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Compton House, Liverpool. "The far-famed Compton House is one of those achievements of modern enterprise, which of late years only have been attempted upon the gigantic scale of the establishment under notice. In every sense of the term, it is a truly astonishing place, whether it be regarded as a mart for nearly all the textile productions of the world, or for its architectural proportions, attractiveness, arrangement and economy.

It occupies the quadrangle

formed by three streets, one of which intersects the others at right angles, having its principal approaches from Church street and Basnett street, and no less than four entrances from the former; but the chief entrance is from Basnett street, to which it presents a front of unequalled magnificence, and which cannot fail to fix the attention of the most ordinary ob

server.

Of this splendid mass of building, the most striking feature is the stupendous doorway and windows, which stand fully thirty feet high, by fifty in width, composed of huge sheets of the largest plate glass manufactured, set in mahogany and brass, and supported at the sides by four fluted columns of imposing dimensions, surmounted by capitals of rich and elaborate design, sustaining upon their summits a long gallery of balcony, adorned with stone balustrades. These windows furnish light not only to the lower principal department; but to the upper range of departments also, while in the centre a strong flood of light, reflected from a triple range of transverse windows at the top, is conducted through a hiatus tastefully formed as a balcony, and conveyed into the lower department, and then blending with the light emitted from the front windows, delicately illuminates the entire centre of the establishment.

Entering from Basnett street, the spaciousness, harmony, and effect of the chief department become at once apparent to the visiter, presenting a display of brilliancy, variety, and order, which at first sight appears rather ideal than actual. Disposed in every position of light. and shade best calculated to reveal the profusion and richness of the wares, and to aid the exercise of choice, the bewildered spectator perceives spread before him all that is beautiful and superb in the gorgeous productions of the silk and satin looms of England and France, the

showy fabrics of India and China, the well known Poplin manufactures of the Emerald Isle, with their ever-varying tints and enduring texture, the admirable laces of Nottingham and Limerick, of Brussels and Valenciennes, the carpets of Kidderminster, so justly celebrated for mellowness of hue, and stubborn strength, the rich floor coverings of Turkey, the splendid shawls of Paisley, and in fact every product of the needle and the loom, which, in the artistic progress of the day, either taste can invent, or ingenuity ex

ecute.

Passing through this glittering apartment, everywhere crowded with elegantly dressed purchasers, the spectator finds that he has but entered upon the 'vestibule' of the structure-and turning off at the end upon the left, he is led to the four departments fronting Church street, which exhibit to his view fresh scenes of splendor and variety. Crowded likewise to excess, the business of these departments proceeds with astonishing rapidity; and the observer sees sparkling everywhere around him the unfolded fabrics of Great Britain and the Continent of India and China-while the order, silence and celerity of the attendants, impart to the scene an air more of mechanical order than volition.

Leaving the ground floor, after inspecting the numerous subsidiary branchesa prominent one of which is occupied to the right of the chief departments with rare carpetings. I ascended by a staircase, contrived so as to afford easy access upwards without interrupting the entireness of the view below, and was introduced to a scene eclipsing any that I had yet observed, and which by no means I had expected to encounter. Here, as elsewhere, were distributed in brilliant abundance the various merchandises to which the upper departments are appropriated, while, not a sound disturbed the serenity of the place, save the dulcet tones of some fair purchaser, or the almost noiseless step of the active assistants as they moved along the carpeted floors.

Having fully sated my curiosity with an inspection of the innumerable apartments above ground, I directed my steps to the underground branches, which are laid out strictly on the plan of the Mancheste Warehouses. The first place to which I was conducted was the great re

ceiving and unpacking room, where the various stocks are first deposited. Being unpacked they are then removed to the sorting-room, and subsequently to the measuring and check room, where the manufacturers' measures are tested by a novel but simple machine. Adjoining this is the great floor-cloth room, while all around are numerous lesser departments, each having its own separate functions. I must not omit to mention a beautiful little apartment, without windows, but richly decorated and lighted with gas, which is used by ladies for judging of the shades and colors of ball and evening dresses, shawls, scarfs and flowers.

