EDITOR'S TABLE. 



559 



Scotia, Hindostan, etc., and all such 

 forms have larger bodies of land to their 

 north. Now, if we apply this rule, by 

 turning the north pole of a globe to- 

 ward us, we readily see at a glance that 

 Greenland, which is known to us, may 

 bear to an unknown Arctic Continent 

 the same relation that South America 

 does to North America, or Africa to 

 Europe. Hence it is perfectly logical 

 to infer, by the great analogy of nature, 

 that an Arctic Continent exists beneath 

 the north pole, extending three and a 

 half to four degrees south from the 

 northern axis of the world. As previ- 

 ous Arctic expeditions have advanced 

 to 83 26' north latitude or within 394 

 miles of the pole the distance thence 

 to such a continent would not exceed 

 150 to 180 miles. This intervening 

 space, however, is quite difficult to trav- 

 erse, as it is represented to present a 

 very rough surface. If the sea, during 

 the height of a gale, when waves run 

 mountains-high, were instantly frozen, 

 it would present much the appearance 

 here encountered. Now, for ethnolo- 

 gists, the question is, Can an Arctic Con- 

 tinent be inhabited, should one exist? 

 This may be met by the already ex- 

 pressed surmise that the latitude of 78 

 is about the point of lowest mean tem- 

 perature. The earth is about thirty - 

 seven miles more in diameter at the 

 equator than from pole to pole, having 

 enlarged at one point and flattened at 

 another, because of its revolving motion. 

 Now, it is well known that lower tem- 

 peratures are encountered as we ascend 

 great altitudes, and the depression at the 

 poles may, by lessening the distance of 

 the surface from the earth's center, af- 

 ford a warmer temperature, which will 

 enable the hardy Esquimaux, Ainos, or 

 some hyperborean race, to exist upon an 

 Arctic Continent. Should such prove 

 to be the case, and our good friends dis- 

 cover any races there to us unknown, 

 we shall look to them to resurrect us a 

 specimen skull of some departed inhabi- 

 tant." 



THE PRINCE IMPERIAL. 



Much regret is expressed at the sad 

 end of the late descendant of the Na- 

 poleons and heir-apparent to the throne 

 of France ; and much sympathy has also 

 been awakened for the exiled and wid- 

 owed mother now made childless. The 

 bereaved woman is entitled to the same 

 sympathetic consideration as any other 

 poor widow who has lost an only child ; 

 for, though in her case there may be a 

 peculiar bitterness in the crushing of 

 ambitious hopes, she has yet the miti- 

 gations of royal condolence, and the 

 assurance that her griefs are shared by 

 sympathetic multitudes. As for the 

 dead Prince, we might say that his 

 premature cutting off is just as deplo- 

 rable as the killing of other young sol- 

 diers in the common fortunes of war. 



But is this quite true ? At any rate, 

 if it is a blessed thing to lay down one's 

 life for one's country, is not the amiable 

 young Prince to be deemed fortunate, 

 for certainly his death is the greatest 

 boon that it would be possible for 

 the French nation now to receive ? 

 Again, according to the code of military 

 honor, he is to be congratulated in hav- 

 ing lost his life in war, whether his 

 country benefited or lost by it ; and es- 

 pecially so as the other Napoleons have 

 died peacefully and ingloriously in their 

 beds, while it has been reserved for the 

 last of the line to perish, if not on the 

 field of battle, at least by violence and 

 in war. Belonging to a race of adven- 

 turers, he fitly died as an adventurer ; 

 and, although the manner of his going 

 was not very dignified, history will still 

 be able to say that one Bonaparte was 

 sacrificed to the vocation to which they 

 were all devoted. 



There is, however, one aspect of 

 this transaction that may be referred 

 to as an illustration of the selfish bru- 

 tality of the common ethics of war. 

 "When the military system is arraigned 

 as the great anomaly of civilization, 

 and war as the most stupendous curse 

 of humanity, we are told that nations 



