Opening Address: Review of the past year, 1870, Moving Accidents by Flood and Field

Opening Address: Review of the past year, 1870, Moving Accidents by Flood and Field

By William James Anderson

[Originally published by the Literary and Historical Society of Quebec in Transactions, New Series, No. 8 (1871)]

ABOUT two hundred years ago—in the beginning of January, 1666—those of our forefathers who inhabited the city of London, took breath between the shocks of two fearful calamities : one not quite past, though its fury had abated ; the other to come.

The plague had appeared at the close of 1664, and, though no new visitor, smote in the course of the following year the people of England, and especially of her capital, with a violence unknown before. Defoe, in the " History of the Plague Year," shews death, with every accompaniment of pain and terror, stalking through the narrow streets of old London, and changing their busy hum into a silence broken only by the wailing of the mourners of fifty thousand dead ; by the woful denunciations and mad prayers of fanatics, and by the madder yells of despairing profligates.

But about the period first-mentioned, the death-rate had sunk to nearly its ordinary amount ; a case of plague occurred only here and there, and the richer citizens had returned to their dwellings. The remnant of the people began to toil in the accustomed round of duty, or of pleasure ; and the stream of city life bid fair to flow back along its old bed, with renewed and uninterrupted vigour.

The newly-kindled hope was deceitful. .The great plague returned, indeed, no more ; but what it had done for Londoners, the great fire, which broke out in the autumn of 1666, did for London ; and in September of that year, a heap of ashes and the indestructible energies of the people were all that remained of the glory of five-sixths of the city within the walls.

Our forefathers had their own ways of accounting for each of these calamities. They submitted to the plague in humility and in penitence, for they believed it to be the judgment of God. But towards the fire they were furiously indignant, interpreting it as the effect of the malice of man— as the work of the Republicans, or of the Papists, according as their prepossessions ran in favor of loyalty or of Puritanism : all their hypotheses were alike wrong ; the plague was no more, in their sense, Divine judgment than the fire was the work of any religious sect ; but they were themselves the authors of both plague and fire, and it rested with themselves to prevent the recurrence, of calamities to all appearance so peculiarly beyond the reach of human control— so evidently the result of the wrath of God, or of the craft and subtlety of an enemy.

One may picture to oneself how harmoniously the holy cursing of the Puritan of that day would have chimed in with the unholy cursing and the crackling wit of the Rochesters and Sedleys, and with the revilings of the political fanatics, if any plain-dealer had gone on to say that if the return of such misfortunes were ever to be rendered impossible, it would not be in virtue of the victory of the faith of Laud or of that of Milton, and as little by the triumph of republicanism as by that of monarchy ; but that the one thing needful for compassing this end, was, that the people of England should second the efforts of an insignificant corporation, the establishment of which, a few years before the epoch of the great plague and the great fire, had been as little noticed as they were conspicuous. But so it was : half a dozen young men, studious of the " New Philosophy," who met in each other's lodgings in Oxford or in London, in the middle of the seventeenth century, became the founders of the " Royal Society for the Improvement of Natural Science," a society which has ever since exercised so powerful an influence in originating and advancing everything calculated to promote the intellectual, moral, and material interests of humanity. Through that and similar associations we have learned that pestilences will only take up their abode among those who have prepared and kept unswept and ungarnished residences for them. Their cities must have narrow, unwatered streets, foul with accumulated garbage. Their houses must be ill-drained, ill-lighted, ill-ventilated. Their subjects must be ill-washed, ill-fed, ill-clothed. We now have learned somewhat of nature, and partly obey her. Because of this partial improvement of our natural knowledge, and of that fractional obedience, we have no plague ; because that knowledge is still imperfect, and that obedience still incomplete, typhus is our companion and cholera our visitor. But it is not presumptuous to express the opinion that when our knowledge and obedience are complete, cholera and typhus shall disappear as the plague has.

From this cause we know, also, that though London contains tenfold the inflammable matter that it did in 1666 ; though its rooms are filled with wood-work and light draperies ; though inflammable and explosive gases are in every street and every house, yet, so admirable are the engines furnished by the improvement of Natural Science, a street is scarcely ever burnt down ; and where fire does occasionally afflict severe damage, the progress of natural knowledge in mathematics, and the accumulation of wealth in virtue of other natural knowledge, have been such, that the loss is generally compensated by societies.

In connexion with the material advancement from the increase of natural knowledge, it may be asked, "What of the inner life of the people ?" and many, it is to be feared, would answer, it is neither purer nor more fervent in religious faith than the generation which produced a Boyle, an Evelyn, a Milton. The mud of society may be found at the bottom instead of at the top, but the sum-total is as deserving of swift judgment as at the time of the restoration ; and there is no reason to believe that it is the improvement of faith or morals which keeps the plague from our cities, but that it is the improvement of our natural knowledge. This many might probably say ; but I will venture to assert, that whatever direction the improvement of natural knowledge has taken,—however low the aims of those who have commenced it—it has not only conferred practical benefits on men, but, in so doing, has effected a revolution in their conception of the universe and of themselves, and has profoundly altered their modes of thinking and their views of right and wrong. These opinions I have long entertained; but I have lately found them so lucidly expressed by Huxley, in his lay sermon on the " Advisableness of Improving Natural Knowledge," that I have submitted them to you very nearly in the language which he has used, and I shall conclude this paragraph with his very words, which I most fully endorse :—" I say that natural knowledge, seeking to satisfy natural wants, has found the ideas which can alone still spiritual cravings. I say that natural knowledge, in desiring to ascertain the laws of comfort, has been driven to discover those of conduct, and to lay the foundation of a new morality."

What the new morality is, has been admirably pointed out by Lord Macaulay, in his review of the life and writings of Lord Bacon. He there shews that whilst the old philosophy disdained to be useful, and was content to be stationary, two words form the keystone of the new—Utility and Progress. He illustrates this by reference to the philosophy of the heathen Seneca and the Christian Bacon.

" Philosophy," says Seneca, " teaches us to be independent of all material substances, of all mechanical contrivances. The wise man lives according to nature. Instead of attempting to add to the physical comforts of his species, he regrets that his lot was not cast in that golden age, when the human race had no protection against the cold but the skins of wild beasts, no screen from the sun but a cavern." Bacon, on the other hand, assumed that the well-being of the human race was the end of knowledge. To make men perfect he did not aim at ; but his study was to make imperfect men comfortable. "The beneficence of his philosophy resembled the beneficence of the common Father, whose sun rises on the evil and the good, whose rain descendeth for the just and the unjust." Plato thought man was made for philosophy : in Bacon's opinion, philosophy was made for man ; nothing was too high or too low for its scope, that would tend to increase the comfort and mitigate the pains of mortals. Bacon's philosophy was built on a rock, being based on the beneficent spirit of Christianity, which in our day has moved philanthropy to shew itself in founding hospitals for the relief of the aged, the infirm, the sick and distressed ; in establishing institutions for the deaf; dumb and blind, so that still, actuated by pure religion, and enlightened by natural knowledge,—that is to say, by a knowledge of the natural laws—humanity is able to make the deaf hear, the lame walk, the blind see, and the poor have the gospel thus practically preached to them.

