——~¢- 
1843.] 
THE GARDENERS’ 
CHRONICLE. 
623 
Inverness.—The number of strangers at present in the 
Highlands is greater than has been witnessed for many 
years. Steam-boats, coaches, carriages, and inns are 
crowded, and every scene and object of interest is daily 
visited by large parties. Prince Alexander of the Nether- 
lands, the Dukes of Marlborough and Leeds, and 
numerous visitors, have arrived for the sporting season. 
The reports from the Moors show that the grouse are 
plentiful though not equal to last season for numbers or 
quality. Mr. A. Campbell, M.P., of Monzie, bagged to 
his own gun on the 12th, 1843 brace of full-grown grouse, 
6 mountain hares, and 5 snipes. 
THEATRICALS. 
Haymarxur.—At this theatre last week Mr. Planché 
presented the public with a picturesque and agreeable 
little piece under the title of Who's your Friend ; or, the 
Queensberry Féte. The period is fixed in the year 1728, 
and the scene of the first act is in the grounds of the 
Duchess of Queensberry, where a féle champétre is held 
under the patronage of royalty. Throughout the piece, 
royalty, nobility, and gentry agree for once to throw off 
their fine titles and court dresses, and play the parts of 
shepherds and shepherdesses, millers and milkmaids, under 
the assumed names of Chloe, Daphnis, Amaryllis, Lubin, 
&c. The shepherds and shepherdesses, however, do not 
affect to live in the golden age of the poets, but in the 
region of Dresden china, recorded to us by the chimney- 
pieces of our grandmothers, when every shepherd wore 
his hair nicely frizzed and powdered, played on a gold 
flute, and wore a waistcoat spotted with gold flowers, 
while every shepherdess had a hat with a gilt edge, and 
fondled a lamb with gilt feet. The main feature of the 
plot is the appearance of a real countryman among this 
artificial creation, in one Giles Fairland (Mr. C. Mathews) 
who comes raw from Somersetshire in search of some 
lady to whom he has an introduction, with a view to his 
obtaining a situation. The opportunity for playing off a 
practical joke upon his fellow masqueraders is too goo 
to be neglected by a lively baronet who personates a 
miller ; and he at once determines upon introducing Giles 
to the festivities, representing him to be a Russian Baron, 
with an unpronounceable name, who has created an 
» and partl: 
by chance, she finds that 
She therefore conceals him for 
there is a good deal of jealousy on 
the part of Sir Felix, the recognised suitor of the Coun- 
i the loss 
; Scenes, 
In the course of which the latter are ingeniously returned, 
merrily as a 
‘marriage bell. The part of Giles was excellently sustained 
'Y Mr. C. Mathews. Ee gave the country dialect with great 
effect, and by his heartiness and bluntness really made 
@ “character.”” The piece was most warmly received, 
nd was announced for repetition every evening 
Mathews, amid loud applause, The two scenes in which 
the action takes place are remarkable specimens of good 
taste, fully reviving the best days of the i 
Olympic, 
SPBiscellancous. 
J Contagion of Plague.—Letters from Cairo, of the 28th 
ye, state that some very important results have been 
tpiained by the Commissioners who have been sent by 
- E Russian Government to Egypt, in order to make 
ope timents as to the contagion of plague, and the meang 
a arresting the propagation of the virus. One Satisfac- 
ry conclusion has been already come to, and if nothing 
Be be done, that conclusion must lead to the ear] 
; Odification and final overthrow of the whole quarantine 
ern as at present constituted ; for the Commission 
ane come to the unanimous opinion that articles of any 
Ort, after having been subjected to a temperature of from 
deg. of Reaumur, cannot communicate the 
of The Commissioners collected a large quantity 
Sarments, of sundry tissues, and of susceptible raw 
» Which were thoroughly impregnated with the 
whi 
Apieh had been thus treated. The Board of Health, and 
horities at Cairo, were called in to 
Control and surveillance over these 
very important experiments. The result has been, that 
not one single person of the sixty-six has been attacked 
by plague, or his health affected in the slightest degree by 
the experiments to which he has been subjected. The 
Commissioners state that the quality of the materials has 
not been in any way deteriorated by the action of the 
heat ; that the colours of the various manufactured articles 
have not been dimmed or changed ; that the experiments 
have been attended with scarcely any cost; and that 
Securities may thus be obtained against the communica- 
tion of plague at an exceedingly small expense. 
