The Sun.
London, England, 1860-09-24 00:00:00

SINGULAR OCCURRENCE IN THE

I'RESCH CATACOMBS.

A very singular incident has just taken place. A
journeyman printer named Philippart, employed
on a journal, returned, at two o'clock on the morn-
ing of Thursday, to his residence, 10, Rue Duguay,
Trouin, near the Luxembourg, and, when near his
door, it seemed to him that he heard cries of dis-
tress from under the earth. As first he fancied he
was labouring under an illusion, but, on listening,
he distinctly heard human voices from below an
iron slab which covers an orifice opening into the
catacombs. He summoned some police officers, and
they, hearing the same cries, caused the slab to
be removed. " Who are you down there, and
what are you doing ?'asked one of the officers; and
the answer was given, " We are four men lost in
the catacombs ! Pray give us a light !" Some
matches and candles were let down, and one of
them having strack a light, said, " We know our
way now ; we will go out by the door in the Rue
Notre Dame des Champs;" and they went away.
Shortly after, four men, pale and haggard, pre-
sented themselves at the guard-house in the Rue
de Fleurus, and related these facts :—M. Katery,
one of the keepers of the catacombs, having occa-
sion to change a lock of the door of one of the gal-
leries, went, on the previous afternoon to the spot,
accompanied by a locksmith named Chabral, that
man's apprentice, of the name of Moron, and M.
Ozanne, an architect's pupil. Incredible to relate,
they took only one candle, and did not even place
it in a lantern, and, more extraordinary still, did
not carry with them any matches. No sooner had
they reached the door where the
,job was to be
done, than a sudden puff of air blew out the light!
Under the guidance of Katery they attempted to
find their way back ; but notwithstanding his
minute knowledge of the road, they went astray,
and spent hour after hour in going up one gallery
and down another. In total darkness they could
not find any clue to direct them to an outlet, and
the further they walked the more desperate their
Isituation appeared to become. At length, after
about twelve hours spent in pacing up and down,
they were completely exhausted by fatigue and
terror. Then Katery had a happy idea—" Let
us shout for help," he said, "perhaps we may be
heard !" They did shout, and, as related above,
were heard. Their good fortune was really
miraculous, inasmuch as not only were they
beneath a street, but though the time:was the very
dead of night, a person happened tobe near. Hav-
ing told their tale, the poor men were of course
warmly congratulated on their escape from a dread-
ful death, and, they, on their part, expressed hearty
gratitude to Philippart, and the other officers who
removed the slab. These gloomy vaults are rarely
opened, but on those rare occasions extraordinary
precautions are often neglected. Each person is
bound to bear a candle, and guides accompany the
party, stopping at frequent intervals to see whether
any have strayed away through the labyrinth of
skeletons ; but these precautions are strangely
neglected. A party consisting of three students
and as many grisettes Ni ere saved from premature
interment, on a late visit to these regions,
by the
loud vociferations of " Sicur de Eranzboisy," which
directed the guides to their whereabouts. They had
brought down two bottles of viu ordinaire and one
of brandy, with whichthey were carousing amongst
the corpses in the bowels of the harmless earth.
The French have a great respect for death when
cased in a coffin. The men invariably take off
their hats, and the women cross themselves as a
funeral passes by; but you should hear their
jokes on the slovenly unwholesome corpses which
are laid out on slabs at the Morgue, like the tur-
bots at Groves's. As for the catacombs, with
their three millions of skeletons, there is little
to excite any respect for grim death. They extend
beneath a considerable part of the Faubourg St.
Germain, and especially the rues St. Jacques,
de la Harpe, de Tournon, de Vaugirard,
the Theatre de I'Odeon, the church of St. Sulpice,
the Pantheon, Val-de-Grace the Observatoire, &c.,
and they go beyond the fortifications to Mont-
rouge.
In them, as is known, are deposited the
bones
Which were collected from the different
burial places of Paris, on the suppression, in the
time of the Revolution, of the cemeteries within
the walls; and these ghastly objects are piled up
in such a way as to form galleries or streets, which
extend for miles. It is recorded that at different
times numerous persons have lost their way in
these dreadful regions, and have died of hunger
and terror.