I have had an object in making these remarks in connexion with the Royal Society, because I wish to institute a comparison between it and our own comparatively insignificant and unknown association ; and it is my intention to do it in such a way that I trust I will escape the charge of presumption. " Magna componere parvis" is quite legitimate, when it is freely admitted at the outset that "one star exceedeth another in brightness." Admitting, then, that the Royal Society is as the sun in the firmament of science, and that ours is but a star of the lowest magnitude, I am prepared to shew, and I wish to shew, that in its smaller sphere it has diffused its due proportion of light, and that it is still capable of giving the light and warmth which its founders intended it should impart.

If you look at the objects which the Royal Society had in view, and turn to our charter, you will find that they are very much alike ; and further, if you examine the " Transactions" of both, the subjects treated are similar, and are such as, to use the language of the great Utilitarian philosopher Bacon, tend to " the multiplying of human enjoyments, and the mitigating of human sufferings ;"—" to endow human life with new inventions and powers."

When you read in the first volume of our " Transactions" the papers by Wilkie, Sewell, Sheppard, Hall, Fletcher, Savage, Baddeley, Cochrane, Noble, and others, you may not say, " in those days there were giants in the land," like unto the giants of the Royal Society ; but you are impressed with the idea that you are in communication with men of earnest, vigorous and acute intellect, who had very much at heart the furtherance of the good work in which they were engaged ; and if we look at the more recent labourers in the field, we will certainly find nothing of which to be ashamed.

I shall now proceed to take a glance at some of the principal events of the past eventful year, and see if our Society has exercised any influence upon them, or if from their study we can add to our experience.

THE RED RIVER INSURRECTION.

The first to which I shall allude is the unexpected and unfortunate insurrection at Red River, which gave rise to several " untoward events" which we must all deplore. The constitution of our Society, wisely prevents us from discussing matters political or religious, and I only introduce it for the simple purpose of recording an historical fact and a circumstance connected with moral training and management, well worthy of note in our " Transactions." Colonel Wolseley, who directed all the movements of the mixed force of regulars and Canadian volunteers comprising the expedition which the joint wisdom of the Imperial and Dominion Governments deemed it prudent to send to Fort Garry, has used this language : " I have campaigned in many parts of the world, but I never saw men before go through such incessant labour. For days together the men were wet through. They had at times to work up to their waists in water ; and during the months of July and August, fine weather was the exception, and rain was the rule. Great as was their labour, and trying as was this exposure, I never heard a murmur from any one. Officers vied with the men in carrying heavy loads, and the praiseworthy rivalry between the regular troops and the militia, in their eagerness to get forward, enabled me to reach our destination earlier than I had at one time anticipated. My temperance friends will learn with pleasure that this was one of the few military expeditions ever undertaken where spirits formed no part of the daily ration. There was a large allowance of tea instead; and notwithstanding the melancholy forebodings of some medical officers, the result was a complete success. There was a total absence of sickness and crime.''

The names of two members of this Society, Mr. A. R. Roche, late of the Crown Lands Department, and Mr. Simon Dawson, of Three Rivers, Civil Engineer, are identified with the Nor-West ; Mr. Roche having directed public attention to it, and having appeared before a committee of the Imperial Parliament upwards of twelve years ago ; and Mr. Dawson having been the engineer of the road, the greater part of which was traversed by the military expedition, and which, notwithstanding all that has been said to its disparagement, has since been acknowledged by competent judges to have been as good as any new road possibly could be, subjected as it was to the transport over it of very heavy loads, in most unfavorable weather.

THE FENIAN INVASION.

The cry of " wolf ! wolf!" had been raised so often in the early part of the season, that when the telegraph brought us the news on Tuesday, 24th May, that the Fenians had actually crossed the border at several points in the Province of Quebec, it was hardly credited ; and the citizens of Quebec only "began to realize the fact when they learned that the 69th Regiment had actually started by rail during the following night for the scene of action. Very conflicting reports were in circulation, and much doubt and anxiety existed, till all fears were removed by the communication, by the lady who had received it, of the following telegram :

" HINCHINBROOK, Friday, 27th, 3.55 P. M.—Engaged the enemy this morning. Drove them back, with great loss—only escaping annihilation by seeking protection across the frontier. They lost arms and accoutrements, &c. All in good spirits."

This telegram proved to be substantially correct ; and when it was subsequently ascertained that, though the Rifle Brigade, under the orders of Lord Alexander Russell, with Prince Arthur on his staff, had also hastened to the frontier, to the expected post of honor and danger, yet that our own volunteers had gallantly routed the invaders, Colonels Bagot and Lord Alexander Russell having wisely given them the right of attack, while closely supporting them, a justifiable pride was excited in all our breasts, which was manifested especially by the enthusiastic reception given to the 69th on their return on the morning of the 31st, after the complete collapse of the attempted invasion. Thus happily terminated their brief campaign of six days, which was appropriately closed by the following order

from General Lindsay :

" HEAD-QUARTERS,

" MONTREAL, 4th June, 18Y0. "

General Orders, No. 1.

" Canada has been once more invaded by a body of Fenians who are citizens of the United States, and who have taken advantage of the institutions of that country to move without disguise large numbers of men and warlike stores to the Missisquoi and Huntingdon frontiers, for the purpose of levying war on a peaceful community.

" From both these points the invading forces have been instantly driven with loss and in confusion, throwing away their arms., ammunition, and clothing, and seeking shelter within the United States.

" Acting with a scrupulous regard to the inviolability of a neighbouring territory, the troops were ordered to halt, even though in pursuit, upon the border.

" The result of the whole affair is mainly due to the promptitude with which the militia responded to the call of arms, and to the rapidity with which their movements to the front were carried out, and the self-reliance and steadiness shewn by this force as well as by the armed inhabitants on the frontier.

" The regular troops were kept in support, except on the Huntingdon frontier, where one company took part in the skirmish.

" The proclamation of the President and the arrival of the Federal troops at St. Albans and Malone, were too late to prevent the collection and transport of warlike stores, or an inroad into Canada.

. " The reproach of invaded British territory and the dread of insult and robbery have thus been removed by a handful of Canadians ; and the Lieutenant-General does not doubt that such services will receive the recognition of the Imperial Government.

" The Lieutenant-General congratulates the militia upon this exhibition of their promptness, discipline, and training ; and in dismissing the men to their homes, he bids them carry with them the assurance that their manly spirit is a guarantee for the defence of Canada.

" By order, "J. E. THACKWELL, D.A.G. "

In connection with this subject of the defence of the Dominion, it may be mentioned that on the 1st of April, 1864, one of our Vice-Presidents, Mr. Edmund A. Meredith, read a paper, since published in our Transactions, “ On Short School Time, with Military or Naval Drill, in connection especially with the subject of an efficient Militia System.” The sentiments there expressed, and which originated in Mr. Chadwick's communication on the same subject to Mr. Senior, are well worthy, at the present time, of the earnest attention of those in authority in our Militia Department.

PRINCE ARTHUR.

