The weekly Minnesotian. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1852-1858, 1855-03-17


lore' DC excused when, as in the case of Mr..
Seward, the noble qualities of intellect have
so great supremacy
And the day after, it says:
Mr.. SEwARD's RE-ELEcrIoN.- we predict
ed IN the Courier yesterday, Mr.. Seward has
been reelected to another term of six years in
the National Senate. We feel no elevation of
spirit at this result; and we feel satisfied that
the great State of New York has no ADLER man
to represent her in this important capacity.
The BELLE AND THE SrUDENT.-At certain
splendid evening party naughty young beau
ty turned to student who stood near and said
.-"Cousln John, l understand your eccentric
friend u ishere--I have great curiosity
to see him. Do bring him here and introduce
him to me-"
The student started off in pursuit of his
friend, and at length found him lounging on
sofa."
Come -" said he. "my beautiful
cousin Catherine wishes to be introduced to
YOU"
"Well, trot her out, john" drawled L.
with an affected yawn.
John returned to his cousin and advised her
to defer the introduction till more favorable
time. repeating the answer he had received
The beauty bit her lip, but the next moment
said--"Well never fear--I shall insist on being
introduced.'
After some delay, L. was led up and
the ceremony of introduction performed
Agreeably surprised by the beauty and COM
handing appearance of Catherine, L.
made profound bow, but instead of returning
it, she stepped backward, and raising her eye
glass, surveyed him from head to foot, then wa
wing the back of her hand toward him. drawled
out
''Trot him off, John, trot him off, that is
enough!'
A New OPERATE STAR.--Grsi and Mario ap-
peared for the last time but one before an
American audience at the Metropolitan Thea
tire, New York, on the Nth ult. Upon this oc-
casion new prima donna, Signorina Vestvali,
made her first appearance and achieved sig
nal triumph. The critics are unanimous and
enthusiastic in her praise. We quote sample
from the n Y. Times 1.-THE new prima donna
Signorina Vestvali, made her first appearance
in the excellent contralto role of Arsace. She
is of ajestic presence, pleasing features, and
sumptuous mould, calculated in every respect,
indeed, to make favorable impression on the
particularly the applauding part OF
impaired perfect ease to this lady's action, and
the exigencies of the contraltO voice have &C
customed her to the use of the unmentionables.
She does not, in consequence, tread the stage
with the ordinary mincing step of the last best
gift, but with stride that a trooper might en-
Wy. Signorina Vestvali possesses a pure con-
tralto of good compass and cultivation her ex-
ecutive power is great and moderately dra-
matte. In her opening scene, Signorina Vest
vail entirely won the sympathies of the au-
dience, and preserved her advantage steadily
to the duet Giorno D'Orrore with which the
opera ended. AS duet, the latter would have
been better had there been more equality in the
two voces-not quite so much cOntralto, or a
little more soprano. 1t was, however, raptur-
ously encored. Grisi and Vestvali were called
before the curtain !; a boquet plunged on to the
stage Vestvali presented it to Grisi Grisi re-
turned it to Vestvali Vestvali implied that
she really couldn't; Grisi implied that she pos
itively must audience applaudng deliriously;
solitary gentleman in private box looking as if
he would at such crisis, sell his soul for ano-
Their boquet; both ladies distractingly hand
some, and lavishing such treasures of smiles
and dimples, that the stiffest neckcloth trem-
bled with bravos!"
ASTRONOMICAL DIsCovERY.--The universally
accredited theory, that the moon is uninhabit-
ed. because she has no atmosphere, has receiy-
ed from recent discovery, a blow that will
unsettle it at least. That the moon, as far as
we have yet been able to examine her, has no
atmosphere, or at least none of sufficient densi
ty to conform to our optical laws and the de-
mands of any animal life known to us. is un-
questionable. But this can be positively af-
firmed of only one side of our satellite; for, as
will he remembered, although she revolves up-
on her axis, she constantly presents but one side
to the earth. Now. it has been discovered by
calculation, and demonstrated as geometrical
fact, that the moons center of form is eight
miles nearer to us than her center of gravity.
through which, of course her axis of revolu-
ton must pass ; or, in other words this side of
the moon as sirteen miles higher than the other.
If, therefore, we suppose that the moon has an
atmosphere such as ours. it would be of such
extreme rarity on the only side exposed to our
observation. that for optical effect and animal
life, it might as well not exist. For mountains
upon the earth, none of which are over five
miles above the level of the sea, have been as
cended to height at which life could not be
supported for any length of time, and still
mountains have stretched above the painting
traveller. What, then, must be the atmosphere
at four times such an elevation? The conclu-
sion seems inevitable, that, although the hither
side of the moon is uninhabitable for want of
an atmosphere, the remote side may be perfect
ly adapted to animal life. 1t is at least certain
that the mere want of an atmosphere percept-
ible to us, is no longer conclusive as to the un-
inhabitableness of the planet that rules the
night. We announce this discovery on the au-
thority of one of the most eminent mathemati-
clans and astronomers in the world. 1t will
soon be formally declared in a scientific quar-
ter.-Courier & Enquirsr.
1t is perhaps, not improper to add that the
discover of the above interesting fact in Sci
ence is Prof. Pierce of Harvard College-.NY.
Irid.
PETRIFIED BoDrEs-The Dayton (Ohio) EN-
pire gives an account of several bodies having
been found in state of petrifaction in an old
grave near Germantown. One of the bodies
was that of Mrs. 10y, which had been buried
twenty-four years. The shroud and all the CO.
vering on the body had disappeared, but the
body was perfect, except the rightle from the |
knee to the ankle-ioint, where the flesh appear
ed to have wasted away, and lay at the bottom
of the coffin, in substance resembling ashes
mixed with sand. The body was stone of a drab
color, with the smile on her face which she wore
when she died. Her grand-child was also ex-
humed, and found also to be stone, but not so
perfect The hair on the head was the same as