A Monster Bell.—A few days since an immense bell, the 
largest ever cast in, England, weighing no less than 7 tons 
1] ewt. 2 qrs. and 12lbs., was shipped on board the Lady 
Seaton, lying in the London Dock. This bell, which is 
intended for the new Catholic cathedral at Montreal, was 
cast at the foundry of Messrs. Mears and Sons, White- 
chapel, and has attracted the attention of a great number 
of persons. Some idea may be formed of its immense size, 
from the fact that it required 10 tons of fused metal to 
form the cast, and the casting itself weighs upwards of 
7 tons and a half, that its diameter at the edge is 7 feet 
three inches, that its clapper weighs upwards of 3 cwt.; 
the wood work, which is composed of old English oak, 
One ton ; the iron work more than half a ton, and that 
the bell itself is heavier than the Great Tom of Lincoln 
y 32cwt. The bell, it is stated, has been paid for from 
a fund subscribed by the merchants, artificers, agricul- 
turists, and inhabitants of Montreal, and has cost, with its 
wood-work, &c., upwards of 12001. 
Statistics of Paris.—The Courrier Frangais states that 
the number of indigent poor in Paris has varied consider- 
ably since the commencement of the present century. In 
1804 it was 86,936; in 1805, 190,705; in 1807, 97,914; 
in 1808, 116,703; in 1809, 118,202; in 1810, 121,801 ; 
in 1811, 116,670; in 1812, 93,836; in 1813, 102,806 ; 
and at present the number receiving relief amounts to 
62,539. The National observes, that it is not without 
interest to consider the sums expended within the last 
24 years in the imp and embellish of Paris, 
which have rendered it one of the finest cities in the 
world. Expended on works relative to the distribution of 
Water, aqueducts, reservoirs, fountains, 30,986,347f. ; 
in flagging and paving, 17,644,061f.; in purchases for 
enlarging the public avenues, 39,047,708f.; the construc. 
tion of commercial edifices as well as in objects of art 
and decoration, 62,984,919f. ; in the purchase of ground 
necessary forthose edifices,17,802,729f.; total, 168,465,764f. 
Hunan Infusoria.—At the last sitting of the Academy 
of Sciences, a very/ curious paper was read from M. Mandl, 
entitled, ‘* Microstopic Investigations as to the Nature of 
the Tartar'and mucous covering of the Tongue and Teeth.” 
If we are to, believe M. Mandl’s microscope, the human 
mouth is a perfect cemetery, where millions of infusorize 
find their catacombs. Leuwenhouk had already told us 
that the human mouth was peopled with infusory animals, 
and that the mucous Secretions’ on its surface served as 
their ocean; but ‘it remained for M. Mandl to discover 
ich covers the teeth is formed of the 
mountains of the dead of these inhabitants of this ocean. 
M. Mandl knows not to what cause to attribute the origin 
of these microscopic animals, but he has ascertained, he 
says, that they are most numerous in persons who live on 
spare diet, and are instantly killed by ardent spirits. 
Fossil Geology of London.—A few days ago as some 
workmen were digging a\new sewer for the hotel erect- 
ing opposite Cadogan-pier, Chelsea, at about 18 feet from 
the surface, they discovered a great variety of fossil 
bones, forming the skeletons of various animals, some of 
which are of enormous magnitude, consisting of the mas- 
todon, the elephant, the ox, the elk, the hyena, the 
wolf, &c., all of which are in good preservation. Many 
of the specimens have been selected, and are now in the 
possession of the Rev. Mr. Kingsley, rector of the parish. 
The Comet.—The Canton papers of April Ist. state that 
the comet which caused so much sensation in Europe had 
been visible from Manilla and Singapore since the begin. 
ning of March, but during almost all that time the weather 
at Canton had been so unsettled, and the sky so continu- 
ally overcast, that it was only seen there for the first time 
on the night of the 28th. The comet itself was barely 
visible to the naked eye, but its tail was of great extent, 
about 40 degrees, and quite straight. ‘At present,” it 
adds, ‘* it sets at about half-past tenin the south-west, and 
when first seen disappeared soon after nightfall; it is 
probable, therefore, that it will remain visible a long 
while. We believe this to be a comet hitherto unknown. 
As may be supposed, the Chinese arein great consternation 
about it, believing that it forebodes evil.” 
