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1781, a grand sortie was made, wherein 114 artillerymen took | part, to accompany the columns, spike the captured guns, and destroy the Spanish works. The sortie was perfectly successful. But the most interesting event of the siege was the grand attack by sea and land on the 13th of September, 1782, when 200 pieces of ordnance mounted on stupendous and strong batteries and works," protected by an army of 40,000 men, combined with a fleet of 47 sail of the line, 10 battering ships carrying 212 guns, and a host of smaller craft, to shower shot and shell upon the devoted garrison. For a whole day the artillery could make no impression on the shields of the battering ships, but at last confusion was visible among the enemy, the Admiral's ship took fire from the effect of the redhot shot, and during that night and the next day all the battering ships were destroyed. On the 2nd of February, 1783, the exchange of shots ceased, and friendly courtesies ensued between the brave men who would have taken Gibraltar and those who saved it for their country. The Duc de Crillon said afterwards to the officers of Artillery, 'Gentlemen, I would rather see you here as friends than on your batteries as enemies, where you never spared me."-Captain Duncan's History of the Royal Artillery.

BUTTER ADULTERATION. While the London dealers have been denying the assertions of analysts and consumers as to the adulteration of fresh butter by suet, the "Pall Mall" reports that this is a well-known and prosperous branch of trade in America "Very good butter, it is stated, is prepared now by a butter manufactory at New York, according to the following process:-Agents are employed to visit slaughter-houses, and buy up all the beef suet. This is carted to the factory and cleansed. Then it is put into meat choppers and minced fine. It is afterwards placed in a boiler with as much water in bulk as itself. A steam-pipe is introduced among the particles of suet, and they are melted. The refuse of the membrane goes to the bottom of the water, the oily substance floats, and is removed. This consists of butter matter and stearine. A temperature of 80 degrees melts the former, and leaves the stearine at the bottom. The butter matter or cream is drawn off; about 13 per cent. of fresh milk is added and the necessary salt, and the whole is churned for 10 or 15 minutes. The result is Orange county butter at about one-half the usual cost. The stearine is sold at 12 cents a pound to the candle-maker, and the refuse at 7 cents a pound to the manufacturer of food for cattle. A company with a capital of 500,000 dollars has been organised for the manufacture of butter by this method, and it is expected that the dividends will amount to 100 per cent.

PARKS OF LONDON. -The following are the measurements of the parks of London and its neighbourhood, as noted by the Ordnance Survey:-The Regent's Park, 406 acres; Hyde Park, 386; Kensington Gardens, 2454; Victoria Park, 2233; Battersea Park, 129; Greenwich Park, 190; Southwark Park, 63; Green Park, 603; St. James's Park, 58; and Kennington Park 19 acres. These ten parks are situated within the registration district denominated "London," which comprises an area of 78,080 acres. The proportion of park ground to the whole area of the London district is about one forty-second part. Besides these metropolitan parks, the people of London, who can afford or choose to travel some distance, can find magnificent public parks at Hampton Court, Richmond, Bushey, Kew, and Old Deer, and these five present an additional area of not less than 4,200 acres.

ZANZIBAR TREATY.-The material part of the convention actually concluded with the Sultan of Zanzibar is as follows:"1. The provisions of the existing treaties having proved ineffectual for preventing the export of slaves from the territories of the Sultan of Zanzibar in Africa, Her Majesty the Queen and His Highness the Sultan above-named agree that from this date the export of slaves from the coast of the mainland of Africa, whether destined for transport from one part of the Sultan's dominions to another or for conveyance to foreign parts, shall entirely cease. And His Highness the Sultan binds himself, to the best of his ability, to make an effectual arrangement throughout his dominions, to prevent and abolish the same; and any vessel engaged in the transport or conveyance of slaves after this date shall be liable to seizure and condemnation by all such naval or other officers or agents and such courts as may be authorised for that purpose on the part of Her Majesty. 2. His Highness the Sultan engages that all public markets in his dominions for the buying and selling of imported slaves shall be entirely closed. 3. His Highness the Sultan above-named engages to protect, to the utmost of his ability, all liberated slaves, and to punish severely any attempt to molest them or to reduce them again to slavery. 4. Her Britannic Majesty engages that natives of Indian States under British

NELSON'S FAMOUS SIGNAL.-In the life of Admiral Codrington we find an anecdote not generally known, respecting Nelson's famous signal before the battle of Trafalgar: "His lordship said, 'Mr. Pascoe, I wish to say to the fleet, England confides that every man will do his duty,' and he added, You must be quick, for I have one more to make, which is for close action.' I replied, 'If your lordship will permit me to substitute the word "expects" for "confides," the signal will soon be completed, because the word "expects" is in the vocabulary, but the word "confides" must be spelt.' His lordship replied in haste, and with seeming satisfaction, "That will do, Pascoe; make it directly.'