ZEIE DISTRIBUTION OF ANIMALS.

Mr. Edward Wilson in a letter to the Times
says :—ln advocating the cause of the energetic
and systematic interchange of natural productions,
we have often been met, by that very large class
who are always anxious to do nothing, with this
argument All this may be very well for you,
interested as you are in a new continent nearly as
large as all Europe, and of which at present only
an infinitesimal portion is converted to any useful
purpose ; but Great Britain itself [is an old settled
country, and long since stocked up with pretty
nearly as many valuable things as she can carry."
I will again quote, in opposition to this argument,
M. St. Hilaire's statement that even England only
domesticates about 43 animals out of 140,000 ; but
I will refer to the 'letter I have alluded to which
points out in very plain terms two especial wants to
which England itself is subjected, and I mention
these as specimens—not certainly as the only wants
that could be suggested.
The letter is written by a gentleman long resi-
dent in South America, and after giving me some
valuable information as to the field furnished for
this kind of experiment amid the rich resources of
that beautiful country, he goes on as follows :
" There are two English wants which especially re-
quire to be supplied—viz., a pond fish, which should
be as prolific and amenable to management as the
carp, and should be what the carp is not—good to
eat. Our second great want is a domestic animal,
not too large when killed to be consumed by a mid-
dle-class family, and the flesh of which should be
meaty rather than poultry-like. Our sheep are too
large for this purpose • pork not wholesome if used
too frequently or killed too young; and rabbits, too
small, flavourless and white-meated."
Now, I think there can be no doubt that such a
fish and animal are to be found. Probably M. St.
Hilaire's list of 140,000 swarms with them. Within
a week two orlthree gentlemen from the Council of
the Zoological Society and two or three from the
British Museum could show us exactly the very
fish and animal we ought to have. And the next
thing as e should probably find is that there would
be no difficulty whatever in procuring them. All
that is required is to set a very simple machinery
in motion. With splendid steamers and clipper
ships running constantly to almost every port in
the world, the thing might literally be done in a
few months.
For the new animal my correspondent suggests
the wombat, although he confesses that he cannot
get authentic information as to its habits, fecun-
dity, and quality of flesh. It abounds over immense
districts in Australia, burrowing deeply in the
earth, feeding by night—on grass, I believe ; and,
although shy and oifficult to be got at, its flesh is
sufficiently delicate to induce the natives to sink
most tremendous shafts to intercept it in its re-
cesses. Some specimens are to be seen in the
Regent's-park, from which it would appear to be
docile and probably capable of domestication ; but
whether this is the most suitable animal for the
purpose, or whether some one much more suitable
may not be indicated, is a question solely, I con-
ceive, for the scientific naturalist.
As to the machinery for the conveyance of such
things, I have already alluded in my last letter to
the Acclimatization Society, which has lately been
ushered into existence under very flattering aus-
pices, and which at present has its committee-rooms
at the Field-office, in the Strand. If properly sup-
ported, such an organisation as this would soon be
able to render us much more difficult services
than the introduction of such a fish and such an
animal as I have alluded to. And that it should
be so supported ought scarcely to admit of
doubt, considering the interesting nature of its
functions, and the numerous and most wealthy
and influential class to whom it specially appeals.
We raised, as I have mentioned, £l,OOl for a small
flock of alpacas from Victoria, and £6OO for our un-
successful attempt with the salmon. I do not quote
this in a vainglorious spirit; on the contrary, I
think we ought to have done a great deal more, and
it was a shame that our stock of ova were allowed
to die, after having actually crossed the tropics, for
want of another ton or two of ice. But when a mere
handful of Australians here in England have done
even that much, what ought not the resources of a
society to be:which enters upon the whole vast field of
acclimatization for Great Britain and all her domi-
nions, and thereby commends itself especially to the
notice and support of the aristocracy, landed gentry,
and wealthy mercantile classes of the country;
interested as they are in the progress of Canada,
Australia, and the Cape, as well as in that of Lan-
