The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1839-04-02 00:00:00

SANDWICH ISLANDS.—In the Sandwich !elands Gazelle,
Feb. 5, is an account of a visit to the great volcano at Hawaii,
giving a very vivid and glowing description of the crater, and
its singular cessation from action. The enormous and terrific,
aperture forming the mouth of the crater is estimated at eight
miles in circumference, the bottom six miles, and the depth
fifteen hundred feet. The general appearance is described as
frightful. The travellers could see three burning lakes in
beautiful action, as well as innumerable fires issuing from
cracks in the lava, and a copious display of the liquid matter
discharged from four small craters. The explosions from these
craters were in sound equal to the report of large cannon, and
the burning matter ejected from them had the appearance of
rockets when exploding in the air. One large lake of lava was
grand in the extreme. At one period the fiery liquid assumed
the appearance of a gentle ripple on a brook, anon it danced
in fantastic waves, and finally assumed the appearance of a vast
sheet of liquid fire. There can be no doubt that this vast crater
has an influence on the tides, the strange phenomena of which
often cause alarm and confusion at the Sandwich Islands. It
has also been observed that the volcano at Hawaii stands some-
what in operation with a large volcano on the western coast of
South America.'

CLIMATE OF MALTA.—" The freedom of the island," says
Mr. Badger, " from any endemic disease, the ordinary good
health enjoyed by the natives, by the Engligh, as also by fo-
reigners resident here, and the actual state of the weather
through Out the year, go very far towards establishing the salu-
brious nature of the atmosphere. During the summer months
the therniorifite'r generally shifts from' 80to 88" of Fahrenheit,
and towards 'the end of October sinks to 70. From this time
it gradually. deereaseanntil Jannary, when it varies from 55
to 50 deg., below which it seldom falls, and again rises' about
the end of February to 60 deg. From March to May it gene-
'rally ascends to 70 deg., and continues adVancing till the
latter end of June, when the summer sets' in. 'This range
'continues from one year to another without any importat
variation. The time, however, in ihich one is most affected
by the heat or cold is not that which markS' their extremes
on the thermometer. The heat iirsoinetinies Very oppressive
,when the thermometer is compel:ad-I'6ly loWi.'arid the same
remark holds good in regard trillie-cold in winter, w&n it is
comparatively high. This may be attributed to the direction
of the winds, their sudden changesproducinge Leis orgreater
degree of heat according to the quarter from isheriel tWblow,
and their violence modifying the sensations whicl theYfeause
'us to feel. The wind from the north and nbithlivest always
brings freshness, while that which blows frin-flii south pro-
;duces an increase in the heat. Rain has beehlnown -to fall
in summer, but is of very rare occurrence. The heat; how-
ever, is generally temperedlay'the tiortli mid Mirth-Westerly
winds, which prevail during the hot Months, and which ren-
der the everings delightfully pleasant. Though there are
sometimes heavy falls of dew during this season; the natives
do not find it injurious to sleep out in the open air, which is
quite customary with many of the poorer classes, without
any bed or covering, When the south wind prevails in sum-
mer, the heat is very oppressive ; the atmosphere assumes a
hazy appearance, the air has sometimes a disagreeable odotir,
and its effects.on furniture and book-covers, which it cracks
and warps, are very destructive. After this wind has lasted
for a day or two, the air becomes quite still and confined,
and the sensation felt is exceedingly uncomfortable. It is
well that this state never continues 'for more than three or
four successive days, and that it is not of frequent occurrence.
This wind, which passes over the-arid plains of Africa, is not
purified from the corrupt miasma which it contains by cros-
sing the sea, as-the straits are so narrow bet Ween thisisland
and that continent. The Wind; 'which has procured a bad
name for Malta by foreigners, is the south-east, usually called.
the Sirocco. It is most prevalent in September, yet unfor-
tunately is not confined to this month alone, but occurs
occasionally throughout the year. Persons with diseased
lungs suffer more or less from its consequences ; and hence
Malta is by no means a healthy place for such as are inclined
to consumption. Strangers, in general, are affected during
the prevalence of the Sirocco, with great lassitude and debil-
ity, which indisposes the system, and renders it liable to suf-
fer from dyspepsia."—Badger's Malta 87 Gozo.
STEAM VOYAGING ON THE RHONE AND SAONE.--I left
Chalons at six A.M. and reached Lyons by the steam' boat at
two—distance about eighty-five miles. The fare was only
44 francs. From Lyons to Avignon, the fare is 30 francs,
the distance about 170 miles—time about 13 or 14 hours per
steam boat. Owing to the shortness of the days, we halted
at five P.M. at Pont de St. Esprit, and finished the voyage
next morning between six and half-past eight. You pay for
what provisions you require. The steam boats are English.
built, and worked by English engineers. They are about 100
feet long, 25 wide, and are neat and commodious, though by
no means splendid. They are very flat in the bottom, draw-
ing only about tvienty-four inches of water. The Rhone is
full of sandbanks, which owing to the rapidity of its current,
are continually shifting their place,; and vessels drawing a
greater depth than: two 'feet cannot navigate the river with
safety. The English engineer told me, that his steam boat
went about nine miles an hour in still water—the current adds