TRADESMEN'S ACCOUNTS.—A correspondent writes as follows on the evil and misery caused by people not paying their debts regularly to their tradesmen and servants. The evil is as notable in London as in any provincial town. "I live in Leamington, and continually see how the thoughtlessness of many of the inhabitants, who think the tradespeople can wait their convenience to receive but their due, brings distress and sometimes bankruptcy. To avoid this they are obliged to borrow money at a very high rate of interest. Many a shopkeeper has said to me, Could you lend me a few pounds till my Christmas bills are paid. I dare not again send in my bill till quarter-day, for fear of giving offence, and so losing their custom altogether; and not only that, but they will speak against my shop to their friends.'

"A lady frequently goes and orders a dress, the material of which the maker is desired to procure with all the etceteras to it. This lady forgets that the dressmaker has to pay her bills of purchase, often monthly, besides the assistants weekly, rent and taxes, food, etc., etc. Yet ladies thoughtlessly ask the dressmaker to wait for her payment for a year

or more.

"Butlers are desired to pay for cab hire, carriage of parcels, etc., without having money given to them on hand for the purpose; this obliges them to pay away their own money, and then they are unable to meet their own expenses, especially if they have a wife and family to provide for, till it suits their masters' convenience to settle with them.

"Servants' wages are often not paid regularly. For board wages, masters seldom think it necessary to pay in advance, which obliges the servants to pay a higher price for their provisions, as they have to go upon credit. Many people forget that 'time is money' to the working class of people.' E. S. G.

1731, a grand sortie was made, wherein 114 artillerymen took part, to accompany the columns, spike the captured guns, and destroy the Spanish works. The sortie was perfectly successful. But the most interesting event of the siege was the grand attack by sea and land on the 13th of September, 1782, when 200 pieces of ordnance mounted on "stupendous and strong batteries and works," protected by an army of 40,000 men, combined with a fleet of 47 sail of the line, 10 battering ships carrying 212 guns, and a host of smaller craft, to shower shot and shell upon the devoted garrison. For a whole day the artillery could make no impression on the shields of the battering ships, but at last confusion was visible among the enemy, the Admiral's ship took fire from the effect of the redhot shot, and during that night and the next day all the battering ships were destroyed. On the 2nd of February, 1783, the exchange of shots ceased, and friendly courtesies ensued between the brave men who would have taken Gibraltar and those who saved it for their country. The Duc de Crillon said afterwards to the officers of Artillery, "Gentlemen, I would rather see you here as friends than on your batteries as enemies, where you never spared me."-Captain Duncan's History of the Royal Artillery.

BUTTER ADULTERATION. While the London dealers have been denying the assertions of analysts and consumers as to the adulteration of fresh butter by suet, the "Pall Mall" reports that this is a well-known and prosperous branch of trade in America :-"Very good butter, it is stated, is prepared now by a butter manufactory at New York, according to the following process:-Agents are employed to visit slaughter-houses, and buy up all the beef suet. This is carted to the factory and cleansed. Then it is put into meat choppers and minced fine. It is afterwards placed in a boiler with as much water in bulk as itself. A steam-pipe is introduced among the particles of suet, and they are melted. The refuse of the membrane goes to the bottom of the water, the oily substance floats, and is removed. This consists of butter matter and stearine. A temperature of 80 degrees melts the former, and leaves the stearine at the bottom. The butter matter or cream is drawn off; about

13 per cent. of fresh milk is added and the necessary salt, and the whole is churned for 10 or 15 minutes. The result is Orange county butter at about one-half the usual cost. The stearine is sold at 12 cents a pound to the candle-maker, and the refuse at 7 cents a pound to the manufacturer of food for cattle. A company with a capital of 500,000 dollars has been organised for the manufacture of butter by this method, and it is expected that the dividends will amount to 100 per cent.

PARKS OF LONDON. -The following are the measurements of the parks of London and its neighbourhood, as noted by the Ordnance Survey:-The Regent's Park, 406 acres; Hyde Park, 386; Kensington Gardens, 245; Victoria Park, 2233; Battersea Park, 129; Greenwich Park, 190; Southwark Park, 63; Green Park, 603; St. James's Park, 58; and Kennington Park 19 acres. These ten parks are situated within the registration district denominated "London," which comprises an area of 78,080 acres. The proportion of park ground to the whole area of the London district is about one forty-second part. Besides these metropolitan parks, the people of London, who can afford or choose to travel some distance, can find magnificent public parks at Hampton Court, Richmond, Bushey, Kew, and Old Deer, and these five present an additional area of not less than 4,200 acres.