The Singing Mouse.—This heading, strange as it ap- 
pears, is not a fiction, as the incredulous may ascertain to 
their complete satisfaction by a visit. We give the fol- 
lowing account, furnished us by an intelligent corre- 
spondent:—I have much pleasure in endeavouring to 
give you some account of a musical phenomenon which I 
have just beheld and heard. I willdo so in as lucid a 
manner as I am able. This wonder is in the shape of a 
“ singing mouse!’’ Let it not raise the smile of in- 
credulity, for sing it does in verity. he little creature is 
the common house-mouse, of the masculine gender. When 
T heard him he was in full song—having all the notes of a 
full-grown canary. The imitation in the sostenuto pas- 
sages and cadences of that bird was perfect. I feel 
assured that no deception was practised, for by the aid of 
a powerful glass, which I purposely borrowed, I could 
observe the tremulousness of the throat; and I asked the 
proprietor to retire from the room for a moment, which he 
did, in order that i might convince myself that I was not 
being made the dupe of ventriloquism. I then placed my 
ear close to him, and the effect was still the same. No 
human being could make his piano passages. One circum- 
stance places this beyond doubt ; for sometimes parties 
have to wait a considerable time before he will pipe. An 
instance of this kind happened recentiy at the Palace, 
where he was taken for the little Prince of Wales and the 
Princesses to hear him. But I was informed that 
he fully made up for this silence by afterwards sing- 
ing more lustily than he ever did before. He requires 
was in motion I tried the effect of sound upon him, by 
vibrating a tuning-fork upon the table. This, although 
repeated several times, neither deterred him from singing 
nor in the slightest degree alarmed him. If I may hazard 
a conjecture, his pitch is more than an octave above that 
of the bird he imitates. It is very difficult to guess how 
this faculty got into him; for, supposing that he listened 
to the canary from his hiding place, the larynx is not 
formed for sucha purpose. However, I must leave the 
matter to physiologists and modern Daines Barringtons, 
simply contenting myself with silent wonder, now an 
then exclaiming ‘* prodigious!” Its history is somewhat 
interesting. The wife of the man to whom it belongs 
(they were poor people, but are now on the high road to 
competence) occupied the second flat of a mean house in 
Redeross-square, Cripplegate, and, “save the mark ,’” 
ata tailor’s. One night, not being able to sleep for what 
she conceived the gentle singing of her bird, she removed 
the cage ; but the singing remained, and not coming from 
the quarter in which the poor innocent Dick was placed, 
it both puzzled her and excited her curiosity for the rest 
of the night. The noise was of a flitting kind, like Ham- 
Jet's ghost, sometimes here, sometimes there. She, how- 
ever felt convinced that it came from the wainscot, and 
she was right. A trap was set, and two nights afterwards 
the syren was caught, which is likely to prove a golden 
egg to this knight of the goose.—Globe. 
Fossil Mammalia of England.—At the recent meeting 
of the British Association at Cork, Professor Owen read 
his report on the Fossil Mammalia of England. This 
was commenced at the request of the Association, and at 
Manchester he gave an account of those extinct quadru- 
peds the extremities of which were terminated by hoofs. 
He gave instances of the fossil remains of a species of 
monkey, a bat, several species of bears, hyena, badger, 
weasel, wolf, and a gigantic species of tiger now unknown, 
with a gigantic beaver three times the size of the present 
beavers of North America. He first described the fossil 
remains of the elephant. Many naturalists (and amongst 
others Cuvier), in endeavouring to prove that these mam- 
malia were natives of the country in which they were 
found, were reminded of the elephants brought to Rome 
by Pyrrhus, yet, when they crossed the German Ocean, 
and found similar fossil remains in Britain, where there 
is no account of any being brought, with the exception of 
one by Julius Cesar, they had ample grounds for supposing 
that they were formerly natives ; and in support of this 
argument many of them were discovered in Ireland, where 
Cesar never put his foot, The remains which had been 
found differed much from both the Asiatic and the African 
species, chiefly in the formation of the teeth. In the 
fossil ivory there were fissures, with a kind of enamel 
or cement, so that they always retained their cha- 
racter. In the African elephant this character in the 
formation of the teeth is in the form of a lozenge, but 
they are in parallel lines in the Asiatic elephant, where 
the teeth are much broader. The most common fossil 
teeth found have the ivory and enamel more like the 
Asiatic elephant than the African, but the streaks are 
much narrower in the former, and the teeth are much 
broader in their extent—distinctions which were first dis- 
covered by Cuvier in 1796. There were about 3,000 
extinct species of mammalia discovered, not one of which 
could be mistaken for the African elephant, besides which 
Some of the fossil elephants were coated with hair or wool, 
which had also been discovered in a mammoth found in 
Siberia. The bone of the fore-leg has in some instances 
been found 11 feet long, and the fossil remains have been 
dug up in all parts of England, upwards of 2,000 speci- 
mens having within the last 12 years been dredged up on 
the coast off Yarborough. He next alluded to two species 
of horse, one of which was about the size of the common 
mule, and might have belonged to a species of Zebra, 
and the other about 13 hands high. There was in this 
class the gigantic elk, commonly called the Irish elk, but 
that was an erroneous name, as it did not belong to the 
elk, but to the deer species. The horns were different 
from those of the elk, being broad at the base and narrow 
as they approach the top, the species approaching closer 
to the rein-deer than to any other. There was another 
species of deer which could not be distinguished from the 
red deer, but that it was much larger, and the remains of 
which were found in great abundance in Essex, Norfolk, 
Kk, 
Lat. 
Centrat CarminaL Courr.~James Trenate, James Huggett, 
and William urglary with violence in. 
the dwelling-house of Mr. Alphonso Mackintosh, landlord of the 
with intent to murder him, Mr. M. Chambers, w! 
on this indictment, said, that as the prisoners were already con- 
