£0. 12.

THE BRITISH AMERICAN.

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then the work began in earnest. The stew- ards counted 1,700 reapers and 800 binders en- gaged in the frolic; amongst the latter were farmers and their wives and daughters who had never worked a day for themselves. One of the greatest and busiest personages in the field was Cummins, the Ballyhale bag-piper, a band in himself. Under his inspiring influence (and some barrels of Smithwick’s anti-tithe beer, the forty acres of wheat were neatly cut, bound, and stacked in 80 minutes! after which he was borne round the field in triumph, kissed Mrs. Hunt, and finally played “ Patrick's Day,’ crowned “in honour and glory" on the top of the last stack. While Mr. Hunt invited about sixty of his friends, who acted as stewards, to dine with him at Jerpoint, the Carrickshaugh boys invited the rest to cut down the wheat of Mr. Conway. of Ballyhale, now ripe also. About 700 reapers volunteered, and by the time Mr. Conwa returned home from Mr. Hunt’s dinner part , e found all his wheat cut, bound, and stac ed!

“ The boys” were further anxious to know if their friend Mr. Smithwick of Kilkenny, had an wheat ripe, declaring they would go forty miles to cut it for nothing, and that they would drink no beer but his during the harvest.

LIBERTY OF THE PRESS.

Yesterday there was a numerous meeting‘ of the friends ofthe liberty of the press, at the Corn Exchange. “ to arrange measures to de- feat the attempt of the Attorney General to set aside trial by jury in cases of alleged libel, under the new term of contempt of court.” The chair was taken by Stephen Egan, Esq. of Roscrea, and animated appeals were made to the public in favour of Messrs. Brown and Shee. han, proprietors of the Comet, who had been selected by the Attorney General as the first victims of the law according to his etposition, and had consequently been lined 501. each last Tuesday, by Judges Burton and Vanllelenr. in their Court of Commission. Messrs. Lafl'an, Walsh, Redmond, Marcus and Patrick Costello, and William O’Reilly, Spoke strongly in sup- port of the good policy of establishing a fund todefeat this arbitrary attempt to place the freedom of the press at the merCy of the Attor- ney General, and to employ it in procuring thebest assistance to appeal to the Court of King’s Bench and the Exchequer against the fine. A subscription was instantly entered in- to, which amounted to about 2001. The Na- tional Trades' Union is to meet on Tuesday, for the same purpose; it is calculated that amongst its 5,000 members another 1001. will be raised. The musical and theatrical ama- teurs of the city have also announced their in- tention of getting up a concert carnival in the course of the week, for the purpose of augment- ing the fund for the defence of the press.

In fact. agreat feeling in favor of the Comet has been created by its appeal to the citizens in yesterday’s publication, in which it declares its motive for the very strong and apparently uncalled-for address to the jurymen who might have to act on the tithe-trials (and in which it reminded them of the omnipotence of public opinion) to be the necessity of Counteracting the exertions of the Attorney-General to pro- cure “ packed” juries; for the Right Hon. Gentleman had, for some days previous to the trials about to take place at the late commission, been seen walking arm and arm with Mr. Ni. cholas Murray Mansfield, the former notorious Under Sheritfof the city of Dublin, who had been convicted (under a Parliamentary inquiry in Lord Wellesley’s time) of the most corrupt

practices. in packingjuries for the Orange and corporate interests.

This hint turned the tide of public opinion at once against M r. Blackburne, and subscrip- tions poured in rapidly. Last night, Mr. N. M. Mansfield published a disclaimer in the Evening Packet of the fact asserted in the Comet, that he was seen walking with the Attorney-Gene- ral. This. however is not believed-especially as the Attorney General himself has not con- trad icted the statement.

The following- method for extracting a blue colour for dying from buck-wheat straw, is from a late London periodical:

‘The straw should be gathered before the grain is quite dry, and placed on the ground to the sun, until it becomes sufficiently dry to be taken from the husks with facility. The wheat having been removed, the straw is to be piled up, moistened and left to ferment till it is in a state of decomposition, when it will be- come of a blue colour, this indicates the pe - riod when it should be gathered, and formed into cakes, which are to be dried in the sun, or in a stove. On these cakes being boiled in water, the water assumes a strong blue colour, which will not change either in vinegar or in sul- phuric acid. it may however be turned into red with alkali, into a light black with bruised gall nuts, and into a beautiful green by evaporation. Stuffs died blue with the solution. which is to be used in the same way as the vegetable mat- ters of a similar species employed in dying, be- come ofabeautiful and durable color.

