The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1844-07-30 00:00:00

STUPENDOUS CHINESE UNDERTAKING.—His pro-
ject was to make a great road, straight, broad, and level,
from the town of Kieou-yuen, which is now Tcho-tcheou,
about thirty-six miles from the town of Peking, to Tun-
yang, cf the district of King-tcheou at the present time ;
which made a distance of 1800 les, or about 600 English
milts. To make this road according to the emperor's
wishes, it was necessary to pierce through mountains, fill
up valleys, and throw a great number of bridges over tor-
rents and rivers, drain marshes, and plant trees the whole
distance along the two sides; it was to be like the prin-
cipal walk of a large garden for foot passengers, and to
have in addition all the requisite conveniences for carriages
and vehicles of every description. It is not easy to ima-
gine the number of men whom it is necessary to employ
for a work of this description.—Captain Pidding's
Chinese Olio.

LONGEVITY OF PRESBYTERIANISM.—Long before
Luther was born, Presbyterianism had become strong and
mature. During the dark ages, when Popery ruled the
world, Presbyterianism was living among the persecuted
Waldenses. In the ages of primitive Christianity,
Presbyterianism was the form of government and " the
sect everywhere spoken against ;" and before the birth of
the babe of Bethlehem, in the synagogues of the Jews,
Presbyterian elders ruled, and the Presbyterian discipline
was maintained among the God-beloved descendants of
Abraham. They were not afraid to bring their form of
church government to the standard of the word of God.
Talk to them of the flower of their English nobility ; why
these men were the mushroom growth of yesterday com-
pared to Presbyterianism ! The poorest Presbyterian
could boast a long line of ancestry, stretching away beyond
the guessings of the catalogue. He was the seed of noble
fathers ; he could give evidence of his genealogy, not
merely by showing that the tree took root among the
disciples in the sands at the time of Christ, but by exhi-
biting evidence of an unbroken genealogy for thousands
of generations. That Presbyterianism which flourished
in the days of the Apostles was traceable down through all
the time of tribulation to the present day and present
hour.—Speech of the Rev. Dr. Edgar in Liverpool.
MODE OF TEACHING GEOGRAPHY IN PRUSSIA.—
Geography was taught principally by delineations on the
blaek-board,—and here the skill in drawing of teacher
and pupil was employed with admirable service. One of
these lessons is described. The teacher, after looking his
class into eager readiness, made on the board a series of
those lines and shadings employed by map-engravers to
represent a chain of mountains. Scarcely had the out-
lines become visible when the scholars began to cry out,
Carpathian Mountains, Hungary ; Black Forest Moun-
tains, Wurtemburg, &c. But the remainder of this ani-
mated scene we must transcribe:—" In less than half a
minute the ridge of that grand central elevation which
separates the waters that flow North-west into the Ger-
man ocean, from those that flow North into the Baltic,
and South-east into the Black Sea, was presented to view,
—executed almost as beautifully as an engraving. A
dozen strokes, made in the twinkling of an eye, represented
the head-waters of the great rivers which flow in different
directions from that mountainous range ; while the chii-
dren almost as eager and excited as though they had ac-
tually seen the torrents dashing down the mountain sides,
cried out, Danube, Elbe, Vistula, Oder, &c. The next
moment I heard a succession of :mailer strokes or taps,
so rapid as to be almost indistinguishable, and hardly bad
my eye time to discern a large number of dots made along
the margins of the rivers, when the shout of Lintz, Vienna,
Prague, Dresden, Berlin, &c., struck my ear."—Chria-
/ion Teacher.
MOSQUES IN DAMASCUS.—The mosques in the city
are numerous, and the principal ones are very fine ; but
they lose much of their effect from the confined space in
which they stand. Christians are not allowed to visit
their interior, nor is it safe for them to pause too long in
passing before them. The great mosque was once the
cathedral of St. John, and is said to be the largest and
most splendid of all the churches erected by the early
Christians in this country. The mosque of the durweeshes
has the finest minarets in Damascus, and another is re-
markable for having its minarets, which are of a great
height and grandeur, cased with enamelled tiles of a rich
green colour: the reflection of the sunshine from this
iridescent surface produces a splendid effect. Many of
the mosques were built by the caliphs as mausoleums;
they possess courts, porticos, and fountains, and some are
overshadowed by a few green trees, among which sacred
doves may be heard cooing. The great mosque stands on
an elevated position nearly in the centre of the city. It
was once surrounded by an open area, but this is now so
encumbered with buildings that the gate can only be ap-
proached through a bazaar filling up an arcade of ancient
columns, perhaps the remains of a stately entrance. The
outer court, which is very spacious, is paved with marble;
it has a large fountain in the middle, and on three sides a
cloister consisting of two tiers of pointed arches, sup-
ported by Corinthian columns. Mr. Buckingham, who
enjoyed the rare privilege of inspecting the interior of the
building, speaks of its vast dimensions as most imposing
—Library of Travel.

