The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1846-09-22 00:00:00

VARIETIES.

The deepest part of the ocean which has been sounded
is one mile and 65 feet in depth. If we suppose its
medium depth to be two miles, the water in it would cover
all the dry parts of t e earth—if it could be spread over
them—to the depth of about 31,680 feet, or six miles.
SINGULAR ROMAN CATHOLIC CEREMONY.—Before
we leave the Chapel del Condestable, one of its ceremo-
nies deserves particular mention. I allude to the Missa
de los carneros (sheep.mass.) At early mass on All
Souls' day, a feast celebrated in this chapel with extraor-
dinary pomp, six sheep are introduced, and made to stand
on a large block of unpolished marble, which has been
left lying close to the tombs, almost in the centre of the
chapel • near the six sheep are placed as many inflated
skins of I igs, resembling those usually filled with the wine
of the country ; to these is added the quantity of bread,
produced from four bushels of wheat, and all remain in
view during the performance of high mass. At the con-
clusion of the final response, the sheep are removed from
their pedestal and make for the chapel-gates, through
which they issue ; and urged by the voice of their driver,
the pecnliar shrill whistle of Spanish shepherds, and by
the more material argument of the staff, proceed down the
entire length of the cathedral to the music of the aforesaid
whistle, accompanied by their own bleatings and bells,
until they vanish through the great western portal.—
Wells' Picturesque Antiquities of Spain.
EFFECTS OF CLIMATE UPON THE HUMAN COM-
PLEXION.—AIthough it cannot be pretended that climate
is the single and decisive cause of colour, yet that it is the
leading cause our author endeavours to show by an exten-
sive induction in his second volume, the outline of which
we must here trace. It must be observed, that in it he is
confining his attention to Europe and Africa. Running
rapidly from the north of Europe to the south of Africa,
we find, first, in Scandinavia, men with white hair and
eye-lashes, grey eyes, fair skin ; all in accordance with
the northern latitude. After these we fall in with the au-
burn hair, blue or grey eyes, and florid complexion, which
predominate in Britain and Ireland, a great part of Rus-
sia, northern Germany, Denmark, and Holland. Ad-
vancing southward, tLe tints appear to deepen, except
where elevation compensates for latitude. Thus, in
France the prevalent colour of the hair is chesnut or
brown, and of the eves hazel or blue; but when the ground
rises, towards the 'Alps or Pyrenees, the colour of the
people fades. The Swiss, in the high mountains above
the plains of Lombardy, have sandy or brown hair; and
in the higher parts of the Biscayan country the natives
have a fair complexion, with light blue eyes, and flaxen
or auburn hair. Beyond the Alps the traveller, on de-
scending into the Milanese, finds himself among peasants
with black hair, black eyes, and almost "oriental" fea-
tures ; or, after leaving the Pyrenee highlands behind
him, he sees a population with swarthy or olive skin and
black hair. All the inhabitants of lowlantls in the Me-
diterranean region display an immense predominance of
the darker tints; the complexion being ordinarily bru-
nette, the hair and eyes corresponding. On the southern
plains of Spain the Andalusians are as swarthy as the
Moors on the opposite shores. The ancient Egyptians,
in the same latitudes, were swarthy, yellow, or copper
red. But, proceeding from the Moors of the Mediterra-

nean inland, we have io traverse the great highland coun-
try known by the name of Atlas, which spreads over the
best part of Numidia and Mauritania ; and along this
elevated district a series of changes is observed in the
hues of the population, the details of which, although
stated by us above, may be concisely recapitulated.
" The Berbers of the plains are of brown complexion.
with black hair ; the Shuluh mountaineers are fair, and
the inhabitants of the high tracts of Mons Aurasius are
completely xanthous, having red or yellow hair and blue
eyes ; which, fancifully and without the shadow of any
proof, they have been conjectured to have derived from
the Vandal troops of Genseric ;" while the Berbers of
Ereag and Ergela are blacks, with negro hairs and fea-
tures. It farther appeared that the Fulah:, almost under
the tropic, yet on table land, are red, not black ; some of
the same race, indeed, of a Portuguese tint : moreover
that in Abyssinia the hues of the people become lighter
as the ground rises, until on the lofty soil of Narea they
attain the European standard. With the tropic and low-
lands of Senegal begins the region of jet-bluk skins,
which as far as we know continues through inter-tropical
Africa, except in the more elevated regions. Beyond
this is the country of copper-coloured men, who in Kafir-
land are the maiirity ; while between the tropics there

