The Herald -- 1870-11-30 -- Page 2

ome

~The “Herald.

Wednesday, November 30, 1870.

will here witness, whenever necessary,
the painful presentimenta, but teo well

i po | ‘New, amidst the fever which has
includ roy os ae legitimately taken byld of all men’s agny
irom Versailles, the day of the sortie by minds, | meet with difficulties which Tue Reports of the Visitors of Schools for
the Paria , ways ~-An ubserver ia] Present the most striking analugy with) the three Counties of Prince Edward Island

ed astray in’ estimating the
strength of the German position, al-
though the besiegers, wisely enough,
have not attempted with the furce at
their disposal to tortily and entrench a
fitted and continuous line right round
Paris. Although one may ride about a
reat deal without seeing any large
Retins of troops, still the pickets are so
red. and the natural lie of the lands

as been su carefully studied and turned
to advantage in the disposition of the
supports, that loug before an attacking
force could penetrate far enough to inflict
serious damage, a sufficient number of
men would have been massed tu bar
efficiently its further progress, The ex-
perience of to-day has amply proved the
excellence of the arrangements. The
Germans did not expect the attack, but
when it came, they were perfectly pre-
ared to meet it, Every hollow has
n utilised, and every village turned

to the best account. Each detachment

' henored me.

for the years 1869-70, have for some time
been before the public. They are entitled
to consideration, both from the great im-
portance of the subject upon which they are
intended to furnish us with information, and
from the fact that they ought to serve as vouch-
ers to show what returns are derived from the
large amount of public money invested in
the service of education. In this latter as-
pect, we are of opinion that the reports in
question, do not possess that clearness and
distinctness which such documents should
have. Wg have scattered fucts and figures
in abundance, but we have no practical re-
sults drawn from statistics or observation—
no hints for guidance in any course of
amelioration—no indication what proportion
the fruits bear to the outlay. This we re-
gard as a shortcoming to be regretted the
more as it is chiefly upon the Visitors re-
ports, that the members of the Board of
Education must rely for direction in the
exercise of their functions. One inspector

those of tue past. I now declare that,
having the most entire fuith in the re-
turn of fortune, which will be due to the
great efforts af resistance which are so
conspicuous during the siege of Paris, |
will not cede to the pressure of public
impatience, Inspired with the duties
which are common to us all, and with
the responsililities which no one shares
with me, 1 will follow ont to the end
the plan that I have already traced out
without indicating it—and I only ask
from the population of Paris, in exchange
for my efforts, the continuation of that
confidence with which it bus uutil now

“Receive, Monsiour le Maire, the
assurance of my high consideration.

* The President of the Government,
Governor of Paris,
Generat Trocuv.”’

Hospirat Scemes ar Versautirs,—The

und regiment knows exactly to what

at aud by which it is to proceed
n case of bs ay and the most availeyjc
places have been fortitied. By the ad.
sheOly manu tm whith wey thus
practically employ their accurate topo-
xraphical knowledge, the besiegers are
so screeued and guarded that they offer
wearcely any mark for the enemy’s guns,
und are even difficult to be found by
those un their own side who do not
know the exact spot on which the dif-
ferent bodies of troops are posted ; but in
wase of an alert, -or when the outposts
are relieved, the detachments come pour-
ing in frow all directions with such regu-
larigy and speed, thatin a few minutes
a large force is collected in a place
where one would have previously sup-
posed there were scarcely a hundrod
men. Everything is done so as to ren-
der the outpost duty as little harassing
us possible. The men are three days
out and six days in quarters, and when
on duty are so disposed_as to sustain but
little damage from the enemy’s fire.
Another advantage of the open line
System is that even should a large
French force cut its way through, there
is no way for it to go, except at one or
two points of strategical importance,
which have been carefully prepared, and
would be most resolately held,

TROCHU’S PROCLAMATION;

The following is General Trochu’s last
proclamation :—

“ Monsterrn tt Marre—I have the
honor to make known to you the basis
on which, in concert with the General
Commanding the National Guard, I pro-

ose to organize the battalions of the
National Guard capable of mobilisation,
Their mobilisation encounters’ consider-
able difficuluies, and, consequently,
deluys of which the public feeling—very
naturally impatient, in consequence of
its lively patriotism —expects some
satisfactory account. Itis my duty to
enlighten it, without being carried away
by ite enthucsiacm, and-to show that no
one more than mysclf has more at heart
the honor of the National Guard of Paris
and the responsibility of the great, iuter-
ests which it will engage on the day
when it marches to mect the enemy,
When I andertook the defence of Paris,
with the assistance of devoted colleagues
whose names the gratitude of the public
will one ~ proclaim, I had to struggle
with a sentiment very different from that
which is evinced now. It was believed,
and it was repeated, that a great city
like our capital, influenced by interests,
by paesions, by such diverse require-
wents, was not capable of being defended
and it was only with t difficulty it
was at leogth admj that the fortifi-
cations of the capital and ics forts, con-
structed long ago, and under very
} different military conditions to those
\ which are in vogue now, could be ade-
: quately prepared to oppose, without the
asvistance of an army operating outside,
a serious and lengthened resistance to
the attacks of a victorious enemy. Be-
sides, it was not expected that the pop-
ulation would be prepared for the sacri-
fices of every sort, for the resiguation,
‘ which a siege of any duration necessi-
tates. Now, that the trial has been
made—.e., that the state of the defences
has arrived ut such a state that renders
the approaches to the captal invincible ;
that the iuhabitants have given proof of
their patriotism, and silenced a number
of men whose culpable designs aided the
enemy’s ab spl that the enemy even,
retiring before our formidable defences,
has contented itself by surrounding the
city with masses of troops, without dar-
ing to attack the city ; the public feeling
has become considerably more calm,
and it has now but one preoccupation—
to throw, iu its turn, large masses ont-
vide the fortilications to meet the Prus-
sian army.