PRAYER AND PENANCE BY PROXY.—Praying by proxy
is not at all uncommon in Ireland. Thus, if a person has
any urgent business or recreation on hand, preventive of
going to mass and performing the proper number of Ayes
and genuflexions, he or she hires a substitute, generally a
mendicant, who, for a trifling recompense, goes through,
with most conscientious punctuality, the vicarious duties
of the holy service committed to their charge. The
prayer by proxy is considered to be nearly as efficacious
as that delivered on in propria persona. But the penance
by proxy goes a step further, and shifts the burthen of
actual suffering or punishment from the shoulders of the
rich to those of the poor! The following anecdote.
abridged from the Rev. Mr. Otway's Ascent to Croagh
Patrick, will illustrate the penance by proxy system :
" A little puffy, barrel-bodied attorney, hired a guide to
conduct him up the mountain. The little man grunted,
groaned, panted, and perspired—' larding the lean moun-
tain,' as they ascended. The guide did his best to alleviate
his difficulties, and at length they came to the well, where
St. Patrick made his first stop, when proceeding to disen-
chant the mountain. Here the little tourist was in a
pretty plight, like a tallow candle in a hot tavern ! Well,'
says the guide to himself, this dacent man is certainly
doing penance for some great sin, and the poor simple
sowl doesn't know that I could put him out of pain for a
few shillings ; it is a wonder all out that some one, even
if the priest hadn't the good nathur, would not tell him
that there's many a one about here that would do the
dhurrus for him. So its myself that'll have the innocent
fellow out of his trouble in a jiffy.' So with that the
guide came up to him where he sat wiping with his silk
handkerchief his reeking, streaming head and neck. ' Why
then, your honour, I wonder you'd be after thinking of
going up yon mountain, and working tho' all its stations,
when you know that ell go up for you and do dhurrus with
all the veins in my heart.' What do you mean ?' says
the attorney, 'You go up for me !" Yes, plase your
honour, and that I will, and you may sit there quietly
until I come back, not a one I'll miss—look at my knees
when I return, and see if they're not battered and bleed-
ing enough to plase yees.' Why what, honest man, do

you mean ? can you see for me—can you admire for me—
can your going up enable me to say, when I go home,
that I have been at the top of Croagh Patrick ?" Ah,
then, says the guide, ' is that all that brings you to the
Reek—myself thought ye were a religious man, and that
sees were undher vows or orthers to perform stations here,
and sure all the world knows that I could do all that for
yees, and chape enough—ay chaper and just as well as
ever Rob of the Reek did, rest be to his sowl, and the
heavans his bed.'" Now, considering the state of Ire-
land—the destitution of the poor—and the want of em-
ployment—this proxy-prayer, and proxy-penance, seem
to be useful items in Ur, popular practice of religion, as
giving an occasional job, however painful, to the idle and
starving pauper.—Dr. James Johnson's Tour in Ireland.

A MISNOMER.

Inaptly is the Captain named,
As if all fitness scorning;
For Warner, to be justly famed,
Must strike, and give no warning,

STATE OF LARGE TOWNS.

i The commissioners appointed by her majesty's letters
patent dated May, 1813, for inquiring into the present
state of large towns and populous districts, have just pre-
sented their first report. The objects of the inquiry were
very extensive. The commissioners were instructed to
investigate the present state of large towns and populous
districts " with reference to the causes of disease among
the inhabitants, and into the best means of promoting and
securing the public health under the operation of the laws
and regulations now in force, and the usages at present
prevailing with regard to the drainage of lands ; the
erection, drainage, and ventilation of buildings, and the
supply of water is such towns and districts, whether for
purposes of health or for the better protection of property
from fire ; and how far the public health and the condition
of the poorer classes of the people of this realm, and the
salubrity and safety of their dwelling, may be promoted
by the amendment of such laws, regulations and usages."
—The commissioners are the Duke of Buccleuch ; the
Earl of Lincoln ; IL A. Slaney ; Major Graham, the
registrar general ; Sir Henry de la Beche, the geologist ;
Dr. Lyon Playfair, and Dr. D. B. Reid, chemists : Pro-
fessor Owen ; Captain W. T. Denison, royal engineers;
J. R. Martin, surgeon ; Mr. J. Smith, of Deanston ;
Robert Stephenson, jun., the engineer; William Cubitt,
the architect, and Harvey Hobhouse, secretary. It will be
perceived that the commission comprises men of con-
siderable eminence in their various spheres of know-
ledge, but it is remarkable that an inquiry into the
state of the public health and its causes should be
entrusted to a body containing among its members only
one medical practitioner, the only member of the medical
profession, except Mr. Martin, being Professor Owen,
who is known principally as a comparative anatomist, and
does not, we believe, practise either medicine or surgery.
The commissioners appear, however, to have endeavoured
to supply this very serious omission in the original con-
stitution of their body, by applications to numerous
members of the profession for assistance and informa-
tion, which have been freely given and fully acknow-
ledged.
It has been a matter of regret to many parties interested
in this subject, that the commission did not report and
recommend some legislative enactment to remedy the
evils it has exposed at the beginning of the year, but have
delayed till the end of the session to present the result of
part of the inquiry only, without any recommendations
whatever, This appears in the shape of a mass of evi-
dence, occupying 437 large folio pages, with an appen-
dix of 212 pages. The commissioners, however, have
perhaps adopted the wisest course in not offering any re-
commendations, the subjects of inquiry having turned out
much more extensive and complicated than could have
been at first anticipated. Besides, in order to secure the
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The subt naturally divides itself into two branches—.