Our record would be incomplete were I to omit special mention of Prince Arthur's sojourn among us, during the greater part of the past year. It will not be necessary for me to tell

“ How he looked when he danced,

When he sat at his ease,

When his Highness had sneezed,

Or was going to sneeze ;”

but I may say that his whole visit passed without, a single contre-temps ; that whether in his intercourse with those in authority, his communications with learned bodies, his meetings with our people in public balls, or in his relations in society of a more private character, he at all times shewed himself an amiable, courteous and sensible prince. There can be no doubt that this clear record, though mainly owing to his own excellent disposition, was largely brought about by the wise and prudent counsels of his governor, Colonel Elphinstone. His first reception by the colonists was favorable to him, not merely as the son of our Queen, but as "the son of his mother," respected on account of her womanly virtues ; but the feeling of good-will deepened the longer he remained with us; and there can be no doubt that when he gave expression of affectionate farewell on the ordnance wharf, before embarking for England, the sentiment was echoed through the length and breadth of our land.

Prince Arthur's presence in Quebec gave occasion to one of the most imposing and pleasing ceremonies ever witnessed here : I mean the presentation of colors to the 69th Regiment, and to the depositing the old ones, the following day, in the Protestant cathedral. It has been generally thought that the latter ceremony would have been complete without any make-believe child's-play ; and some have profanely said that they were reminded by that portion of it of the negro song :

“ Who's dat knockin' at de door ?

Is dat you, Sambo ? No ; 'tis Jim !

You're not good-lookin',

So you can't come in !

Dere's no use knockin' at de door any more ;

Dere's no use knockin' !"

But, nevertheless, all who witnessed these ceremonies will look back with pleasure in connecting them with Prince Arthur, Colonel Bagot, and the officers and men of the 69th Regiment.

THE PRINCESS LOUISE.

The announcement of the intended marriage of the Princess Louise, fourth daughter of the Queen, with the Marquis of Lome, eldest son and heir of the Duke of Argyle, has taken the nation by surprise, but at the same time has caused a very general feeling of satisfaction. The feeling of surprise was produced by the unexpected departure of Her Majesty from that policy which she has hitherto pursued in reference to the Royal Marriage Act, to which it may be interesting to make a short reference here.

In 1771, the Duke of Cumberland, one of the brothers of George the Third, had privately married the widow of Christopher Horton, Esq., of the County of Derby. When it was publicly announced, the King forbade them the Court. On the following year, another brother, the Duke of Gloucester, acknowledged that he had been married to the Countess of Waldegrave since 1766. King George was highly incensed, and at once sent a message to Parliament, which, after much opposition, led to the passage of a bill which declared that none of the Royal family, under the age of twenty-five, should marry without the King's consent ; but that on attaining that age, they were at liberty, in case of refusal, to apply to the Privy Council by announcing (he name of the person they were desirous of espousing ; and if within a year neither house should address the King against it, the marriage might be legally solemnized ; but all persons assisting at or knowing of an intention in any of the Royal family to marry without complying with the Act, and who did not disclose it, should incur the penalties of a premunire. The bill was always distasteful to a very large portion of the British people, but it was carried by the great power of the Court. May, in his " Constitutional History," has written :—" The arbitrary character of the bill was conspicuous. It might be reasonable to prescribe certain rules for the marriage of the Royal family,—as that they should not marry a subject, a Roman Catholic, or the member of any Royal house at war with the country, without the consent of the King ; but to prescribe no rule at all, but the absolute will of the King himself, was a violation of all sound principles of legislation. Again, to extend the minority of the Princes and Princesses to twenty-five, created a harsh exception to the general law in regard to marriages."

Among the numerous squibs of the day, the following is given as a fair sample. A Prince may ascend the throne at eighteen, and the reason why is thus given :

“ Quoth Dick to Tom : Thou art a fool,

And little knowest of life ;

Alas ! 'tis easier far to rule

A kingdom than a wife.”

It is painful to look at the consequences of this bill, in connexion with the children of its author. With one or two exceptions, the careers of his sons were marked by profligacy and libertinism ; and in the fate of sisters and daughters we find little more encouraging. It is true, the lives of none of them were defiled by immoralities, such as brought merited obloquy on their brothers; but blighted affections and broken health embittered the lives of some, while state marriages, or enforced celibacy, had an equally sinister effect on others. Who can doubt that these touching lines, written by the Princess Amelia, shortly before her death, came from the heart ?

“ Unthinking, idle, wild and young,

I laughed, I danced, I talked, I sung,

And, proud of health, of freedom vain,

Dreamed not of sorrow, care or pain,

Concluding, in these hours of glee,

That all the world was made for me ;

But when the hour of trial came—

When sickness shook this trembling frame—

When folly's gay pursuits were o'er,

And I could dance and sing no more,

It then occurred how sad 'twould be

Were this world only made for me.”

Having alluded to the dire effect of the law on the children, let us look back to the Duke of Grioucester, and mark the effect of his marriage on him. On referring to the Annals of George III., we find this notice :—“ On the 25th August, 1805, died the Duke of Gloucester, brother to the King, a prince much respected for his public and private virtues, and who had not sustained the slightest degradation in the view of the English nation, by his marriage with an English lady, or by giving his son an English in preference to a German education.”

The Queen has secured the sympathy of her people by the wise course she has pursued in the education of her children, which has made them truly English ladies and gentlemen. The present step shews that while she has consulted the feelings and affections of her child, she has kept pace with, if not placed herself in advance of the opinions of her people, indicated, I believe, by universal approval.

In connection with this subject, I may quote a verse from Burns' Dream, written in 1796 :

“ Ye, lastly, bonnie blossoms, a',

Ye Royal lasses dainty ;

Heaven mak you guid as well as braw,

And gie ye lads a' plenty ;

But sneer na British boys awa',

For Kings are unco scant, ay,

And German gentles are but sma' ;

They're better, just, than want, aye,

On onie day.”

I cannot refrain from giving also an extract from " Our Life in the Highlands," by the Queen :

“ Our reception (at Inverary) was in the true Highland fashion. The pipers walked before the carriage, and the Highlanders on either side, as we approached the house. Outside stood the Marquis of Lome, just two years old, a dear, white, fat, fair little fellow, with reddish hair, but very delicate features, like both his father and mother ; he is such a merry, independent little child. He had a black velvet dress and jacket, with a " sporan," scarf, and Highland bonnet.”

It will not be inapropos to cite Mr. Punch among the prophets :

“ 3rd February, 1849.—Picture of England in 1869.—We have heard it stated that the august mother and father of a numerous and illustrious race, whose increase is dear to the heart of every Briton, have determined no longer to seek for German alliances for their exalted children, but to look at home for establishments for those so dear to them. More would be at present premature. We are not at liberty to mention particulars ; but it is whispered that H. R. Highness the Princess Boadicea is about to confer her Royal hand upon a young nobleman, who is the eldest son of a noble peer, who is connected by marriage with our noble and venerable Premier, with the Foreign and Colonial Secretaries, and with his Grace the Archbishop of Canterbury.”

The most remarkable feature in this statement, which is about to be almost literally realized in the marriage of the Princess Louise with the Marquis of Lome, is, that it was intended to convey the idea of what Thackeray, the writer, considered ought to be, but what he thought was very improbable ; but, strange to say, two other circumstances alluded to in the same article, and in the same spirit, have also come to pass. Among the names of persons given in the Gazette of the period as having attended a banquet in high life, are those of “ Lord and Lady Disraeli, the Countess of Stockport, and the Ladies Cobden.”