are few such tribes, and those only in lofty .places. '
Lastly, towards the Cape, on open and bleak steppes, are '
the tawny Hottentots,—scarcely darker than the Along°.
Hans, whom they resemble in many other particulars
besides colour.—Pi ichard's Physical History of Man-
kind.
AN ADVENTURE IN AUSTRALIA.—On landing, I di-
rected Mr. Tarrant and one of the boat's crew to follow
with the rest of the instruments. The walking was very
bad, the reef being strewed with coral fragments, and in-
terspers?d with large pools. With my mind fully occu-
pied with what we had seen of late, I hurried on without
waiting, and reached the observation spot, just glancing
towards the cliff, which presented nothing to the view but
the silvery stems of the never-failing gum trees. I had
just turned my head round to look after my followers,
when I was suddenly staggered by a violent and piercing
blow about the left shoulder; and ere the dart had ceased
to quiver in its destined mark. a loud long yell, such as
the savage only can produce, told me by whom I had been
speared. One glance sufficed to show me the cliffs, so
lately the abode of silence and solitude, swarming with the
dusky forms of the natives, now indulging in all the exu-
berant action with which the Australian testifies his delight.
One tall bushy-headed fellow led the group, and was
evidently my successful assailant. I drew out the spear,
. which had entered the cavity of the chest, and retreated
with all the swiftness 1 could command, in the hope of
reaching those who were coming up from the boat, and
were then about half way. I fully expected another spear
while my back was turned ; but, fortunately, the savages
seemed only to think of getting down to the beach to ,
complete their work. Onward I hurried, carrying the
spear which I had drawn from the wound, and determined
if, as I expected, overtaken, to sell my life dearly. Each
step less steady than the former one, reminded me that I
was losing blood : but I hurried on, still retaining the
chronometer, and grasping my only weapon of defence.
The savage cry behind soon told me that my pursuers had
found their way to the beach : while at every respiration,
the air escaping through the orifice of the wound, warned
me that the strength by which I was still enabled to
struggle through the deep pools and various other impe-
diments in my path, must fail me soon. I bad fallen
twice, each disaster being announced by a shout of vin-
dictive triumph from the bloodhounds behind. To add to
my distress, I now saw with utter dismay that Mr. Tar-
rant and the man with the instruments, unconscious of
the fact that I bad been speared, and therefore believing
that I could make good my escape, were moving off to-
wards the boat. I gave up all hope, and with that rapid
glance at the past, which in such an hour crowds the whole
history of life upon the mind, and one brief mental act of
supplication, or rather submission, to Him in whose hands
are the issues of life and death, I prepared for the last
dead struggle. At that moment the attention of the re-
treating party was aroused by a boat approaching hastily
from the ship; the first, long, loud, wild shriek of the
natives having most providentially apprized those on
board of our danger, they turned and perceived that I was
completely exhausted. I spent the last struggling energy
I possessed to join them. Supported on each side, I had
just strength to direct them to turn towards our savage
enemies, who were hurrying on in a long file, shouting and
waving their clubs, and were now only about thirty yards
off. Our turning momentarily checked their advance,
whilst their force increased. During these very few and
awfully anxious moments, a party beaded by Lieutenant
Emery hastened over the reef to our support : another
moment and ours would have been the fate of so many
explorers. The band of the savage almost grasped our
throats ; we should have fallen a sacrifice in the course of
discovery, and our bones, left to moulder on this distant
shore, would have been trodden heedlessly under foot
i by the wandering native.—Stokes' Discoveries in An-
: tralia.