58 



Ql{)t iTarmcr's iUontljlij Visitor. 



Iiinls <;inliei- llitin iisiiiil. The Kioiiiid Imvin:; lie- 

 come coviMcd Willi siii)W,tliey liKlook tlieiiiselveo 

 !ii lii.-i linii.-<L' lor l(i()(l. Ill' Idok !'|i('ci:il |i:iiiis Id 

 ^ive il lo lliciii, Mini llicv came reiiiil.iilv to lit; feil 

 They hiiilt llieir iiesl.s in the iielf;hlioilioo<l, iiii<l 

 when llieii- yoiiii;; ones were liiilclied, they 

 hroiiiilit them" to the house iilsn. He Siiid llmt 

 lie took his .•irteriioon ii:i|i on his piiizzii, ami lli<^ 

 hinis siMii; him I.) sleep. Jiiilceil they seemeil 

 quite his pels. 



From the Fanner's Cabiiiiit. 

 Irrigation. 



1 have long been ol the iiiiiul, that farmers in 

 this eonntiv were not f;eiiprally aware of" the 

 jjreat lieiietiis to lie derived in many sitnalioiis, 

 troin throwiiii;, at a trifling expense, the water of 

 their small streams over their grass lands. In 

 the rpiarlers ol llie old world, irrigation is prac- 

 tised lo great exlinl. We all have heard of the 

 woiiderliil lin-iiliiy cominiinicated to the lands 

 adjacent lo the Nile, liy the overflrnyiii" of ils 

 waters. ]n ('airo there is a canal called Klialis, 

 which is o|)eiied when the Nile is high enongli, 

 and tiom that the water is conveyed into reser- 

 voirs and cisterns, and is afterwards distrihnted 

 into the fields and gardens, as occasions require. 

 Wicker baskets, lined wiib leather, as Ktaled l>y 

 some model n travellers, are sometimes used in 

 Egypt fiir raising the water, which is .swung 

 over the hanks of llie Nile by means of a rope, 

 worketl by llie men, and emptied into canals, 

 which convey it to ihe places where it is needed 

 fcir irrigatiuii. In China, this process has fiir 

 ages been made use of, fiir increasing the fertil- 

 ity of their lauds. "The waters of the chief 

 rivers of the north of Italy, such as the Po, the 

 Adige, the Tagliamenlo, and of all the minor 

 streams, are employed in irri^'ation. There is 

 no other country which possesses an extent of 

 rich water meadows, eipial lo that of the Lom- 

 bards. The entire country from Venice to Tu- 

 rin may be said to be formed into one great water 

 meadow ; yet the irrigating sysieni is not confin- 

 eil to grass lands. The water is conveyed into 

 the hollows between the ridges, in corn lands — 

 into the low lands, where rice is cultivated, and 

 around the roots of vines. From llaly, the prac- 

 tice extended into the South rif France — into 

 Spain, and then into Briiain. In the Slates of 

 Lonibardy, the water of all the rivers belong to 

 the State ; in those of Venice, the government 

 extends its idaims to that of the smaller streams, 

 and even to collections of rain jt'tr/er .' So highly, 

 for the use of the cnliivator. Is water of every 

 kind valued, in ihe iiorlli of Italy. It is necessa- 

 ry, therefore, in Lonibardy, to pmrhase from the 

 State, the water taken from the river; this may 

 be laken by means of a canal, tbrongh any per- 

 son's grounds, Ibe government merely requiring 

 Ihe payment of the value of the land to the pro- 

 prietor, and restraining him from carryinir his 

 canal tbroiii;h a garden, or within a certain dis- 

 t.aiice of a mansion. The water is sold by the 

 government a!" a certain rate, which is regulated 

 by the size of the sluice, ami the time the run of 

 water is used; this is either by the hour, half 

 hour, or quarter, or by so many days, at certain 

 periods of the year: the right to these runs ol 

 water is regularly sold, like other pio|ierty. .Ar- 

 thur Young givi's an accnimi of Ihe sale of an 

 hour's run of water llirongb a sluice, near Tin in, 

 which produced in 1778, 1500 livres. The rent 

 of the irrigated lands in the noiih of Italy is, 

 upon an average, more than one-third greater, 

 than the same description of land not watered. 



"In Bengal, wells are dug in the highest [lart 

 of their fields, and liniii these, by means of bul- 

 locks and a rope over a pulley, water is raised in 

 buckets and conveyed in liltle <-liannels to every 

 part of the field. No altempts at cultivation ine 

 here made, wiiliont the assistance of water, ob- 

 tained by some mode or other. The art of irri- 

 gation was not confined to Ibe old worhl. The 

 Mexicans praclised il long before the days of 

 Columbus. They collected the mountain tor- 

 rents, and conducted their walers to their lands 

 in proper channels, with much care and address." 

 — .See F<inner\i Refrisler, Mrii/, 184'2. 