«The Government of National Defence
cannot but encourage this elan of the
whole population; but it remains with
the commander in-chief alone to direct
it ; for wupou him alone resta auch an im-

» mense nsibility. To this end he is
bound not to allow himself to be per-
suaded or influcaced, excepting by the
rules and experiences of war, and by
those special experiences which we owe

ca to the painful events which bave over-
at thrown the army of the Rhine. Thoy
ie. rove that no infantry, no matter how

: formidable it may be, can be advanta-

are decorated with wreaths and chaplets;

all is ready the bearers take up their
loads, the band leads the way, and noth-
ing can be more touching, plaintive, and
tender than the strains of the funeral

the officers who are mourners ; next, the
chaplain, with au officer on each side;

Y\ stances w

does venture to suggest two innovations;
but neither of these is shown to be necessary
from his. report. Ho gives us no data by
which to ascertain whether the irregular
attemdance at school is greater in Prince
Edward Island than in Great Britain, and
so rendering necessary a compulsory clause
in the Education Act. The introduction of
graded schools is also recommended, for
reasoys set forth by the Council of Public
Instruction of Nova Scotia, We may have
Suusvthing to say regarding this suggestion
at a future time. In the meanwhile, we
may state one inference which we have
drawn from the perusal of these reports,
and itis, that however well our School Act
may look on paper, its practical working is
in many respects dangerously out of gearing,
The machine is not bereft of motion: it has
indeed an overstock of it. But every move-
ment is isolated—there is a lack of combina-
tion, and progress is, in consequence, infini-
tesimal, if any at all. To illustrate our
meaning practically, we will consider in
detail the working of our school system, on
the evidence set forth In these reports. We
begin with the Normal School :

A Normal School is an Institution design-
ed for the effectual training of school teach-
ers. As such it should possess all the re-
quisites for effecting this. The Principal
should be a man of talent and practical
ability, capable of imparting to his students
every essential in the theory of their profes-
sion, and of illustrating his theories by
practical examples in actual teaching. For
this purpose, attached to the Normal School,
there should be a practising school. This
in classification arrangement and discipline,
should be a model. Here the students are
expected to be instructed how best to reduce
the theoretical portions of their training to
practice, what system of grouping to pursue,
what methods to adopt in teaching the differ.
ent branches, how to enforce and maintain
a stringent discipline—in a word, whatever
is within the range of purely technical sub-
jects. or can he reduced te a eyotous, anit, 45
it were, depicted on a map, should be there
acquired with precision by the students,
We have no data in the reports before us to
compare our Normal School with the above
outline. We are only informed of the num-
ber of students in attendance. We know,
however, that the Normal School is not, as
it ought to be, the vestibule through which
Schoolmasters must pass, to enter on their
profession. It is no draw-back, on this Island,
to a candidate for a teaching license, that he
has never attended the Normal School. Itcan,
in military phrase, be completely turned, and
left isolated. Again, there is a ‘ Model
School taught in a room immediately ad-
joining that in which the Normol School is
taught;” but the School Visitor tells us tho
connection between these two schools is
merely nominal; and he adds, “ there is ap-
parently neither common ground of action
hor community of interest.” Thus, not only
is the Normal School itself isolated, but its
most essential feature, the practical training
school, is rendered of no use whatever to it.
With the main spring of a system so de-
ranged, it would be unreasonable to expect
regularity of action in the parts. Let us
glance at one or two. The frequency of
complaints in the Visitors’ Reports of the
remissness of Trustees, warrants the infer-
ence that these bodies throughout the coun-
try discharge their duty lamely, Over and
over again, the Visitors complain of their
suggestions being unattended to, Were the
law administered, as it should, this might
be prevented ; but, in the meantime, itis per-
fectly true that there are a very great many
Boards of Trustees who perform their duties
with a sovereign air of independence, acting
when it suits them and abstaining from all
action, just as circumstances prompt, —
Again, as to the teachers, the percentage of
them condemned by the Visitors for’ inca-
pacity or carelessness, is exceptionally large.
They can, as it would seem, assume inde-
pendent action. The instances set down in
the reports are not numerous, but they are
flagrant. Some teachers consult their own
judgment in the matter of taking vacation,
and by a curious coincidence the time set aside
for that purpose is the very time that the Visi-
tor is expected. Disrespect to Visitors by
teachors is noted both in last year's reports,
and in those of the present year. Indeed,
we are firmly of opinion that, so long as the
Normal School remains in the isolated con-
dition in which these reports represent it,
the evils which the Visitors complain of in
our school system willincrease. Let school
management be made a leading feature in
the plan of studies carried out at the Normal,
and let the candidates for teaching diplomas
be tested by the examiners on their ability
to teach a class, and to convey to children
clearly and interestingly, the knowledge
they possess themselves, Born teachers are
as rareas born generals, “The cadet fro-
quents the military echool—the young
teacher the Normal, The country that
leaves the attendance at either institution
optional, must be prepared to content itself
with countless inepts in both professions.

