The Sun.
London, England, 1865-01-10 00:00:00

Royal Geographical Society,

Yesterday evening an ordinary meeting of this
society was held in Burlington House—Sir Roderick
Murchison (president) in the chair. The first paper
was read by Mr. Taylor, describing a visit to the
sources of the Tigris and Euphrates. The numerous
sources of these rivers were explored by Mr. Taylor,
who described very clearly the main features of the
physical geography of a region that has been seldom
visited by Europeans. As a geographical commu-
nication the chief value of the paper consisted in the
naps of the sources of the rivers, which were accu-
rately depicted. The principal source of the Tigris
issues from a cavern about two miles long, at the
entrance of which he perceived an ancient inscription
carved on the rock, with the figure of an Assyrian
King. He stated that the mountains whence the
sources of the rivers flow abound in caverns, and one
stalactite cave was of vast dimensions, reaching
much farther than he was enabled to penetrate.
Sir HENRY RAWLINSON threw much light on the
value of Mr. Taylor's labours as a geographer and
discoverer of antiquities. He said that some of the
most ancient monuments now in the British Museum
had been contributed by Mr. Taylor, who had ex-
plored several ruined cities of the Chaldees, and had
discovered many monuments of that people that were
of several hundred years earlier date than Nineveh
marbles. He mentioned a curious and interesting
coincidence connected with the inscription and figure
carved on the rock of the cavern. In deciphering the
inscriptions on the Nineveh monuments that had been
made by order of the great King of the Assyrians,
Sir Henry Rawlinson said he found it was there
stated that that monarch had extended his conquests
to the sources of the Tigris, and that on the
rock out of which the river issued he had com-
manded an inscription and figure to be carved to
commemorate the event. Mr. Taylor was not aware
of what he had deciphered, nor did he at the time
know of Mr. Taylor's discovery; therefore the com-
bined testimony was entirely independent. Sir
Henry Rawlinson alluded to the great difficulty
which all travellers experienced when deviating from
main routes, in consequence of the very defective
state of all maps, and the contribution of Mr. Tay-
lor's map of the region he had visited was a valu-
able acquisition. The paper which that gentleman
had read he hoped would be followed by another
giving a more extended account of his travels. One
matter that had been mentioned to him by Mr.
Taylor which possessed great interest was the suc-
cessful result of the labours of American missionaries
in Aleppo, and he thought the meeting would like
to hear a statement on the subject.

At the request of Sir Roderick Murchison, Mr.
TAYLOR mentioned that when the American mis-
sionaries first went to Aleppo they were insulted by
the boys and men in the streets, so much that they
could scarcely stir out with safety ; but by steady
perseverance they succeeded, with very inadequate
means, to completely change the state of feeling
towards them, and 500 families become converted.
The converts were not hastily received, but were
made to undergo probation, and the moral conduct
of the people had been greatly improved. The mis-
sionaries have now got two churches, and though
they had done so much, he believed the money ex-
pended by them did not exceed 2,000/. or 3,000/.
A communication by M. ABRAMOF, a Russian
gentleman, " On Lake Nor Tzai-san," was next
read. The lake described is one of the largest among
the chain of mountains along the frontiers of
Russia and China, and is about 120 versts long and
30 wide.
It was announced that at the next meeting an in-
teresting communication by Captain Sherard Os-
born would be read.

