticed particularly the way in which the monkey imitated exactly everything he saw done,-for if Blondeau sharpened his knife, the monkey sharpened it too; if he waxed his thread, so too did the monkey; if he sewed some new soles, the monkey set about moving his elbows as he had seen him do,--Blondeau one day sharpened his knife and made it cut like a razor, and then, when he saw the monkey watching, he began to put his knife to his throat, and move it backwards and forwards, as if he wished to kill himself; and when he had done this long enough to make the monkey notice it, he left the shop and went to get his dinner. The monkey was not slow in coming down, for he wished to try his new pastime, which he had never seen before. He took the knife and put it immediately to his throat, moving it backwards and forwards. But he put it too near, and not being very careful as he rubbed it against the skin, he cut his throat with this wellsharpened knife, and died of the wound within an hour. Thus did Blondeau punish the monkey without danger to himself.-From "Half Hours with French Authors." LOVE'S WAKING. Is Love a dream? In truth, they tell me so, But this I know, that if it be a dream, E. W. H. HONOLULU. In the Sandwich Islands there has always been a strong feeling of loyalty towards the sovereign, and it is to this feeling-for I would place loyalty next to religion as an elevator of nature-aided by personal attachment, that has given them so many characteristics we should not expect to find in a once savage race. The present sovereign is Kamehameha V. (since dead). He was away, however, on another island, looking after one of his estates, for he is a great grower of sugar, and has less of kingly attributes than former ones; but the Queen Dowager Emma, who is much beloved, and exerts by life and character a most beneficial influence upon the natives, was at Honolulu, and gave to all who called on her a kindly welcome. She has a nice house in the country, also one called the "Palace," with pretty gardens attached, in Honolulu, where her band, consisting of about forty boys, generally plays in the evening, and plays exceedingly well. The native women have not much pretension to beauty; their figures generally are fine, though inclined to embonpoint. They ride remarkably well, sitting the horse in the same manner as a man, for which they wear a loose sort of skirt, tied round the waist and coming down on both sides, whilst for head gear a wreath of flowers often gives the tout ensemble a vere picturesque appearance. Their ordinary dress is best described as a very long species of nightgown, generally of a bright color, hanging loosely about the person, more adapted apparently for comfort than elegance. Both men and women are of cheerful disposition, always anxious to oblige and render any little civilty in their power. We allowed our men to go on shore, and they were very well treated, amusing themselves chiefly in riding helter-skelter all over the country, for nothing "Jack" delights so much in as getting outside a horse, and, though not renowned for grace in that accomplishment, has at least the faculty of being able to stick on under the most adverse circumstances. .. Mark Twain says, speaking of Honolulu :-"If you get into conversation with a stranger in Honolulu, and experience that natural desire to know what sort of ground you are treading on by finding out what manner of man your stranger is, strike out boldly and address him as "Captain." Watch him narrowly, and if you see by his countenance that you are on the wrong tack, ask him where he preaches. It is a safe bet that he is either a missionary or captain of a whaler. I became personally acquainted with seventy-two captains and ninety-six missionaries. The captains and ministers form one-half of the population; the third fourth is composed of common Kanakas, mercantile foreigners and their families; while the final fourth is made up of high officers of the Hawaiian Government. And there are just about cats enough for three apiece all round."-From "Our Journal in the Pacific," by the Officers of H.M.S. Zealous. |