Zimes correspondent at the Crown
Prince’s head-quarters describes, in a
letter of the 25th ult., a visit to the
Palace wards, beginning with those of
the Dutch ambulance:—The first |
entered was the ‘ Salle des Guerriers
Celebres’’—the ancient antechamber to
the apartment of Madame de Pompadour
—in which were the nsual hospital
scenes—a Sister of Charity with a bowl
in one hand and @ spoon in the other,’
feeding a soldier too weak to rise ‘4s
surgeon dressing a dreadful wound: “I’m
trying to save the joint, but | fear—still
it's # neat case, The poor wretch
looked at the shattered bone as if he
more than shared the doubt. While I
was in one of the Salles des Marechaux,
& surgeon was probing a guu-shot wound
in the thigh of a man, who uttered such
harrowing yells that the Sister of Charity
—there is one in each room—turned and
fled, a wounded man near burst into
tears, and all in the ward were agitated
except the surgeon aud his assistants,
one of whom tried to stop the outery,
by putting one hand on the top of the
patiene’s head, and squeezing his mouth
and chin with the other, till the doctor
lost his patience and roared at the
wretched sufferer do be quiet, applying
a strong term at the same time, The
yell died into a whimpering moan, stil!
moro dreadinl, and I retired, ‘The
doctor is a very clover man, I am told,
and has his hospital in capital order.
One man was alive with a ball lodged in
his brain ; he had even been conscious.
Another had the side of his skull carried
off by a bit of shell; a third, in a ward
ali by himself, was —but no! It was too
horrible. The man was in mania, and
and Mr, Furely (who was with me) and
I hurried into the next ward, whence an
orderly was sent to keep watch and ward
over the ‘‘case.”? The gallery of Louis
XIII., of the admirals of France, and so
on all round, are filled with wounded
men to the end till we come to tho
officers’ rooms. The suites upstairs in
the palace, or chateau as it is more

generally styled, aro occupied in the
game way as thuse below, There is at

least silence in the rooms, broken only
by the whispers of the Sisters of Charity,
the voices of chaplains by the bedsides,
and tho rustling of newspapers, which
are eagerly read by the wounded; but
the rooms are draughty and cold, and as
winter increases in harshness, there will
be difficulties in ventilating the wards.
Every day there is a ceremony which
attracts a crowd in Veraallies, and makes
its sad sensation--the departure of funeral
parties from the frovt of the palace, with
their burdens for the cemetery. These
military funerals are conducted with
great propriety and decent solemnity
The officers’ coffins are covered with a
black velvet pall, with a cross edged
with whith thrown oyer it, and the biers

the men’s are draped with white. When

march, ‘Then comes the infantry guard
with sloped arms, not reversed; then

the coffins are borne behind the chaplain,
whois on foot, and the procession is
closed by the firing party and by soldiers
and civilians. All along the route to the
cemetery the streets are crowded, and
the windows are full. You see women
in black with streaming eyes look out on
all that remains of an enemy whose hand
may haxe filled the unconscious house
with mourning. Inthe cemetery there
is an immense excavation, capable of
containing some hondreds of coffins.
And so Protestant and Catholic are left
to their rest. ‘‘ Zhey will never onter
Paris,” growled a young man near me
as he walked off; ‘‘those there, at all
events.’”’ ‘ Mon ami,’ said, in a gentle
tone, an old gentleman, turning round
on him, ‘‘ let us hope that they will enter
a far better place, where we shall meet
them.” The few words were said with
a charming grace and sweetness. It
was one of those little phrases in which
Frenebmen excel and which in its tour-
nure covers a thousand faults,

The Independence Belge publishes the
following :—‘‘ An officer who escaped
from the capitulation of Metz, brings us
a number of the Independent de Crioselle
a a published in Metz at the time
of the vagpet of Germans. The circum-

ich preceded the surrender

are there narrated in a detailed and
recise manner. From this account it
clear that the besieged army has been
anworthily deceived by its chlefs, who,
in order to quiet the soldiers when they
demanded to be hurled upon the enemy,
to cut a way through at any price, prom-
ised that the army would soon be able to
out intact with all the honors of war.
leaders declared all France to be a
rey to anarchy; that Paris, Lyons,
arseilles, Bordeaux, and Toulouse were
in open civil war; that Rouen and Havre
had demanded help from the Prussians,
that it was impossible to obtain any-
more than a capitulation on the
basis and terms as that of Sedan.

b adds, there is no lon Tue City Council have contributed $100
Sell eat eaneln a cn | emards tie Bunt te te poet of ie ec
the accusation of treason. ers by the Saguenay fire,

}

|

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 1870.