In Englanil, ibis mode of turning their streams 

 to the advanlage of ihi ir agriculture, is very ex- 

 tensively praclised. Some of their finest [lastiue 

 lainls owe their prodiiciiveness lo this artificial 

 applicaliini fd" water, nature's grand medium of 

 'Hitility. They think no water so clear, or so 



fiill of impurities, as not to be useful for the pur- 

 poses of irriiialion. Sir Huinphrey Davy thinks 

 ihat in general, " those walers that breed the best 

 fish, are the best lilted for watering meadows: 

 biK most of the benefits of irrigation may be de- 

 rived liom any kind of water." In the vicinity 

 of Edinbnrifb, the Craigintinny meadows are 

 made va.<';lv productive by throwing over them 

 the water fi-om the city, which carries along with 

 it, in a state of semi-sohnion, the rich matter it 

 lias collecled in ils passage. "The grass is let 

 every year by public sale, in small paiches of a 

 ipiarter of an acre, and iqnvanis, and generally 

 brings fi-om £'24 to £.'iO peracre, per annum. In 

 )8i6, part of the Earl of Moray's meadow fetched 

 £57 per acre, per annum !" 



Napoleon. 



We derive the liillowing interesiing sketch 

 li-oin an esteemed friend and I'orrespondenl, to 

 whom our readers have heretoline been indebled 

 for entertainment of no common order: — The 

 minutest circumslaiice connected with the man 

 " whose deeds have eclipsed all past fame, and 

 rendered all liitnre doubtful," is now become 

 historical. The writer of this sketch happened 

 to be ill Paris during the spring of 1812, when, 

 although iipgocialions were going on between 

 Prime Konrakin and Ihe Minister of Foreign 

 ."^fTairs, yet every one knew that war with Rus- 

 sia hail been decreed in Ihe mind of Napoleon. 

 Dav after day large bodies of Iroofis, of every 

 arm, arrived and departed toward the iiorih, after 

 having been reviewed by the Emperor. Nothing 

 could exceed the splendid equipment, martial 

 bearing, and enlliii.-iasm of the Imperial (iiiard, 

 waving their glittering eagles as tliey defiled by 

 thousands before their invincible leader in the 

 Clianqi de Mars. Otticers, who had just return- 

 ed fi-oiii the detested warfare in Spain, spoke of 

 the contest of Russians a frolic for a few inonlbs, 

 from which they were sure to return covered 

 with fresh laurels of victory. They indulged in 

 Ihe most absurd speculations concerning the in- 

 cidenis and perils of the approaching campaign, 

 and seemed as ignorant, as they were regardless, 

 of all the horrors which awaited them in their 

 filial retreat through the frozen plains of Russia. 

 On the morning of the Olli of !\lay the Iri-color- 

 ed banner of France no lon^'er floated above the 

 gallery of the Tuilleries. Napoleon had depart- 

 ed with the Empress for Dresden, to play the 

 part of " King of Kings." The evening preced- 

 imr, I saw him at the Grand Opera, which was 

 then ill the Rue-Richelieu. The Emperor and 

 Empress occupied the front of the box; behind 

 them stood rows of the imperial household, in 

 brilliant costumes, and the two adjoining boxes 

 were filled with dames d'honneur and dislin- 

 ^'iiislied courlier.s. The Emperor entered the 

 theatre in the midst of the |ierformaiice. The 

 whole audience arose to .salute him, which be 

 ai-knowledged by a slight inclination of his head 

 bef<)re be took his seat. 



He remained until the ballet was nearly ended, 

 and then took leave with the same careless cer- 

 emony with which he entered. He appeared lo 

 take no interest in what was passing upon the 

 slai'e, except fiir a ft-w moments, when Gardelle 

 and Bigollinis danced a pas de ileur. His glass 

 was conslanlly in use, directed to all parts of the 

 theatre, as if he were intent upon examining the 

 face of every individual present. Occasionally 

 he raised bis hand, wiihoul turning his bead, to 

 receive his sniifF box from the cliamberlain, who 

 stood up behind him, in watchful atlemlance. 

 .Not a word was uttered by him to the Empress, 

 nor to any other person in the box. It wa.< evi- 

 dent from the restlessness of bis manner, that 

 bis mind was pre-occiipied wiib fiir-away scenes ; 

 and if the dark ciiriain of Hitmity could have 

 been lifted up for a momeiii, what scenes and 

 events would he not have beheld! Being very 

 near, I kept my eyes riveted upon him. He was 

 ill a plain nniiiirm of bine, with red cuffs and 

 white fiiciiigs. and wore the grand cross and rib- 

 bon of the Legion of Honor. His person was 

 rather corpulent, but seemed nniscniar and ac- 

 tive. His lilne-giay eye was deep set in his head, 

 and occasionally tlirew out vivid flashes of ex- 

 pression. His forehead was broad and smooth, 

 and his leundes thinly covered wiih dark brown 

 hair. His nose was firmly set and finely fcirmed, 

 and bis iiioulh and chin were the model of clas- 

 sical beauty. His visa;^- was square and his' 



