THE GRIZZLY BEAR.

whose retreats are so far remote from civilization and naturally so difficult of access. According to the concurrent representations of fur-traders, Indians and missionaries, who have crossed the Rocky Mountains, a grizzly bear can hardly be encountered under any circumstances without imminent hazard. He usually makes no delay to await the first assault, much less does he betray any disposition to conceal himself or to escape: but, on discovering a man or a company of men, runs in at once, and assails them with his murderous claws, which nothing is able to withstand. These are probably the most formidable found in the animal kingdom, being thick, strong, sharp, and retractile, or capable of being drawn up into the foot like a cat's. They are found measuring six inches in length, forming a wide and beautiful curve approaching a half-circle; and, such a feat is it considered by the Indians to destroy their owner, that the most valuable necklace found in many of the tribes is formed of a few of them fastened together, and worn on the breast.

Lewis and Clark tell several anecdotes of Grizzly bears, some of which we may hereafter copy in one of the numbers of the Penny Magazine. Frequent notice also is taken of these terrible animals in Mr. Irving's books on the West.

About ten years ago, Captain Duncan, of the United States army, was sent with a company of mounted dragoons, on an expedition to the Rocky Mountains; and, among the numerous interesting incidents which occurred during the journey, some of those connected with the mountains and their vicinity were most remarkable. The commander of the enterprise, who had long felt a peculiar desire to see the noble ridge which divides our continent, was so much

attracted by the mingled sublimity and beauty of the scenery among the first eminences, that, as soon as arrangements had been made for encamping at their feet, he rode up a little wild pass which opened before him, to obtain a nearer view of a remarkable cascade which had arrested his attention. He was soon out of sight of his soldiers, enclosed among green eminences, thickly covered with forests, and contemplating a scene of the most impressive character. In the midst of the seclusion of the place, his attention was roused to his danger by hearing a heavy tread or rustling behind, and turning, he suddenly saw a grizzly bear approaching, with his mouth open and at full speed. He had only time to fire and spur his horse, which rushed back with him down the pass, closely pursued. The rider was so much occupied with the task of urging on his steed, that he turned but two or three times to look back, and then found the savage beast almost close upon him, his teeth displayed and his eyes glaring frightfully. It was only by the utmost exertions that he was able to keep out of his reach. At length the bear was so near, that he rose on his hind feet to strike his fore claws into his back: but being unable quite to reach his mark, he betook himself to all fours. This, the fugitive horseman observed with joy, threw him perceptibly in the back-ground; but his satisfaction was short-lived, for the beast was soon as near as before, and raised himself again to repeat the experiment. He plunged the spurs deeper than ever, the rider recoiling bent forwards to avoid the awful claws of his pursuer; away shot the horse, and again the bear was left for an instant behind, baulked in his plan.

The grassy opening at the mouth of the mountain pass now appeared in view, and two Cherokees were seen dashing up from the encampment to the rescue of their captain. They had heard the report of his rifle, and instantly conjectured his danger. The horse ran on headlong along the brink of a steep bank, at the foot of which flowed one of those head springs of our western rivers so numerous in the Rocky Mountains. The savage beast, thirsty for blood, pressed closely on behind, when one of the Cherokees drew up his rifle, and with as steady an eye as if he had been aiming at a grazing buffalo, sent a ball into his fore leg which broke the bone. The first step upon it bent it under the animal's huge body, and the fall being towards the bank, he rolled helplessly down into the water.

SOURCES OF THE RIVER JUMNA.

FEW rivers in the world rise among scenery so sublime as the principal streams of Hindostan. For descriptions of the wild landscape through which flow the early fountains of the Jumna, depicted above, we are indebted to Mr. Fraser and Captain Hodgson, the latter of whom, in his travels among the Himmaleh mountains, took great pains to penetrate as near as possible to its head springs. From this drawing, inadequate as it is, a general idea, we presume, may be formed of the nature of the place. Like the Ganges, the Jumna has its source among the snowy masses which ever envelope the upper regions of that most lofty range: but so inaccessible are the spots where most of the head streams take their rise, that no human foot has ever reached them. A hardy and venturous traveller may proceed far among desolate regions, and pass over chasms of the most terrific nature, on frail steps and narrow bridges of poles and sticks, such as the mountaineers construct: but even these are unavailing beyond certain points.

Two peaks are seen here to rise above the other distant mountain ridges.

The

higher is the Roodroo Himmala, and the other the Jumnavatari. The height of the former has been esttmated at 25,000 feet, which is within about 2000 feet of the highest land in the world: but the accuracy of this estimate has been questioned. A remarkable pass leads between some of the inferior eminences, till it reaches a valley, which contains the village of Jumnotree and a pond or basin, in which all those rills unite, and from which proceeds the first collected stream of the Jumna.