ZANZIBAR TREATY.-The material part of the convention actually concluded with the Sultan of Zanzibar is as follows:"1. The provisions of the existing treaties having proved ineffectual for preventing the export of slaves from the territories of the Sultan of Zanzibar in Africa, Her Majesty the Queen and His Highness the Sultan above-named agree that from this date the export of slaves from the coast of the mainland of Africa, whether destined for transport from one part of the Sultan's dominions to another or for conveyance to foreign parts, shall entirely cease. And His Highness the Sultan binds himself, to the best of his ability, to make an effectual arrangement throughout his dominions, to prevent and abolish the same; and any vessel engaged in the transport or conveyance of slaves after this date shall be liable to seizure and condemnation by all such naval or other officers or agents and such courts as may be authorised for that purpose on the part of Her Majesty. 2. His Highness the Sultan engages that all public markets in his dominions for the buying and selling of imported slaves shall be entirely closed. 3. His Highness the Sultan above-named engages to protect, to the utmost of his ability, all liberated slaves, and to punish severely any attempt to molest them or to reduce them again to slavery. 4. Her Britannic Majesty engages that natives of Indian States under British

-

protection shall be prohibited from possessing slaves, and from acquiring any fresh slaves in the meantime, from this date." FRIENDLY SOCIETIES.-We have some reason to suppose that there are, perhaps, 4,000,000 of the Queen's subjects members of friendly societies, and we have also reason to suppose that a very large proportion of the whole number of societies is inmission. solvent.-Report of Friendly Societies' Parliamentary ComLUTHER'S FIRST STUDY OF THE BIBLE. Many will remember at the exhibition of the Royal Academy, two or three years ago, the fine picture by Mr. E. M. Ward, R.A., representing young Luther when a monk in the convent at Erfurt, first reading for himself the ancient Bible in the library. It has been proposed to purchase the picture by public subscription, and present it to the British and Foreign Bible Society of London, to be placed in the library of the new house of the Society, in Queen Victoria-street, as an appropriate memorial of a leading event in the history of the Bible. The project has met with the cordial approval of the Society, and the Hon. A. Kinnaird, M. P., is the chairman of the committee. The amount required as the price of the picture is £1000, of which above half has been already promised. An engraving of the picture appears in the “Sunday at Home" for January.

SIR EDWARD CODRINGTON.-A pension being offered to Sir Edward Codrington, the hero of Navarino, by the Duke of Wellington on the part of the Government, the Admiral declined, on grounds which did him the highest honour. The recently published Life of Codrington gives the following account of the scene with the duke: "I have made arrangements by which I am enabled to offer you a pension of £800 for your life.' The admiral's answer was ready and immediate. 'I am obliged to your Grace, but I do not feel myself in a position to accept it. Not accept it? But why not? The king has offered it to you, and I don't see how you can well refuse it.' 'Your Grace must excuse me; I cannot receive such a thing myself while my poor fellows who fought under me at Navarino have had no head-money, and have not even been repaid for their clothes which were destroyed in the battle.'”

NELSON'S FAMOUS SIGNAL.-In the life of Admiral Codrington we find an anecdote not generally known, respecting Nelson's famous signal before the battle of Trafalgar: "His lordship said, 'Mr. Pascoe, I wish to say to the fleet, England confides that every man will do his duty,' and he added, You must be quick, for I have one more to make, which is for close action.' I replied, "If your lordship will permit me to substitute the word "expects" for "confides," the signal will soon be completed, because the word "expects" is in the vocabulary, but the word "confides" must be spelt.' His lordship replied in haste, and with seeming satisfaction, "That will do, Pascoe; make it directly.'

TRADESMEN'S ACCOUNTS.-A correspondent writes as follows on the evil and misery caused by people not paying their debts regularly to their tradesmen and servants. The evil is as notable in London as in any provincial town. "I live in Leamington, and continually see how the thoughtlessness of many of the inhabitants, who think the tradespeople can wait their convenience to receive but their due, brings distress and sometimes bankruptcy. To avoid this they are obliged to borrow money at a very high rate of interest. Many a shopkeeper has said to me,Could you lend me a few pounds till my Christmas bills are paid. I dare not again send in my bill till quarter-day, for fear of giving offence, and so losing their custom altogether; and not only that, but they will speak against my shop to their friends.'

"A lady frequently goes and orders a dress, the material of which the maker is desired to procure with all the etceteras to it.. This lady forgets that the dressmaker has to pay her bills of purchase, often monthly, besides the assistants weekly, rent and taxes, food, etc., etc. Yet ladies thoughtlessly ask the dressmaker to wait for her payment for a year

or more.

"Butlers are desired to pay for cab hire, carriage of parcels, etc., without having money given to them on hand for the purpose; this obliges them to pay away their own money, and then they are unable to meet their own expenses, especially if they have a wife and family to provide for, till it suits their masters' convenience to settle with them.