It is true, Mr. Disraeli declined a peerage for himself, but accepted it for his wife ; and though Mr. Cobden, who filled so large a space in the eye of the world, has died before his time, his colleague, Mr. Bright, if he has not accepted a peerage, may be now seen, if not actually at Court, in a Court dress in the columns of Punch, and is now the Right Honorable John Bright.

I trust we may congratulate ourselves on the belief that this step, taken by the Queen, is the virtual abrogation of an unnatural, if not immoral law—a law which never commended itself to the mass of the British people, and which was only defended by the Court on the ground of expediency, and the necessity for which has happily been found no longer to exist.

THE ECLIPSE OF AUGUST 7TH, 1869.

The total eclipse of the sun of August 7th, in 1869, attracted very general attention, and several expeditions were sent out by various governments to observe and report on it. It so happened, that, through the instrumentality of our senior Vice-President, Commander Ashe, the superintendent of the Observatory here, the Dominion Government was induced to send a party under his control to Jefferson City, in the far west. Commander Ashe selected as his consorts our then President, the Revd. James Douglas, and Mr. Falconer, of Bath, England ; and on his arrival at Jefferson, he had the good fortune to be joined by Mi. Vail, of Philadelphia, and Mr. Stanton. Captain Ashe reports : By Friday night all preparations were made, and we retired to rest with great doubts about having a fine day. However, Saturday came at last, and the morning was hazy and overcast ; but about eight the clouds began to break, and Mr. Vail and I took observations for ' time.' The afternoon was cloudless ; but still a haze near the horizon. At half-past three, we ' beat to quarters.' Mr. Douglas shut himself up in the dark room ; I took charge of the telescope ; Mr. Stanton, with a light cloth, covered and uncovered the ' object-glass ;' Mr. Vail had his telescope nicely adjusted ; and Mr. Falconer was seated in a very good position to observe the dark shadow crossing the country, and to note any other phenomenon. At 3h. 38m. 40s., local mean time, the first contact took place, and the first photogram taken, shewing a slight indentation on the sun's limb. We took the partial eclipse with an eye-piece, giving a three-inch picture ; but as it was hazy, I removed- it before totality, and took the photograms in the principal focus.”

You will observe that the eclipse occurred in 1869 ; consequently, it cannot be recorded as an event of 1870 ; but as our Vice-President was the astronomer, and our then President the photographer of the expedition ; and as their papers on the subject, which enrich this year's Transactions, were read to the Society in the session of the present year ; and further, as Captain Ashe's report has given rise to a controversy still undecided, I think I can introduce it to your notice quite legitimately ; and I have great pleasure in directing attention to Mr. Douglas's paper on “ Recent Spectroscopic Observations of the Sun, and the Total Eclipse of August 7th, 1869,” which will be found to contain the most valuable information on the subject down to the present time ; and to Captain Ashe's paper, entitled “ The Canadian Eclipse Party, 1869," which a distinguished American astronomer has styled " A draught of sparkling Astronomy," and which goes

“ From grave to gay ; from lively to severe.”

I shall only further say, here, that Mr. De la Rue, the Astronomer Royal, and some American astronomers, have taken exception to Commander Ashe's photograms, alleging that their most interesting feature arose from movement of the telescope. Captain Ashe still holds, with some reason, to the reliability of his photogram, and is able to give mathematical proofs for his belief, and has certainly got his opponents on the hip,—one having clearly pointed out that the telescope must certainly have moved to the right ; while an equally high authority, who supports him, avers that it undoubtedly moved to the left—which involves an awkward contradiction.

The Royal Society commenced observations on the spots of the sun two hundred years ago ; and since then a host of eminent men have successively given their views, including among the more recent observers in England the younger Herschel, De la Rue, Lockyer, and a host of others ; on the continent, Frauenhofer, Jaunsen, Vogel ; Professor Young, of Hanover, in the United States ; and in Canada, our own Vice-President, Commander Ashe ; and though they have done much, by the aid of the spectroscope, to shew what is the physical constitution of the sun, still it appears to me that as yet the darkness is rendered more visible.

The most noteworthy feature in the records of this, as of former eclipses, is the very wide range of differences in the estimates of the various phenomena. Thus, in the eclipse of 1842, M. Petit, at Montpelier, estimated the width of the corona at barely one-fourth of the moon's diameter ; while Baily, who then first observed with attention the phenomenon since known as “ Baily's beads,” considered the corona about twice as wide. To Struve, the Prussian astronomer, the corona appeared still wider. " It is interesting," says a writer in the " Cornhill," "to notice these discrepancies between the observations of modern astronomers of repute for accuracy and observing skill. It shews that the differences recorded in the aspect of the corona are not due to such errors as unpractised observers might be expected to make."

Whatever may be the extent of the corona—whatever may give rise to it, “ it is a fitting crown of glory for that orb, which sways the planets by its attraction, warms them by its fires, and pours forth on all of them the electric and chemic influences which are as necessary as light and heat for the welfare of their inhabitants.”

We all have heard of the odium theologicum, and the great affection which the members of the medical profession bear to each other : we are told that hawks (that is to say, lawyers) will not pick out hawks' een; but when I read of the extraordinary things which some of these celestials allege they have seen, and the cool way in which their brother astronomers give them direct contradiction, I am lost, not " in wonder, love and praise," but in wonder and a maze. I am comforted, however, with the knowledge that I do not stand alone, for here is what another has written :

“A Comfortable Prospect.—The spots on the sun have given rise to much controversy among scientific men. Some hold the theory that the heat of the sun is maintained by the falling-in of planets, as lumps of coal are supplied to a furnace, and that the spots on the sun's surface are the furnace-doors open to receive the fuel, meteorites being pieces of slag thrown off, which become reduced to very small portions by the long journey they have to make. But some carry this a good deal further, and believe that a distillation of matter is to take place, and that the whole of the systems of worlds are to be reduced to ashes, and to be redistilled into a gaseous form, preparatory to a new creation taking place. The exact date of this event has not been given, but it is made out on purely philosophical principles. It appears to be something like the three wonderful Bedouin brothers: one jumped down the other's throat; the second jumped down the throat of the third ; and he, with superhuman exertion, jumped down his own throat, and disappeared from society. " Retardation," in the case of the heavenly bodies, is to do it all. Nothing can be simpler. By the process of " retardation" in space, all the planets must fall into the sun ; the suns in their turn are to fall into each other, " each time" (how wonderfully accurate is science) " augmenting their heat-giving power as their mutual masses increase." There is something a little hazy about the word mutual, as so applied ; but as the subject itself is a little hazy, it may pass. The result is what the unfortunate dwellers on the planets have to look to, and that is, as we have stated, that " ultimately"—how long is not stated, and Time is the great consoler—there is to be nothing in the world but gas. There is so much of it just now evolved in the public utterances of our great men, that really the theory does not seem to be so improbable as might be thought.”

Addison makes Cato say :

“ The stars shall fade away, the sun himself

Grow dim with age, and nature sink in years.”

And another poet tells us :

“ The sun is but a spark of fire,

A transient meteor in the sky.”