The view presented to the spectator from this spot is described as one of a most striking character. The Bunderpouch, as the vast mountain pass is called, retires gradually upwards, till it reaches the region of continual snows: while the rock which overhangs the basin enjoys a milder atmosphere, and is clad in vegetation, and enlivened by the sound of ever-flowing crystal rivulets

It has been remarked by a recent traveller, that the head streams of the three principal rivers of Hindostan, are marked by peculiar differences of scenery: the upper regions of the Ganges are desolate and repulsive; the Jumna, after leaving the regions of snow, winds among regions better wooded, and finally through narrow verdant valleys, thinly inhabited; while the Sutledge is shut in by the wildest rocks.

These three rivers are intimately connected with the gloomy and debasing mythology of the Hindoos. In Greece and Italy, the intelligent Christian traveller finds reason to mingle melancholy reflections with. his admiration of the natural beauties of the landscape. The same is true of Hindostan : particularly of the sublime regions of which we have been speaking. The Hindoos are taught that one of their principal divinities inhabits the head springs of each of these three rivers; and to him the whole stream is consecrated. Hence it is, that drowning in the Ganges was considered a religious sacrifice to Siva, or Mahadeo: the being who is reported to have come from Ceylon many thousand years ago, and to have formed the Himmaleh mountains for a place of

retreat.

THE MOTHER OF THE SIAMESE TWINS. -Our missionaries in Siam, as appears by their Journal in the Herald, made the acquaintance of this woman at Maklong, in Siam. They say-In the course of our morning walk we met a very respectable looking man, who informed us that he was the individual who conducted the Siamese

twins from that place to Bangkok, and delivered them to the captain who took them out of the country. He also told us that the mother of the twins was still living on the opposite side of the canal. We determined, therefore, to pay her a visit before leaving the place.

A little after they say-Early in the afternoon we went in search of the mother of the Siamese twins, and were so happy as to find a man who conducted us directly to her house. On learning that we brought intelligence respecting her absent children, whom she supposed to be dead, she gave us a hearty welcome. We assured her that they were living when we last heard from America, and that they had recently married sisters in one of the Southern States. With this intelligence she was much gratified, and expressed much affection for them. As Mr. Buel's relatives live in the vicinity of her children, he offered to communicate, through them, any message she wished to send to the twins. She is of lighter complexion than most Siamese women, and has every appearance of having once had great energy of character. It seems that both of her husbands were Chinamen, and that she herself had a Chinese father; so that the twins are in no sense Siamese, except that they were born in Siam. Selected.

The Farmers Club.

A few months ago, the American Institute invited farmers, gardeners, and friends of agriculture in general, to meet once in two weeks in their spacious saloon in the New City Hall. The meetings soon became interesting, and have been continued ever since, except during the heat of summer. The public have been made acquainted with the proceedings of the Club, to some extent, through the newspapers. We shall endeavor to do our share in diffusing the useful facts which are brought together by the intelligent, industrious, and public-spirited members, beginning with some of those which have most interested us.

It is, however, due to the Institute to state, that the arrangements are such as to afford the friends of agriculture every facility without expense, while the courtesy of the officers of that society is extended to all who attendparticularly to strangers from other places and other countries, who are always sure of a welcome. Neither fee, introduction, nor previous notice, is necessary for any one who wishes to attend.

The table usually presents some new ob

jects of interest at every meeting. We have often entered a few minutes before the opening of business, when we have found groups of gentlemen conferring on different subjects; here and there a member at the valuable library, which occupies the walls of the room; the long-tried and efficient Secretary, Mr. Wakeman, one of the founders of the Institute, surveying the gathering friends and waiting for the time to call to order, while the Recording Secretary, Judge Meigs, was preparing, with the vivacity of youth and the taste which has led him in former years through a wide circle of literature, for the arduous labors of another of his detailed reports, so remarkable for their minute correctness and liveliness of style, and to which the public owe much of the pleasure and information they have derived from the meetings of the Club.

We are happy to learn that farmers' clubs are held in Boston, and that measures are to be taken, to form similar associations, on a systematic plan, in the whole county of Westchester.

The Portland Vase.