"Servants' wages are often not paid regularly. For board wages, masters seldom think it necessary to pay in advance, which obliges the servants to pay a higher price for their provisions, as they have to go upon credit. Many people forget that time is money' to the working class of people." E. S. G.

"I hear you boarded a wreck the other morning and rescued a child from it," observed the visitor. "I did so," answered Adam, curtly.

"What has become of the child, then?" asked Mr. Gaffin, looking round the room as if in search of her. The visitor was Miles Gaffin, the miller of Hurlston, as he was generally called.

"She has gone out for a walk," said the dame, coming up near her husband on hearing the subject of the conversation.

"You will find the maintenance of a child in addition to your own somewhat burdensome in these hard times," observed the miller.

"We can judge better than our neighbours whether the burden is more than we can bear," answered the dame; "so you see, Mr. Gaffin, that need not make any one uneasy on our account."

"Very likely, my good woman, and all very well at present; but the day will come when she will require schooling and clothing, and I suppose you had not time to bring much property belonging to her on shore, Adam Halliburt?" said Gaffin, in an inquiring

tone.

"No, Miles Gaffin, I had less time to bring anything away than those who visited the wreck before me," he answered, fixing his eyes on the visitor, who met his glance unmoved.

"What! did any one else get on board the wreck, do you think?”

"I am sure of it; and whoever they were, they were heartless villains to leave a little child to perish when they might have saved her."

"Perhaps if people did visit the wreck they were not aware that any human being remained on board," said Gaffin. "Did you see any of the crew? No one has heard of them, I understand."

"It's my belief that they attempted to escape in the boats, which were swamped on crossing the sands," answered Adam. "They deserved their fate, too, if they recollected the poor child and her nurse who were left behind. Though the little dear was saved by their base conduct, as she would have been lost had they taken her, not the less shame to them. However, no one can tell how it happened."

"Of course they attempted to escape in their boats, there is no other way to account for their disappearance," answered Ġaffin; "few craft except such

as ours on this coast could live in the sea that was then running, for it was as bad as could well be, as I hear. I myself was away to London on business," he added, carelessly.

Adam kept his eyes on his guest while he was speaking, but the countenance of the latter maintained the same bold, defiant look which it generally

wore.

As Gaffin made the last remark, Jacob, with his little charge, entered the cottage.

Maiden May, on seeing a stranger, kept tight hold of Jacob's hand, and drew away from the fireplace, where he was seated.

"As to that, Mr. Gaffin, God placed her under our charge, and we intend to do our duty by her," answered Adam, firmly.

"Your duty would be to obtain for her every opportunity of retaining the position in which she was born," said Gaffin. "That's no common person's child."

"Maybe she is not; but, as I said before, we will do our best. More than that we cannot do," answered Adam.

"Now, my friend, I have a proposal to make," said Gaffin, speaking in as frank a tone as he could assume. "She will be a heavy burden to you some time hence, if she is not so at present; my wife and I, as you know, have no daughter, although, like you, we have three sons. We are more independent of the world than you are, as my wife had money; you will understand, though, I do not eat the bread of idleness; and as she would very much like to have a little girl to bring up to be her companion when our boys are away, we are willing to take charge of that child and adopt her, should her friends not be discovered. To show you that I am in earnest, here are five guineas as payment to you for going off and bringing her on shore in the gallant way I understand you did. It's a trifling reward, I own, but if I have the power I will increase it should you accept my offer."

Adam stood with his hands in his pockets as he had been doing while his visitor was speaking.

"Keep your money, Mr. Gaffin, for when it may be required," he answered, quietly. "My lads and I only did our duty, and what any one with the heart of a man would have tried to do. That little maiden has been placed in my charge, and until her rightful friends appear, my wife and I will take care of her without looking for payment or reward. You have our answer, I speak for myself and dame; there is no use wasting more time in talking about the matter."

"Well, well, neighbour, I cannot take your reply as conclusive," said Gaffin, trying to conceal his annoyance; "just think it over, and you will be doing a great pleasure to my wife and lay us under an obligation if you agree to my proposal."

Adam had given his reply, and was determined to say nothing more. He was anxious, too, to get rid of his guest.

Gaffin at length, finding that he could gain nothing by staying, rose to leave the cottage. The dame took up May and retired with her to the farther end of the room, while Adam stood as before with his hand firmly thrust down into his pocket, as if determined not to shake that of his departing guest, while Jacob opened the door as wide as he could. Gaffin, unabashed, nodded to the fisherman and his dame, and with a swagger in his walk to conceal the irritation he felt, left the cottage. Jacob watched him till he had got to some distance. "He has gone,