about five miles going down and deducts as much going up ;
so that she moves at the rate of fourteen miles the one way,
and four the other. The Rhone passes through one of the
most heautiful, picturesque, and delightful regions in the
world. It is' one continued vineyard, skirted and sheltered
by monntains from 500 to 5,000 feet in height, presenting
every variety of form and
,aspect---now round and smooth—
noW rngged and Peaked--row bare and steril—now clothed
with vines or mnlberries, or cut into terraces, and carefully
celtivalipd to their sunimits. Mount Pilatre, and others of
the high convennes on the west, and the Alps on the east
capped with' snow, appear through openings in the lateral
chains at intervals. Theyalley is often contracted to a space
of one mile.,—again it spreads out in the form of a rich plain
to a breadth of 10 or 12. Twenty times the river appears
closed in by the hills, and you do not see were it is to escape
till a bend in its course clears up the mystery. The river
sometimes expands to a breadth of nearly two miles, some-
times contract* to a quarter of a mile or less. , The,Saone (for
I am speaking of the whole line from Chalons to Avignon)
had overflowed its boundaries, and generally covered a space
or two miles, presenting a triple line of water-eotirses,' one in
the middletwith a visible current, and two stagnant at the
sides, parted from each other by long embankments, or what
now appeared islands, en which stood houses, barns, work-
shops, and auberges, or taverns. To the natural beauties of
the country, are added those which it derives fronithe 'indus-
try and taste of its inhabitants. There is an ahnOst unbroken
line of large towns, villages, hamlets, cottages, and handsome
villas, along each side of the river, and not merely on its banks
but reaching back to the mountains. The glittering white
walls of these buildings, surrounded by rich well-cultivated
lands, give vivacity to the scene, and fill the mind with images
of peace, abundance, security, and contentment—Scotsman.
of w
Litql--74:P§sfpg,-.oe, scene of this intro,:
ductory interview thefollOwing morning, Richardson (his
Indian friend) and myself were sndrlenly made aware of the
'monsper'sairesence, by Perceiving a parr-„of mseherry.eyes
glaring upon us from beneath asladibifsg ; and, j,pstAntly,
upon reining up our horses, the-grini savage bolted out with a
roar like :thunder, and bounded across the plain with the
agility pf greyhorrnd, luxuriant; beauty of his shaggy
mane, wiich alingst_swept, the gianaki; tempted us, .POlOiry
to.iestairlished rule, to give him tattle, with the design. of,,
obtainingpossessioaof his,spoils i and he:b id no sooner, fogral
himself hotly pursued than he •faced.aliouti and stood at ban.
in a mimosa grove, measuring the strength of his assailants
with a port: the: niost nOble and imposing. Milky-mg%
appearance,, however, arid not relishing, the smell iilsgnielb,
powder, he soon abandoned
.the grove; and took up his INgt
tion on the summit of an adjacent stony hill, the hese qf
which being thickly clothed with with thorn trees, weiaqulAA
only obtain a view of him from the distance of threcherrdred
yards. Crouched on his fortified pinnacle, like thesgulptnred
figure at the entrance of a nobleman's park, the enemy dis-
dainfully- surveyed us for several minutes, daring us to ap-
proach with an air of conscious power and pride, which-well
beseemed his griziled form, As the rifle balls struck the
ground nearer and nearer at each discharge, his wrath, as int
dicated by his glistening eyes, increased roar, and impatient
switching of his tail, was clearly getting the mastery over his
prudence. Presently a shot broke his leg. , Down he came
upon the other three, with reckless impetuousity, his tail
straight out, and whirling on its axis, his mane bristling on
end, and his eye-balls flashing rage and vengeance. Unable,
however, to overtake our horses, he shortly retreated under
a heavy fire limping and discomfitted, to his stronghold.
Again we bombarded him, and again exasperated, he rushed
into the plain with headlong fury—the blood now streaming
from his open jaws, and dyeing his mane with crimson. It
was a gallant charge, but it was to be his last, A well-directed;
shot arresting him in his full career, he pitched.with violence
upon his skull, and, throwing a complete summerset, sub Sided
in, a cloud of dust.--Captain Harris's South Africa..
MALTA.—The ease with which mere animal life is sustain=
ed in Malta tends to encourage early marriages ; and, ac-
cording to Mr. Badger's report, this barren rock is more
densely peopled than any, the most favoured country in Eu-
rope : the same extent of surface, he observes, which in
England supports 152 souls, contains in Malta nearly eight
times that number. This ease is shownin a saying common
there, that a man may dine on fish, flesh, and fowl for a half-
penny ; and this is not so extravagant as might be,ima4ied.
The difficulty is in getting the halfpenny. The 'nedeisties,
and even luxuries, are so cheap, and money so scarce, that a
shopkeeper will not refuse to sell some portion of cooked
meat even for a single grain—that is, the sixth part of a half
penny. What toil and exertions are often gone through to
obtain that single grain is known to every one who has
chanced to put into the port of Valetta. There are boys, we
believe men, who gain a livelihood by diving for oysters and
other shell fish, or articles which may have fallen or been
thrown overboard from the ships. No' sooner does a vessel
arrive than a boat load or two of these naked striplings come
Under the stern, and there they will remain through a sum-
mer's day, throwing np their arms, and bobbing down their
heads, to induce the looker on to toss over a halfpenny, ac-
companying their significant gesture with `• Heave for a dive
capitan, heaVe for a dive." The moment the miserable coin