By the last arrival from England, we learn that a young man in a state of intoxication threw down and broke to pieces the celebrated Portland vase, in the British Museum, on the 25th ult. The crash brought attendants to the part of the hall where the vase stood, and they found the young man standing over the fragments of the vase, and the glass case in which it had been kept. He confessed the act but would not reveal his name. He was arrested and tried under the "wilful damage act," the only one applicable to his case. The Duke of Portland, to whom the vase belonged, did not prosecute him, and so the trustees of the Museum could only prosecute for the destruction of the glass case, the worth of which (£3) he was ordered to pay, and in default of which he was imprisoned. Some person, however, in a few days, enclosed anonymously that sum to the magistrate, and he was liberated. He refused, during his trial, to reveal his name, on the ground that he did not wish his family to share his disgrace. He is said to have been a student of Dublin University. The following is a description of the vase:

One thousand guineas were given by the Duke of Portland to Sir Wm. Hamilton for that superb specimen of Greek art commonly known as the "Portland Vase," though it was formerly called the "Barberini Vase," from having been for more than two centuries the principal ornament of the Barberini Palace at Rome. Its height was about ten inches, and its diameter, at the broadest, six. It seemed to have been a work of many years, and some

antiquarians dated its production several centuries before the Christian era. Dr. Darwin supposed it to represent the Eleusinian mysteries. It was found about the middle of the sixteenth century, two and a half miles from Rome, on the Frascati Road, in a marble sarcophagus, within a sepulchral chamber that seemed to be the tomb of Alexander Severus, the Roman Emperor, and of his mother, Julia Mammæa. The material of which the vase was formed was glass, though Montfaucon stated it to be made of a precious stone, so beautiful did it appear. The figures were executed in relief, of a beautiful opaque white, the ground of a dark transparent blue. The subject of these figures has never been clearly ascertained; but the design and most valuable relic of antiquity was deposited in 1810 in the British Museum, by the Duke of Portland.

Mr. Wedgwood was allowed by the Duke to keep the vase for a year to take a cast of it. Thus, though the original is lost, there is no lack of very faithful copies.

Richmond Times.

This

PROTESTANISM IN ALGIERS.—An esteemed correspondent in Algiers has favored us with an appeal from the Protestants of that French colony to their Protestant brethren in these and other lands. interesting document is in the French language; but, instead of presenting a translation, we shall give our readers a brief summary of its contents. After describing the present spiritual desolation of a country where the Gospel once shone so brightly, the memorial proceeds to state, that the church in Algiers, established five years ago, has already three chapels connected with it. One at Dely-Ibrahim, a beautiful village, inhabited by German families of the Confession of Augsburg; another at Oran, in the west of the province; and the third at Phillippeville, on the east. They hope to establish two chapels, one at Bona, a flourishing town, the other at Blidah, for the Protestant families already numerous there. and for those scattered at the foot of the Atlas, and the plains and villages around. Feeling that they have a large and interesting field for labor upon the confines of the Great Desert, they now appeal to their Christian brethren in other countries.

They entreat the Protestant churches in other lands, to furnish them with six devoted evangelists. They would desire three from the churches in France, Switzerland and Holland and the other three from England America and Sweeden; thus offering a striking example of Christian union to the Christian Church in that distant land. The General Consistory would exercise over these

missionaries a superintendence, directing them to suitable spheres of labor, and giving an annual return to the societies sending them, of the expenses incurred. The missionaries would themselves furnish a report of their labors to the societies by whom they were sent. Such is the nature of their reasonable appeal. It would be a matter of great interest, if English Protestants would send suitable evangelists to that important settlement; it would, at least, be an instalment of the debt we owe to injured, insulted, degraded Africa.-Christian Examiner.

FOREIGN LANGUAGES.

French Extracts.

Lettre d'un Naturaliste a un de ses Amis.*

Nous approchons de l'aimable saison où les jardins, les bois et les champs vont se couvrir de verdure et de fleurs. Chaque jour va nous ramener des hotes venus du midi, et dont les chants harmonieux retentiront dans nos bois. La nature a repris son pinceau, et bientot sa main habile et bienfaisante déploiera sous nos yeux ces teintes variées, ces nuances admirables et délicates que la parole ne saurait décrire. Examinons de près cette population verdoyante qui s'est emparée de la terre; ces millions d'etres vivans envoyés, comme autant de messagers de joie, pour proclamer la puissance et la bonté du Créateur. Je n'ai jamais contemplé la nature sans etre transporté d'admiration; mais depuis que votre exemple et vos encouragemens m'ont enhardi, et que j'essaie d'imiter, par une représentation exacte, ces étonnantes produtions, je découvre de nouvelles beautés dans chaque oiseau, chaque plante, chaque fleur qui arrete mes regards; et ma pensée s'élève de plus en plus, en méditant sur l'incompréhensible cause première dont je vois les effets.