Jllode of securing timber/ram decay —Timber for buildings, especially for ships, bridges, ca- nals, granaries, and stables, may be effectually preserved from decay and particularly from the rat, by repeatedly impregnating the wood with a solution of common salt and green copperas. This simple process is attended with such de- cided advantage, that wood thus prepared will remain for ages, perfectly sound.

An instance of this fact occarred in the thea- tre at Copenhagen, where the lower part of the planks andjoists formerly required to be replaced in a few years, til Mr. Volmeister, an architect of that city, discovered and em- ployed the process above stated. Twelve years after, the wood,on removing one of the boards, was found in such a state of preserva- tion that he could not observe the least appear- ance of decay—English Publication.

Wood impregnated with alum, salt or cop-

eras is also rendered in a great degree mcombustible as wellas incorru table. When thus prepared it may be charre or consumed b intense heat, but can scacely he made to b aze, and ofcourse would not readily commu- nicate fire to other objects in its vicinity.

Gallant Daughter—Sir John Cochrane, who was engaged in Argyle’s rebellion against James the Second, was taken prisoner, after a desperate resistance, and condemned to be hanged. His daughter, having notice that the death-warrant was expected from London, attired herself in men’s clothes, and twice attacked and robbed the mails between Bel- for and Berwick. The execution was b this means dela ed, till Sir John Cochrane’s ather, the Bar] 0 Dundonald, succeeded in making interest with father Peter, a Jesuit, King Jame’s Confessor, who, for the sum of five thou- sand pounds interceded with his royal master, in favor of Sir John Cochrane, and procured his pardon.

When Lord Erskine made his debut at the

bar, his agitation almost overcame him“? wasjust gomg to sit down. ‘At that m ’ said he, ‘ I thought I felt my little c. 0 tugging at my gown, and the idea V." me to an exertion of which I did not " myselfcapable. “' Legal Pam—As several gentleman of bar were a few days since in conversst one ofthem, under favor of the wind, recei a portion of his neighbour’s saliva upon, summer coat. ‘ Mr R—‘, said the sulfur. ‘if this is the way you treat other erso habits you cannot expect to rate as a gent eman

Truth—If a man be sincere] wedde ‘ truth, he must make u his min to find he a portionless virgin; an he must take her for herselfalone. The contract, too, must be to love, cherish, and obey her, not only mite - death, but beyond it; for this is a union that 3 v must survive not only death, but time, the cop- ' queror of death. The adorer oftruth, therefore i ‘j' is above all present things—firm in the midst of " temptation, and frank in the midst of treaohe- ry, he will he attacked by those who have, preiudices simply because he is without them f?" descried as a bad bargain by all who want i purchase. because he alone is notto be be" and abused by all parties, because he is; advocate of none, like the dolphin wbkll is ways painted more crooked than a ram’s ho ‘~ although every naturalist knows that it is tilt straightest fish that swims.—Lacon. '

What is Law Like .?—-Law is like a countr dance, people are led up and down in it ,1 they are fairly tired out. Law is like a bt i, of surgery—there are a great many teri ‘ cases in it. It is like physio too, the take the least of it are best off. it is ik "' homely entleman, very well to follow '1. Law is like a new fashion, people are bewitcb- ed to get into it; ‘ and like bad weather,’ most people are glad to get out ofit.

Honeya Cure for the Gravet.—A number years ago, says a correspondent, I was It .1 afflicted with the gravel, and twice in se” danger, from small stones lodged in the pas-.1 sage. I met with agentleman who had been i, in my situation, and got rid of this disorder by , sweetening his tea with half honey and half ‘ sugar. I adopted this remedy and found it efi'ectual. After being fully clear of my dis. . ease about ten years, I declined taking hone i and in about three months lhad aviolent t i of my old complaint. I then renewed my l practice of taking honey in m tea, and now more than three score, an have not r the last twenty-seven years, had the smallest symptoms of the gravel. I have recommended 1‘ my prescription to many of my acquaintance, 3 and ave never known it to fail.-—Politieal E2- 3 aminer. 1'- ~'r ~'

(From the Dublm Comet. August ‘26.)

u THE LAW/1ND THE PROFITS”. Blackbourne is still Attorney-General. Upwardspf . . ii} 70,0001. have been voted for Government prosecutions

Ireland this year. being l5,0001. more than has been rec ' ; quired since the days of his great pretotype. Saurin, and ' '1 10,0001. more than Saul-in ever required. The Attorney- .. ’ General is paid his enormous fees whether he succeeds or fail in a prosecution. But it is not consideied credits- table to be defeated, ergo the painstaking to select a . “ proper" jury and train evidence. For instance, he,_ will get share of this 70,0001. for prosecuting us next I November, although we ought to defeat him. But we believe the men to he “ right honourable" and ill-“Ir