—_ penne cma anna

Tas maudlin sympethy for lawlessness
aud dishonesty to which the Patriot has, for
many months past, given expression, in cou-
nection with the fishery cn he P
length borne its legitimate fruits, in one
the most daring acts that has ever occurred
in Charlottetown. It will be remembered
by our readers that we chronicled, some
time ago, the capture, by H. M.S. Plover,
of an American tishing schooner named the
Clara F. Friend, which had been repeatedly
caught in the act of fishing within the three-
mile limit, and ordered off. Having been
handed over to the civil authorities on her
arrival in Charlottetown, a guard of three
men was, by order of the Court of Vice Ad-
miralty, placed on board of her, to protect
her until after the Court had decided her
case. The Court met for this purpose on
Tuesday, the 22nd inst., and after hearing
evidence and arguments, was adjourned for
a few days, in order to give the Judge time
to prepare his decision. In the meantime,
the Plover left for Pictou, and on Thursday
night, a lot of desperadves, some seventeen
in number, proceeded on board the Clara F.
Friend, overpowered the guard and started
for parts unknown. On Friday morning,
the facts of the outrage became known
through the guard, who had been sent ashore
in the boat from which the schooner had
been boarded. The authorities immediately
sent despatches to Halifax, Pictou, or other
ports where any of the Dominion or Imperial
cutters might be at the time, with instrue-
tions to intercept and capture the runaway.
The Plover having received one of these
telegrams at Pictou, she immediately pro-
ceeded to the entrance of the Strait of Canso,
where she lay in wait until about eight
o'clock on Friday evening; at that hour, the
watch on the look-out reported a vestel
without lights. Although Capt. Pollard did
not think the runaways would be so foolish
as to attempt to escape in that direction, yet
the circumstance of the sighted schooner
having no lights up, aroused his suspicion,
and he gave orders for a chase, the schr,
being ahead some five or six miles. The
steamer came up with her nearly opposite
Port Mulgrave, She was found to be the
Clara I’, Friend, and she and her crew, five
in number—some 8 or 9 having escaped in
a boat as soon as they observed the boarding
hoat making for her—were recaptured, The
schooner was brought back to this port on
Sunday last, and on Monday evening, ufver
® preliminary examination in the Legisla-
tive Library, the prisoners, under the guard
of two Marines and two Artillerymen, were
brought before the Mayor's Court for ex-
amination,

The prisoners, viz:—Chas. A. Friend (the
owner) John Walsh, John Howe, M. Me-
Carthy, and Edmund Moar, were charged
by the Crown on two indictments. The
first was for having committed an assault
on the persons of two of the guard (John
Thomas, seamen, and Michael Furness, of
tlie Irish Volunteers,) and for rescuing the
prize schooner, which they were, by orders
of the marshall of the Court of Vice Admi-

ralty, guarding. The second was for rebbery . | pi

The evidence on the first count can be sum-
med up as follows: On the night of the 24th
inst., 23 Mhove stated, at apout 114 o'clock,
while John Thomas, M. Furness, and James
Stewart, were on guard on board the Clara
FB, Feiond, ebvat, contuing 15 or 16 men,
came along side and boarded her—no resist-
ance having been given by the guards—they
stating, as very truly they might, that as
they were so small in number, it would be
useless for them to risk their lives in trying
to defend the schooner against such an over-
whelming crowd. On cross examination
by M. McLeod, Attorney for the prisoners,

it appeared from the evidence of the guard, | ©

that they were forced to help to weigh the
anchors and set the sails. After the schooner
got under way, the guards were givena boat
to go ashore with. The Capt. and owner re-
quested Furness and Thomas to leave the
boat at Hall's wharf, and, by so doing, they
would not be forgotten when the cuptors got
to Gloucester. This is the pith of the evi-
dence, as given in the Police Court on Mon-
day. The case was then adjourned until
Tuesday morning, the Court allowing the
prisoners bail if they could obtain it. Mr.
Friend was bailed by Messrs. I. C. Hall and
Samuel Mutch, in the sum of £1000,—800
for Friend, and £250 for each bail.

On Tuesday morning the Court again met,
when the Court resumed the considera-
tion of tho first count of the indictment,
namely—assault and rescue. A riot was
also sought to be brought into the count by
the officers of the Crown, but on the protest
of Counsellors McLeod and E. Palmer, this
was overruled. The Mayor and _presid-
ing Councillor Brecken, after duly weighing
the evidence, delivered their decision that
the prisoners be held to bail to stand their
trial at the January term of the Supreme
Court on the first count. Bail was again
given for Friend by Messrs. I. C. Hall and
Samuel Mutch in the sum of £250 each.
The remaining prisoners had not obtained
bail up to the time of the adjournment of the
Court, which was at 2 o'clock. On re-ns-
sembling at three o'clock,the Court proceeded
to decide the second count of the indictment,
or charge, which 1s the most serious, name-
ly, larceny and robbery. After some legal
points were raised in reference to the distine-
tion between larceny and robbery, it was,
strangely enough, agreed to by the counsel
for both parties, to confine the second count
to larceny. The Counsel for the prisoners,
Hon. E. Palmer, then objected that it was un-
precedented to bring in the lesser crime of
assault and rescue first, end afterwards to
indict them on a charge of stealing the
cargo. The Crown Law officers were
obliged to yield to the decision ruling in
favor of the defendants. With the exception
of the reduction of the bail from £50 to £25
in two securities for each of the men to
stand trial in the Supreme Court, the case
here terminatéd. Friend's bail remains as
it was—Mr. William Mitchell taking Mr.
Samuel Mutch’s place as one of the bails.
men.