Je souris quelquefois, en me surprenant absorbé par la contemplation du plumage d'une alouette, ou suivant des yeux les contours d'une chouette avec toute l'ardeur d'un amant passionné, tandis que d'autres forment des projets d'agrandissement et de fortune, achètent des terres, batissent des villes, accumulent des richesses dont ils ne savent point jouir. Celles que je cherche ne troublent point mon repos et n'alarment point ma conscience; ce sont de beaux échantillons des ouvrages de la nature. J'ai eu chez moi des corneilles, des faucons et des chouettes vivantes; je possédais aussi des opossums, des écureuils, des serpens, des lézards, etc.; en sorte que ma chambre ne ressemblait pas mal à l'arche de Noé.

*Cette lettre est adressee par l'Ecossais Wilson, instituteur dans la Pensylvanie et auteur de l'Ornitholo gie americaine, mort jeune encore a Philadelphie, en 1813, a un de ses amis, qui l'avait encourage a l'etude

de la nature.

JUVENILE DEPARTMENT.

From Arthur's Magazine.

Our Little Harry.

By the Author of " Will and the Beggar Girl."

Our sweet wee brother Harry,
Say, have you seen him yet?
He has a pair of bright blue eyes,
The darling little pet!

And lips as soft and rosy-red
As flower-buds in the spring,

And voice as sweet as voice of bird
On upward bounding wing.

Say, have you seen that dear sweet boy,
With his wavy, flaxen hair,
And eyes as full of innocence

As eyes of angels are?

He was twelve months old last Monday,
But still he does not walk,
And only says a word or two,

Though hard he tries to talk.

But I'm sure he'll walk right early now,
For he stands up by a chair,
And steps out bravely, if mamma

To take his hand is there;

And I'm sure he'll talk, too, very soon,
For he knows now all we say,
And calls papa, so very plain,
When papa is away.

He's a very cunning little rogue:
Last evening, while at tea,

Nurse brought him in, and sat him down
In a high chair close by me.

He laughed, and crowed, and clapped his
hands,

And tried, just like the rest,

To eat his bread and drink his tea-
And tried his very best.

But his tea went on the table-cloth,
And his saucer on the floor,

And his spoon glanced past dear papa's
head,

And struck against the door;
And his little hands flew up and down
Like the swift wings of a bird;
And he laughed and crowed in such a way
As you have never heard.

I laughed till I could eat no more,
And little Will was wild,
To see the merry mishief shown
By such a tiny child.
Nurse took him out right quickly,
And I guess we'll take good care
How Mr. Harry we invite

Again our meals to share.

But he's not always such a rogue,
He is not always wild,

But looks, and acts sometimes, as if
He were an angel-child.
Oh! I wish that you could see him,
On the morning of each day,

When papa reads the Bible,

And then kneels down to pray.

As mamma gets upon her knees,
And we kneel round her chair,
Our dear pet-one drops softly down
To join with us in prayer.
He cannot say "Our Father,"
Though very hard he tries,
And lifts with such a gentle grace
His heavenly little eyes.

Our darling little Harry!

He's loved the best of all:

From mother's calm and thoughtful eyes
I've seen a tear to fall,

As sleeping sweetly on her breast
The dear, dear child would lie,
And she has looked long on his face;
I know the reason why:

I've heard her say to dear papa-
"This babe's so sweet and pure,
So all unlike an earth-born child,
He will not live, I'm sure."
But papa always smiles, and says,
"That's just the reason why,
Of all the dear ones given to us,
Our Harry should not die.”

Papa is right-sweet Harry!
He's just the one to stay:
His purity and innocence
Will evil keep away.

If James gets cross, or little Will,
And Anna fretful grow-

Bring Harry in the midst, and smiles
On all their faces glow.

A MAN OVERBOARD.

The following incident was related to the writer by a veteran East India Captain:

"One day towards evening, as the vessel was running above five knots an hour, the appalling cry was heard 'A man overboard! Instantly every effort was made to lay the ship to a boat was lowered, and several stout hands and bold hearts were embarked in her, and pulling astern with all their might, in quest of their lost shipmate. The general concern and anxiety for his re covery was greatly increased, when it was found to be Venis, (a soubriquet for Sylvanus) an excellent sailor, and a general favourite with the ship's company. The chances were, however, but slender. The ship had made very considerable headway, before the boat could be got in readiness-the sea was rough, and the shades of night were already gathering over the deep.

"A man was, however, sent aloft with a glass, the moment the accident happened, and the captain took his place at the stern of the boat. For awhile, the man in the top saw the poor fellow struggling in the waves;