cashire, Ayrshire, and Londonderry !
So far have the claims of this society been already
felt in some quarters that one of the results of the
publication of my letter in your columns has been,
I am sure you will be glad to hear, my being autho-
rised to convey to the council of the society a dona-
tion of £3OO from a lady well known for her acts of
intelligent benevolence, and a subscription of ten
guineas annually for the next five years.
Since I last wrote you I have received an intima-
tion from Mr. Nicholson, the Chief Secretary of
the colony of Victoria, that he has offered the Go-
vernment of Tasmania to put a vote of £5OO upon
the Estimates of Victoria, on condition of their
giving the same amount, for a renewed trial of the
salmon experiment, and that he hopes to induce his
colleagues to send home further sums for kindred
objects.
Will you allow me to remark that in this appa-
rent rivalry between private generosity and Go-
vernmental vigour, thus forced upon my attention
within a day or two, a vary interesting problem is
involved as to how far important national efforts
ought to be left to private enterprise, how far the
assistance of Governments is desirable.
A few weeks since the question was asked in the
House of Lords by the Earl of Carnarvon of the
Duke of Newcastle whether the subject of the sys-
tematic interchange of the natural productions of
the various British dependencies had been
brought under the notice of the Colonial-office, and
how far such proposal had met a favourable recep-
tion. His grace replied that it had been in his
power to render some service to the cause in writ-
ing to the governors of several of our colonies, but
said that he was sure Lord Carnarvoli would agree
with him that anything like direct assistance in the
nature of a vote of public money was inexpedient,
as such things were better left to private enterprise.
Which, then, of these two courses is the right one ?
Is our Victorian Government right, which does not
disdain to lend effective assistance in developing
the resources of a very noble country, and setting
aside a portion of its revenue to add to the wealth,
happiness, and convenience of its people ? Or is
your Government right in standing haughtily aloof
while surrounded with 55 colonies of unknown
capacities, leaving everything to private enterprise;
and if, as I have alleged, private enterprise altoge-
ther fails, allowing the noblest undertakings to rest
completely untested by any effort whatever ?
Let us take a single case as an illustration of the
comparative eligibility of the two courses of action.
Among the various useful productions of the world
few take a higher rank than the cdmmon herring.
What has it not done for the coasts of Scotland
and Ireland ! How can we adequately estimate its
value as an article of food, or calculate the impor-
tance of this strong-scented, high-flavoured morsel
in its exportable state, in giving interest to the
otherwise insipid and monotonous dish of millions
of the worst-fed people upon earth ? What, then,
would it not be worth to mankind to get this fish
conveyed to the southern hemisphere ? Yet who
is to do it ? Private enterprise generally looks for
a direct return ; and where is the man who could
calculate upon a pecuniary return for the large sum
requisite to convey the herring across the tropics ?
It is a project of national dimensions, and it de-
serves a national effort. I believe it capable of at-
tainment ; for, delicate as the fish is, and dying al-
most instantly as it is taken from the water, I have
such confidence in the instinctive impulses of ani-
mals that I feel sure, if conveyed from its native
seas to seas of equal coldness, it would itself make
its way to the various coasts, and surprise the people
there, as it does here, with its prodigious fecundity.
But, taking this as a specimen of a most extensive
list, we should require for such an undertaking a
twesatteprosastibl ae
properti m
powerful steamer, towing well-boats containing
either fish or spawn through the tropics in the
shortest
ort
e , and
temperature.mountains of
Theseto k ea er pe
things to press with stifling weight upon private
enterprise, although mere trifles in comparison with
the millions at Government disposal.lt
is s eat toen
among
a think
thousandhow interesting little prospect
experiments
emiesn
tos
ever of
this
onebeing accomplished by private enterprise,
when n gland, with all her gigantic opportunities,
is only now founding an Acclimatization Society.
And it is equally sad to think that, of all the noble
fleets cruising uselessly in so many seas, not one
ship should be available for one short month to ren-
der this great service to mankind.

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