Tue blessing of the new church at Fort
Augustus, will take place on Thursday, the
8th of December next. His Lordship the
Bishop will officiate, assisted by the Parish
Priest, Rey. A. McDonald, Rev Thos. Phe-
lan and Very Rey, Dr. McDonald, who
will preach on the occasion.

7 ia

We are happy to place the Scientific Ame-

rican on our list of exchanges,

To any one who knows the present condi-
tion of our public roads, and the difficulty
with which loads are conveyed, not over
them, but tarough them, the idea of laytog
a Railway on the Island presents itself most
naturally. Some of our contemporaries
have already discussed the proposition of
establishing railway communication between
certain portions of the Island. In the belief
that the project is seriously entertained, we
lay before the public the following article,
upon Mr. Thomson's Road Steamer, taken
from the Scientific American. A perusal
will satisfy every one that the invention is
admirably adapted to our Island, Com-
pared with the expense of laying a perma-
nent way, and importing locomotives, &c.,
the cost of a Road Steamer would be insig-
nificant. It would, moreover, serve as a
kind of experiment, to test whether or no a
regularly construeted railway would pay.
Two or three of Mr. Thomson's cngines
would certainly pay their expenses, and
if ever superseded by a permanent way, they
could be employed on branch lines. We
seriously recommend this matter to the con-
sideration of men of capital and enterprise :

“This remarkable traction engine has,
during the past two years, attracted more
notice among scientific men than any of the
numerous road locomotives which have ever
preceded it. The use of steam on common
roads has long excited the great interest of
all engineers as well as of those who would
benefit by its practical introduction. With-
out discussing the special reasons of the
failure of the Boydell system, with its eum-
brous self-carrying tramway, or the Bray
engine with its projecting and receding
claws operating through the periphery of its
driving wheels, it may be briefly stated that
no road engine has ever satisfied the demand
for driving heavy trains of wagons on com-
mon roads, until the advent of Mr. Thom-
son’s ingenious invention,

Adhesion, without two oo weight; trac-
tion, without destroying the roads; gearing,
which would not break when jolting over
rough pavements, and steerage which would
enable the engine to be easily turned, were
some of the absolute requirements of a prac-
tical road locomotive. ‘The enormous weight
of the traction engines, with rigid tires, now
used in connection with steam plowing in
England, proves its necessity for the purpose
of gaining suflicient adhesion. ‘Their provi-
sion for inserting teeth in the face of the
wheels tells the story of their destruction of
roads when drawing heavy loads. Their
inability to use springs causes a wear and
tear of gearing and working parts, which
any mechanic will understand, and the time
consumed in turning corners quite unfite
them for high speed,

Many ingenious traction engines have been
made in this country, but as they were not
constructed for drawing heavy loads, there
was no occasion for them to surmount the
difliculties stated above.

In the elastic tire invented by R. W.
Thomson, C. E., of Edinburgh, ‘all these
fatal objections have been overcome and new
powers developed. The idea of using vul-
canized rubber for gaining adhesion, traction,
and simplicity of gearing, was as novel as
valuable. Even this useful and important
discovery might have never heen given to
the world had not Mr. Thomson been a gen-
tleman of large means as well as a thorough-
ly educated engineer, He was thus enabled

to continue his experiments an thant ric
invention hefar« a wees ured Before the

ublic, and it is probably for this reason that

it at once attracted the notice of the most

—_ engineers of the Old and the New
orld.

A few words will describe the “ Road
Steamer.” The driving wheels are about
five feet in diameter, with a broad iron tire
having narrow flanges, upon which is placed
aring of soft vulcanized rubber twelve inches
in width and five inches in thickness, which
surrounds the iron tire, and is kept in place
by the flanges. Over the rubber there is
placed an endless chain of steel plates three
and a half inches wide, which series of plates
is the portion of the wheel which comes in
contact with the rough road. This reticu-
lated chain is connected by what might he
Lp eae styled steel vertebra, at each side

fthe wheel. The rubber tire and this ring
of steel plates have no rigid connection, but
are at perfect liberty to move round inde-

concurrence of the inner ring of the wheel
which they both enclose. This is a remark-
able combination and contributes to the

eat success of the wheel as a whole.

oles are made in the inner iron rim of the
wheel to admit air under the rubber tire.
This enables the rubber to slowly creep
round the wheel, so that in going a mile
with a heavy load in tow, the rubber tire
will be found to have crept once around the
iron tire. To this ingenious device is due
the indestructible nature of the tire. An
enormously sudden and heavy strain upon
the soft tire might tear it, but the slight slip
saves it. Nearly the whole weight of the
engine is upon the drivers, a third wheel in
front being only for steering. The steering
apparatus is therefore exceedingly simple,
and the rapidity and ease with which it
guides the steamer must be seen to be pro-
perly realized. It will instantly spin around
with its inner driving wheel, describing a
circle of less than six feet in diameter. The
weight upon the rubber tires causes them to
collapse and conform to all the irregularities
of the road for a space of twenty inches each,
and thus is insured adhesion and _ traction,
which cannot be obtained in the slight line
of contact with smooth rigid tires. “To this
fact is due the ability of the road steamer to
= enormous loads and to ascend steep

8.