is ihrowninto the wuter, a whole shoal of 'them -instantly
plunge in after it, and one or other never fails to make prize
of it long before it reaches the bottom,- and eager struggles
may often he seen at considerable depths under the Water, as
to who shall retain the spoil. This, is a sort of sport and
pastime at other'places'_hut at Malta it is a trade. From' -a
little luck in this- wa:tities'inany, it Maltese boat Man date the
beginning-of his and _at this very, tine there is in
Vitteftaliarlidifii:Well. known Matt; whO'sai'id 'enough from
thesehalfpenrei dives tri-pritiChiserri boat, aud'in reniembrance
of the circumstance, he has-elgistened her "llefiye fora
dive," whiCh is enablazOnerHort& in large letters-upon her
stem-7A thenteunt. •
POYSICAL REVO:I.VTIONS OF GRESCI:. '77- There is no
country, of the same dimensiOni,' in Enrupe, whiCh has been
the scene of so many.and'sO various natural revolutions,
,as
that which We •ti`r -now describing. It has been the arena of
conflicts, not merely, betw.ean,man. and man,
.but of more
fierce struggles, in which the, elements of. nature have been
the combatants.. The ro-ss Of the Rhone, ,as it is called,
which diveS in: subterranean channel, beneath therocks of
the Eehlse, has lone attracted the notice and excited the
wondef of the Swiss traveller ; and in Italy; the stupendous
world,' by which the water Of the Alban and Fucine lakes
have been reduced from, their ancient, level, and, conducted
through the centre of high hills, by means of long and broad
emissaries, serve as a' proud proof of the power and ingenuity
of man to rival the operations of nature. The Copaic lake,
in the continent, of Greece, presents examples of a similar
kind. But the single province of Arcadia, in the Pelopon-
nesus, exhibits mere wonders of this description than all
these combined together. From the sides,of the mountains
by which this country is encircled, numerous, torrents de-
scend into the holldws of the rocky crater of which Arcadia
is formed ; and there is little' reason to distrust the ancient
tradition which recorded, that,' from the confluence of water
thus supplied, this crater itself_ was,: originally the basin of a
large lake. At present there is one valley through which
these streams discharge themselves, and One only. It is at
the northern foot of the mountain which we have chOsen as

the centre of our panoramic view of the Peloponnesus,
namely, Mount Lycfeus. Through this gorge, which tends
to the northwest, the rivers which flow westward from the

centre of Arcadia, find their way into the lonian sea, having
united themselves to the stream which receives the waters of

nearly all the rivers of the west of the Peloponnems, namely,
the Alpheus. But on the eitstern side of Arcadia exists no
such vent for the discharge of its streams, as is found in the
_ _

valley at the roots of MoUnt Lycteus. The waters there are
left either to stagnate in the hollows of the valley, and to ex-
pand themselves into lakes, or to force their way by subter-
ranean chasms through the rocky barrier of the hill. By a
benevolent provision of nature, it so happens, that the geo-
logical formation of these mountains is such as to admit of

the latter alternative. The limestone strata of which
consist, are not difficult of perforation by the agency which
these rivers employ. Thence it arises, that these streams,
which seemed destined to be pent. tip
_withiu their, rocky
prisons, have opened for themselves valves and emissaries,
by which the Inlatiii-emititifliai'been rescued from inunda-
tion, and the ulterior provinpes have beep. -fertilised as if by
a process of ar:46iitl'irfigit4oh.:,-Pz'ctgriaf Description of
Greice. - - - -
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