Shakespeare also says :

“ The cloud-capt towers, the gorgeous palaces—

Yea, the great globe itself, and all that it inheriteth—

Shall dissolve, and, like the baseless fabric of a vision,

Leave not a wreck behind.”

Our religion teaches us, likewise, that this earth shall be destroyed by some mighty catastrophe—not by any slow process, however, but in the “ twinkling of an eye.”

I do not believe that the sun wastes his strength, and that he would become completely exhausted unless he were renovated by meteors and comets. I believe that, as in electricity and magnetism, where there is a double action continually going on, the same ray of the sun which sends his heat to us also returns it to him ; consequently, there is no waste. Byron, in his apostrophe to the Ocean, says :

“ Dark-heaving, boundless, endless, and sublime—

The image of Eternity—the throne

Of the Invisible.

“ Unchangeable, save to thy wild waves play ;

Time writes no wrinkle on thy azure brow ;

Such as creation's dawn beheld, thou rollest now.”

What the “ Great First Cause” is in general creation, I believe the sun is, in his own system, and that we may in truth apostrophise him in the words of Byron :

“ Such as creation's dawn beheld, thou rollest now.”

Something more than barren theory is likely, however,, to arise from the observations with the spectroscope into the physical constitution of the sun, if the following can be relied upon :

“ Use of Metals as Fuel.—An English inventor proposes to substitute metals for coal as fuel for ocean steamers, and has taken out a patent for a. method of carrying out his views, his object being to obtain a larger amount of steam from a given quantity of fuel. When coal is burnt, the solid coal is turned into gas ; a large portion of heat becomes latent, and is wasted by volatilizing the solid. The oxygen of the atmosphere is a gas by reason of the large amount of heat combined with it. When zinc, iron, or manganese is burned, the resulting oxide is a dense solid ; little or no beat is wasted, as it is not turned into vapour. In addition to this, the inventor obtains the cosmical heat latent in the oxygen of the atmosphere ; and the result is, that one pound of zinc will evaporate more than four times as much water as one pound of coal, the advantage of which, on long sea voyages, is obvious. The zinc or other metal thus becomes a vehicle of power, much larger than can be obtained from the same weight or bulk of coal ; and the oxide of the metal may subsequently be reduced at any convenient place where coal is accessible. The following is the manner in which it is proposed to carry out this invention:—The furnace of the boiler is divided into two or more parts : first, the hearth, or grate, on which the metal is burned (in this description we will confine ourselves to the metal zinc) ; secondly, a chamber behind the hearth to collect the oxide. In the case of tubular boilers, the heated gas from this chamber is made to circulate through the tubes. The furnace has the bottom and sides, and sometimes the top also, of brick fire-clay, or any other refractory substance. The air is admitted over the combustible metal, or a blast through the same ; in the latter case pipes are built in the bottom or sides of the furnace.

“ Whether this method will prove practically successful or not, it is certainly based on sound principles. Every one knows what a small proportion of coal, compared to the iron, is used in the furnaces of iron foundries, and how the partial combustion of the iron itself increases the heat derived from coal. If stoves could £be built that would burn iron, it would doubtless be as cheap a fuel as coal, perhaps cheaper.”

The ŒCUMENICAL COUNCIL

“ There is not, and there never was, on this earth, a work of human policy so well deserving of examination as the Roman Catholic Church. The history of that church joins together the two great ages of human civilization. No other institution is left standing which carries the mind back to the times when the smoke of sacrifice rose from the Pantheon, and when cameleopards and tigers bounded in the Flavian amphitheatre. The proudest royal houses are but of yesterday, when compared with the line of the supreme Pontiffs. That line we trace back in an unbroken series, from the Pope who crowned Napoleon in the nineteenth century to the Pope who crowned Pepin in the eighth ; and far beyond the time of Pepin the august dynasty extends, till it is lost in the twilight of fable.” The opinions here expressed by Macaulay have been shared by many ; and when it was announced, towards the close of the last year, that the Roman Pontiff, Pio Nono, whose lengthened and eventful reign had already been rendered remarkable by changes spiritual and temporal, not only within the territories of the church, but among the great nations of Europe which acknowledged his spiritual sway ; when it was officially announced that a council of the dignitaries of that church, such as had not been held for three hundred years, had been summoned, and that the princes of the church were gathering to Rome, from Greenland's icy mountains and Africa's golden sands, “all the world wondered,” and the attention of thinking men, Protestant as well as Catholic, was excited, and continued with more or less interest to watch its proceedings from 8th December, 1869, its opening, to midsummer, 1870, when the long-disputed dogma of Papal Infallibility was affirmed, but not without opposition from a powerful minority.

THE PAPACY.

The Council had scarcely adjourned when the necessities of the Emperor Napoleon compelled the withdrawal of the French troops from Rome, and the 20th September will be ever held in memory on account of the surrender of Rome on that day to General Nino Bixio, the commander of the Italian army; and thus the temporal sovereignty of the Pope has apparently fallen,—having endured upwards of eleven centuries. Some have called this the fall of the Papacy, which others consider erroneous. The rules of our Society wisely prevent us from discussing matters religious and political, and this pertains to both ; but it is not out of order to note the historical fact ; and it may also be permitted to state that there exists much difference of opinion, not among Protestants only, but among Catholics themselves, on the question, some maintaining that the loss of the temporal power may involve the breaking-up of the whole grand fabric, and bring about the destruction of the spiritual power ; while others as confidently assert that this was all that was wanted, and that the laying down of the temporal sword will increase the power of the sword of the spirit, and that all Catholic nations will henceforth yield to the spiritual Pope a more willing and thorough obedience. It must be noted, however, that Pio Nono himself has entered his most solemn protest against what he deems an act of spoliation, and that he has been joined in this by prelates of the Catholic Church in the British dominions as well as elsewhere.

OBITUARY.

As interesting Quebec, I may refer to the recent death of Archbishop Baillargeon, a man fervent in spirit, zealous in good works, of a deep but unostentatious piety, of great humility, and abounding in Christian charity. He was endeared to every member of his own church, and respected by the Protestant community.

Canada has also, this year, to deplore another " great man fallen in Israel," in the person of the late Revd. Alexander Mathieson, of St. Andrew's Church, Montreal, who ministered to its congregation for nearly half a century. His bearing to the community in general was marked by affability and courtesy ; while his congregation looked upon him as a father. The poor were the especial objects of his care. His death marks an epoch, not only in St. Andrew's Church, but in the courts of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland in Canada, where he always occupied a prominent position.

In the general obituary, the world has to lament the premature death of Charles Dickens, the great novelist, moralist, and lay preacher, at a time when his sun was still shining bright in the high heaven of literature. It has been truly said, that in all that he has written, not an expression can be found which could raise a blush on the cheek of maiden innocence. It may be also alleged of this great magician, as of Shakespeare, that " all who have studied his successive approaches to perfection, must see that he united the closest study to the keenest observation ; that he attained the highest pitch of dramatic art, and the most accurate philosophy of the human mind; and that he was a profound artist, and not a blind and wildly-luxuriant genius."

FIRE.

1870 will be ever memorable for the conflagrations which have devastated several portions of the Dominion.

On Tuesday, 24th May, at 1 a.m., a serious fire broke out in the suburb of St. Rochs ; and notwithstanding the energetic exertions of the citizens, and the active aid of the soldiers of the garrison, before it was subdued, 300 houses were consumed.