I had now the pleasure of being conducted over those wings of the building assigned to the domestic use of the large corps of superintendents and assistants, (both male and female), engaged in the establishment; and never has it been my lot to see anything designed with greater regard to heal h, cleanliness and comfort, physical and intellectual, than the arrangements of whom I may truly call the humane, considerate, and enlightened proprietors. The entire strength of the establishment consists of about one hundred and fifty individuals of both sexes, all of whom are lodged upon the premises, with the most liberal regard to supplying the wants and comforts of a home, to furnishing the means of mental improvement, the promoting of social intercourse, and the cultivation of all those impulses to honorable action which mould and dignify the moral character. Early and strenuous advocates of the claims of young persons employed behind counters for necessary and rational intermission from toil, and contending, maugre the obstinacy of the selfish, and the apprehensions of the fearful, that it was the solemn duty of employers to limit the amount of labor exacted from their assistants, and not only to allot time for, but to contribute to their personal comfort and mental calture, the proprietors of Compton House were foremost in promoting the early closing' scheme, and have since continued to act upon it with honor to themselves, and the happiest effects upon the health and enjoyments of the recipients of their liberality.

Scrutinizing the various rooms allotted for the use of the large and numerous household, I was much struck with the admirable plan upon which the sanatory

regulations of the establishment are founded, and the scrupulous care with which they are observed. The various sleeping apartments are large and light-kept in a state of the most perfect cleanliness, and thoroughly ventilated. The dining room is a long and spacious apartment, in which the assistants dine in parties of one-third at a time. The general sitting room is a fine, commodious apartment, for the general use of all the male assistants after business hours: but good manners, and an abstinence from turbulence, declamation and disturbance, are indispensable passports. Adjoining is the chief superintendent's room, elegantly furnish

ed.

The Library, however, to the intelligent visiter, is the most attractive feature in the social arrangements of the place. It is a light and handsome apartment, upward of thirty feet long, and fitted up in a style of the most perfect comfort, approaching to luxury. It possesses a choice collection of upward of twelve hundred volumes, which are almost daily added to, besides a number of daily and other journals, and some of the best periodicals of the day. Upon the termination of the day's labor, all the young men have free and uninterrupted access; and through from that period until eleven o'clock, (the hour at which the doors are finally closed) their time may be applied as they like. It is creditable to them to be able to say that the library and reading room are freely resorted to in the evening. For the accommodation of such of them as have a taste for an indulgence in tobacco, a comfortable smoking room is provided, though the proprietors do not encourage the practice. The apprentices, who are numerous, are located in another ramification of the building, and not allowed the smallest social contact with their associates, but suitable amusements during the hours of relaxation are amply provided, and that restriction upon youths is one, which unquestionably will be found to operate beneficially. The ladies' apartments, under the superintendence of a matron, are situated in a healthy wing of the building, and the most delicate attention is paid to their wants and wishes. A medical gentleman, who is entrusted with the general health of the establishment, paid by the proprietors, makes a daily call, and reports accordingly.-N. Y. Courier.

The Cormorant.

The cormorant belongs to the family of gulls. It is about the size of a large Muscovy duck, and may be distinguished from all other birds of this kind, by its four toes being toothed, or notched, like a saw, to assist it in holding its fishy prey. The head and neck of this bird are of a sooty blackness; and the body thick and heavy, more inclining in figure to that of the goose than the gull. The bill is straight, till near the end, where the upper part bends into a hook. They are very expert in catching fish, and used to be trained in England so that they would fish for their masters. Indeed, if we mistake not, they are still used in China for this purpose. A gentleman who had vi sited China several years ago, described the manner in which these birds perform their task. He says, "The birds are educated as men rear up spaniels or hawks, and one man can easily manage a hundred. The fisher carries them out into the lake, perched on the gunnel of his boat, where they continue tranquil, and expecting his orders with patience. When arrived at the proper place, at the first signal given, each flies a different way to fulfil the task assigned it. It is very pleasing, on this occasion, to observe with what sagacity they portion out the lake or the canal where they are upon duty. They hunt about, they plunge, they rise a hundred times to the surface, until they have at last found their prey. They then seize it with their beak by the middle, and carry it to their master. When the fish is too large they give each other much assistance; one seizes it by the head, the other by the tail, and thus carry it to the boat together. There the boatman stretches out one of his long oars, on which they perch, and on being delivered of their burden, they fly off to continue their sport. When wearied, he allows them to rest for a while; but they are never fed till their work is over. this manner they supply a very plentiful table; but still, their natural gluttony cannot even be reclaimed by education. They have always, while they fish, a string fastened round their throats, to prevent them from devouring their prey, or otherwise they would at once satiate themselves, and discontinue their pursuit the moment they had done so."

In

The great activity with which it pursues, and from a vast height drops down

to dive after its prey, offers one of the most amusing spectacles to those who stand upon a cliff on the shore.