Changes in the Legislature,
Both Houses of Parliament will witness several
changes on the 7th of February, on which day, as
stated in The Sun of yesterday, the Legislature will
assemble for the despatch of business. Among the
prominent losses which the House of Lords has
sustained is that of the Duke of Newcastle, whose
place will be filled by his eldest" son, the Earl of
Lincoln, who for some years represented Newark in
the House of Commons. The Earl of Carlisle,
whose death has recently taken place, is succeeded
by his brother, the Hon. and Rev. W. G. Howard,
M.A., rector of Lodesborough, Yorkshire. The
Duke of Cleveland, who enjoyed his honours but a
few months, is succeeded by his brother, Lord
Harry Vane, for many years a distinguished mem-
ber of the House of Commons. The Earl of Cado-
gan died on Sept. 15, and is succeeded by his son,
Viscount Chelsea, who for some time represented'
the borough of Dover in the Lower House. The
Marquis of Bristol died on Oct. 30, and his place in
the House of Lords will be taken by Earl Jermyn,
late member for West Suffolk. Viscount Boring-
don, of Balliol College, Oxford, who is just con-
cluding a distinguished career in that University,
will take his seat as the Earl of Morley, in
succession to his father, who died on the 28th
of August. The new earl has just attained his
majority, having been born on June 11, 1843. His
Royal Highness the late Prince Consort stood
sponsor for him at his baptism. The death of the
Earl of Stair, which has recently taken place, creates
another vacancy in the House of Lords, which will
be supplied by Viscount Dalrymple, who will suc-
ceed as Baron Oxenfoord, of Cousland, in the
peerage of the United Kingdom, the earldom of
Stair being a Scotch peerage. Lord Manners died
Nov. 14, causing a blank in the House of Lords. It
will remain a blank for the present, inasmuch as the
successor to the title was born May 15, 1852, and
will not, therefore, reach his majority until 1873.
The death of Lord Rodney, who died Aug. 19, will
also create a blank in the House of Lords, which
cannot be filled up until 1878, when his successor,
the Hon. George Bridges Dennett, his eldest son,
will be of age. In the House of Commons the fol-
lowing new members will be entitled to take their
seats on the re-assembling of Parliament--The Hon.
George Waldegrave Leslie, M.P. for Hastings, in
the room of Lord Harry Vane, now Duke of Cleve-
land ; Lord Augustus Hervey, M.P. for West Suf-
fOlk, in the room of Earl Jenny",
now Marquis of
Bristol ; Lord Courtenay, M.P. for Exeter, in the
room of Mr. Edward Divett, deceased; Mr. W.
Davenport Bromley, M.P. for North Warwickshire,
in the room of Mr. Richard Spooner, deceased. A
vacancy in the representation of Herefordshire will
be officially declared at the commencement of the
Session, in consequence of the retirement from pub-
lic life of Lord William Graham, M.P. A new
writ will be moved on the first night of the
Session for Tralee, in the room of Mr. O'Hagan,
who is to be raised to the Irish Bench ; and pro-
bably a writ for Buteshire, in the room of Mr. Mure,
who is spoken of as Lord Mackenzie's successor on
the Scottish Bench.

THE MOST MARVELLOUS STORY IN THE WORLD.
Some gentlemen were dining together, and relating
travelling adventures. One of them dealt so much in the
marvellous that it induced another to give him a lesson.
" I was once," said he, " engaged in a skirmishing party in
America. I advanced too far, was separated from my
friends, and saw three Indians in pursuit of me ; the hor-
rors of the tom(hawk in the hands of angry savages took
possession of my mind. Most of us love life, and mine was
both precious and useful to my family. I was swift of
foot, and fear added to my speed. After looking back—for
the country was an open one—l at length perceived that
one of my enemies had outrun the other, and the well-
known saying divide and conquer' occurring to me, I
slackened my speed and allowed him to come up. We en-
gaged in mutual fury. I hope none here (bowing to his
auditors) will doubt the result. In a few minutes he lay a
corpse at my feet. In this short space of time the two
Indians had advanced upon me, so I took again to my
heels—not from cowardice, I can in truth declare, but
with the hope of reaching a neighbouring wood, where I
knew dwelt a tribe friendly to the English. This hope,
however, I was forced to give up, for on looking back I
saw one of my pursuers far before the other. I waited for
him, recovering my almost exhausted breath, and soon this
Indian shared the fate of the first. I had now only one
enemy to deal with, but I felt fatigued, and being near the
wood I was more desirous to save my own life than to de-
stroy another of my fellow-creatures. I plainly perceived
smoke curling up among the trees—l redoubled my speed,
I prayed to heaven, I felt assured my prayers would be
granted—but at this moment the yell of the Indian's voice
sounded in my ears. I even thought I felt his warm
breath ; there was no choice—l turned round —." Here
the gentleman who had related the wonderful stories at
first grew impatient past all endurance, and called out,
" Well, sir, and killed him also ?" "No, sir, he killed
me !"—American paper.