Perhaps one of its most important features,
as concerns its use in this country, is its
ability to run over soft ground or muddy
roads. The rigid-tired traction engines in
England are able to slowly grind over their
hard and magnificently macadamized roads,
but upon our common dirt roads they would
be utterly useless. In this respect the road
steamer been not inaptly compared to
the elephant and camel, whose elastic cush-
ioned feet enable them to cross the soft
yielding sands of the desert. It is this same
elastic cushion which prevents injury to the
roads, and which, acting as springs or buffers
between the rough road and the gearing
saves the machinery from damage. The
work done by the wheel in depressing the
the rubber in front, is again performed b
the rubber at the rear in urging the wheel
forward, so that the one exactly balances
the other, hence there is no loss,

The boiler used is of the vertical tubular
type made entirely of steel and constructed
with special regard to simplicity and great
arength. All the gearing and working
parts are either of steel or malleable iron,
and are entirely hidden from sight, An
ingenious device in connection with the ex-
haust steam almost completely suppresses
the noise caused by its. escape. The coal
bunkers hold a day's supply, and the water

‘8 supply.

-_ ra ayy of .s y ip’ There
8 a single gear for quick s |, and a double
for Reavy ions The.

* gy are
ouble cylinders with a reversing gear.
Either of the driving wheels can be thrown
in or out of gear so that in turning sharp
corners the Inner wheel is out of gear, sli
ping freely while the outer wheel drives the
machine around,
When Ppp od a — train at =
wagons by a simple tr le cou
whole an be turned in om road stantuuny
width, each wagon following in the exact
wake of the steamer. The loads drawn by
the two sizes now made are from twelve to

twenty tuna, up inclines of one in twelve,
and twenty to thirty tons on an ordinary

pendently of each other, or even without the| }

service.
consumption of BE gon Bt about half a
tun per day. About three times ay much

same steam power,

All the road steamers can be fitted with a
fly wheel and governor, so 28 to run as sta-
tionary engines for driving any description
of machinery,

“The British Government appointed a com-
mission of military men to examine these
road steamers with the view of adopting’
them in the War Department. The exami-
nation was most severe and the report so
favorable that a number have been ordered ;

Roek of Gibraltar, the inclines being one in
six. Various other European governments
have, after careful examination, ordered
them for drawing heavy artillery and for
other purposes, Over seventy road steamers
are now in order at the works in Great Bri-
tain for India, Australia, and other coun-
tries.

With our vast country so much of which
must be for many years without railroads
they will be of great use for mines, trans-
portation companies, feeders to railroads,
for general carrying purposes, and for tow-
ing on canals. One steamer can draw six
boatsgt double the speed of horses. And
lastly, in plowing the grain fields of the
Great West, as also the sugar and: cotton
plantations of the South, they will find a
wide field of usefulness, and prove of great
value. Harnessed to one of Williamson's
gang plows they turn seven furrows of eight
inches depth and twelve inches width with
perfect ease, as we can testify, having per-
sonally witnessed the performance of one of
them, not long since, in plowing obstinate
soil,

Mr, D. D. Williamson, of 32 Broadway,
New York, is the exclusive manufacturer
under Mr. Thomson's American tents.
No better assurance can be given that the
American engines will be fully equal if not
superior to the British, than the fact that the
Grant Locomotive Works, of Paterson,
whose locomotive at the great Paris Exhibi-
tion took the prize over all others, have
contracted to build them for Mr, Williamson,
and are now constructing a number for the
American market,@

7. +

Tue following is a copy of the protest of
the Bishops of the Lower Provinces of
British America, against the occupation of
Rome by the Italian Government :—

Amid the din of wars and revolutions,
such as have had scarcely a parallel in his-
tory, it becomes our painful duty, in echo
with the whole Catholic World, to raise our
votces,at this solemn moment, and to protest
with our whole hearts, as we now do, against
the recent sacrilegious invasion of Rome and
the crimes perpetrated by the Italian Govern-
ment against the rights of all Catholics, as
well as those of the common Father of the
faithful, For the past twelve hundred years,
Rome was still a portion of Italian soil, but
politically, it long ceased to be the fief or
province of any empire, or the appanage of
any reigning family in Europe. By every
law that can consecrate a title to property,
Christian Rome, the infallible centre of our
Faith, became the inalienable domain of all
Christian peoples. It was not Italians alone,
nor Tresch alone, but it was the public
opinion of Christendom—it was the stout

hearts and sturdy arms of all believing
nations, thet wou Ti, In tne frst instance,