Then followed the calamitous fire in the Saguenay district, which inflicted great suffering on the inhabitants, and which might have been much more severe had it not been for the energetic conduct of a few men connected with the district, who, by their prompt action with the government, and with their influence in the great cities of the Dominion, were enabled in a very short time to forward to the sufferers supplies that were needful.

The community had scarcely recovered from the alarm produced by these great fires in the Province of Quebec, when it was called upon to sympathize with Ontario under an equally great affliction. In Ottawa, Carleton, and North and South Lanark counties, the fire raged with terrible fury. I have been unable to lay my hand on the statistics in connexion with the fires in the Lower Province ; but it is stated that in Ottawa county 240 families, in North Lanark 40 families, in South Lanark 60 families, in Carleton 600 families, in all 940 families, were rendered homeless.

Some may look upon these visitations as direct from Providence. But with the experience of the past, who can doubt that they originated in the utter carelessness and improvidence of man, who, totally regardless of past experience, built up a suburb of materials which must sooner or later provoke its doom ? It may be supposed that this assertion will not apply to the fires in the woods ; but there can be little doubt that, though there was less criminality involved, they also originated in carelessness. I think that there was criminality in connexion with the fire in St. Rochs, but I do not wish it to be inferred that I point to incendiarism ; on the contrary, I think the criminality attaches not to those alone who erected the wooden buildings in defiance of the law of the land, but more to the municipal authorities, who closed their eyes to the fact that such buildings had been erected. Still greater will be the responsibility should in the future any buildings of combustible material be permitted to be erected within the limits of the Corporation.

THE EARTHQUAKE.

On Thursday, 20th October, I was sitting in my parlor in Berthelot street, reading a biography of the Archbishop which had appeared in the Journal de Québec. I had just reached the conclusion of the Archbishop's remarks to the students, and was reading its concluding words, “ Sic itur ad astra” when I thought my Newfoundland dog had got into the room and was scratching himself below the table ; but looking below, I found I was mistaken, and at once became sensible that it was an earthquake. I mechanically got up, and taking out my watch, and making allowance for a few seconds lost, I found that it was just 23 minutes past eleven : the force of the motion very much increased for about a minute, but I could not say that it was in any given direction. I cannot describe the motion better than in the language of Scripture : “ the earth trembled and shook.” At 24 minutes past eleven, the motion was so violent that my heart sunk within me, as I thought the house was about falling ; at this moment my daughter came into the room, and, placing her hand on my shoulder, said, with accents and look of great terror : “ Oh, father, I am dreadfully frightened.” At that instant the force suddenly ceased, and I noted a slight tremulous motion for thirty seconds more, when everything was still. I held my watch in my hand for five minutes more, expecting a second shock, but there was no repetition. Nothing was displaced in the room, though everything, especially articles on the sideboard, participated in the motion. My sister, who happened to be in the hall, felt the shock very slightly. The servant, had we not talked of it, said she would have thought it was only a cab passing. The shock was felt very differently in different parts of the city. Some estimate its duration at 30 seconds, some at three or four minutes ; some felt two shocks after a short intermission, some only one, protracted, but increasing and diminishing in power. Mr. Peebles says it was felt very severely at the Gas-Works, and that there were two shocks, with a distinct interval. I am not aware of any one noting the time of duration by watch but myself. I asked Captain Ashe, who, I thought, would most likely have observed, and he told me that though he had an excellent opportunity of noting the time, having been in the Observatory, yet he was so absorbed with the violence of the motion that he had not thought of it, but he was under the impression that it had lasted about three-quarters of a minute. Putting all accounts together, it was the most severe shock felt for two hundred years in Canada ; and if the accounts received are reliable, it was attended with great destruction of property and serious loss of life in the neighbourhood of “ les Eboulemens” and St. Paul's Bay.

Dr. Smallwood, of the Montreal Observatory, has published some very interesting notes on the meteorological phenomena which he observed. According to his statement, the shock occurred at Montreal at 11.17, just six minutes in advance of Quebec ; and the direction seemed to have been from S.W. to N.E., and the tremulous wave of motion was often or twelve seconds' duration ; and after an interval of a few seconds, a second shock occurred, of less duration and of less intensity, lasting only from five to eight seconds. He gives the following account of his observations of the usual meteorological phenomena of the few days preceding the earthquake and up to two o'clock on Thursday afternoon, the 20th of October :

“ Rain fell on the thirteenth day, followed by a rise in the barometer, and a splendid display of the aurora borealis on the night of the fourteenth day. Numerous and very large spots were present on the solar disc, and which had been the case for some considerable time, more especially during the presence of the aurora on the nights of the 23rd, 24th, 25th and 26th days of last month (September).

“ The maximum reading of the barometer at seven A.M. on the morning of the sixteenth day indicated 30.215 inches, and was succeeded by a very fine, warm day, the mean temperature of which was 63.9 degrees, wind S.W. Showers of rain fell on the 17th, from ten A.M. till three P.M., with a west wind, and with a falling barometer, which at nine P.M. of that day stood at 30.000 inches. From one A.M. of the 18th (Tuesday), a very rapid and sudden fall was observed, viz., 0.639 of an inch in six hours ; and it attained its minimum, 29.361 inches, at seven A.M. on that day.

“ From that hour, a gradual and somewhat sudden rise took place, accompanied by a very heavy gale of wind. The clouds were passing from the west, but the wind veered to all points of the compass. The register of the anemometer at the Observatory shews a complete disc of concentric circles, with a velocity varying from thirty-five to fifteen miles per hour.

“ There was also a rise of 0.507 of an inch in the barometer, with a falling temperature. Frost occurred during the night, and a good breeze continued from the west. The thermometer at seven A.M. shewed 33.1 degrees, and the barometer 30.070 inches.

“ From this time the temperature rose and the barometer fell, and this morning, at 7 A.M , stood at 29 4.99 inches. Rain set in during the night, and at 7 o'clock 0.214 of an inch had fallen : thermometer, 42 degrees ; wind, S.W. ; mean velocity, 3.14 miles per hour.

“At 11 h. 17 m., Montreal mean time, a very considerable shock of an earthquake was felt generally throughout the city ; its direction would seem to have been S.W. to N.E ; the tremulous wave of motion lasted for from 10 to 12 seconds, and was succeeded by a slight interval of a few seconds, when a second shock occurred, of less duration and of less intensity, lasting from five to eight seconds. No wave of sound was perceptible, and the wave of motion was undulating and in a straight line (rectilinear), and of considerable elevation. Domestic articles rocked to and fro, but no damage to buildings has resulted.

“ The magnets were very sensibly affected at 10.30.

“ The barometer is still falling. At two P.M. it stood at 29.299 inches ; thermometer, 44.8 degrees ; wind S.W., with rain.

“ Professor Kingston telegraphs me that the magnets at the Toronto Observatory shewed slight shocks at ten minutes to eleven.”

N.B.—Though it was felt on the surface above a mine in the Eastern Townships, it was not felt in the mine itself. Quebec observers say the motion was nearly from east to west.

THE FRANCO-PRUSSIAN WAR.