neck very short. His complexion was healthy, 

 but colorless ; his lieard of a bluish tinge. His 

 tiice and expression were calm and grave, more 

 beiiignaiit tliaii commanding, and bore the aspect 

 of a sculptured Grecian marble. Now and then 

 his It-atmes relaxed from their habitual expres- 

 sion of melancholy into a smile of exquisite 

 sweetness and good nature. His small triangu- 

 lar cocked bat lay beside him, and his hand, 

 svhicli was small, white and plump, frequently 

 rested upon the cushion belijie him. Allhoiigh 

 I had often seen him before, my mind always 

 recurs lo his appearance on that memorable 

 evening. I saw before me the iiiysterions being 

 whose genius bad exalted him to the snminit of 

 hiinian |iower, and whose hand swayed the dea- 

 tiiiies of the civilized world. 



I beheld him at the very apex of his glory, at 

 the nioment of his departure upoe. his immortal 

 campaign, which shatlered his power, and hast- 

 ened his downfidl. I find it difKcnlt to analyze 

 the sensations which passed through my mind 

 while standing in the presence of a man wliose 

 fime filled the universe, and in whom alone 

 seemed embodied the power of moving the 

 world. It excited emotions of sublimity akin to 

 those felt upon seeing Mont Blanc or the Falls 

 of Ni.igara ; but more intense, more active, more 

 reflective.— Anic^eriocier Magazine for April. 



The Remains of Napoleon.— It having been 

 announced officially that on the aSth of January 

 llie chapel of St. Jerome, w liicli held the remains 

 of Napoleon, at the Hotel deslnvalides, would be 

 closed to the public, in order that due progress 

 miL'lit be made in the crypt or subterranean 

 monument in wliicli they are finally to rest, we 

 took advantage of the rich sunshine of the 23d 

 to pay the chapel a last visit. There was a con- 

 course of visiters, but not so large as to interfere 

 with a leisurely inspection. We entered by the 

 right side oi' the chapel, where stood, each with 

 a tri-colored flag in his hand, two veteran pen- 

 sioners, who directed us to advance on that side 

 and withdraw by the other. A lady whom 1 es- 

 corted stopped to ask an aged subaltern, seated 

 near, whether he had been with the Emperor, 

 and if so, in what battle .' " Ask, madam, {was 

 the immediate reply,) in what battle I did not 

 liiliow the great Napoleon. Egypt, Loili, Dres- 

 den, all .-aw me in the ranks fighting for him 

 who now lies j;onder." The languajre used was 

 Frencti, of course, and the old sohlier, whom we 

 discovered to be siy:lilless when he raised his 

 band to touch his military cap, uttered it with an 

 earnestness that fiir lis proved it to he extempore. 

 The circular chapel was insulated from the great 

 church of the Hospital ; converted into a sanclu- 

 arvfroin noise and light; l|nng with violet velvet 

 glittering here and there with beads; and, alto- 

 gether, with its half darkness and ritual drapery, 

 [iroiliiced an effect w hich ihe French call grand- 

 iose, but which impressed me with sentiments 

 the reverse of Ihat epithet. The coffin which 

 encloses the imperial remains is of a dark wood, 

 reseuihliug cedar; it appears heavy and solid, 

 and has a burnished handle at each end. It wa.s 

 covered with a canopy of purple velvet, lined 

 with ermine, and riciily figured with Jieurs de 

 lis; at one corner the initial N. and at the other 

 the imperial eagle wrought in gold. At the head 

 was the Napoleon crown, and, on a cushion at 

 the foot, were the various insignia which once 

 shone on his breast. Above waved the haliners 

 gained in mighty battles. Aiislerlilz, Dim, Lodi, 

 Jena, &c. are inscribed in golden characters on 

 the sides of the chapel, and a pyramidal urn 

 near the head of the coffin hears the words Hon- 

 neur et Pntrie. A lamp has been kept constantly 

 hurniiig near the corpse. Every day scores of 

 wreaths were thrown within, through the gates, 

 by devout worshippers. The repository or tomb 

 w'ill he beneath the pavement of" the main edi- 

 fice, under the axis of the dome — an arrangement 

 which is severely criticised. The real nionnment 

 will be a hii^'e equestrian statue in Ihe middle of 

 the court. Five years are asked for the execu- 

 tion of the ivhole design. — Jfatsh's tetters to the 

 JVational Intelligencer. 



Influe.nza AMO.^G Stock. — This contagions 

 disorder seems lo conlinne with unabated vio- 

 lence in England. One extensive cow-keeper in 

 the vicinity of London lost 170 cows from his 

 herd, and another 40, within four weeks. 



