The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1836-11-29 00:00:00

SNOW AT CANTON.

The Comet has put the world out of joint. It will be
seen by the following letter, dated Canton,Teb. 8, 1836,
that the Chinese of that city have had a sight altogether
novel in that part of the celestial empire :
"I write you under the inspiration of a most unprecedented
meteorological event—the phenomenon of a very heavy fall Of
snow in Canton. I awoke an hour and a half ago, and could.
not believe my eyesight. Huge and thick flakes of real snow,
not white paper; summoned me from tny warm bed: and, on
looking. out, sure enough the whole scene was " winter in its
roughest mood," the snow on every house-top two, three, and
four inches deep, and in the corners and ridges of course.much
more. The thermometer, in our southern .verandah was then
stauding at 370. l'here was a light air from the north, in which
direction the wind has been, without intermission, for three days
past, sometimes blowing hard. Five or six des ago the wind
was fLOin the S.E., a must unusual circumstance in this mon-
soon: and the weather. was so mild then, that we breakfa'sted
with open windows; and a water excursion in the evening was
by .no means unpleasant, even to the idle steersman in the
wherry. But though the change was rapid, and the eel(' all
yesterday very intense, no one predicated the length it world
go. The thermometerlesterday was 47° in the morning., and
rose to 51° and 52° during the day. The astonishment and
mirth among the Chinese, nut one of vvhoui about us has ever
beheld snow -before, is unbounded. And the elders of our
European society are at this moment, in the ecstacy of revived
Associations, pelting each other with snow-balls from the house-
tops with all their might. On one of these terraces, which may
be no more than 35 or 30 feet 'square, they have rolled a snow-
ball which stands three feet high: so you may judge how con-
siderable the fall has been. I thiuk it must have been snowing
before miduivirt, to have accumulated as it'has done.' The cir-
cumstance is certainly unprecedented here within the mentors
of manc--rihether any record of its Occurrence hi former 'time
exists, remains to be seen, I can as vet learn, or perceive,
nothing at all out of the natural course Of our season in other
respects, save the few days of S.E. wind a week ago; as' above
mentioned. 8i A.Nl,—The snow ceased falling about half an
boor ago; and the sun has now burst forth on the' scene, and
perfected its magnificence. The river is a very curious feature
In the landscape. The huge mat-sails of the junks fold up so
messily that they retain large volumes of snow on them. The
Chi*ese have now taken to pelting each other in the streets!
There goes a large avalanche from some of the fellows' hands
on our house top, down into the street below; and a louder
shout of applause from the million. Merry rogues! A poor
Bengalee servant found his way to our house top, to collect
some snow to show to his Parsee master, who did not dare to
leave his bed; and the man's exotic appearance in such an ern-
ployment was very strange. ** * * Since writing the above,
a few hours ago, the thaw has commenced, ,and the last trace of
snow, which will perhaps never again be beheld here, will have .‘
'disappeared. Mingqua, a very venerable old China-man, has
just called, and says he never heard of such an occurrence he-
fore, as snow in Canton. Being himself of this province this is
the first time be has ever seen it in his life."

• Biei BURNING.—We have received the following particu-
iata of an outrage cninmitted on the word of God, and it dots
not .sequive that we should detounce the perpetrators as the
most disgraceful and abandoned wretches on the face of the
earth; but what shall we say of those that countenance them
after the commission of such en awful, impious deed?, Here
are the facts :—James Limmtl, Chattel Clerk to Priest Connelly,
of Achirllon , gathere
the 30th ult. , and d a large number of the people of that Island
toge the having made a fire near the watch-
house belonging to the Coast Guards, committed to the flames
four New Testaments! While the holy volumes were being
byconsumed, a woman of the name of Moran seized one of tlieta
Larchl's direction and fin +g it, half-burn d into the 1- • 1
• .
." • . e , 'muse
of one of the Coast Guarus, named Williams! Mayo Consti-
tution.