The Sun.
London, England, 1869-03-10 00:00:00

A COLONIAL SOCIETY.

A new association has, lately been formed having
for its object the furtherance of Indian and colonial
interests. It "inaugurates" its formation to-morrow
in the usual British mode, a public dinner. Viscount
miry, my., will preside. The committee con-
tains some distinguished names : The Duke of Marl-
borough, the Marquis oflN Normanby, Viscount Monck,
Mr. Bailie Cochrane, Sir W. Denison, Mr. Chiches-
ter Fortescue, M.P., Sir Willoughby Jones, Sir H.
D. Wolff, and some other M.P.'s and colonial cele-
brities.

THE a BOCK" AND THE "RECORD."
The Rock and the Record have attained an
eminence in theological journalism which has not
yet been reached by other journals of the class. The
two papers have not only fallen foul of their
opponents, but of each other. It appears that
the Record, in its admiration for Lord Shaftes-
bury and all his family, stated that Lord
Ashley's name appeared "at the head of the list
of first classmen." To this the Rock replies that
the Oxford class-lists are alphabetically arranged,
so that Lord Ashley's position was due to accident
rather than to merit. Thereupon the Record is very
wrath with
the readers of the Record the infor-
mationits cheap contemporary and rival,
rebukes it An- pettiness, and says that it was not
necess a r ywtho
Supplies to its readers.
Thereupon the Rock very aptly replies that its con-
temporary either did know or did not know that the
list was alphabetically arranged. The second suppo-
sitionvery pretty
impliesi ignorance, the first wilful
quarrel.
THE TEMPERATURE OP THE MONTH.
deception. It is a
ch give the
considerable Rock
.The temperature of February was another gift to
the meteorologists. Mr. Allnatt, writing to the Times
his usualthe 21st, inclusive, the temperature
" From the Ist to
of the past month
was
dail y in monthlyexe letter,
ess
of
the
says
average of 60 years, some-
times by abnormal amounts. On the Ist it registered
11.8 deg. above the mean; on the 4th, 11 deg.; on the
6th,12 deg. ; 9th, °deg. ; and on the llth, 13.4 deg. This
consecutive run of high atmospherical temperature for
February is quite unprecedented. It then began
somewhat to decline, but still maintained an excess
until the 17th when it again rose to 10 deg. above
the average. On the 22nd the wind, which had been
almost invariably troPical, suddenly backed, and
brought a Polar current into contact with the equa-
torial. Immediate condensation ensued, tempera-
tures declined, and snow fell to the depth of nearly
four inches. On the 28th the temperature was
below the mean, and snow again fell." Another
point noticed by Mr. Allnatt is important.
Some very alarming accounts have come from some
,
districts of wheat seed rotting in the ground, on
account of the excessive rain. Mr. Allnatt, noticing
the exoess
13th the com-
bined gauge Was nearly an inch and a quarter. The
aggregate fall of the month was 3.90 inches, which is
in excess of
says
th mtheaant
boynit.h7es 12thiileh and
.

PROM LONDON TO PARIS.
The Daily Telegraph spins a yarn two columns long
about the journey from London to Paris. Briefly told,
the following are the plans which have been sug-
gested for abolishing that mauvais hour .and a half
which has now to be endured by Britons on
continental touring bent. First, there was Mr.
Boyd's scheme for erecting a vast tubular
bridge across the Channel, which was perfectly
practicable from an engineering point of view, but
inasmuch as its cost was £35,000,000, was financially
impossible. Then there was M. Boutet's gigantic
suspension bridge, attached to huge piers, erected in
mid-channel, and having ten spans, each fastened to a
pier 360 ft. above the sea. The piers, which, since
M. Boutet started his scheme, have increased
from nine to twenty-nine are "in dimensions
something like St. Paul's Cathedral." For
this scheme the inventor ' wants £8,000,000, and he
boasts that he has the patronage of the Emperor
Napoleon and of Earl Granville. Some persons, at
all events, have faith in the scheme, for they have
subscribed £4,000 towards the expense of a model
which is now being constructed at Calais. Mr.
Fowler, the eminent enoineer of the Metropolitan
Railways, proposes a sea' ferry. Suitable docks will
be constructed on both sides of the Channel,
and they vsill shelter vessels 450 feet in length,
57 feet beam, and 12 feet draught, driven
by four independent oscillating engines. The
vessels, it is supposed, will ensure steadiness and
prevent sea-sickness, and will make the voyage in an
hour. They will receive a train bodily, so that a
passenger taking his seat at either terminus need
not alight between London and Paris. A bill to
raise £500,000 for carrying out this project was
deposited last November, but in all probability the
scheme will require a inneh larger sum. Over the
lea and ou _thrtielarg notijiie iallY_YasitAgottille