The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1846-02-25

body of perfectly ascertained facts, which throw
striking and curious light upon the social ana morn
condition OF this country. The results II exniots WIN
be especially remarkable, when compared win the
condition OF country young in its national exist
ence the United States This report has Just been
issued, and presume some notice OF It's more re-
markable features, will be received with interest by
your readers In considering the facts reported, 1t
must be remembered that they are based upon ev-
dence which invests them with the highest degree OF
certainty and accuracy. Thus the births, deaths, and
marriages must be exactly known, because every
ply sician, midwife, or other attendant at birth, is
subject to severe penalties if they do not report at
certain public Office, within twenty-iour hours
No body can be inferred without previous regis
traton of the age, sex, and cause OF death OF the
deceased. No marriage is valid, if the parties do
not register their names, ages, profession, uweE
ling, &c, at certain public bureau. In this way
the most perfect and authentic statistical oaa are
sumption; every article which enters town, 10 as
ceraned AZ to quality and quantity at the harrer
being usually subject to toll called Octroi In tins
way, the average quantity and quality OF the 1000
consumed BY each Individual, becomes known.
II appears. then, by evidence OF this kind, that
the number OF children annually born in Paris, Is
in round numbers $4,000 Of this number 81 800
only are born in wed!ock, the enormous proportion
of 10, 500 being fllegtmate. Thus we have the as
million Of individuals who inhabit Paris one,third
are Legitimate What an extraordinary condition
OF morals is indicated by this fact But is this Pc
culiar to the capital or is the whole country equal
ly demoralized ? The total number OF births annu-
ally. in the entire kingdom, is $4,000 Of which,
10000 are ilegitimate Thus, taking the entire
country, there are seven illegitmatc children In
ty-three in every hundred. The comparative dis
soluteness of morals in the capita! Is evident In
connection with this another still more curious and
singular fact has been brought to light ltappears
fixed and invariable, but is not the same among lie.
climate as among iuegltimate children. 1t has
been shown that among legitimate children there
are born 81 girls for every hundred boys. while
every hundred boys. Thus it appears, that there
are larger proportion of females among ileglti.
mates than among legitimates. What singular
and nexplcable yet inevitable conclusion does this
lead to- 1t follows that the performances OF the ce.
remony OF marriage, must have tendency to IN
crease the proportion of male children in the world
Present this bone to your Psychologists and moralsts
to pick. The result is not casual, fov it uniformly
follows, from the successive returns OF quarter OF
century IN France, and similar proportion ID
found to obtain IN other countries where strict sta
tistics are kept.
shall mention another extraordinary, but well
ascertalned fact, which presents strange view OF
the moral and social condition OF the population OF
this vast city. 1t appears that of 1900 deaths,
which take place annually in Paris, 10000 occur in
ths hospitals, and 1000 in the prisons and the
morgue. In other words, forty per cent Of the
population of Paris die either in the hospital, the
prison, or by suicide. Nothing short of the most
incontrovertibe official documents could place q
statement SO awfuly horrible within the limits Of
credibility.
1t appears that taking the whole country, there
are upon an average, seven legitimate children tor
every. two marriages; One.haf OF the children
born in France die before they attain the age Of
twenty Only ne-thlrd Of the population live to be
As, and one fourth only attain their 55th year.
About one-tourth OF the children born, die before
they complete their first year. TINS frightful
wage OF smallpox.
In former letter detailed to you the terrible
atrocities of the French army committed in Africa,
men, women and children, were inhumanly suffoca-
ted and baked alive in the grottos OF the Dahra.
calamity has just befallen division Of the same ar
my, which appears like Divine rlSution. Seven
snow storm, which came upon them in one Of the
mountain passes where they had pursued the flying
| natives. Never was suffering more heartrendlng
than that OF these unfortunate victims. who were
either frozen to death had their extremties fro
zen off. Thus frost has avenged fire. On the heels
of this, the news Of another calamity has arrived.
thunder storm broke over one Of the villages, In
which powder magazine has been stricken by
lightning, and terrific explosion has ensued, spread
ing death and destruction to all around. Assaredy
France pays dearly for the barren glory of retaining
her African colony.
Among the scientific news which will have reach
ed you, will be the discovery OF new planet, to be
called AstrOa. Those who attended the public lee
lures given by DR.. Lardner in America, will recol-
ect that they were told that variety OF circumstan-
ces attending the four new planets-Juno, Palas,
Ceres and Vesta-raised a strong presumption,
amounting nearly to moral certainty, that these boz
dies are in fact fragments OF single planet, which
has, from some cause not known, been broken; and
Dr. Lardner said, 1t such were really the case, II
was probable that vlgant observers, with powerful
Telescopes would at later periods discover otherfrag
ments moving round the sun, in the same region OF
the solar system 1t will be interesting to learn that
the observations already made on the new planet
Astroa, fully bear out this anticipation: 1t Is in fact
one of the same group, showing all their common
characters and is in fact another fragment Of the
wreck OF q shattered world.
A happy observation and most adroit experiment
has been recently made by Faraday, which raises a
strong presumption that light is only particular
modification OF electricity. You must not believe
the newspaper exaggerations which tell you that this
magnificent generalization has been actually estab-
!ished. Some time must elapse, and much more
intellectual labor and ingenuity must be spent upon
the investigation before that can be truly said All
that can be stated at present, with strict TRUTH is that
curious and new experiment has been made, which
proves that there is physical relation, hthe rto
undiscovered, between light, electricity and mag
netism
which is used to form spiral spring commonly
used by bell-hangers, and send, by reflection from
glass, ray Of light along its length 50 as to form, as
i were, the axis OF the cylindrical coil, you will
find that this ray of light will be modified IN
peculiar manner, whenever current of electricity
is along the spinal wire. II has been long known
that rod OF soft iron, placed in the we have
here supposed the light to be placed, is suddenly
rendered magnetic by the same influence. Thus is
established some analogy, the nature Of which is yet
to be explained between electricity, magnetism, and
light. But il is jumping rather too hastily to con-
clusion, to say that we thus prove that light.
electricity, and magnetism, are only different modi-
fications of the same physical agent.
In the art Of inland transport, one of the most
striking notifications now in progress, is the at.
mospheric railways The individual who first urged
this Improvement on the European public, (at least,
American gentleman, who has obtained several
patents for improvements in il. The method now
practised on the Croydon Railway in England, and
preparing on the 81. Germans Railway here, is
substantially his, although it bears another name
A tube, laid down between the rails, is partially ex-
hausted Of air, BY pumps which are worked by
stationary engines. A piston 10 placed IN this tube,
one side Of which the atmosphere is admitted, by