When, early in the past summer, the Emperor Napoleon “ cried havoc and let loose the dogs of war,” the great powers of Europe generally disapproved of the step. The cry on the one side was, “ on to Berlin !” on the other, “ on to Paris !” and the records of public opinion shew that in whatever direction sympathy went, there was a very general feeling that, sooner or later, France would dictate terms to Prussia, in Berlin. The fortune of war has mocked to scorn all expectations ; the speculations of the wise and of the foolish have been equally astray. We have seen two of the greatest nations of Europe, armed with the most destructive engines of war which the world ever saw, meet in the shock of battle, with armies outnumbering anything in history. We have seen fair France devastated, and its mighty fortresses laid low ; and turning to its Emperor, we involuntarily recall the words of Mark Antony :

“ But yesterday, the word of Caesar might

Have stood against the world ; now lies he there,

And none so poor to do him reverence.”

When we read of the fervent prayers which hourly ascend from the altars in France, and the pious unction with which King William in his telegrams to his Queen thanks a kind Providence for victory, the shout of which is overpowered by the shrieks and groans of the wounded and dying, we can then see the force of what Jeremy Taylor wrote :— “ I have lived to see religion painted on banners and thrust out of churches ; the temple turned into a tabernacle, and God worshipped, not as the Prince of Peace, but appealed to as the Lord of Hosts. When religion puts on armour, and God is not acknowledged by his New Testament titles, religion may have in it the power of the sword, but not the power of godliness.”

THE “ CAPTAIN.”

Among the disasters of the year stands prominent the loss of H. M. ship “ Captain,” which foundered off Cape Finisterre at 12.15 of the night of 7th September. Captain Burgoyne, her commander ; Captain Coles, her projector ; and all her officers and crew, amounting to 500 souls, perished, with the exception of second-gunner May and seventeen men. Captain Burgoyne was seen for some time on the bottom of the capsized steam launch, and several attempts were made to rescue him by the only boat saved ; but, unfortunately, they were unsuccessful. The interest which Quebec felt in this sad accident was increased by Captain Burgoyne having been for a season in Quebec, in command of the “ Constance,” when he was well known to its society ; and also, as among those who perished, was Sub.-Lieutenant Herbert T. Murray, well and favorably known to many of us as a midshipman of the “ Aurora” during the long period of her stay in this port.

The evidence before the Court of Enquiry leaves no doubt that her loss was occasioned by an error in the construction of her hull, which made her two feet deeper in the water than it was intended by Captain Coles she should have been ; and also by her having been overmasted, which made her top-heavy when her topsails were set in the gale. This experience has been too dearly bought, as it has cost the lives of nearly five hundred men and half a million of pounds sterling. It is satisfactory to know that the Court not only acquitted Mr. May and the saved boat's crew, with honor, but awarded them great praise for their conduct and exertions to save their officers and comrades.

When I reflect on this terrible accident, and couple it with the equally awful cases of the " City of Boston" and the " Cambria," I recall and fully appreciate the well-known lines of Mrs. Hemans to the insatiable sea :

“ High hearts and brave are gathered to thy breast !

They hear not now the booming waters roar ;

The battle-thunder will not break their rest.

“ Give back, the lost and lovely ! those for whom

The place was kept at board and hearth so long !

The prayer went up through midnight's breathless gloom,

And the vain yearnings woke 'midst festal song !

“ To thee the love of woman hath gone down ;

Dark flow thy tides o'er manhood's noble head—

O'er youth's bright locks and beauty's flowery crown ;

Yet, must thou hear a voice :

Restore the dead, thou sea !”

PEACEFUL TRIUMPHS.

It is pleasing to turn from the record of great calamities to note the peaceful triumphs of industry, among which stand prominent the success of the Suez Canal and the Great Pacific Railway, which, though completed and opened before the close of 1869, have really only been proved during the current year. To M. de Lesseps alone is justly due all the credit of the completion of the first ; and it will ever stand, while it does stand, a monument of his skill, perseverance, and indomitable energy, and a reproof to politicians whose hostility retarded its construction for many years.

The Great Pacific Railway, in its grandeur, rivals the canal, and shews what can be done by a free people under an enlightened government. This great road got its charter and was commenced in 1862 ; its whole length, 1774 miles, was completed and the road opened on 10th May, 1869. Our wonder is not diminished when we know that it traverses the great American desert, and crosses the lofty Rocky Mountains ; that it has 30 miles of snowsheds and 15 tunnels—one, 1½ miles long, through solid granite rock ; and lastly, that by it we are now enabled to receive in Quebec, by regular mails, letters bearing the San Francisco post-mark seven days previous. Canada, during this time, has not been idle, as the numerous railroads now under construction in Ontario amply testify. We may note, also, the satisfactory progress made by the contractors of the “ Intercolonial Railway,” as detailed in the recent report of the commissioners,—a progress which leads us to hope for its completion within the time promised.

I must now allude to an undertaking rapidly approaching completion in the neighbourhood of Quebec, which, I believe, is calculated to exert a beneficial influence in itself, and will also incite to similar efforts in this part of the Dominion. I feel pride in saying that the “ Gosford Wooden Railway” was the conception of a member of our Society, Mr. Charles Fitzgerald ; that he was seconded by Mr. Oakes, late of the Engineer Department, and that its feasibility was established by Mr. Rickon, also of that Department. After these gentlemen had given it being, as it were, they were encouraged in the effort by the enterprising contractor, Mr. Hulbert, whose great practical experience and sound judgment did much to secure its being undertaken on correct principles. The support of Mr. Joly, as a private gentleman, and his untiring efforts and influence in the legislature, ably seconded by Mr. Speaker Blanchet, Mr. Lemesurier, Mr. Garneau, Mr. Henry Fry, and others, did everything else that was wanting. This is the true history of the Grosford Railway. It was originated by a member of our Society ; the first public meeting in connection with it was held in our rooms ; and though I freely admit I could do nothing else, I have some satisfaction in knowing that at that meeting I moved a vote of thanks to Messrs. Fitzgerald, Oakes and Rickon, wishing them “ God-speed.” I am gratified at their success and pleased to find that other municipalities are following in their footsteps ; and though I have never been so sanguine as to think that such undertakings are likely to yield a dividend, I firmly believe that the indirect benefits which they confer on the community fully justify liberal grants on the part of government and the municipalities, as have been so wisely given in the case of the Gosford Railway.

In mentioning the proposed “ North Shore Railway,” I shall simply say that the project is now under consideration by the legislature, and that there is some reason to hope that a way may be found by which a road suitable to the wants of so important a district may be built at no distant day ; and I am also happy to say that one of our Vice Presidents, Mr. H. S. Scott, has already pointed out the wisdom of enquiring into modern views in this connexion before its plan and equipment shall be decided on ; and in connexion with this, I may add that at the late meeting of the British Association the question of railways was discussed, especially as to the guage for the future. Mr. R. S. Fairlie asserted that a 3-foot guage had been proved to carry two-and-a-half-times as many tons of traffic as were bow carried over the 4-foot-8½-inch guage of the Northwestern Railway, and this without an additional shilling for haulage. Every inch added to the width of a guage beyond what was absolutely necessary for the traffic, would necessarily add to the coat of construction, increase the proportion of dead weight, increase the cost of working, and, in consequence, increase the tariffs to the public : consequently, by just so much reducing the width of the line, railways could be made cheaply, and at the same time thoroughly efficient. There was no country too poor to have railways sufficient for its requirements, and they furnished the cheapest possible mode of transport.