and have since preserved it, amid varying
fortunes, for long over a thousand years.
The heathen Rome that was, might’ have
slumbered on in bondange with her children,
but God willed it otherwise. Rome became
Christain, and that Catholic Rome that now
is, *‘ is from above, and she is our mother.”
As well might Italy attempt to raise up an
im passible _ im between the child and the
parent, as to destroy, as she now does, by
the invasion of the Holy City, that full, free
and unrestricted intercourse which must
subsist between the Holy Father and the
Catholics in the remotest region of the Globe.
With Rome in the sacrilegious hands of the
invader, and with the Pope, at this moment,
a prisoner in the Vatican, how is this free-
dom of intercourse, so essential for the
Church, to be maintained? With the post-
ottice in the hands of unscrupulons enemies,
and the soldiers and myrmidons of the Italian
Government on every avenue leading to the
swesence of the Holy Father, how is this un-
fettered and confidential communication to
be kept up? How are Cardinals and Bishops
of vacant Sees to be nominated—grave dis-
putes to be decided—and all the spiritual
affairs of millions of human beings adminis-
tered without fear of any tampering or inter-
ference on the part of Victor Emmanuel or
his ministers? Without the bitter experi-
ence of the past two months, we may easily
imagine the result; but alas, our worst ap-
prehensions are more than realized, as ap-

ears from the graphic pen of His Holiness,

lus the Ninth himself, in a letter dated so
recently as the 4th of October. The follow-
ing is an extract:—

“ Our sovereign and uncontrolled power,
of which We were in enjoyment, over the
wblic post, in the receipt and despatch of
etters, being taken away from Us, and as
We are unable to trust the Government
that has usurped that power to itself, We
are wholly destitute of the means of trans-
acting the affairs, which the Vicar of Jesus
Christ and the common Father of the faith-
ful, to whom his children have recourse from
all quarters of the Globe, ought to manage
and deal with. And this observation is
more plainly confirmed by a recent fact,
namely, that within the last few days, it has
come to pass that those who have gone forth
from the gates of the Palace of the Vatican,
have been subjected to a search by the
soldiers of the new Government, to discover
if they carried anything concealed in their
agen Remonstrances were made, but
they were met by the pretence of mistake
and other excuses,”

Such is now the ition of affairs at
Rome; and in view of so flagrant an injus-
tice, perpetrated under the plea of Italian
freedom and nationality—as men of honor
and Catholics, and people deeply interested
in all that pertains to the Holy and the
well-being of God's religion, we indignantly
lift our voices in protestation against so un-
paralleled a wrong. By intrigue and
treachery, and the connivance of those upon
whom the vengeful hand of God is at this
moment extended, Victor Emmanuel be-

¥ }came the master of nearly the whole Italian

peninsula, with over twenty millions of a
Po ngge 9 Tho little patrimony of St.

eter, with halfa million of a contented,
happy people, was the only remnant left to
the Church, Italy, as a Nation, did not
require Rome ; and still less’ did Rome, or
her loyal people, require or wish for any
political connection with Italy. The recent
——- like every other contrivance of a
sovernment, true only to falsehood—a Gov-
ernment which, hitherto, belied every pro-
fession and violated every treaty—was but
a delusion, and is thoroughly understood by
those who know, as we do, the state of things
in the Eternal City.

a had no unsettled claim, no cause of
complaint against Rome. There was no
rebellion to down—no_ threateni of
invasion on her border—but above all, thée
Was no invitation from her citizens to come
in. An invading army of 80,000, against a
mere handful that were to meet them on the
walls of Rome, tells trumpet-tongued the
whole amt They were neither wanted nor
welcomed v a people who had no sympathy
with them in common. The eight or ten
thousand camp followers—the d of the
Italian population—who ncccmpained the

invaders, were needed to go thr the
farce of a popular demonstration, of which

wood by weight is required to furnish the’! oh

among others one to carry stores up the re

we have heard so much, and of the paheie
delusion, by which it was to be succeeded.
In a word, Victor Emmanuel, thre soi-
disant Catholic King of Italy, has made the
Pope pF pet and has seized on the pro-
perty of the whole Catholie Chureh; with no
4 justifying reason but that of brute
force and, be it sald in all truth, that of the
mere unqualified rapacity of the highwey-
man. In the eyes of civilized Europe, the
absorption of Holland by Prussia, or of
Belgium by France, would have been an
intolerable’ vance and a jn cause for an
uropean War; and yet in the eyes of public
stice, the absortion of both together would
nothing as ¢ompared with the more glar:
in,’ outrage prepetrated by a third-rate power
like ‘taly, inst the time-honored and
religiows rights of two hundred millions of
stholies aU over the world.

(Signed)
+Tuomas LUIS, Abp. of Halifax,
+ Coun Franei®- Bp. of Arichat.
tJoun, Bp. of Sc. ohn, N. B,
t Perer, Bp. of Charlo'ytown.
+ Joun, Bp. of Titopoiis.
(Co-adjutor of Arichat.)

Seen: deck oe
THE RUSSIAN QUESTION,

Prince Gorrscuakorr’s Despatcn ro
Eart GRanvitte.—The correspondent of
the Tribune sends the following as the de-
spatch of Prince Gortschakoff, communicated
by Baron Brunnow to Earl Granville, on the
19th of November :—