It sometimes happens that the cormorant has caught the fish by the tail, and consequently the fins prevent its being easily swallowed in that position. In this case, the bird may be observed to toss its prey above its head, and very dexterously catch it, when descending by the proper end, and to swallow it with ease SEL

WELSH SUPERSTITIONS IN 1847.-A few months since, an unusual circumstance was observed at Pillgwenlly, Newport. A patient ass stood near a house, and a family of not much more rational animals were grouped around it. A father was seen passing his little son under the donkey, and lifting him over its back a certain number of times, with as much solemnity and precision as if engaged in the performance of a sacred duty. This done, the father took a piece of bread, cut from an untasted loaf, which he offered the animal to bite at. Nothing loth, the Jerusalem pony laid hold of the bread with his teeth, and instantly the father severed the outward portion of the slice from that in the donkey's mouth. He next clipped off some of the hairs from the neck of the animal, which he cut into minute particles, and then mixed them with the bread which he had crumbled. This very tasty food was then offered to the boy who had been passed round the donkey so mysteriously and the little fellow having eaten thereof, the donkey was removed by his owners; and the father, his son and other members of his family, were moving off, when a bystander inquired what all these "goings on" had been adopted for. The father started at the ignorance of the inquirer, and then, in a half contemptuous, half condescending tone, informed him, "it was to cure his poor son's hooping cough, to be sure."-SEL.

The parent who would train up a child in the way he should go, must go in the way that he would train up his child.

The rose is sweetest when it first opens, and the spikenard root when it dies. Beauty belongs to youth and dies with it; but the odor of piety survives death and perfumes the tomb.--SEL.

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The winter so severe in Flanders, that the wine distributed to the soldiers was cut by hatchets.

One general throughout Europe; the Thames was passable opposite the Custom House, from Nov. to Jan. Intense frost in all December. Booths erected on the Thames;

1789

1796

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the winter very severe in Ireland, Jan.

The frost in Russia, in 1812, surpassed in intenseness that of any winter in that country for many years, and caused the total destruction of the French army on its retreat from Moscow, at the close of that memorable year. Napoleon commenced his retreat on the 9th of November, when the frost covered the ground, and the men perished in battalions, and the horses fell by hundreds on the roads. What with her loss in battle and the effect of this awful and calamitous frost, France lost in the campaign of this year, more than 400,000 men.-SEL.

"Earn your breakfast before you eat it, and the Sheriff will not deprive you of your supper.”—-SEL.

1814

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How many eulogiums might properly be pronounced, on some of our enlightened countrymen, who have added a good green-house to their favorite country retreats! Whether we look upon such a part of their rural embellishments as an evidence of their own personal good taste, character or habits, or view it in its natural connection with the enjoyments of their friends or the benefit of the neighborhood, we find equal gratification.

If we hear that a gentleman is preparing a place in the country for an occasional retreat from the city, as a summer abode for his family or for a permanent residence, and hear a green-house named among the improvements he has planned, we find room at once for the gratifying conclusion, that the enjoyments. he seeks are not of a low, grovelling kind; that he has a relish for the beauties of nature; that he can endure solitude, and expects and desires to be often alone. Whatever may have been his business through life, we know that he has found time to form an acquaintance with plants; and, as this demands something. like a course of study, combined with particular attention to objects in detail, we cannot easily imagine him to be destitute of a library, without a number of scientific and practical books, or a stranger to habits of reading.

Gratifying would it be to us more frequently to find this appendage to the residences of our opulent fellow-ctizens; and well would it be for themselves and the public if green-houses were multiplied. It would be vain, however, to content ourselves with regretting the limited degree in which the care of curi

ous, beautiful and useful plants yet prevails in this country, if we should do nothing to promote the taste and extend the practice within our own spheres. Happily the enjoyments and benefits arising from a green-house are not necessarily confined to the few persons who are able to possess them. Learning may be obtained by thousands in retirement, who are not able or willing to take up their abode in a college; and a little care in saving time, in collecting seeds, roots. and information respecting the nature and culture of plants, would have long since adorned many a mansion and humble cot in our land with the beauties of perfumed flowers, and raised a numerous band of florists, among every class of our countrymen.

The building represented in our print evidently possesses the principal features considered most essential to a greenhouse. The large and numerous windows, which occupy the whole surface, except such parts of solid wall as are necessary to sustain the fabric, afford all possible facilities for the admission of air and light, while the cold atmosphere may be excluded by closing them, when the weather requires. The size is ample enough for any ordinary purpose; and the height is sufficient for the tallest plants that may be desired, and yet not so great as to render artificial warming very difficult or expressive. The interior arrangements of green-houses at the present day are systematic and interesting, for the advantageous display of plants to the eye, and for the convenience of access. These points are well worth our attention.

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