Mr. J. B. Fell supported the narrow in opposition to the broad-guage principle, and also the application of the centre-rail system to mountain lines. To illustrate the economy and carrying capacity of a narrow-guage line, he had constructed a mile of line on an eight-inch guage, at Low Furness, in Lancashire, at a cost of £1,000. It was capable of carrying from 100,000 to 150,000 tons per annum, and it would run at the rate of fifteen to twenty miles an hour with steadiness and perfect safety. This plan of railway would be especially useful for military purposes in such expeditions as that of Abyssinia : he had submitted his plans to the war-office authorities, who had them now under consideration.

ECONOMIC INDUSTRIES.

Would time have permitted, I wished to have said something of the economic interests more immediately affecting Quebec; of the decline of shipbuilding; and of the new industries which some enterprising citizens have substituted —such as the great Shoe and Rubber Factories ; the great Furniture Workshops ; the Foundries and the Carriage Spring Factory ; the Chemical Works for the production of Sulphuric Acid, &c, &c. ; and lastly, the Harvey Hill Copper Mine, the Chaudière Gold Field, and the Iron Sand of the Moïsie ; but I must defer this to another opportunity. Yet, I cannot omit the occasion to refer to a branch of industry which, though almost inexhaustible and incalculable, and the products of which are always in unusual demand, are prosecuted by us with little vigor, and are almost left to our more enterprising fellow-colonists of Newfoundland and our shrewd and more go-a-head neighbours, the Yankees. I allude to the Fisheries of the St. Lawrence and the Labrador coast. It ought to be made known that a vast number of Newfoundland fishermen annually resort to the coast of Labrador for the prosecution of the Cod, Herring and Salmon Fishery. Some take their families, and remain on the beach till the month of October. They caught in 1S69, on the Labrador coast :

Codfish, quintals….308,366

Herring, barrels…….33,135

Salmon, tierces………...250

Cod Oil, tons………….. 288

The total yield of cod to Newfoundland in the year 1869 was 1,204,086 quintals of codfish, so that Labrador alone gave one-third of the catch. But besides this, fishermen from the United States and elsewhere caught large quantities, giving an estimated value of £1,000,000 sterling, and to the whole fisheries of the Gulf a total of £3,000,000 sterling, exclusive of home consumption ; so that the annual product of the fisheries of British North 'America may be valued at about $15,000,000.

I have said that this source is almost inexhaustible, for Buffon tells us that a single pair of herring, if left to breed unmolested for twenty years, would yield a quantity, in bulk, equal to the size of our globe ; but the fecundity of the cod is still greater, there having been found in the roe of one female no less than 8,000,000 eggs. The Grand Bank, which is six hundred miles long by three hundred in breadth, has been fished for 350 years without any show of exhaustion, Catholic countries alone receiving from it, annually, cod to the value of £500,000 sterling. Yet, as the Rockall, Faroe Isles and Great Doggar Bank have given decided indications of failure, and as the cod is a fish of comparatively slow growth, only increasing from eight to ten ounces per annum, there may be danger of exhaustion ; and it has become necessary to consider the propriety of establishing and enforcing regulations such as have been found necessary in connexion with the River and Lake Fisheries. I have seen it stated, with great satisfaction, that Messrs. McKay & Warner have now in process of building in their shipyard several vessels intended as the pioneers of a fishing fleet. Let us hope that we who are here to-night may live to see such fleets leave our harbour as are annually sent forth from the hundred flourishing ports of New England, and that we may be participators in that inexhaustible wealth which has converted the rock-bound and sterile coasts of that industrious country into gardens. This, I believe, would be the most satisfactory way of ending the “ Fishery difficulty.”

DISCOVERIES IN SCIENCE AND ART.

Great advancement has been made in chemistry by the discovery of cheap modes of preparing hydrogen and oxygen ; by the extended use of the permanganates in bleaching and disinfecting ; by the cheap manufacture and general use of the hydrate of chloral, which some view as only next in importance to chloroform ; and in the production of ice, on a commercial scale, by the liquefaction of gases. In photography, the Alberttype has enabled us to take one thousand prints a day with durable ink. Improvements have also been made in the manufacture of glass, and in the use of salts of baryta, fluor spar, and salts of thalium, for optical purposes. Then we have metallic manganese in combination with copper—cupro-manganese, a white alloy, a substitute for German silver ; and glycerine for the conversion of refuse sponge into elastic sponge, for mattrasses and cushions.

We have also discovered how to ventilate under-ground railway carriages ; how to blow bundles of letters from pillar to post through under-ground tubes ; how to make a good bright-green color without admixture of arsenic ; how to produce combustible flint; how to prevent the waste of water at drinking fountains ; how to make a durable pavement of asphalt ; how to render the surface of common roads more fit for traffic ; how to manufacture mouldings, foliage, and statuettes, from a mixture of glycerine and litharge ; how to make "dynamite" from nitro-glycerine and sand, possessing all the power of nitro-glycerine without any of its dangerous properties ; how to utilize sewage, prevent boiler explosions, and the injurious action of lead pipes on water ; how to send two messages along a telegraph wire (one from each end) at the same time ; how to increase the break-power of railway trains, and thereby diminish the chance of accidents. These are among the notions, inventions and speculations which have been put forth during the past year ; also, the new process, by Mr. Weldon, of manufacturing chlorine, in large quantities, by blowing large quantities of atmospheric air into the liquor under treatment.

SACERDOTAL STATISTICS.

I shall conclude by directing your attention to an item of statistics which must be of great interest. Mr. Lovell's Canadian Dominion Directory, now in course of publication, gives the following sacerdotal statistics :

Anglican bishops …………. 10

Roman Catholic bishops……..18

Church of England clergy…..633

Church of Rome clergy……1226

Church of Scotland clergy….187

Other Presbyterians…………464

Methodists…………………1067

Baptists……………………...326

Congregationalists……………76

Other denominations………..174

Total……………………….4181

This is, as nearly as possible, one clergyman for every 1000 inhabitants in the Dominion—men, women, and children.

P. S.—The Eclipse of Dec. 22nd.—Since the preceding paper was read, a total eclipse of the sun took place on the 22nd of December. It was looked forward to by astronomers with more than usual interest, as it was hoped that it would afford an opportunity of removing doubts and verifying observations not very satisfactorily completed at the last eclipse. The results have not yet reached us, further than that a general statement indicates that the observations were favorable, and confirmatory of views promulgated after the last eclipse. The British expedition met with a great disaster by the shipwreck of the vessel which was conveying its instruments to the Mediterranean. Common people awaited the eclipse on this side of the Atlantic with no little anxiety, as it had been predicted, on authority, that a great tidal wave might be produced, which might create great destruction on our coasts. Happily, this prediction was nowhere realized, and is already almost forgotten.

The Completion of the Mont Cenis Tunnel.—The completion of the Mont Cenis Tunnel on the 26th of December, coupled with the opening of the Suez Canal and the great Pacific Railway, has rendered our age one of great and wonderful engineering triumphs.