* Banon,—In making a communication to
the Principai Seeretary of State of Her Britan-
nic Majesty,presented to you by order of Lis
Majesty the Emperor, you will be good enough
to make its import and object clearly under-
stood. When, at the commencement of the
year 1866, a conference was talked of for the
purpose of preventing a war, then imminent
in Germany, Sy the assembling of a cougress,
in discussing the basis of it with Earl Russell,
you were able to point out to him the eom-
pensation and guarantees which certain even-
tualities, of a nature to modify the status quo
existing in the East, wonld render necessary
tous. This was recognized by Earl Russell
with the utmost fairness. We did not deny
that every alteration effected in the text and
spirit of the treaty of 1856 must lead to the re-
vision of that document, Although these
eventualities have not been realized, Lord
Granville will not deny that that treaty has
sulfired grave modifications in one of its es-
sential parts, which cannot but impress Russia
that in those modifications there is a factious
and hostile tendency towards her, of which
they bear stamp. It is not the eunsequence
that may result to a great country from the
establishment» of small, quasi-independent
states on her frontier; it t*, above all, the fu-
cllity with which, ten years after its conclusion,
a solemn transaction, invested with European
guarantees, can be infringed in letter and splir~
it, under the eyes of the very powers which
ought to be its guardians. In the presence of
such a precedent, what value can attach to
the efficacy of this agreement, and to the guar-
antee of security that she believed the had
found ia the principle of the neutralization of
the Black Sea, The equilibrium established in
the East, therefore, is destroyed to the detri-
ment of Russia, and the resolution taken by
our august master fs to re-establish it. Her
Britannic Majesty's Government would never
consent to leave the wena of i's coast to
the a of an agreement which is no longer
respected, and is too jast not to recognize that
we have the same duties and the same rights.
But what we especially desire to establish is,
that this decision implies no change of policy
that His Majesty the Emperor follows in the
East. You heave eeveral- times been made to
euter into explanation witfi the Cabinet in
London, upon the general views that the two
governments hold upon this important ques-
tion, and to point out the conformity of the
principles which we have noted with much
satisfaction, We have deduced, therefore,
that it is neither from England nor Russia
that danger can come which could threaten
the Ottoman Empire; that the two Cabinets
have an equal desire to maintain its existence
as long as possible, by the settlement and con-
ciliation of the differences between the Porte
and the Christian subjects of the Sultan, and
that In case a decisive crisis should occur,
notwithstanding these efforts, both are equally
resolved to ask a solution of the diffcaty, ina
general agreement of the great powers of
Europe. We have not ceased to entertain these
views. We believe that their complete an-
alogy renders « serious understanding possible
between Her Britannic Majesty's Government
and ours. We attach the utmost value to it
as the best guarantee for preserving the peace
and the equilibrium of Europe from dangers
which may result from complications in the
East. By order of His Majesty the Emperor,
your Excellency is authorized to reiterate as-
surances of this to Lord Granville. We shall
congratulate ourselves If the frankness of these
explanations should contribute to it, by re-
moving all possibility of a misunderstanding
between Her Britannic Majesty’s Government
and us.

Gortscnakorr.”

It is said that the particular violations of
the Paris treaty of 1856, which Russia has
complained of, are as follows: The cruise
of the Prince of Wales in the Black Sea, in
an English frigate; a similar trip subse-
quently by Lord Bulwer Lytton; the appear-
ance of the Austrian squadron at Varna,
when the Emperor of Austria was there;
and lastly, the voyage of the Sultan in a
Turkish frigate. The Russian envoy at
Constantinople protested against this latter
circumstance at the time, but ineffectually,

Odo Russel was sent to Versailles to ask
Bismarck, categorically, if he would ac-
quiesce, and unconditionally, in the rejection
of Russia's pretensions. The war party of
the cabinet propose, should Bismarck’s ‘an-
swer be either negative, or hesitating and
disingenuous, to inform Russia that she must
choose between the withdrawal of her claims
and war; but the peace party of the cabinet
suppose that Bismarck, without committin
himself further, will propose a congress o
all the powers to discuss and decide upon
the modifications of the treaty of 1856. Pho
peace party are determined to do all that is
possible to induce the government to assent
wo this arrangement, while the war part
are equally resolved to adhere to their poke
tion, and a split is imminent. A number of
the peace party of the government informed
your correspondent on Tuesday, that the
administration Hy yield to Russia's
demands, singe she asked no more than her
= John Bright's health is still im-
paired, and he will resign, provided the war
ty of the cabinet prevails. Odo Russel

as not yet reached Versailles, but is ex-
pected to arrive to-night.

Doma claim to have known that
the demand of Russia would be made sooner
or later. Public opinion in Russia is repre-
sented to be in favor of peace, English
officers are volunteering for service in the
Turkish army. It is stated that when the
Russian Minister at Vienna communicated
Gortschakoff's note to Von Beust, he accom-

nied it with assurances of the most peaceful
ntentions on the part of his government.
The Pall Mall Gazette,referring toOdo Rus-
sel's special mission to Versailles, believes
that the under Secretary will return within
twenty-four hours with a disavowal on the
part of Prussia of Fore oy aly Russia's
pretensions, or will leave nd him assur-
ances that an unsatisfactory iad will_be
considered equivalent to complicity. The
Journal de St. Petersburg declares that
Russia will not prove unwilling to submit
her demands to a congress, if it can be held
immediately. It denies that Russia's note
meant the abrogation of the entire treaty.
Turkey, it says, is threatened with internal
dangers, and intervention is necessary now.

A correspondent of the Herald telegraphs
from London :—

I_ have authority for stating that Prussia
declares that she views Ruscla’s claims as
natural, and that there should be an amicabe
settlement of the affair, and she cannot see
any reason for alarm on the of the co-

signatory powers. Russia m have ap-